Nowadays, in any business environment, it is very important to manage energy usage, due to the impact it has on the environment as much as the financial cost. To help you keep everything under control, today in our blog we bring you 5 practical tips to use in the day to day of your business to help reduce electricity bills in a quick and easy way.
5 practical tips to reduce energy costs
1. Use energy-efficient electronic equipment:
Make sure that equipment such as computers, monitors, printers are energy efficient (A label is the most efficient).
See the table attached of consumption ranking for electronic equipment enabling you to make informed decisions when purchasing electronic devices.
2. Limit the use of electronic devices
Switch off or disconnect office equipment when not in use to reduce unnecessary energy consumption.
Generally speaking, in the long term this can save between 5% and 10% on energy bills without affecting productivity.
3. Choosing the right electricity supplier
When choosing an electricity supplier, it is important to look at the tariff rates of each one, so that you can select the one that is best suited to your business.
4. Use LED lights
LED lights are an efficient and cost saving solution, so be sure to replace incandescent lights, and compact fluorescent lights with LED.
LED lights consume 80-90% less energy than traditional incandescent bulbs, and 30-50% less than compact fluorescent bulbs.
5.- Opt for the hybrid working mode
Opting for hybrid working is an excellent option to reduce electricity costs in the office, because on days when the office is closed or with fewer people there will be a considerable reduction of electricity per day and at the same time the efficiency of the workers can be increased.
Why is it important to reduce energy consumption in office workspaces?
There are many important reasons to reduce electricity consumption in the office or workspace, the main being the following:
● Environmental impact: The excessive use of energy today is an unconscious action, it is important for companies to be responsible for their energy use and the impact it has on the environment. Less consumption of energy resources contributes to the preservation of the environment.
● Cost Reduction: Reducing the use of energy resources translates directly into significant cost savings.
● Improve business image: Reduce the carbon footprint of the office and enhance the company's reputation as a responsible and environmentally friendly organisation.
Which electronic devices in the office consume the most energy?
The devices that usually consume the most energy in an office are personal computers, printing equipment, lights and cooling appliances such as air conditioners.
Air conditioners
The energy consumption of an air conditioner depends mainly on its size, as well as the setting level used. Depending on this, the consumption of an air conditioner can generally use between 3,000 and 3,500 watts per hour, an 8-hour working day being about 28,000 watts. The cost of this per hour will depend on the utility supplier.
Heating systems
The energy consumption of a heating system depends mainly on the size of the system and the setting level used. Generally speaking we can set a range between 800 and 1400 watts per hour. The cost of this per hour will depend on the utility supplier.
Computers and IT
The power consumption of a computer depends on factors such as the type of equipment, the components used, the use of peripheral devices, the system configuration and the programs being run. On average we can establish approximately 135 to 200 watts per hour. Considering that there is more than one computer per office we could say that in a small company the consumption of these plus printers and monitors can be set at between 1,000 watts and 1,200 watts per hour. The cost of this per hour will depend on the utility supplier.
Coffee machine and fridges
The consumption of these will depend directly on consumption, for example the coffee machine will depend on how many coffees are made during the working day. On an average of 10 coffees per hour, we can establish a general average of 50 watts per hour.
On the other hand, with respect to the fridge, this will depend directly on its consumption label, making an average of the labels we can make a general range of 200 watts to 260 watts per hour.
What is the average electricity consumption of Irish offices per month?
To give you an idea of how much electricity your office should consume, here are some average consumption rates:
Office Size | Low-end usage per month (kWh) | High-end usage per month (kWh) |
Micro Business | 200 KWh | 8,000 kWh |
Small business | 500 KWh | 20,000 kWh |
Medium business | 1,500 KWh | 45,000 kWh |
Large business | 5,000 KWh | 75,000 kWh |
If your office consumes more than 45,000 kWh of electricity per year, your energy can be managed differently and can possibly be optimised. If you would like more information, call our experts or schedule a meeting with us.
Extra tips for lower electricity bills
As we have seen above, these are some practical tips for reducing your electricity consumption in the office. While they are practical, there are some more professional methods to ensure that your electricity bill is as optimal as possible each month. Here are some other professional tips to reduce the cost of electricity in your office.
Choosing the right electricity supplier to suit your needs is crucial to reduce the cost of electricity consumption. You can use the same amount of energy and reduce the cost of your bill significantly.
Performing an energy profile analysis is important to ensure that your energy use capacity is optimal for your consumption. This ensures that your energy usage is compatible with your capacity.
Micro Generation
Obtain an energy optimisation review to establish the feasibility of installing solar PV or hybrid solar battery solutions. These can be funded through PPA’s if required but the primary purpose is to establish what level of off grid generation could you produce.
Would you like more information?
We are an energy management consultancy specialising in solutions for businesses of all sizes. Contact us for more information.