All beneficial to the quality of life, growth can mean more jobs, revenue, and tax receipts. Growth may also present unintended consequences — a higher cost of living and increased traffic comes to mind. There also are energy challenges, especially in our area where heavy air-con use during the summer can strain electricity supplies. And compared to houses or apartments, businesses — large, medium, and little — tend to use more energy. On hot summer afternoons, energy costs can increase significantly as a result. That is why more and more are trying to find ways and learning from resources such as Easy DIY Power Plan (see the Easy DIY Power Plan Review here) to help them reduce energy consumption costs.
In California, most utilities, including community-owned SMUD, charge commercial customers different rates reckoning on the time of day. By planning their electricity use for more economical periods and reducing the number used through efficiency, businesses can save considerably on their bottom line.
Business customers reap environmental benefits for themselves and their communities, as well as realize not only lower operational costs by being more energy-efficient. Our community — because we experience extremely popular summers — can benefit significantly from a cleaner and greener approach to energy use. Reduced “upstream” power station carbon emissions are achieved by reducing peak demand on the electrical grid, which is very valuable during heat waves. When power plants run less, air quality is improved.
We know business owners are busy people. Concern about inefficient lights or air-con might not always get on the to-do list, unlike with keeping customers satisfied, managing employees, making payroll, and tackling other critical tasks. But it should be. Because energy efficiency is low-hanging fruit when it involves reducing business expenses and increasing profit.
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Low-Hanging Fruit
Thankfully, energy efficiency is commonly easy to try and do and there’s plenty of help available. working with business customers to cut back energy costs and save cash, California utilities have decades of energy efficiency experience.
Some efficiency improvements are very inexpensive and simple to urge going, while dearer upgrades are financed — with the goal of delivering net positive income when energy bill savings exceed monthly payments. Consider a number of the options:
- Switching to LED lighting, programmable thermostats, occupancy sensors that are cost-effective components
- Ensuring that schedules, economizer operation, temperature setpoints, and other programming elements are optimized and functioning as intended is part of Revisiting energy management system strategies that control building performance.
- Changing out major equipment, and upgrades to heating and cooling equipment, windows, and complex controls at existing facilities
- Designing new buildings for prime efficiency (incentives from SMUD are available for the building owner and therefore the construction design team)
- The Department of Energy’s Energy-Star program certifies a spread of efficient appliances from basic office equipment to large-scale uninterruptible power supplies for data centers
- To offset the value of efficient equipment, frequently supported with utility rebates are other commercial appliances, like food service or restaurant equipment
Efficient buildings can more easily be supported with the renewable generation or with green pricing programs is another benefit to a business becoming more energy efficient. Many utilities also offer community solar programs. A business can now predict its utility expenses as These programs provide long-term rate stability.
These benefits could also be very useful for a few businesses that require to fulfill or exceed corporate sustainability goals. They also deliver significant promotion value and also the benefits of being green.
The Energy Future is Now
Establishing carbon-neutral mandates is what some larger companies — Apple and Samsung come to mind — do, and plenty of more are expected to follow. once you consider all energy options, electricity is that the only 1 which will potentially deliver the goblet of being carbon-neutral. Renewable solar and alternative energy utilized in utility green pricing programs or community solar leads to electricity that’s carbon-free for the top user.
Commencing to target the “electrification” of transportation, heating, and cooling technologies are Utilities and regulatory agencies. Developers get pleasure from electrification because going all-electric is a lovely option from a sustainability perspective and should be appealing to a customer segment, providing a singular market offering. With the saved money helping to buy other upgrades like solar photovoltaic rooftop systems, gas infrastructure costs are reduced as well.
Everything said, when it involves businesses using energy, it’s not the identical old spreadsheet. We urge business owners to require advantage of the numerous offerings out there within the sort of advice, measures, rebates, incentives, financing, and unique programs which will save businesses money and go a protracted way in protecting our surroundings, both locally and globally.