David Lloyd, head of connected buildings at Johnson Controls, discusses solutions that business leaders can consider when looking to cut energy costs this January.
“With the current freeze on energy prices for UK businesses set to expire at the end of March, organisations are going to face a challenging start to the year. The current scheme, set to replace the previously fixed price of energy bills, will be replaced with a discount on wholesale prices. In the aftermath of this announcement, business leaders will be left to their own devices to manage energy costs, which could see many struggle to stay afloat. It’s now about rallying to get to grips with what, when and why their buildings are spending on energy to save on costs. For example, what equipment is using energy? What time it is turning on? Where is it turning on? Businesses just can’t afford to keep the lights on when they are not needed.
“The only way to accurately measure energy usage at scale and quickly is to use an energy management platform. Users and owners alike need to gather the data and analytics on every major piece of building equipment. Organisations can then set a baseline to constantly review so they can improve the energy performance of the site. From there, they can then start to introduce smarter energy-saving technologies. Luckily, solutions already exist that are relatively quick to implement, such as a data platform. Unlike replacing operational technology or introducing renewables – that is time-consuming and expensive – energy performance financing against a guaranteed ROI is readily available and easy to introduce into a building.
“The biggest concern for all businesses now is wasted energy usage amid rising prices and a reduction in government help. With rising charges and continual changes in government legislation, businesses must look to technology for a better, brighter way of managing utilities.
