Top Energy Saving Tips for Small Businesses

April 1, 2022

Energy saving blog

Saving money on energy bills is on the mind of many a small business in the current climate. By following the tips below, businesses can make meaningful savings to their energy consumption and costs.

Upgrade equipment…Office equipment and machinery can use up a lot of energy, especially if the equipment is old and lacks the energy saving benefits that newer models provide. It’s worth conducting a review of your equipment – from computers to machinery and even kitchen appliances, upgrading to energy efficient models can make a substantial difference to your business energy bills.

Upgrade your boiler…Did you know that energy efficient boilers use up to 30% less energy than their less efficient counterparts! If your boiler is 10 years old or more, it’s worth considering an upgrade.

Insulate your premises and reduce heat loss…Fuel costs can skyrocket if you’re losing heat via your building. It might cost you in the short term, but in the long run installing effective insulation will pay for itself. Look at cavity wall and loft insulation, insulation around pipes and hot water tanks. Also consider installing double glazed windows if you don’t have them already, and draught proofing windows and doors throughout the premises.

Take a look at your lighting…Switching to energy saving lightbulbs will save up to 80% less energy than standard bulbs. It’s also worth considering motion sensor technology, that eliminates lighting when it isn’t needed as this will dramatically reduce your business energy costs.

Review your air conditioning and heating settings…It’s easy to forget to adjust your heating and cooling settings as you move through the seasons. In the UK especially, with unpredictable weather, it’s worth regularly monitoring when your heating/air conditioning comes on and off and at what levels. Often businesses will keep their heating systems on overnight, heating or cooling a space unnecessarily. It’s also worth looking at natural ways to preserve heat by closing windows and doors. Automatic closing doors are excellent for this. Similarly, when it’s warmer, take advantage of the milder weather and open windows and doors to help ventilation and cooling.

Improve business policies and processes…Do you have a process for shutting down equipment at the end of the night? A single computer monitor can save £35 a year on electricity bills, simply by being turned off at night and often, shared resources such as printers or hot water heaters are overlooked and left on standby during non-working time. By improving the processes around how these energy intensive facilities are used and giving ownership to individuals to follow best practice, businesses can make meaningful savings on their energy bills. Even small changes such as only heating as much water as is needed at any one time can make an impact.

Get your employees on board…It’s important to educate and involve your employees in all your energy saving initiatives. Having policies that employees can follow, perhaps with posters around the workspace reminding people of your initiatives, will ensure that your efforts are followed through. You may even want to consider making it fun by putting incentives in place for reaching sustainability targets.

Check you’re on a competitive energy deal…While it’s been a challenging time for the energy sector lately, tariffs still change regularly, so it’s worth checking that you are getting the best deal for you at regular intervals.

If you’d like to speak to one of our experts about saving money on your energy bills, please contact us on 0800 6696697.