Energy managers in industrial and commercial (I&C) settings have a critical role to play in greening Britain’s economy.
The good news is that the enabling technologies that can transform energy efficiency in buildings already exist. This matters because the government aim is to reduce emissions in the UK by 2030 by at least 68% compared to 1990 levels. Indeed, the goal is to achieve a 78% reduction by 2035, but achieving this will require a transformation of building energy efficiency, particularly in the I&C sector.
In this context, metering, monitoring and data analytics have never been more important. In short, data is now the measure of sustainability.
Industrial and commercial metering and data specialists, Energy Assets, is working closely with Energy Managers to turn half-hourly gas and electricity data delivered automatically by advanced meters into benchmarks measuring energy efficiency.
“The availability of monitoring and reporting portals coupled with innovations in machine learning is helping managers to cut through huge swathes of data to bring greater clarity than ever before to decision-making around energy and sustainability,” said Stewart Love, Group Commercial Director at Energy Assets.
“With new and evolving digital tools in their armoury, organisations are able to bear down on energy consumption, to shape their efficiency strategies and to contribute to the nation’s wider sustainability challenges on the journey to Net Zero.
“This will be increasingly important as businesses adapt to a future characterised by greater electrification, the integration of renewables and innovations in demand response.”
Energy Assets has developed an end-to-end suite of services to help organisations sharpen their focus on saving energy, including advanced metering, an aM&T dashboard – WebAnalyser – and an AI-informed machine learning service that progressively learns what optimal energy performance looks like – AMR DNA.
“Even now, it’s still surprising how many businesses look upon energy consumption as a fixed overhead, but with the insights available through metering and monitoring systems, managers can actively develop robust and long-term energy management practices…and save money,” said Stewart.
“For example, according to the Department for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), companies with a progressive aM&T regime can achieve average energy savings of 10-15% over non-monitored estates.”
WebAnalyser integrates data from gas, water and electricity meters to give clarity over consumption profiles. This platform includes the ability to set alarms to flag deviation from defined consumption parameters, and to rank and compare site efficiency and carbon performance vs benchmarks over defined periods. It is also possible to track the impact of renewables on energy costs and carbon emissions and filter building reporting by footprint area.
Energy Assets believes that one area often overlooked in energy optimisation strategies is sub-metering.
Said Stewart: “Whether it’s electricity or water, sub-metering can be an incredibly valuable way of understanding utilities consumption…and saving money.
“For larger single site operations – such as offices, industrial plants or hospitals – sub-metering provides the ability to monitor energy usage by floorplate or function. It also enables the collection of data linked to carbon reduction obligations and the Energy Savings Opportunities Scheme.
“In multi-occupancy settings, such as retail centres, service stations or transport hubs, sub-metering enables businesses to monitor their energy usage more accurately – and make positive changes – rather than being charged on a broader measure such as footprint.”
Having all this data available, whether through fiscal meters or sub-metering, offers exciting opportunities to leverage the power of machine learning.
For example, through its data analytics service – AMR DNA – Energy Assets is helping companies analyse reams of consumption data using machine learning informed by artificial intelligence.
AMR DNA uses this data to develop energy consumption profiles and, as the dataset grows, the system can spot tell-tale ‘fingerprints’ of energy waste – such as heating or cooling controls incorrectly set – and then provide a checklist of priority actions to drive up efficiency and reduce energy costs.
All the while, using meter data, the system progressively learns what optimal performance looks like, taking account of variables such as weather information and consumption on comparative sites. This enables AMR DNA to spot patterns outside the expected norm – and once learned, it continues to analyse half hourly data progressively to provide checklists of opportunities for enhanced efficiency.
“In short, machine learning does the heavy lifting for energy managers when it comes to making sense of data,” said Stewart. “The software will free up staff time and enable skilled professionals to get on with managing energy performance rather than poring over data, thereby opening up more opportunities for cost savings and carbon reduction.”
Indeed, carbon reduction is increasingly a focus for Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance strategies as organisations align themselves with the roadmap to Net Zero. This means that management teams will be watching how their energy performance compares with similar organisations and mindful of the opportunities for better carbon performance enabled by innovation.
Energy Assets provides utility suppliers, third party intermediaries, developers, contractors, and industrial and commercial end-users with a broad spectrum of expert multi-utility metering and energy-related services. This includes enabling customers to collect, monitor and analyse energy consumption data.