There are many ways to set about identifying savings opportunities and improving energy and carbon emissions performance. These include:
- An energy survey - physical inspection and measurements to identify savings.
- Employee focused activates - campaigns to increase awareness and involvement.
- Organisational considerations - establishing an energy policy, assigning responsibility and specialist training.
Energy Monitoring & Targeting is an approach to energy management based on information. It builds on the "you can’t manage what you don’t measure" principle. The principles and techniques apply to single or multi-site operations.
The purpose of monitoring and targeting (M&T) is to relate your energy consumption data to the production/ performance figures, weather or other measures in such a way that you get a better understanding of how energy is being used. In particular, it will identify if there are signs of avoidable waste or other opportunities to reduce consumption.
Data collection may be manual, automated, or a mixture of the two. Once an M&T scheme has been set up, its routine operation should be neither time consuming nor complex. An M&T scheme will provide essential underpinning for energy management activities.
M&T can be approached from two perspectives:
- Routine M&T (weekly/monthly cycle) this is relatively straightforward and uses high level metrics (or comparison figures) for assessment.
- The other perspective is specific detailed target setting and diagnosis, an aspect that will appeal to organisations who wish to analyse data in more depth. An appreciation of the physical principles behind the use of the energy consuming plant is needed.
Square One Utilities has engineering staff that specialise in energy, temperature and flow measurement. We are able to advise on suitable building or plant performance metrics, measurement and analytical techniques.