Businesses need electricity to run their operational activities. This energy is used in heating, ventilation, air conditioning (HVAC) systems, and office lighting. They also use it to charge portable laptops and give power to essential devices like computers, routers, telephones, and printers.
While electricity is vital in companies, they often suffer from high monthly electricity bills. This situation is usually caused by outdated office appliances, periodic maintenance checkups, and insufficient light bulbs. In addition, most employees unconsciously leave empty rooms with power on, which causes them to lose valuable energy and financial resources.
This article provides five practical strategies for lowering your business electricity bill.
1. Run An Energy Audit
An energy audit is where electricians identify safety and consumption issues regarding wiring, electrical systems, and ventilation. The activity aims to assess how electricity is used within a commercial or residential property to discover opportunities to enhance efficiency. Companies adopting this strategy can instantly lessen energy costs and increase office equipment lifespan.
To run a successful energy audit, you should contact a registered energy auditor within your city. After that, you can cut your electricity bills by focusing on HVAC, lighting, small electronics, and shopping for electricity. Then, you should use online sites to compare business electricity rates and find the best contact for your company. Just this one step can have a significant impact on your electricity bill.
2. Invest In Energy-Efficient Office Equipment
Energy efficiency means an establishment uses less energy to provide electric power to devices. During this process, property owners can reduce energy expenses by using energy-efficient equipment that automatically turns off when not needed. In turn, the office maintenance crew won’t have to constantly monitor power usage within every corner to reduce electricity consumption.
Since energy-efficient office equipment can lessen power costs in your workplace, you should invest in these advanced technologies. When choosing new equipment for your commercial space, you must consider factors to ensure you get the highest return on investment (ROI). These elements may include an energy star rating label, size, and energy-saving features like sensors or timers.
3. Switch To LEDs
Light-emitting diode (LED) is a light source that generates light when plugged into an electric current. When property owners use LED-friendly lighting, they won’t have to replace their regular incandescent bulbs with new ones, saving them financial maintenance costs. Additionally, LED light bulbs can operate at low temperatures, which makes them better options for lighting cold storage areas like freezers, meat lockers, and refrigerated display cases.
Since LED lighting can instantly lower your business electricity bill, you must replace your old bulbs with commercial LED lights. When choosing LED light bulbs, you must consider factors like efficiency, color rendering and temperature, heat output, and rated life. Before installing them, you must assess glare, reflections, placement, and the atmosphere to encourage customers to share photos of your business on social media.
4. Unplug On-Standby Appliances
Standby consumption is the electric power used by devices when they aren’t actively being used but are still connected to an electrical outlet. In addition to increased energy consumption, these appliances might cause significant fires within your commercial building. As a result, you need to pay for additional damage and repair costs to your establishment and nearby properties, which might ruin your reputation.
Since standby office devices can increase the electricity bill in your company, you should create a no-standby appliance policy. After completing a guideline, you have to notify your staff about your initiative and add repercussions so they’ll successfully follow your strict rules. To make this strategy effective, you must include surveillance cameras within office spaces to ensure they’ll adhere to your new practice.
5. Go Paperless
A paperless workplace is an office space that reduces or eliminates the use of paper and relies on electronic files instead. This approach can process a more comprehensive volume of paperwork than traditional businesses within the same period. Additionally, entrepreneurs won’t have to pay for printing equipment maintenance, and employees won’t have to waste time managing documents.
Since going paperless is an effective way to reduce energy consumption costs within your workplace, you must adopt this strategy. When creating a paperless office, you must consider factors like quality control and digital file accessibility to avoid data security threats and your budget. Then, you must get every employee on board with this new system so your company can have a smooth transition to modernization.
Key Takeaway
As a business owner, you always want to find the best ways to reduce your operational costs without sacrificing the quality of your output. Therefore, you must consider following these five strategies to lower your business electricity bill. Once you do so, you can create a delightful experience for your clients while your employees enjoy modernization, improving their productivity.