More than half of all irish companies have taken action to improve their energy efficiency
Media Release
27th January 2011
Over half of all Irish companies have taken action to improve their energy efficiency in the last three years and only one third of these actions have involved a capital spend, according to a new survey from the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI). Details of the survey announced today, 27th January 2011, revealed that reducing energy costs is a key priority for Irish business and where energy efficiency initiatives were implemented, most businesses achieved average energy cost savings of 12%.
The survey of 1,000 large, medium and small businesses across the country also showed that over 45% of medium and large companies now have a dedicated employee or group of employees managing energy consumption and running initiatives in businesses to increase energy efficiency. This demonstrates the rise in energy awareness amongst business in recent years and the potential for employment in this area as more companies invest in dedicated resources for energy management.
According to Brian Motherway, Chief Operations Officer of SEAI: “Energy costs are a common concern for all businesses across the country but there is now an increasing awareness of the significant savings to be achieved from taking simple steps to tackle energy use. More businesses are actively seeking to reduce their energy costs. Businesses participating in our programmes have reduced their costs by an average of 10%-20%. However, it is also evident that many companies are not taking the necessary action despite the opportunity for economic gains. A further €300 million of energy savings can be achieved if all of Ireland’s small to medium sized enterprises start to better manage their energy use.”
SEAI through their small business assessment service have supported over 2,000 businesses in the last three years. Companies can apply for a free energy assessment to review their energy use and a specialist energy advisor is appointed to help them assess their energy use and identify opportunities for savings. Experience shows that there are always savings opportunities, often at little or no investment required.
For example, a shopping centre management company in Tuam reduced its energy use by almost 30% after installing timers and controls for their heating systems, upgrading their lighting system and installing power factor correction equipment. A golf club in Kildare saved over 10% on its energy costs in just three months of contacting SEAI by making adjustments to its heating system and installing lighting controls and sensors. Savings of almost 18% were achieved by a children’s montessori in Galway where they changed to a more competitive electricity tariff, ran an energy awareness programme for staff and upgraded their lights.
For more information visit www.seai.ie/business.
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About SEAI:
The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) has a mission to play a leading role in transforming Ireland into a society based on sustainable energy structures, technologies and practices. The Authority is financed by Ireland’s EU Structural Funds Programme co-funded by the Irish Government and the European Union.
Case Studies - Energy savings achieved:
Tuam Shopping Centre
Reducing costs through increased energy efficiency is a key priority for Tuam Shopping Centre and the centre has reduced their costs by 27% in the last year alone. Over the last two years, it invested in power factor correction equipment, lighting control upgrades and installed timers on all undersink water heaters. It appointed an energy champion and conducted energy awareness training for all its employees. It is currently developing an energy performance indicator with other car park facilities and considering the introduction of photovoltaic lighting for the top floor car parking space.
Thomand Park, Limerick
The Operations Manager undertook a review of the stadium’s energy use when energy bills seemed excessively high. By monitoring and metering gas and electricity usage the stadium was able to identify high usage areas. The manager adopted a Switch OFF policy for electrical equipment and installed lighting and heating controls. Within two years of taking action the stadium was using only one third of the energy it had been using.
Children’s Republic Montessori, Galway
By following mainly zero- to low-cost energy initiatives, the montessori saved up to 18% on energy costs in one year. This resulted from following an energy management systems approach, carrying out awareness training , installing lighting upgrades and moving to a more competitive electricity tariff.
Dublin International Youth Hostel
Almost 20% in energy savings were achieved by simple behavioural changes such as ensuring windows were shut to conserve heat, moving the laundry to night-time rates and using automatic power save for IT equipment when not in use.
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