Part 3 of 3 - Series on Energy Conservation -
Once a month building owners and tenants look at their building’s power bills, accept the result of their power consumption, pay the bill, and then blame seasonal weather changes for the increase or decrease in fees. This method, albeit easy to perform, is not a best practice for energy and/or money management for that matter. Most building owners and tenants of commercial properties have no idea how inefficient their mechanical and electrical equipment are, or when and where small changes can be made to decrease energy bills and operating costs.
The truth of the matter is, measurement and verification of energy usage is one of the most important tools we can utilize to reduce operating costs and save energy. Simply put, if you don’t know that it’s broken, how can you fix it? Savvy business owners know that if you can measure it, you can manage it.
If the occupants of the building don’t know how much energy they use, how can they modify their habits for a sustained period? There is a reason why companies and other organizations use charts and graphs to report sales and manufacturing progress; it informs their team as to where they have been, what needs to be adjusted, and the overall goal of the project. Without benchmarks, those involved in the project cannot measure the results of their efforts. This technique is nothing new. It’s not difficult. We just need to use it.
To be effective operations and energy managers we must first separate the metering of utilities to establish an energy consumption baseline. Monitoring this information (gas, electricity, potable water, and hot water) can yield important data that will enable managers to actively look for trends and identify problems that would otherwise have gone unnoticed. It also provides participants in company educational programs the data needed to make sustained improvements. Not to be repetitious, but the funding for this type of project can be very reasonable. Most companies have people on staff that possess the skills necessary to monitor and quantify data obtained from energy system monitoring.
• Don’t Reinvent the Wheel •
The technology we possess can and does produce great results in reducing operating costs and energy consumption. However, in many cases there is no need to reinvent the wheel and spend large sums of money on cutting edge systems when basic education and employee involvement produce sizable results with limited to no capital expenditure. Ultimately, implementing a management plan to measure and verify the results of your efforts can produce a positive return on investment that is easy to maintain and utilize for years to come. Remember, small changes can make a big difference. A decrease of only 1% in industrial energy use would save the equivalent of about 55 million barrels of oil per year, worth about $1 billion.
To see Parts 1 and 2, check out previous issues of Architecturally Speaking