When there is a need for heating and/or cooling the air conditioning, refrigeration units and/or heat pumps are the most crucial part of the HVACR systems. In commercial buildings, HVACR systems usually stand for approximately 30-60% of the building’s energy consumption. However, the actual units producing cooling or heating are often overlooked as long as the desired temperature is reached. This often leads to inefficient operations of HVACR systems.

Based on our experience it is possible to save between 10 – 30% by implementing routines for predictive maintenance as well as energy optimisation.

This saving potential is an opportunity to significantly lower the organisation’s environmental impact, and at the same time minimise the risks of system failures. Which will lead to more efficient operations and less loss of valuable goods/products

During the COP26 meeting in Glasgow 2021 it was stated that it is not enough to switch to fossil-free energy production. It is crucial to work more with energy optimisation to reduce the energy usage. Operations of air conditioning, refrigeration, and heat pump systems represent a large portion of the energy usage on the planet, and should not be forgotten!

Inefficient operation of air conditioning, refrigeration, and heat pump systems

As long as the desired temperature is reached, no one is questioning the performance of these systems. It is common with multiple initiatives to lower energy usage, where many often are focused on a specific part of the system. By overlocking the performance of the chiller or heat pump (since the “temperature/energy” is delivered) it is common with sub-optimisations.

By including performance information from the chillers and/or heat pumps it is possible to see how changes in the whole system are affecting the “energy source”, and optimise them as well. This  optimisation needs to be done, so the system can operate efficiently. 

Predictive maintenance of HVACR systems based on real-time data represents huge savings

Predictive maintenance based on performance analysis of real-time data is a global game-changer when it comes to sustainability, energy optimisation, lowering energy costs, and improving maintenance. In comparison to scheduled (preventive) and reactive maintenance (done after failure), it is based on the condition and wear of the equipment and uses IoT and data analytics.

The guide to an improved sustainability strategy for the real estate industry

We have created a guide to assist your organisation in becoming a net-zero contributor by implementing predictive maintenance.

The guide can be used as inspiration or a checklist for anyone that works with sustainable, economical and/or environmental strategies within the real estate industry or have HVACR-systems within their organisation.

Can you afford not to act? We can help you to start your transition.

Book a meeting with an expert and we will give you guidance on how you can drive the transition based on your current situation. Let us inspire you by showing how our method for efficiently implementing a strategy for predictive maintenance (dDop) can be used for your organisation. We will also help you to define your potential savings in the form of CO2 footprint, energy, and maintenance costs.

Who will benefit from predictive maintenance & energy optimisation?

In our customer case, you will learn how different types of real estate owners have implemented a more sustainable business strategy, and at the same time lower the cost by implementing predictive maintenance.

Energy efficiency is more than a statement! 

At COP26 in Glasgow it was concluded that the focus on energy efficiency is crucial and must increase rapidly! More recently (the 3rd of March), the International Energy Agency (IEA), stated that:

Accelerate energy efficiency improvements in buildings and industry [Impact: Reduces gas use by close to 2 billion cubic metres within a year] is important to increase/speed up EU’s independence.

Based on this, it is clear that reducing energy consumption is crucial not only from a sustainability and economical aspect. It is important to strengthen the local, national, and international endurance as well.

Energy efficiency compared to green and renewable energy.

Today many organisations buy green electricity as a crucial part of their sustainability strategy. Sadly, we have seen multiple cases where the focus on reducing energy consumption (energy efficiency) decreases, when the energy is green. Because of the “idea” that when it is green, there is “no” CO2 emission and therefore the focus on reducing energy usage fades.

First, it is NOT bad using green energy, it is important to understand! However, it is not enough! To reach a sustainable future, it is crucial to reduce energy usage! An additional benefit of lowering energy consumption, is that more of the produced green energy will be available for other operations. Which makes the sustainability transition easier, on many levels!

A structural approach for energy efficiency.

To avoid situations where energy efficiency is “forgotten” or inefficient, it is important to have a structured approach to generate and use actionable information. To achieve this, we have made a guide, which helps organisations strengthening their suitability strategy.

The main focus is on HVACR systems and how to correctly include them into energy efficiency, maintenance and sustainability strategies. Done right this will save energy, time and money!

Why HVACR systems?

HVACR system uses 30% to 60% of the electricity in many commercial buildings and 20% of the global electricity. However, the performance is rarely questioned as long as the desired temperature is reached, resulting in shortcomings in commissioning and maintenance. Our experience from thousands of optimised systems shows that this often leads to a saving potential 10% to 30% electricity. So, we know that there still is a huge saving potential in many buildings.

Actual energy savings for your organisation.

As a part of a correctly implemented structure for energy optimisation and predictive maintenance, potential savings will be easily recognised. After optimisation we usually see reduced energy consumption by 10% to 30% in HVACR systems. Which makes more electricity (green or not) available. As well as an increased reliability, which reduces failures and prolongs the lifetime of the equipment. Fewer failures will also reduce maintenance costs and losses of valuable goods and production.

The lowered electricity consumption is also important when it comes to reduce power peaks on the electrical grid.

All of this often leads to an ROI shorter than two years. However, if e.g., a compressor failure is avoided, that could cover the cost for implementation of predictive maintenance momentarily.

More than a statement?

The common denominator for many of the savings we have gone through in this blog, is that they can be hard (impossible) to achieve without new information and changes. Making them hard to calculate before the new information is available. It is because of this energy efficiency needs to be more than a statement; it needs to be a mentality!

New efficient ways of work are rapidly developed, these needs to be implemented to stay competitive (even if all the benefits are hard to calculate initially). Introducing predictive maintenance on HVACR system is a good example.

When the mentality is to continuously improve and be open to changes and new possibilities, we have seen savings that can leapfrog many organisations sustainability work!

If you want to know more about how energy efficiency and predictive maintenance can help you and your organisation to save energy do not hesitate to contact us or book a demo.