By Mark Glitherow, Trend Controls 
Obtaining the financial resources to install a building energy management system may be easier than you think.
With public sector budgets being squeezed left, right and centre, it may appear that now is not the right time to consider spending precious financial resources on a building’s infrastructure. However, with energy prices on the increase along with ever-growing pressure to reduce carbon emissions, it is in fact the perfect opportunity to invest in technology that can save energy and, therefore, money.
The best way to achieve this is via a building energy management system (BEMS). A BEMS offers greater visibility and control of energy use by monitoring services such as heating, ventilation, air conditioning and lighting. A fully integrated solution can have up to 84 per cent of a building’s energy consuming devices directly under its control.
These systems are at the forefront of the drive towards carbon reduction by making sure that building services operate in strict accordance with demand, thereby avoiding unnecessary use of energy. The data produced allows building managers to better analyse, understand, reconfigure and improve their site’s energy usage and costs by having them presented in an organised and informative way.
While the benefits are clear, the cost of installing a BEMS may seem prohibitive. However, this is not necessarily the case due to the existence of government-funded bodies such as Salix Finance, which aims to accelerate investment by public sector bodies in energy efficiency technologies through Invest to Save schemes.
Salix is funded by The Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC), The Welsh Assembly Government and The Scottish Government via The Carbon Trust. It provides funding for proven technologies that are cost-effective in saving CO2 and that can maximise the potential of any further energy saving technologies.
To date it has engaged with around 725 organisations – from schools and universities to local authorities and NHS Trusts – and has funded 7500 projects, valued at £178 million, which will save the public sector £53 million annually and £700 million over the lifetime of the projects. The projects themselves have an average payback from the energy savings of 3 and a half years and an average expected lifetime of 13 years.
The many projects that benefit from Salix funds include insulation, lighting upgrades, IT improvements, swimming pool covers, voltage reduction and more efficient heating. One area where it is seeing significant interest and focusing its attention is in BEMS, due to its ability to make ongoing savings across the entire infrastructure of a building.
In order to qualify for funding for a BEMS, an organisation must carry out an audit that justifies the reasons for the project and outlines what can be achieved by its implementation. A comprehensive report is then submitted, identifying and detailing the expected energy savings. If granted, repayments on the loan are made from the money saved on energy bills and, once the loans are repaid, the organisation continues to benefit from the low carbon equipment and the savings it delivers.
This public sector-specific scheme is already proving to be a hugely popular way of funding energy reduction activities that might not otherwise be possible. Salix also recently received an additional £20 million to allocate to energy efficient projects activated before the end of March 2012 and completed before the end of December 2012. The funding will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis, so projects submitted early will benefit.
The pressure upon the public sector to make energy efficiency and carbon reduction improvements is enormous. BEMS are at the forefront of the drive towards greater energy efficiency and the cost savings and environmental benefits that can be experienced as a result of investment in this technology are considerable and now within easy reach.
Further information
For further information, please contact Mark Glitherow at Trend Controls on 01403 211888 or email mark.glitherow@trendcontrols.com
