As a property manager, you know there’s a balance to strike in spending for your facility. Both big-ticket purchases and everyday items of necessity require considerations of quality versus quantity. Properties are expensive to maintain and can quickly take from your bottom line, so in some cases, it really isn’t necessary to buy top of the line equipment when mid-grade machines will do just as well with the right attention to preventative maintenance. However, energy-saving investments are one area of facility maintenance and management that’s worth the higher upfront cost. Check out
Property managers, listen to these energy-saving facts! Your budget will thank you: Click To TweetAre you considering the implementation of energy output control? Enjoy our energy efficiency facts that can save you in the long run:
Explore Equipment Options
No matter how attentive you are to the health of your equipment, eventually the time comes for replacements. Replacing equipment typically requires research and even consulting your team and fellow managers. This is one of the most obvious areas to choose energy-saving options, as most building owners are opting for these over standard models.
There are many reasons for this. First, standard equipment might have a lower upfront cost but sinks those savings during the life of the equipment. Energy-efficient options are larger investments, but use anywhere from 20-30% less energy and may have reduced maintenance.
Energy use in buildings accounts for about two-thirds of greenhouse gas emissions, so it’s beneficial for everyone to cut waste. Additionally, there are incentives for increasing the energy-efficiency of your facility that will add to the savings.
[Are you ready to stop wasting money on big energy costs? Watch our video: 10 Essential Energy Cost Saving Tips to reduce the amount of energy you lose.]
Get to Know Your Energy-Usage
If you don’t already have a baseline energy consumption outline for your facility, you are leaving yourself open to more than just higher bills. Organized preventative maintenance programs with calculated power consumption, pressure, airflow, and temperature both keep your machinery running at peak performance and create alarms for potential problems. If anything is amiss, your baseline numbers will serve as an indicator of change.
Use a logbook of observations to track larger patterns. Measuring common adjustments and their relations to seasons, weather and other external factors can help your team better predict energy consumption and spending. The more knowledge you have on these factors, the better you can manage your facility’s energy use. Plus, you will be able to make more informed decisions about equipment and machine purchases.
Spending to save? When it comes to being more #energy efficient, it might just pay to spend. Click To TweetInvest in Retro-Commissioning
Your building undergoes constant changes and adjustments. Just like a car needs tune-ups, your facility should receive regular assessments to be sure everything is working as intended. Elements as simple as increased or decreased occupant numbers can affect energy efficiency. Retro-commissioning is the process of assessing building systems and processes to ensure HVAC systems are performing according to design and are optimized for how the building is used.
After a brief audit, retro-commissioning technicians can provide low-cost operational enhancements to increase your efficiency and save on energy expenses. In fact, the US Department of Energy and the EPA found that typically these enhancements lead to a 10-20% whole-building energy savings and that these efforts pay for themselves in a little over a year.
Not sure if you would benefit from retro-commissioning? Watch for these signs:
- Increased or inconsistent utility bills
- Recent building layout, occupant or use changes
- Drafts, noisy ducts or hot/cold temperatures (especially out of season)
- Frequent thermostat changes
- Occupants using space heaters and fans
When it comes to increasing your energy efficiency, spending a bit more now can mean savings in the long run. If you aren’t sure how to navigate creating a more energy-efficient strategy for your facility, contact us today! From our expansive knowledge, we have many energy efficiency facts to share with you. We’re confident that we will help you build a plan for future savings.
