Energy efficiency for other businesses

• Avoid opening doors and windows when the heating is on, because the thermostat will sense a change in temperature and fire more heat.
• Obtain feedback from staff – encourage them to report draughts, or if they are too cold or too hot. This will minimise the amount of people who use additional small heaters or open windows to regulate the temperature.
• Make sure furniture doesn’t obstruct radiators and fans as the space won’t heat evenly.
• Reducing the temperature by 1°C can save enough energy to print over 40 million sheets of A4 paper.

MYTH: Turning the thermostat to maximum warms up a place faster. TRUTH: No, it just overheats.

• If you overheat through overusing lighting and other equipment, the ventilation has to work harder in turn to maintain the temperature, which uses more energy.
• Take advantage of natural ventilation and free cooling with doors and windows and halve costs. Make sure you don’t do it in such a way that it poses a risk to your business or staff.
• Align cooling times with working hours and occupancy, so you don’t overcool or overheat out of hours. A temperature reduction of 10°C is sufficient during the night for most buildings.
• Decide on an outdoor temperature range (for example between 19-24°C) when neither heating nor cooling will be turned on.

MYTH: Leaving air conditioning on overnight reduces energy costs as the system stays at the required temperature. TRUTH: It only needs a fraction and the temperature naturally cools during the night anyway.

• Encourage all staff to turn off equipment at the end of the day. This saves energy costs, but also lowers cooling costs and extends the lifespan of the equipment. A single computer left on 24 hours a day costs £45 per year. With turn off and standby features enabled you could reduce it to £10.
• Place heat-emitting equipment like printers in a cooler area of the office (e.g. north side of the building) with good ventilation. Clean parts and maintain regularly for optimum efficiency.
• Using less paper leads to a more efficient workspace, less printing, less storage and less damage to the environment (through overuse of natural resources and incorrect recycling).

• Use simple light switch stickers so everyone feels confident that they are turning off the right light! The Carbon Trust website also has printable posters and labels you can use.
• Keep windows, skylights and light fittings clean to let through as much natural light as possible.

If you provide catering facilities to your staff, raising awareness of energy efficiency measures could reduce bills by 25%. Advise catering colleagues to:

• Not switch on appliances too soon
• Avoid using kitchen equipment to warm the space
• Switch off cooking appliances immediately after use
• Avoid overfilling saucepans and kettles
• Use lids, keep refrigeration unit doors closed and defrost regularly
• Switch off lights and extraction fans when not in use
• Make sure refrigeration units are well ventilated and not placed against the wall

• Turning the heating down by 2°C could save you £140 on a £1,000 bill, so make sure to do so where reasonable.
• Clean and replace filters with the recommended regularity from the manufacturer.
• Make sure you get boilers serviced as it could save up to 10% on costs.
• Ensure you review the performance of your ventilation and air circulation systems. If you’re not getting the desired results, there might be a fault with certain parts that you could easily replace. A system that is well maintained every year could lead to a 60% increase in efficiency.

• Consider installing plug-in timers which you can find for under £10 online or in a DIY store. You can use them to automatically cut the power at outlet outside of working hours. Make your staff aware in case they are working late.
• When buying new equipment, account for energy efficiency ratings and not just the initial cost. Buy equipment rated at least A+.

DID YOU KNOW? Laptops are more energy efficient than desktop computers and allow your staff to be more mobile. For example, they could take notes or share presentations on a laptop rather than use the printer when they go into a meeting or work remotely (if possible) which leads to a lower carbon footprint.

• If you can insert a 1p coin on its side between a window or door and its frame, fit draught strips.

• Use timers to match working hours and/or occupancy of the space to automate the process so you don’t have to rely on others.
• Occupancy sensors in toilets or lesser used areas save 30% to 50% on lighting costs, while daylight sensors turn lights off when there is enough daylight.
• Install sensors that dim the light rather than switching it off completely.
• Replace conventional bulbs with CFL (Compact fluorescent lightbulbs) – they last 8x longer and use 80% less. What’s more, LEDs could give you 30,000-50,000 hours of use.

• Insulate to minimise heat loss. You could get a payback in the first few months by insulating pipes, boilers and tanks.
• Upgrade your heating controls. For example, use a compensator which works based on external weather to regulate the temperature. Or use an optimum start controller which optimises heating based on the time it takes to reach desired temperature. These two devices could give you a return on investment in about two years.
• Create zoned areas with different thermostats and different default settings.

• Heat loss in a building occurs 9% through walls, 8% through floor, 22% through roof, 26% through windows, 35% through ventilation and air circulation. Investing in better insulation can lower these costs, as well as increase the value of the buildings.
• Did you know that insulating pipework can reduce energy losses by 70%?
• Improve window glazing. The most efficient is triple glazing, or you can also coat windows for insulation.

• Buy energy rated A+ equipment, preferably with built-in sensors that automatically switch off when not in use.
• Consider heat recovery from the kitchen if feasible to be used for heating water.