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What is energy waste?  Energy waste is an accumulation of energy that has been produced but has not been used and is subsequently left for waste. While it has not been used, the creation of energy waste still produces greenhouse gas emissions and pollution which is causing greater damage to the planet.   Why should businesses be concerned about wasted energy? Businesses in particular, play a huge role in the creation of energy waste. In fact, according to research conducted over the last few years, companies across the country have wasted enough energy to power the whole of London for seven years! Costing businesses up to £30 billion annually. A shocking 30% of wasted energy is estimated to come from commercial buildings only. For businesses, these are not only worrying figures but costly ones too. Certainly setting off alarm bells in the ears of business owners and organisations who are at the forefront of the country’s mission to achieve net zero emissions.  In order to save on energy consumption and energy costs, energy waste must be a concerning factor in the development of a business’ approach to tackling the energy crisis.   The causes of energy waste  There are several different types of energy waste, but the main type of waste we are discussing is that created by businesses in commercial buildings.  This can be caused by a wide number of factors, all of which can be explained by a simple lack of understanding for preserving energy. Below are some of the key causes of business energy waste:  The use of old lighting  Slow and old technology  Issues with heating and air conditioning Poor building insulation  Excessive use of technology   Reducing energy waste in the UK  In order to reduce the amount of energy waste created within your business premises, there are several steps you can take. From creating an energy-saving culture in your workplace to investing into energy-saving solutions like LED lighting, new technology and improved insulation.    Generating a positive culture towards energy-saving amongst your employees is a great step in the right direction. Encouraging positive energy-saving behaviours such as turning off lights and technology when not in use, to setting a regulated temperature on the office thermostat. All these small changes will help to not only reduce energy consumption, but energy waste and business energy bills too.  Once you have established an energy-saving culture, you can turn your attention towards investment. With a budget available, you should consider improving your energy usage by investing in areas like lighting and insulation. Both of which will help to cut your energy consumption and minimise the amount of waste you generate as a business.  To keep a closer track of your energy usage and to ensure you are not overspending, or wasting energy, you may wish to consider a smart meter for businesses. At D-ENERGi we can arrange for you to have your smart meter installed, with the latest generation of SMETS2 or AMR meters now available. Find out more about the smart meter roll out here.

A HVAC (Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) unit is an incredibly energy demanding system that can be found in a wide variety of business premises. Used to regulate a working temperature or keep a premises cool during warmer periods, an essential component of the working environment, a HVAC system can play a huge role in the costs of your business energy bills. In order to manage the running costs of your HVAC whilst getting the most out of it, we’ve provided these tips on how to make your HVAC system more efficient.   Monitor the usage of your thermostat  In order to reduce the strain on your HVAC, you should monitor the usage of your thermostat. In work places there can be a lot of opinions when it comes to what the temperature of your working environment should be, however, too many people having access to and changing the thermostat settings throughout the day can impact your HVAC unit and put pressure on this, putting the system at risk of malfunctioning. Monitoring your system closely and maintaining a regular temperature is best for the upkeep and efficiency of your HVAC unit. Not only this, but you will be saving yourself money on your energy bills too!  If you spend too much time outside of the office or away from the main business premises but still want control over the thermostat, a great solution is to invest in a smart thermostat which can be controlled from a mobile device, even when not in the building.    Prioritise insulation  When your building is not properly insulated you will be wasting much of the energy used on running your system. Allowing both the cool and warm air to escape. In order to feel the genuine benefits of both your heating and cooling system, you should guarantee that your working premises are well insulated. Insulation is one of the most effective ways of trapping heat and also keeping building cools in summer. By doing this, your HVAC unit will feel more effective, meaning you won’t have to excessively heat or cool your premises in order to feel comfortable at work.    Regular Maintenance & Servicing  Finally one of the best ways to ensure your HVAC system is running efficiently is to arrange regular maintenance and servicing with qualified engineers.  Small air leaks and damage to the interior of the system may be impacting its performance. This will result in greater energy consumption and higher business energy bills. Having annual servicing will ensure the system is regularly checked for performance issues and small damages, with fixes being made to ensure your system is running most effectively.  Engineers can also offer their best advice when it comes to running your system daily, providing tips on how to get the most out of your system and extend its life span.  If you’re worried about your current business energy bills and would like more information on how to reduce your costs, our blog covers a range of tips, from switching to energy-efficient lighting to installing a smart meter. Read more here.

The journey to net zero is a long one. With various obstacles in the way and major changes required, the goal is big but certainly not impossible.    For businesses looking to improve their approach to energy efficiency, cut energy costs, and become a more sustainable business, having everyone on board is absolutely essential. Although the steps your team can take are only a small drop in the ocean, they will certainly help to make a difference.   What is an energy-saving culture? An energy-saving culture is the idea that you can create an environment which encourages team members to embrace small changes in order to reduce your company’s carbon footprint. An energy-saving culture isn’t exclusive to office environments, and can certainly be created in just about any industry. From hospitality to care organisations, small businesses, and industrial workplace. Simply introducing small changes and encouraging positive behaviours will contribute to the existence of an energy-saving culture, thus improving your sustainability and helping your business on the path to net zero emissions.   Tips to ensure energy efficiency across your business Whether you own a small business or run a large-scale operation, energy efficiency will play a crucial role throughout your business over the next decade. In order to achieve net zero emissions, creating an energy saving culture will ensure all teams and departments, no matter how big or small, are responsible for changes in your business to guarantee you are moving in the right direction. Forward, towards a greener future.    Below are 6 tips that will help you in creating a positive outlook towards energy efficiency and saving energy across your business.   1 – Communicate your sustainability goals with your colleagues and employees  The first step to creating a successful energy-saving culture is to communicate and involve your employees in the planning process. Making sure they are involved in all aspects of your plans will guarantee higher levels of participation. Which, in turn, will create a greater sense of ownership and responsibility from all your employees, no matter their position in the business.    2 – Address key barriers to overcome No business is perfect, so it is important to acknowledge any barriers or challenges you may have to face and overcome in order to improve your approach towards energy efficiency. This may be as simple as considering areas in your business premises that require updating or challenging negative behaviours regarding energy efficiency.    3 – Establish energy-saving policies within the workplace  Once you and your team understand the shared goal, you can plan policies together that will be put in place throughout the company. This could be one core policy or several smaller policies that differ depending on where in the company or on the premises the rules apply best. For example, in an industrial setting, office workers and warehouse staff will have different actions to complete and targets to achieve.    4 – Assign team leaders to oversee and implement changes  Appointing specific people in your company (if you have a higher number of employees) will help you manage and oversee the implementation of these new policies. These ‘energy champions’, as you may wish to call them, can carry out additional tasks like checking in on team members, ensuring policies are adhered to, and any concerns are raised with higher management. For smaller businesses, this may not be necessary, but having someone to oversee the implementation of energy-saving best practices and policies will help to maintain a positive approach.    5 – Continually review your policies and improve these accordingly  it is always best to review your new energy-saving policies from time to time. If you are not noticing the progress you expected, it may be time to realign your strategy and introduce new actions or approaches to help ensure you are on the right track for achieving your sustainability goals.    6 – Award your teams for their efforts  Over time you will start to see changes, even from small actions like switching off older appliances or upgrading your office lighting to LED bulbs. As you begin to see this progress and your teams embrace the energy-saving culture, you should reward your team for their efforts. This could be as simple as reinvesting the money you save into improving your workplace environment or granting staff bonuses, and gift vouchers.  Get in touch with the team at D-ENERGi now for more tips on energy efficiency, get a quote and start saving today!

With renewable energy being an important topic, there’s much to learn for businesses and energy customers looking to improve their carbon footprint. As we become more aware of just how important it is to consider renewable energy options and make the switch from traditional fossil fuels for the sake of the planet, this guide to renewable energy terms will give you the foundations to understand everything you need to know about renewable energy and the industry. Below are some of the most important terms and phrases that are used when discussing renewable energy and what they mean. Perfect for if you want to make the switch to renewable energy for your business.    Renewable energy sources A good place to start. Renewable energy sources are the type of energy sources that are naturally restored. This includes wind, water, light from the sun and geothermal energy.    Carbon Neutral  Carbon neutral is a term used to describe achieving the balance between emitting carbon and absorbing carbon. One way in which to achieve carbon neutrality is to remove the use of fossil fuels and switch to renewable energy sources.    Carbon Offsetting Carbon offsetting is a process in which typically companies and organisations will help to reduce or remove carbon emissions from the atmosphere in order to compensate for their own emissions caused by their business operations and practices. This will often be done by buying carbon credits within carbon offsetting programs. When carbon offsetting is done correctly and ethically, these programs will work on sustainable development projects around the world in order to reduce emissions.   Fuel Mix  An energy supplier’s fuel mix details the ratio of energy sources used to generate electricity supplied to customers. This will show information about renewables, coal, gas, and nuclear, as well as any other source,  All energy suppliers have an obligation to provide details of their fuel mix. At D-ENERGi, you can view our fuel mix here.   Biomass  Biomass is a material used to generate bioenergy. It is sourced from recently living organisms, for example, energy crops, agriculture residues, wood chips, domestic and industrial waste.    Wind Energy  Wind energy is the type of renewable energy generated from wind power. Collected with wind turbines. Using a combination of the wind turbine propellers, a generator and the rotor, as the wind blows the turbine spins, which is then transferred to electricity using the generator.    Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is generated by hydropower – the movement of water. This type of renewable energy source makes up one of ⅙ of the world’s electricity.   Solar power Another type of renewable energy source is solar power. Solar power utilises the power of the sun to generate electricity. Solar panels are a popular way for both businesses and domestic homeowners to power their homes and buildings with solar power.    Net Zero Emissions Net zero emissions simply means achieving as close to zero carbon emissions as possible. The UK government has set goals and plans in place in order for the UK to achieve net zero emissions and carbon neutrality by 2050. This requires a lot of steps by individuals and businesses in order to change the way we currently use energy and source energy in order to cut our emissions.    Greenhouse Gases  Greenhouse gases which are also referred to as GHGs are naturally occurring gases in the Earth’s atmosphere, this includes carbon dioxide, methane, ozone, and nitrous oxide.  These gases absorb and emit radiant energy, which results in the ‘greenhouse effect’ which many of us will be familiar with. The greenhouse effect explains how some of the sun’s heat is trapped on earth by these greenhouse gases.    Offshore Wind Plant  An offshore wind plant is a power plant that is located away from the land. The UK is establishing more of these offshore wind farms as a way to increase our generation of wind energy for the production of electricity. Offshore wind farms are most often mounted onto structures built for this exact purpose or fixed directly to the seabed.

As summer rolls around, temperatures heat up and offices become warmer than ever. Ensuring you create a comfortable and pleasant environment for your staff is incredibly important, not just for their wellbeing but also for productivity and desire to be in the office. Since air conditioning is now a standard in most offices, they can quickly become dependable for supplying a cold blast of air when outdoor temperatures soar. However, despite the want for this, running an air conditioning system consistently for months can be costly.  So, with warmer weather on the way, we thought it was a good idea to delve into the energy consumption of air conditioning units and how best to use these in summer to save your business money. Helping you avoid high business energy costs.   How expensive are air conditioners to run?  Since there are a range of sizes and styles of air conditioners, the costs of running air conditioning will vary. However, some insights into this have indicated that this could be upwards of 43p an hour. Plus, with the current cost of energy, this could be even more.  Running this continuously throughout the working day could add almost £100 to your energy bill each month.   The optimal temperature for offices  While it may be incredibly warm outside and tempting to blast the office with cold air for several hours each day, the cost of this may be enough for businesses to reconsider.  But, how can you keep your office environment comfortable during such extreme summer heat?  Many of us will be all too familiar with the constant air conditioning debate at work. Turn it on or turn it off? Turn it up or turn it down? The truth is, it’s incredibly difficult to keep everyone happy. In fact different types of people prefer to be warm at work while others, cold. Plus, studies have shown that the temperature in working places does in fact impact productivity.  While there is currently no legal maximum temperature for working environments, however long over-due this may be, workplaces should ensure that the environment is ‘responsible’. Where temperatures do become unbearable, employers have a responsibility to offer staff regular breaks and a sufficient supply of free water. Some have suggested that keeping a constant and regulated temperature is the best solution, with many assuming the optimal working temperature to be somewhere between 22-24°C.   Avoiding big bills when using air conditioning Keeping your air conditioning on in summer whilst trying to manage your energy bills may seem like a task. Especially as teams fight over the temperature. With these tips, however, you can aim to keep your energy bills as low as possible, whilst still providing air conditioning to your employees.  Do not run the air conditioning system on an extremely low temperature  Turn off the air conditioning when it is not necessary  Make sure your AC unit is correctly installed Have the unit maintained and serviced regularly, especially before summer starts Ensure the room you are cooling isn’t subject to a large amount of direct sunlight as this will produce more work for the AC unit.   To keep a closer eye on your energy consumption and to monitor how different appliances may be affecting your energy bills, consider a business smart meter. For more information about this and the roll out scheme, do not hesitate to get in touch with our friendly team.

Technology and electronic devices now make up a huge part of many businesses’ assets. Helping to automate business processes and speed up what previously may have been repetitive and time-consuming tasks.  As the mainstream use of computers first hit the office floors in the 1980s, we’ve actually spent over three decades using technology in businesses and workplaces. Despite the advances we have made over these decades and the incredible benefits modern technology offers, many businesses still continue to utilise technology from way back when. Not only is this a hindrance to the business but can also be costly for both the business and the environment.   How outdated technology could be costing your business in energy  High energy bills may be a sign that the technology, devices, and appliances used in your business premises may require an upgrade.  Older technology such as outdated computers are more likely to produce excess heat, requiring more energy from the CPU (central processing unit) to keep the hardware cool and running efficiently. Not only this but the overheating of such devices can lead to slower performances, resulting in more time required to finish and complete a work task. This not only means the computer needs to be operating for longer (using more energy), but your staff and teams must spend more working time completing one task, hindering the efficiency of your business. Newer computers and devices have been designed to be far more energy efficient. Helping to keep your business energy costs down and your business running much more efficiently.   The impact old gadgets have on the environment  Digitalisation around the globe has resulted in an increase of greenhouse gas emissions over the past few decades. As we know, these harmful greenhouse gases are responsible for global warming and contribute to climate change. Energy consumption from devices not only adds to the cost of business energy bills, but will therefore increase your company’s impact on the environment.  In studies conducted by several research groups, including those from Rochester Institute of Technology in New York, findings indicate that switching to newer technologies and modern devices will help to reduce energy consumption by almost half. Providing a productive and effective solution for not only cutting business costs, helping the environment, but also modernising your workplace and providing employees with technology that works in their favour.  To assess just how much energy your technology may be consuming, it could be a good time to upgrade to a business smart meter. With a consumer access device you will be able to see exactly how much your technology impacts your energy consumption and the costs of this in real-time.