System upgrades that can help bring savings to light.

Many businesses needlessly spend far too much on their energy bills, according to Energy Conservation & Supply, Inc. (ECS), a leading energy conservation company and distributor of energy efficient products.

Energy-efficient lighting and energy efficiency-related products and services can dramatically reduce a company's energy costs, and can pay for themselves in as little as a year, says ECS.

Raymond Crespo, Vice President of ECS, said, "This year, the U.S. electric industry will generate nearly 4 trillion kilowatt hours (kWh) of electricity.

"84% of that energy is consumed by American businesses, and of that amount, probably 15% is wasted through the use of energy-inefficient products and practices. The impact of this in terms of lost profits is enormous. But fortunately, reclaiming those profits is usually easier than one would think.

"Upgrading to more energy efficient lighting, automatic lighting controls, building management systems (BMS) and centralized PC power management is straightforward, cost-effective and helps increase the bottom line, while having the added benefit of aiding the environment.

ECS's turnkey energy upgrades include: lighting retrofits and controls; lamp and ballast upgrades; occupancy sensor lighting controls; energy management systems; and PC power management software.

According to ECS, a complete installation of energy-efficient lighting in a commercial building should produce a 10% reduction in the facility's total energy bill.

"Consider a 100-square-foot office with two two-foot by four-foot fixtures with four lamps. A simple upgrade and an automatic light switch will reduce operating costs by over 75%. When combined with PC power management software, you can expect the per-office savings to climb to over 80%, with an average savings of 50% per room as a conservative starting point," said Crespo. (Other energy-consuming equipment, such as HVAC systems, keep the total energy savings at the 10% mark.)

"Many companies are not only unaware of how much energy they're wasting, but also how it's being wasted. Most people know that lights are often left on when they aren't needed. But the same is true of desktop computers. Desktop PCs are often left on for hours on end when not being used, yet they are a very heavy user of electricity," he added.

"PCs are a major contributor to plug load electricity drain in many sectors. They consume about 9% of the total electricity used nationwide in commercial buildings, he said."

The return on investment period for a complete energy upgrade will depend on a number of factors, including energy savings (a combination of the price of electricity, wattage and time usage), the cost of the products and services for the upgrade itself and the size of the rebate incentive available.

Said Crespo, "Energy costs and savings vary when it comes to upgrades, but it's safe to say that our clients typically see an annual ROI of 30% to 100%, yielding a payback period for an energy upgrade of about one to three years."

Since the cost of energy will likely continue to rise, taking steps to save energy today should yield even greater savings in the future.

"Companies often don't see energy as a manageable cost. While the cost-cutting approach to increasing profitability has been around for some time, there are still many companies that aren't taking advantage of the opportunities readily available to reduce their energy consumption," said Crespo.

In addition to failing to see energy as being a manageable cost, ECS noted that companies have other reservations about upgrading to more energy efficient systems, such as concerns that the installation process will have a negative impact on business and that the quality and degree of lighting will be reduced. Some companies worry that they will not be able to verify their actual savings from the upgrade.

According to Crespo, none of these fears is warranted.

"When done correctly, a company should be able upgrade its lighting and deploy other energy-saving systems with virtually zero impact on its operations.

"Ensuring that a customer can conduct business as usual is a key priority for us.

"For example, we completed upgrades at both Macy's East and Bloomingdale's during their Christmas holiday shopping seasons, with no disruptions to customers or impact on operations or sales," he said

In terms of light levels, installing energy efficient lighting actually increases both real and perceived lighting and quality--even with up to a 70% reduction in energy use, according to ECS.

According to ECS, savings on upgrades can be measured in real time using data loggers and other measurement devices, and on a monthly basis by comparing post-upgrade energy bills to earlier bills.

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