Best practice really does save money
August 1st 2008 Over the last year or more, much of the energy manager's time has been taken up
with adapting to new regulations and trying to make sense of the volatility of the
world energy markets. But as the autumn sets in and energy prices remain high, the
focus needs to be firmly on achieving real efficiency savings, argues Alan Aldridge,
executive director of the Energy Services and Technology Association (ESTA)
The issue of energy supply –
both in terms of security of
supply and of price – has
been so much in the news recently
that it is easy to become caught up
in forward planning and for
attention to wander away from the
day-to-day management issues.
After all, new legislation such as the
introduction of EPCs and DECs has
compliance implications for us while
the swings in energy prices (mainly
upwards it has to be said) have
brought the urgency of prudent
(and perhaps inspired) procurement
to the forefront again.
In these cases, the energy manager
is responding to events largely
beyond his or her control: it is a
reactive role.And while this is
important, the proactive function of
wisely managing energy consumption
throughout the organisation must not
be neglected.Improving energy
efficiency will achieve real savings
over time regardless of fluctuations in
energy price.
At this year's Energy Event ESTA will
be focussing on how to deliver real
reductions in energy consumption.
On the first day,we are teaming
up with the Chartered Institution of
Building Services Engineers (CIBSE)
and looking at the real
opportunities for energy
management offered by some of
the more recent regulatory changes.
Yes, there are compliance issues but
viewed from the right angle they
also offer a powerful tool to move
the energy management agenda
forward within organisations, both
in the private sector and especially
in the public arena.
EPCs,DECs, air-conditioning
inspections – all the result of the
introduction of the Energy
Performance of Buildings Directive –
are seen by many as compliancerelated
issues. But the intention of the
European legislators who drafted the
Directive was that it should a way of
making energy performance more
widely understood,hence the A-G
coloured banding for example.We
will be looking at how the application
of energy efficiency technologies
such as automatic Monitoring &
Targeting (aM&T) and the simplified
visual depiction of energy efficiency
in the ratings can be used to cost out
site improvements and to persuade
senior managers of the case for
greater investment in energy
efficiency throughout the
organisation.
Energy management is not just
about technologies though.At its
roots, it involves a set of basic skills
and principles upon which success is
built.The ESTA programme on the
second day of the event reflects this
two-part approach.The first session
will focus on the fundamentals of
energy management and will be
aimed at newer entrants to this
increasingly important role.
In the second morning session
several ESTA members will explain in
detail how specific technologies can
supplement these fundamental
techniques and deliver energy and
cost savings.Cost-effective metering
for smaller sites will be one of these
featured technologies.The latest
enhancements to infra-red
thermography and its ability to
identify energy leakage in areas
which may be difficult to access
manually will be outlined, as will the
benefits of installing voltage
optimisation systems.
In the afternoon, a joint session
with the British Compressed Air
Society will focus on one of the main
problem areas for industry:
Compressed air leakage accounts for
large but normally unseen energy
loss – with consequences for a
company's profitability. Simple and
effective maintenance and
management procedures can reduce
and virtually eliminate these losses
though, as this session will explain.
Real savings are made through
attention to detail and the
application of best practice.There are
opportunities through enhanced
technology and through the
introduction of new practices based
on the recent legislation. In the
present climate of high and volatile
energy costs, this focussed and
detailed approach to energy
management is ever more important.
For more details of the event and
to register, visit:
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