How to Get (and Use) Building & Office Energy Data
Thursday, 16th June 2022
Studies show that the built environment is responsible for about 40% of the UK’s total energy consumption. Yet it’s estimated that 30% of energy used in a commercial building is wasted due to inefficiencies. For the environment at large, energy efficiencies come at a huge cost. And for businesses, surging energy prices are having a real impact too.
That’s why it’s time businesses made an effort to access their building energy data and to put it to use—for both the environment and their bottom line. The real value lies in analyzing the total floor space, tenant spaces, shared spaces, number of devices and areas. Doing so reveals how much energy your buildings use, but also how that energy is used and where it goes to waste.
For example, businesses typically use 40% of their energy on heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC)—and the majority of their electricity goes on lighting. Considering the massive proportions these building systems contribute to your energy bills, you’ll really want to know where you can make efficiencies.
At Infogrid, we can help make collecting this data easy. But first, let’s take a look at why getting clarity on your building energy data is so important.
Why building energy data matters so much
Ensuring visibility on your building energy use and energy performance has an impact on your ESG performance, the environment, and your bottom line. Here’s why:
Improve your energy efficiency. So much energy is wasted by commercial buildings—and that comes at a cost to the environment and your business growth. But by tracking concrete information on energy usage, you’ll be better able to put steps in place to drive efficiencies.
In fact, according to one study, by using smart building technologies such as Infogrid, you can reduce your energy use on HVAC and lighting by as much as 50%.
Reduce energy costs. Wasted energy isn’t a free resource. Rather, it’s likely a big brake on your bottom line—particularly in a context of spiralling energy costs. Energy usage data can show you where you can make energy savings and boost business growth.
For example, at Infogrid, we helped one retail company save $1.6 million a year on HVAC every year.
Satisfy employees. Our research has shown that employees prefer companies that have strategies in place to achieve net zero emissions. But this is not something that you will be able to implement without solid data on your building’s energy use.
Boost your ESG performance. Today, your environmental, social, and governance performance matters more than ever. 85% of investors now consider ESG criteria when making investment decisions. And with ESG regulations on the horizon, accurate reporting may soon become a necessity for building owners.
Getting the right building data will make a difference to your ESG score. It’s time to start collecting it.
Comply with building regulations. In many countries, there are now regulations that control the energy efficiency of commercial and residential buildings. And you can’t be sure that you meet them without data. Find out more on the US Building Performance Database (BPD) or through the UK’s Energy Performance of Building Data.
How to collect building energy data
So, what is the best way to collect accurate data on your building’s energy use? That starts with measurement—and here Infogrid can help.
Infogrid uses the world’s smartest IoT sensors to monitor data on your building operations. With our Healthy Building System, you can receive real-time insights into your building health—including your building energy consumption, water waste, occupancy levels, and HVAC efficiency.
We make it easy for landlords, facilities managers, and organisations to collect all sorts of energy-related data. The system works in three steps:
IoT sensors. Once deployed, our discreet zero-maintenance sensors continuously track data on your building health and energy usage—on piping systems, HVAC units, and doors and windows.
A single data hub. Data collection alone is not enough. For a system to have value, that data needs to be accessible and actionable. That’s what our data dashboard provides—all together on a single screen.
Artificial intelligence system. Raw data from the sensors is fed through our proprietary AI system, which delivers live actionable insights into your building’s energy performance—and concrete analysis on what you can do to improve it.
Now you have all of your energy use data in one place. But if you want to share that data with staff, customers, regulators, and investors, it’s important that you make sure it is valid and error-free. We can help here too.
Conventionally, reporting your building energy data has been complex and time-consuming. While we can make collecting your energy consumption data easy, we can also ensure that data is formatted correctly and right for your reporting needs.
Improving your energy efficiency
Finally, equipped with energy use data, it’s time to start making reductions to the amount of energy you use. Here are some ways you can make efficiencies to your building’s energy consumption:
Optimise HVAC and lighting processes. The Building Energy Efficiency Survey 2016 reported that 67% of energy consumption in commercial buildings was used to provide lighting, heating, ventilation, cooling, and hot water. These are the basic parts of your energy use, of course. But they are also a significant contributor to energy waste.
By automating your HVAC and lighting systems, you can half the amount of energy you use—while ensuring a comfortable and productive environment for your staff.
Predictive maintenance. Maintenance and cleaning processes have typically been inefficient, inflexible, and disruptive to your wider business. Yet it doesn’t have to be this way. According to some estimates, investing in smarter maintenance processes can help reduce the energy costs of maintenance by up to 20%.
With sensors automatically tracking machinery health, you can keep up to speed on what interventions are needed—all while reducing the number of vehicles that need to access your site.
Cloud-based solutions. Our smart system is entirely cloud-based, ensuring that your building data has total security. But it also ensures that your monitoring processes are much more energy efficient too. Cloud systems have been found to enable considerable energy savings, by reducing the need for on-site
Infogrid can help
The benefits of monitoring and acting on your building energy data can be huge, for the environment, your ESG performance, and your bottom line.
At Infogrid, we can help you get the most accurate data, easily and affordably. Book a demo to find out how.
