Business Energy Audit: Benchmark Your Business

Name: Business Energy UK
Telephone: +448004647677

If you're finding that your energy costs are getting a little too high, it may be time to re-evaluate your business's energy situation.

Have you considered taking an in-depth look at the energy consumption of your business premises? Performing an energy audit can highlight specific ways to cut your current usage to save energy and money.

Throughout our guide, we aim to give you a better understanding of what exactly an energy audit consists of, and how completing a professional energy audit on your company property can reduce energy wastage.

What is a business energy audit?

A business energy audit is essentially a detailed research process that reports specific ways to reduce your overall energy output.

These energy-saving opportunities can then be implemented to help reduce your company's carbon emissions and save you money by providing you with better energy deals.

There are several stages to a professional energy inspection, all of which are required to be undertaken in the correct order. This not only helps to assess the current energy consumption but also highlights the best cost-effective measures for your business.

Planning

A critical starting point when planning an energy survey is assessing the current usage. By conducting a physical investigation and taking a look around the different departments in your workplace, you can gain a better insight into areas that produce a lot of energy waste.

This lets you know exactly where energy performance needs to be improved.

Other important factors when planning a business energy audit include:

Deciding on the inspection depth level of your current energy usage,
Generating a timeline for work to be done, and
Rationalising between ideal energy use and actual energy use to create an achievable goal.

This physical assessment of your premises gives the auditor a really thorough understanding of the best energy-saving areas.

This stage in the professional energy audit also provides the opportunity for any problems or concerns to be talked about before the next stage of the process begins.

Implementing

This is the phase that calls for action to be taken. After directors, managers, and decision-makers meet and talk through the points that were revealed in the audit report during the previous stage, the techniques chosen to reduce energy consumption can come into force.

Depending on the energy management procedures and the estimated costs, this part of the energy audit process could take as little as a few weeks, to as long as a couple of months.

Whether it's contacting gas and electricity installers for equipment upgrades, or phoning new energy suppliers to set up better contracts, here at Business Energy UK we can help you to do this without any fuss.

Sustaining

Sustaining new changes to maintain energy efficiency is vital. If this final part of the process is not carried out correctly, it runs the risk of your business not operating in a cost-effective way.

To continue effective energy management, a repeat of the business energy audit process can be undertaken every five years which re-evaluates your business electricity needs.

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Different types of energy audits

Many points are taken into account during commercial energy audits. These can include basic factors such as how lighting, appliances, air conditioning and electrical equipment impact your total electricity consumption.

However, some businesses decide to have a more detailed survey that covers a larger number of factors including building characteristics, engineering analysis, and capital investment.

To put this into perspective, energy inspection can be separated into three main categories. Each one of these categories has a certain number of energy efficiency factors considered.

Benchmark Energy Audits

This is considered to be the most basic out of the three categories. It measures the energy output of your business through your electricity bills and previous expenditures. This information is then compared with similar-sized buildings.

Simply speaking, this inspection category uses data such as climate conditions and building size to contrast how energy efficient you are compared to others with similar data.

This can give you a good perspective on whether your business has a large or small carbon footprint. It also points you in the right direction of where you need to reduce energy usage.

Walkthrough Energy Audits

One of the most common ways of assessing energy efficiency, a walkthrough energy audit provides more detail than a benchmark audit.

As with the previous option, billing information and historic energy expenditure are considered along with new factors such as a physical building assessment and a breakdown of energy consumption.

This option covers the four main stages of an energy audit for an accurate investigation and implementation of energy-saving methods.

The report from a walkthrough energy inspection also usually contains a feasibility report. This provides you with a clear comparison between expected and achievable energy savings to best suit your needs.

High-detail Energy Audits

As suggested by the name of this third category, it is the most in-depth out of all three. It provides both small businesses, and larger ones alike, with a comprehensive report on their energy usage and expenditure.

This type of energy audit can provide your business with the best energy deals. It looks into data collection, equipment surveys, and engineering analysis along with all the factors in the other two categories.

What are the benefits of having energy usage audits?

There are countless benefits to having an energy usage audit for your company. Other than the fact that it can help reduce energy costs, an energy survey can:

Improve the image of your business by reducing carbon emissions
Enhance productivity within the workplace
Promote healthier competitiveness with similar business thanks to decreased energy expenditures
Reduce the number of harmful emissions released into the environment
Increase the lifespan of machinery and other workplace equipment

Don't be swayed into thinking that a business energy audit is expensive. With the cost of commercial energy going up, it may be a good time to find an affordable business electricity supplier.

What to look for during a commercial energy audit

With so much information out there, it can be confusing knowing who to trust and what to look for. Legitimate business gas and energy providers will at least look into the following:

Building

Are there any holes or leaks in the roof of the building?
Are the windows kept open during the winter months?
Is the building sufficiently insulated?
Are there any gaps in window frames?

Lighting

Are there too many lights in one specific area?
Are lights left on even when an area is not in use?
Are any lights connected to automatic sensors
Is natural sunlight effectively utilised during the day?

Cooling and heating systems

Is the average temperature ideal for everyday use?
Are there any draughts in the area?
Is there adequate air circulation?
Are filters cleaned regularly?

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you perform an energy efficiency audit yourself?

In short, yes. However, conducting your own energy audit will need extremely efficient planning and the purchase of expensive tools. It also requires an adequate understanding of how business gas and electricity works.

Trusting a professional electricity supplier company to carry out an audit can help to put your mind at ease.

Can running an audit reduce energy costs?

Yes. The reason for running business energy audits is to pinpoint ways to increase energy efficiency. This in turn reduces energy costs and saves your business money in the long run.

Is it worth paying for an energy audit?

Yes, it is. The upfront cost of an energy audit may seem like a lot, but the amount of savings it will provide you in the long term is much greater.

A survey run by the Government's Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy showed that 37% of businesses found a difference in their net cost energy savings after conducting an energy audit.

How often should you audit your energy consumption?

On average, it is recommended that you repeat your business energy audits every four to five years. This ensures you are always getting the best price by reducing your overall carbon emissions, and doing your bit to minimise the impact of climate change.

Business Energy Audit: A Guide for Business Owners