Running a successful business can be capital-intensive. As a result, many business owners find efficient ways to save costs. According to statistics, businesses spend nearly 45% of their income annually on energy alone, indicating a significant area that can financially impact your business if you don’t manage it well. Making simple improvements to how your organisation utilises energy means substantial savings, enabling you to channel it into your most pressing business needs. Here are some practical energy-saving tips if you’re wondering where to start.
Create an energy management team
Forming a team dedicated to helping your business conserve energy is a great way to reduce the cost of your energy expenditure. Alternatively, consider selecting a member from each department to act as an energy-saving champion to create awareness among staff and monitor energy usage among their team. Doing this will help complement your efforts to make your staff more energy-conscious till it becomes a habit for them.
Improve your equipment
Keeping your equipment in good condition is crucial to becoming more energy efficient. Regularly inspect your equipment to ensure everything is running smoothly and efficiently. Additionally, prioritise regular maintenance to keep your equipment functioning as required. Create a schedule for examining and servicing all your equipment, not just the critical ones. If some of your equipment has become old, it’s best to replace them. If it’s not within your business budget, you don’t have to replace all equipment at once. You can do it gradually, starting with the most essential.
Cut back on artificial lights
Natural lighting is a great way to conserve energy for your business. Aside from increasing the lighting in your work environment, it can also work wonders for your staff’s mood and add a fresh touch to your ambience. Remember to keep your windows and skylights clean to allow as much natural light as possible. Consider adding presence and daylight sensors to automatically turn on and off the lights at night when it gets dark.
Turn off all office equipment when not in use
Leaving devices and equipment on when they are not in use consumes significant energy and makes a huge dent in your finances. You can save your business a substantial amount of money by turning off all devices and equipment after hours and turning on standby functions. You could also install seven-day timers to ensure that devices like printers, copiers, and water refrigeration systems are turned off at night and on weekends. While considering this, don’t forget other aspects such as equipment motors. Since motors are concealed beneath machinery, they are frequently overlooked and left running while not in use. You can reduce energy use by shutting off motors during breaks or work changes. To generate further savings, you can regulate motors operating pumps and fans with variable-speed drives.
Hire a specialist from the energy sector to do an energy audit of your workplace.
Several utility companies provide a free energy consulting service to ensure you are utilising energy effectively. Energy industry consultants help companies understand their energy usage and advise how they might alter this. You can consult them and ask if they can suggest ways to reduce energy consumption. Knowledge of environmental issues and sustainable sources of energy will guide you in the choices you make for your business.