With new environmental legislation, increasing energy prices and the need to meet environmental objectives, more and more businesses are recognising the need for effective energy management across their building portfolios. The economic downturn has only added to the pressure as companies cut capex budgets and look to reduce overheads across their businesses.

 

Financial Control and Savings – by outsourcing the energy management function, businesses can not only reduce operating expense, but also outsource some of the risk by benefiting from guaranteed savings and budget certainty.

 

Continued Investment – during times of economic downturn many companies are forced to cut or delay proposed expenditure if it is not business critical investment. Working closely with an energy management partner like GSH, companies can maintain levels of investment as part of an ongoing partnership to drive efficiencies and operational performance.

 

Maintenance of Service Levels – the biggest problem with cost reductions is the potential impact on service levels. If equipment and resources are not working at optimum levels businesses face losing money or affecting the levels of service they provide to their own customers.

 

Eliminate Waste – when businesses first look at energy management, it is not uncommon for 5-10 per cent savings to be made just by optimising a building or network of sites. This process ensures that a building is operating at the correct levels of efficiency with lighting, air conditioning and heating which are all areas where savings can usually be made.

 

Optimisation of Mechanical Equipment – by conducting a thorough review of sites it is possible to identify areas of improvement and the condition of equipment can be monitored, with old or obsolete equipment replaced or removed.

 

Engage Stakeholders – by educating stakeholders across a business significant savings can be achieved as a result of energy awareness.

 

Lighting - this deserves a special mention as it typically makes up between 30 per cent and 40 per cent of a commercial property’s energy usage.
 

Just switching from old technology to new can have a significant impact with immediate savings of up to 20 per cent, but this can rise to as much as 80 per cent. For example, one of our customers invested £800,000 on a lighting project with us that included switching the high-bay fittings from T12 to a T5 alternative. This company was able to achieve payback within 20 months and now benefits from an 80 per cent energy saving on lighting costs.

 

Conclusion 

 

GSH’s energy management solutions give organisations the opportunity to monitor, analyse and manage usage levels to achieve significant operating efficiencies.