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FM Briefings - Energy Management
GSH - Energy Management
Company: GSH
The economic downturn has only added to the pressure as capex budgets are cut and companies look to reduce overheads across their business.
EnergyPlus
At GSH our energy management solution - energyplus - gives organisations the opportunity to monitor, analyse and manage usage levels to achieve significant operating efficiencies. Energyplus is based on engineering best practice and a guaranteed consumption reduction.
On average, energyplus results in improved client energy efficiency performance with about 5% savings. This means that GSH has saved its clients more than £9.6 million on their energy bills, and over 275,000 tonnes of CO2 from being released into the atmosphere.
Smartbox
GSH’s Smartbox technology is a key factor in our ability to offer retail sector clients significant and guaranteed consumption savings over their wide geographically dispersed portfolios. The Smartbox monitors energy usage and consumption via GPRS web-enabled technology, allowing GSH to remotely control our client’s working environments to eliminate waste and improve the operational performance of buildings.
On average, energyplus results in improved client energy efficiency performance with about 5% savings. This means that GSH has saved its clients more than £9.6 million on their energy bills, and over 275,000 tonnes of CO2 from being released into the atmosphere.
Smartbox
GSH’s Smartbox technology is a key factor in our ability to offer retail sector clients significant and guaranteed consumption savings over their wide geographically dispersed portfolios. The Smartbox monitors energy usage and consumption via GPRS web-enabled technology, allowing GSH to remotely control our client’s working environments to eliminate waste and improve the operational performance of buildings.
ENERGY MANAGEMENT - AREAS TO CONSIDER
There are a number of areas that organisations should consider if they want to achieve guaranteed savings without affecting service levels and performance.
1. Financial Control and Savings – by outsourcing the energy management function, businesses can turn to the market specialists and not only reduce operating expense, but also outsource some of the risk by benefiting from guaranteed savings and budget certainty.
2. Continued Investment – during times of economic downturn many companies are forced to cut or delay proposed expenditure if it is not business critical investment. Working closely with an energy management partner like GSH, companies can potentially maintain levels of investment as part of an ongoing partnership to drive efficiencies and operational performance.
3. Maintenance of Service Levels – the biggest problem with cost reductions is the potential impact on service levels. If equipment and resources are not working at optimum levels, businesses face losing money through inefficient energy use and affecting the levels of service they provide to their own staff and customers.
4. Eliminate Waste – when businesses look at energy management, it is vital that they identify “no/low cost” initiatives first. Optimisation is a typical “no cost” strategy and requires technical knowledge and application to ensure that a building’s plant and equipment is operating “holistically” i.e. set to operate collectively to achieve the necessary environmental requirements for lighting, air conditioning and heating at the optimum levels of energy efficiency.
5. Cost Benefit Analysis of Repair or Replace Equipment – by conducting a thorough review of sites it is possible to identify areas of improvement. Condition of equipment can be monitored, with old or obsolete equipment replaced or removed.
6. Lighting - this deserves a special mention as it typically makes up between 30 per cent and 40 per cent of a commercial property’s energy usage. Just switching from old technology to new can have a significant impact with immediate savings of up to 20 per cent, but this can rise to as much as 80 per cent. For example, one of our customers invested £800,000 on a lighting project with us that included switching the high-bay fittings from T12 to a T5 alternative. This company was able to achieve payback within 20 months and now benefits from an 80 per cent energy saving on lighting costs.
CASE STUDY 1
NATIONAL AUSTRALIA GROUP EUROPE
As part of a multi-million contract with National Australia Group Europe, GSH Group took responsibility for energy management across the company’s major operational brands – Yorkshire Bank and Clydesdale Bank. The energy management solution covers around 450 high street branches, head office properties and business-critical data centres located throughout the UK, and has achieved substantial savings over the past twelve as a result of a unique partnership approach.
REAPING THE BENEFITS
There are a number of areas that organisations should consider if they want to achieve guaranteed savings without affecting service levels and performance.
1. Financial Control and Savings – by outsourcing the energy management function, businesses can turn to the market specialists and not only reduce operating expense, but also outsource some of the risk by benefiting from guaranteed savings and budget certainty.
2. Continued Investment – during times of economic downturn many companies are forced to cut or delay proposed expenditure if it is not business critical investment. Working closely with an energy management partner like GSH, companies can potentially maintain levels of investment as part of an ongoing partnership to drive efficiencies and operational performance.
3. Maintenance of Service Levels – the biggest problem with cost reductions is the potential impact on service levels. If equipment and resources are not working at optimum levels, businesses face losing money through inefficient energy use and affecting the levels of service they provide to their own staff and customers.
4. Eliminate Waste – when businesses look at energy management, it is vital that they identify “no/low cost” initiatives first. Optimisation is a typical “no cost” strategy and requires technical knowledge and application to ensure that a building’s plant and equipment is operating “holistically” i.e. set to operate collectively to achieve the necessary environmental requirements for lighting, air conditioning and heating at the optimum levels of energy efficiency.
5. Cost Benefit Analysis of Repair or Replace Equipment – by conducting a thorough review of sites it is possible to identify areas of improvement. Condition of equipment can be monitored, with old or obsolete equipment replaced or removed.
6. Lighting - this deserves a special mention as it typically makes up between 30 per cent and 40 per cent of a commercial property’s energy usage. Just switching from old technology to new can have a significant impact with immediate savings of up to 20 per cent, but this can rise to as much as 80 per cent. For example, one of our customers invested £800,000 on a lighting project with us that included switching the high-bay fittings from T12 to a T5 alternative. This company was able to achieve payback within 20 months and now benefits from an 80 per cent energy saving on lighting costs.
CASE STUDY 1NATIONAL AUSTRALIA GROUP EUROPE
As part of a multi-million contract with National Australia Group Europe, GSH Group took responsibility for energy management across the company’s major operational brands – Yorkshire Bank and Clydesdale Bank. The energy management solution covers around 450 high street branches, head office properties and business-critical data centres located throughout the UK, and has achieved substantial savings over the past twelve as a result of a unique partnership approach.
REAPING THE BENEFITS
GSH has worked in partnership with NAGE to help meet key objectives regarding impact on the environment through enhanced energy efficiency. This has resulted in a 19 per cent energy saving across NAGE’s portfolio of sites representing over 22 million KWHs. This equates to more than 7,700 tonnes of CO2 emissions.
The reduction in energy consumption has contributed to NAGE becoming the first UK High-street bank to achieve the Carbon Trust Standard accreditation. The approval process normally takes six months, but NAGE was granted the accreditation in just seven weeks with the Carbon Trust commenting on the quality of the strategy, planning, measurement and reporting.
Moving forward, GSH Group is targeting further energy reduction of up to 29 per cent and planning a number of new initiatives, including the appointment of energy champions and divisional energy leagues.
WORKING TOGETHER FOR OPERATIONAL EXCELLENCE
NAGE, the European operation of one of the world's largest and most successful financial services groups, is committed to reducing its impact on the environment, as part of a wide-ranging CSR programme, and expects suppliers to take a similar responsible approach. GSH Group is recognised as the leading provider of technology-driven energy management solutions and has worked closely with NAGE to lower consumption levels across all areas of its business.
A key element of this is the introduction of the GSH Group’s Smartboxes, which have been installed throughout NAGE’s properties to remotely monitor energy usage and consumption. The web-based, wireless system allows GSH to optimise and control various HVAC systems such as lighting, air conditioning, boiler plant and domestic hot water systems.
The Smartbox solutions has worked particularly well with the mechanical and electrical elements of the contract, creating a natural synergy where GSH Group is able to control how the building operates and functions to the client’s core business hours thus, securing further energy savings for the client.
In addition, GSH Group has invested more than £250,000 within the NAGE portfolio through energy management projects, to maximise savings and boost operational performance. The company has also undertaken a range of initiatives to educate stakeholders across the business to champion energy awareness. For example, engaging employees within the FM operation, such as cleaners, security guards and front of house staff, waste has been reduced by encouraging employees to switch of lights and equipment when not in use.
GSH Group has taken a collaborative approach to ensure its commitment to energy efficiency has been enforced throughout NAGE’s business. GSH Group constantly interacts with internal partners such as the account delivery team and mobile network engineering team to ensure all energy savings are maximised. In addition, a GSH Group representative sits on the National Property Team (NPT) Leadership Committee, which manages and oversees the environmental and sustainability performance of NAGE.
Case Study 2
GSH and ABBEY – A LONG-TERM PARTNERSHIP
GSH first started work with Abbey in March 2006 when the company won a competitive tender to take responsibility for all hard FM services across 732 retail sites nationwide.
In July 2007 GSH’s energyplus solution was added to the contract giving GSH additional responsibility for all utility management functions. The key objective was to drive down the energy consumption of the portfolio of sites.
The solution included the implementation of:
The reduction in energy consumption has contributed to NAGE becoming the first UK High-street bank to achieve the Carbon Trust Standard accreditation. The approval process normally takes six months, but NAGE was granted the accreditation in just seven weeks with the Carbon Trust commenting on the quality of the strategy, planning, measurement and reporting.
Moving forward, GSH Group is targeting further energy reduction of up to 29 per cent and planning a number of new initiatives, including the appointment of energy champions and divisional energy leagues.
WORKING TOGETHER FOR OPERATIONAL EXCELLENCE
NAGE, the European operation of one of the world's largest and most successful financial services groups, is committed to reducing its impact on the environment, as part of a wide-ranging CSR programme, and expects suppliers to take a similar responsible approach. GSH Group is recognised as the leading provider of technology-driven energy management solutions and has worked closely with NAGE to lower consumption levels across all areas of its business.
A key element of this is the introduction of the GSH Group’s Smartboxes, which have been installed throughout NAGE’s properties to remotely monitor energy usage and consumption. The web-based, wireless system allows GSH to optimise and control various HVAC systems such as lighting, air conditioning, boiler plant and domestic hot water systems.
The Smartbox solutions has worked particularly well with the mechanical and electrical elements of the contract, creating a natural synergy where GSH Group is able to control how the building operates and functions to the client’s core business hours thus, securing further energy savings for the client.
In addition, GSH Group has invested more than £250,000 within the NAGE portfolio through energy management projects, to maximise savings and boost operational performance. The company has also undertaken a range of initiatives to educate stakeholders across the business to champion energy awareness. For example, engaging employees within the FM operation, such as cleaners, security guards and front of house staff, waste has been reduced by encouraging employees to switch of lights and equipment when not in use.
GSH Group has taken a collaborative approach to ensure its commitment to energy efficiency has been enforced throughout NAGE’s business. GSH Group constantly interacts with internal partners such as the account delivery team and mobile network engineering team to ensure all energy savings are maximised. In addition, a GSH Group representative sits on the National Property Team (NPT) Leadership Committee, which manages and oversees the environmental and sustainability performance of NAGE.
Case Study 2GSH and ABBEY – A LONG-TERM PARTNERSHIP
GSH first started work with Abbey in March 2006 when the company won a competitive tender to take responsibility for all hard FM services across 732 retail sites nationwide.
In July 2007 GSH’s energyplus solution was added to the contract giving GSH additional responsibility for all utility management functions. The key objective was to drive down the energy consumption of the portfolio of sites.
The solution included the implementation of:
• Staff Awareness days to promote and reinforce positive energy saving behaviour from employees
• Web based management information
• A six-figure capital investment programme.
Over 600 GSH Smart boxes were installed at Abbey retail sites across the UK to control and monitor energy consumption. These mini BMS (Business Management Systems) for remote plant and machinery give Abbey invaluable information relating to asset condition, reliability and efficiency.
Since this agreement began, energy consumption across the Abbey retail banking portfolio has been driven down by an average of 20 per cent. This represents cost savings in excess of £400,000 and a reduction in carbon emissions of more than 1,200 tonnes.
Over 600 GSH Smart boxes were installed at Abbey retail sites across the UK to control and monitor energy consumption. These mini BMS (Business Management Systems) for remote plant and machinery give Abbey invaluable information relating to asset condition, reliability and efficiency.
Since this agreement began, energy consumption across the Abbey retail banking portfolio has been driven down by an average of 20 per cent. This represents cost savings in excess of £400,000 and a reduction in carbon emissions of more than 1,200 tonnes.
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