Energy Efficiency for Businesses: An Overview of Best Practices to Help Reduce Energy Costs

Transcription

1 Energy Efficiency for Businesses: An Overview of Best Practices to Help Reduce Energy Costs Presented by: Paul Spiegel, Practical Energy Solutions Courtney Lane, PennFuture

2 Commercial Building Energy Use Source: Energy Information Administration, 2003 Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey

3 Commercial Building Energy Use

4 Why Improve Energy Efficiency in Your Building? Energy is a significant operating expense largest operating expense for commercial office buildings second highest for school budgets - next to salaries and benefits Rate caps ending PPL:2010 PECO and Met-Ed:2011 Reinvest your savings into facility improvements or apply them directly to your bottom line Property owners that increase efficiency help keep current tenants and attract new ones Green branding: more customers are demanding Carbon markets: future source of revenue

5 Efficiency vs. Conservation The terms efficiency and conservation are often used interchangeably, and they are very different concepts Hummer vs. Prius example Often the most efficient equipment is still wasteful Businesses should implement conservation strategies first, and then examine capital projects that will increase efficiency

6 Building Operations Who is managing operations, and how? How do managers obtain information on tenant needs, hours of operation, when equipment is turned on? Limitations on management of energy use: Time Tools to generate information Expertise to analyze information Time spent in daily or weekly management of operations can more than pay for itself in energy savings

7 Case Studies - Setbacks

8 Case Studies Outside Air

9 Case Studies VAV Fan Operation

10 Case Studies - Lights

11 Capital Investments Lighting Building Envelope Office Equipment Upgrades Heating and Air Conditioning

12 Lighting Most facilities are over lit for their needs First look at installing occupancy sensors Occupancy sensors are perfect for common areas that include restrooms, conference rooms, and supply and copier areas Type of Space Range of energy savings from sensors (%) Private office Open-plan office Classroom Conference room Corridors Storage areas, closets (Source: E Source)

13 Lighting Lighting retrofits are the most cost-effective capital improvement with the shortest payback period usually 5 years or less. Replacing T12 lights and magnetic ballasts to T8 lights and electronic ballasts can save 10-15% per year. Retrofit inefficient lighting fixtures with compact fluorescents save 1-5%. Don t forget about exit signs Switching out one incandescent exit sign with LED-based signage can save $24 a year.

14 Building Envelope Insulation: walls, floor, and ceiling or roof Heat moves through each of these elements, into the building in the summer and out of it in the winter. Window replacements Infrared scan can easily show leaks

15 Office Equipment Upgrades According to the U.S. Department of Energy, office equipment makes up about 16% of an office's energy use. The ENERGY STAR label guarantees equipment is highly energy efficient and kinder to the environment. Choosing ENERGY STAR products when replacing old models, will reduce energy costs to power each item by 15% to 30%. Look for equipment that also enables you to better manage energy usage

16 Heating and Air Conditioning HVAC (heating, ventilating, and airconditioning) accounts for 40% to 60% of the energy used in U.S. commercial and residential buildings Duct sealing: 10 to 20 percent of the air from an HVAC supply fan is wasted through leaks in commercial buildings Proper sizing and set up Commissioning every 3-5 years

17 Funding Options Guaranteed Energy Savings Agreement/Performance Contracting ESCO finances a project Business pays back a monthly amount based on guaranteed savings (10-15 years) Shared Savings Agreement Consultant bears most of the risk

18 Beginning Your Energy Savings Initiative Walk through/energy audit by consultant Create a baseline, analysis of energy bills Examine operations for conservation opportunities Equipment Look at fastest payback investments first Look at your budget what can you set aside for your energy savings initiative Emissions Track your energy savings compared to your baseline to claim any carbon reduction credits

19 For More Information: Paul D. Spiegel, P.E., LEED AP Practical Energy Solutions 770 E. Market Street, Suite 250 West Chester, PA Phone: Courtney Lane Citizens for Pennsylvania's Future (PennFuture) Center for Energy, Enterprise and the Environment 212 West Gay Street West Chester, PA Phone: