How to cut small business energy bills 

Becoming more energy efficient and reducing costs go hand in hand when it comes to business energy. In a market that seems to get more and more expensive, the first thing to do is compare and switch the plan you are on, once you have done this the next thing we can control is how much energy we are using, and ultimately billed for. 

1. Understand your energy usage, get a smart meter.

Smart meters ensure that you bill is accurate and you are billed to accrual reads. No one wants to be over paying and in credit, or even worse have a large outstanding bill at the end of your contract. 

More importantly, smart meters give you visibility of your consumption. If you can see It and understand It you will be able to make small changes and control it.

2.   Lighting 

Lighting can account for up to 40% of an offices energy costs, if you haven’t switched to LED already it should be top of your list. Along with changing the lamp its self you can install sensors to automatically switch off lights in low traffic areas like store rooms, toilets, meeting rooms, cellars and even auto dimming lux sensors that will adjust your high traffic areas depending on out door light levels. 

3. Heating and air conditioning 

Having the air con all day in the summer can increase costs by about 30% and heating increasing by 1 degree in the winter can increase costs by around 8%. With this mind it's essential to have the heating and air con controls centrally controlled and not adjusted by anyone in the building.

Consider moving things away from radiators for the heat to radiate more efficiently, and having your air con units cleaned and serviced regularly will ensure you are running at optimum efficiency. 

4. Kitchen cost’s

Most people already know to only boil as much water in the kettle as they need for their cuppa, but there are even more ways to save energy in the kitchen at work than there are at home. Whether you have a small office kitchen or you run a kitchen as part of your business – these tips will come in handy.

• Switch off appliances at the plug after use, especially the microwave. If your business prepares food for customers, switch off backup fryers and ovens when not required. 
• Wait until the dishwasher is full before switching it on.
• Keep your fridges and freezers efficient by cleaning filters regularly and making sure they have enough space so they don’t overheat.
• Install endo cubes on fridges and freezers to run at optimum efficiency. 
• Make sure oven doors seal properly and no heat or cool air is escaping whilst in operation.
• Keep pots covered to reduce heat loss and cook quicker.
• Preheat cooking equipment at the manufacturer's recommended setting. 
• Buy insulated cooking equipment whenever possible (e.g. fryers, ovens, coffee machines).
• Consider replacing broilers with smooth or grooved griddles as they use much less energy.

5. Workshops 

If you are operating light to heavy machinery, consider voltage optimisation if your equipment doesn’t already have it built in. This not only increases the life expectancy of the machine but saves you money on start up and operation. 

Check your your air lines. Leaking compressors and leaking hoses can increase energy costs significantly. 

Are your motors and pumps the correct capacity? Often when a motor or pump is replaced they can be over sized for the required capacity, this is essentially costing you more to run than needed and not giving you any benefit in return. 

6. Staff engagement 

Getting your staff onboard with your energy efficacy journey can account fro up to 20% energy reductions. Having energy champions or offering incentives for being most energy efficient in the work place can help engagement. 

Awareness is a great place to start, showing employees how much of an impact their actions have on the environment is a great way to embed their positive actions. Work out your reduction in kilowatt hours and use a carbon foot print calculator to put it into real world language.