Saving energy through people..
What?
Energy Conscious Organization is a framework developed by Energy Services & Technology Association and the Energy Institute to help incorporate people measures into energy management strategies and plans.
EnCO aims to engage, equip and empower organizations and energy professionals to enable significant energy savings through people. The EnCO initiative integrates employee engagement with technical opportunities to reduce energy consumption, costs, and carbon emissions to accelerate the journey to net zero emissions.
The framework is based on the five pillars of behavior change which are Engagement, Alertness, Skills, Recognition, Adaption.
Engagement – Is everyone engaged in the right way?
Alertness- Are all teams alert to energy saving opportunities?
Skills- Do Significant Energy Users have the right skills?
Recognition- Is energy measured, reported on? Is good practice recognized and celebrated?
Adaption- How well do policies, procedures and processes adapt to drive continual improvement?
Why?
Behaviour change is a vital element of energy efficiency on the road to net zero, often at lower cost than the installation of physical/technical measures. To meet the UK’s 2050 net zero target, a significant part of the solution for user organisations is the – still largely ignored i.e. behaviour change. Evidence suggests that behaviour change offers around 50% of the total potential energy savings available. The other 50% comes from technology and yet, as important as it is, technology gets all the focus. A better balance is required to ensure that the hidden and largely untapped savings available from behaviour change are realized.
Behaviour change is about changing behaviour, of course, but it is also about the interface between people and technology. People are the heart of everything, they drive strategy, they put in technical measures, they analyze data.
Some organizations might be strong on technology but weak on information or could have great data system but weak on people. Example: If we put in technical fixes but don’t train people how to use them then these technical fixes don’t realize the potential of what people had hoped what they had invested in it. Similarly, if we don’t have robust data systems we don’t know if the technology is working and if we put in people solution we don’t know if made savings if we had proper data system in place.
Behaviour change is now a requirement to comply with the Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (ESOS). The sections 5.5 Identifying energy saving opportunities mentions about behavious change projects. Clause A.5.3 Examples of common energy saving opportunities also mentions employee engagement etc.
There are few clauses in ISO50001 that have people element. These are Leadership (5.1), Energy team (5.3), Significant Energy Users (7.2) Awareness (7.3), Communication (7.4)
How?
The table below shows the gap analysis matrix for EnCO. Columns 0-4 show degree of maturity, where
- 0 denotes “Not much happening.”
- 4 denotes “Best practice”
An energy conscious organization is one that has employed behavior change principles to make significant improvements towards the ultimate goal of achieving Level 4 on the EnCO matrix.
- Engagement – very high levels of engagement at every level of organisation on energy management, including top management practices, significant users and all colleagues. All levels enthused and taking positive action.
- Alertness – high levels of alertness/awareness across organisation to eliminate energy waste, mechanisms to register waste, with clear responsibilities delegated and practical responses regularly actioned.
- Skills – top management, practitioners and significant users fully skilled in their energy management roles. Commitment to continual learning and up-skilling by ongoing investment in education, competency and training.
- Recognition – the benefits and co-benefits of energy management are widely recognised and data systems track savings against robust energy targets. Those making savings are routinely recognised and celebrated.
- Adaption – the organisation positively expects and embraces change, adapting and responding to minimise risk and maximise opportunities in a timely way to maintain continual improvement in energy management.
Conclusion
The aim is to excite people to challenge the norm, and to encourage mass adoption of energy efficiency good practice through more energy efficient behaviour.
How can ETS help? (H3)
Teamwork makes it possible! With a partnership with ETS, we can guide you in the implementation of the business energy management strategy. We take a data-driven and technological approach to support your Net Zero strategy and reduce energy consumption. With the use of legacy systems and tailored smart solutions, we ensure that your business can become efficient, sustainable, and profitable for many years.
To discuss your requirements, get in touch. You can contact us by calling 0117 205 0542 or drop us an email at enquiries@energy-ts.com.