Data & Technology

Energy Awareness Leads to Energy Efficiency

Employees and building occupants can have a significant impact on utility bills and building performance. So increasing engagement and awareness should be a component of every energy efficiency and management program. It’s the key to deeper, sustainable savings. This is as true for a university campus as it is for a manufacturing facility.

Many organizations take steps to improve building efficiency by investing in projects such as lighting, and heating and cooling upgrades. But what often gets overlooked is the important role that folks who work in and visit facilities play in the consumption of electricity, water and other utilities, which can define the long-term success of energy investments.

It’s one individual, after all, who’s the difference between an over-warm-but-empty office with lights on and an office that’s dark and temperate when it’s not occupied. The aggregate effect that can have across a portfolio of facilities is substantial.

However, unlike lighting or heating, people cannot be controlled via hardware and software. (Not yet, at least).  The most well thought out energy-management strategy can be thwarted by people who unwittingly override temperature controls in an office, for example.

That’s why firms need to actively engage employees and occupants — to make them aware of energy use and efficiency efforts, and enlist their support.

Energy and Sustainability Performance on Display 

The good news is that technology can help to that particular end. For instance, companies can now visualize live utility data and related information through Schneider Electric’s Resource Advisor. The software’s new Kiosks feature helps customers boost savings by increasing awareness.

Resource Advisor Kiosks can be displayed in public areas, and are an effective way to bring people who interact with a building into the energy and sustainability conversation. Kiosks inform and empower people to make positive, efficiency-focused changes in their day-to-day activities.

Alongside helping reduce performance drift and amplify savings, organizations can use these dashboards to improve public perception, a side benefit of a strong sustainability strategy and engaged workforce. Government agencies and other institutions that have made environmental commitments have been early adopters of the technology, using Kiosks for promotional and reputational benefits, as well as an educational resource.

Interested in learning more about how building kiosks can drive greater efficiencies? Schedule a demo.