Whether to gain in competitiveness or to meet the challenges of energy transition, industrial or tertiary players have every interest in relying on an optimized Energy Management system.
What is Energy Management?
Energy Management, or Energy Management, is an approach that is part of the concrete actions that a company can put in place to carry out an energy efficiency project.
This approach calls for expertise related to data management and a set of business expertise in energy control applied to buildings. It is this synergy between the two professions, coupled with a powerful tool for managing energy consumption, which forms Energy Management.
No regulation obliges companies to initiate this type of approach: Energy Management is a voluntary and proactive approach by organisations. Only organizations subject to the Tertiary Eco Energy Decree (also called Tertiary Decree, which stems from a European directive) will be obliged to reduce their energy consumption with an objective of 2030, 2040 and 2050. However, all companies are concerned by the Energy Management.
The 3 key steps to start an Energy Management process
Any Energy Management approach is based above all on rigorous data management. The first step is therefore to collect it correctly via several sources, from the most accessible to the most complex. To collect more precise data, it is necessary to systematize the instrumentation of the collection so as to have a finer and more faithful vision of the operation of the building, but also to identify the most energy-intensive consumption items.
For an effective and relevant analysis, influencing factors, also called usage intensity factors, should not be overlooked when collecting activity data. This consists of taking into account all the data that influences the activity of the company: the weather, opening hours, the level of production, the occupation of the sites, etc. Consumption monitoring in relation to influencing factors thus makes it possible to quickly identify energy drifts (energy-intensive light production, water leaks, poor thermal insulation, etc.).
The second key step is to process the data. Energy management software, also called EMS for Energy Management Software, allows the processing and provision of the information collected. The company can thus set up dashboards for monitoring KPIs on its assets, but also alerts. Beyond data processing, EMS makes anomalies visible, enables their causes to be analyzed and facilitates the planning of energy performance tasks and actions.
Once the data has been collected, centralized, made reliable and made visible, it is necessary to exploit, analyze and enhance it. This is the role of the Energy Manager. The expert uses the tool to carry out analyzes and advise the client on the actions to be taken to achieve their energy consumption reduction objectives. It is only really during the analysis phase that the first savings are generated and the client begins to see a return on investment.
A continuous improvement cycle is thus set up within the customer's organization in order to perpetuate the energy performance actions implemented and thus constantly find optimization levers.
Reconcile reduction of the energy bill and acceleration of the company's decarbonization
Energy Management approaches have a material, software and human cost.
They require the installation of intelligent equipment (BMS, metering plan, etc.) allowing the collection of data, the use of management software to centralize and measure the consumption profile of the company, as well as the available to an Energy Manager to use the data collected.
What interest then for a company to embark on the adventure?
First, Energy Management is a very strong lever for savings. Combined with Technical Building Management, Energy Management enables:
- to optimize energy expenditure as much as possible,
- to implement concrete actions that lead to real financial savings,
- and therefore the company to gain in competitiveness.
On average, deploying an energy management approach makes it possible to achieve 5% energy savings, these savings being able to reach 15% in the context of a dilapidated building and not using BMS.
The implementation of an Energy Management system also responds to environmental concerns. Businesses are under double pressure to reduce their energy footprint. On the one hand, companies are subject to new regulatory obligations in terms of greenhouse gas emissions and decarbonization. On the other hand, consumers increasingly take environmental issues into account when making purchasing decisions and value eco-responsible companies.
Having a global vision of the energy consumption of your activity allows you to monitor your environmental footprint and follow a precise energy trajectory. Thus, the company reduces its energy footprint while strengthening its CSR commitments.
These commitments can be shared via reports, external communications and dashboards distributed internally with an estimate of the energy savings achieved.
Today, Energy Management is aimed at local authorities, SMEs and large groups, regardless of business sector. In reality, everything lies in the ability of organizations to unite, around a clear ambition, all the stakeholders with the aim of acting in the same direction. We must not neglect the contribution of external support, which may be committed to contractual objectives. It is high time to make concrete and strong commitments, commensurate with the challenge to be met.
Tribune by Christophe Constant, Managing Director of Helexia France (LinkedIn).