Have you heard the term “stray energy”? It refers to all the energy that’s wasted in your building due to incorrect settings and equipment not operating under optimum conditions. Some examples include:
- Someone adjusts a thermostat for a specific event and then forgets to reset it afterwards.
- Broken sensors that cause fans or pumps to run when not needed.
- Undetected problems with automated building management software that cause systems to run incorrectly, such as at night.
Each one of these things may not cost much, but when you add up all the little “strays” that go unnoticed for weeks or months, you’ll find that your energy bills can be reduced significantly.
Earlier this year, an organization called the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) published a report called Real Time Energy Management that provides compelling evidence of the money you could save by monitoring your energy usage and implementing operational improvements to reduce waste. The report examines an energy management initiative undertaken by three large office buildings in Washington, DC, and the strategies they used to achieve a 13% reduction in electricity use, with a net savings of $74,000 in the first year alone. Since these buildings had high Energy Star scores to begin with, it’s likely that even bigger savings can be achieved by more typical facilities.
Best practices to stay in control of your energy usage:
In the case study reported by NRDC, a professional services company assessed each building’s energy consumption, developed and helped implement an improvement plan, continuously monitored energy use, and regularly reviewed progress with the building managers. Using a professional services firm is a big help if that’s in your budget, but even if it’s not, you can take advantage of the same strategies to find out where your building is “straying” and using more energy than needed.
- Regular auditing of controls. Keep a careful eye on thermostats and other controls to be sure the settings are kept at recommended levels. Keep your “deadband” setting at 4 degrees; that means your HVAC system would cool the building to a set temperature, say 72 degrees, then would remain off until the building reaches 76 degrees. This reduces the time the air conditioner runs while still keeping the building comfortable.
- Monitoring of system settings. If you’re lucky enough to have the help of an outside firm, your settings can be remotely monitored, with notifications when conditions are off. However, you can achieve the same monitoring with your building management system. Implement alarms when system conditions are outside the defined parameters, including messages sent to appropriate staff members who need to take action. Also include escalation procedures if a situation is not addressed.
- Strong leadership and communication. Regularly checking in with your engineers and maintenance staff about progress keeps everyone accountable and goes a long way toward realizing those cost savings.
- Build a relationship with experts. Your maintenance staff may not necessarily have the expertise to understand how to control system settings for maximum energy savings, or the time to make changes quickly when a problem is discovered. Even if you can’t hire a professional energy management company, your certified HVAC service company may be able to help. A service provider that’s knowledgeable about energy efficiency and experienced using facility management software tools can assist with making changes to system settings.
How much could you be losing?
Here’s one small example of how the energy monitoring strategies reported by NRDC saved so much money during the project in Washington, DC. Through their monitoring, the professional services team noticed that both of one building’s air conditioning chillers were repeatedly cycling on and off. An investigation revealed a faulty control that was signaling the chillers to turn on while the building management system was turning them off. Without the monitoring system in place, this problem would likely have remained undetected for months, resulting in wasted energy, increased wear on the system, and possible disruption to building occupants when the equipment failed.
Doesn’t it make you wonder how much money you’re throwing away in wasted energy? Not to mention the cost of repairs that could have been prevented, and the cost of lost business and reduced productivity when your system is down.
If you’re considering transitioning to an HVAC contractor in NYC to save energy and lower costs, download a copy of our free white paper, Contract Confidence: Transitioning to a New HVAC Service Provider, and start making better use of your building management tools to monitor and control HVAC settings.
