Electricity meterings as an integral part of an energy conservation program

Abstract

Energy management has always been an issue for facility managers, but is now coming under increased scrutiny as businesses become more concerned with greenhouse gas emissions and their environmental footprint. Contemporary research suggests that simply feeding back information on energy use can result in a reduction of consumption between 5 and 20%. The building block of this feedback loop is the energy meter, which is typically standard equipment in homes, but not always installed in commercial buildings, particularly large corporate campuses. Since energy meters have been treated as an added cost in the past, they are not as widely deployed as energy managers would like. However, an analysis of electricity rate structures and hourly electricity use patterns can help identify which buildings provide the shortest payback period for electric meter installation. Raytheon Missile Systems in Tucson, Arizona was able to identify five buildings with a simple payback of under one year, 19 buildings with a positive NPV over two years, and 48 buildings with a positive NPV over 10 years for electric meter installations. Energy meters also provide immediate feedback on usage, verification of utility bills, and the ability to understand peak demand. As a part of an energy conservation program, energy meters are often overlooked, but are a critical building block for data gathering, monitoring, and feedback.