Britain’s pubs, clubs and restaurants could see savings of up to a third on their energy bills by upgrading equipment, improving energy efficiency and changing behaviour. That’s according to E.ON which has launched a range of tailored measures and bespoke advice designed to help companies have greater control of their energy consumption and costs.
From simple measures such as identifying the most energy-hungry appliances to replacing old or inefficient heaters and refrigerators, hospitality firms could see savings of up to 34%, potentially translating to hundreds or thousands of pounds each year.
Energy Toolkit
E.ON’s ‘Energy Toolkit’’ is a new package of help and advice for small businesses designed to help companies see where and when energy is used and delivered in a way that doesn’t disrupt normal business.
Customers can request a free wireless energy monitor giving a real-time display of how their energy use stacks up and have access to energy saving advice relevant to their specific industry and company size.
Anthony Ainsworth, Sales and Marketing Director at E.ON, said: “Small business owners are often tied up doing lots of things – they are the boss, sales agent, secretary, procurement department and accountant all in one. It’s safe to say they no business owner wants to waste money, yet that’s what using unnecessary amounts of energy does.
Helping customers use only the energy they need
“Our customers told us they wanted help with this, and that is why we’ve created our new Energy Toolkit – to help customers use no more energy than they need and to do so in a way that fits alongside their busy lives.
“With our energy monitor, customers can see at-a-glance how much appliances cost, the potential savings they could make and payback periods for new technologies. And by speaking to our dedicated advisers, customers can take any guesswork out of simple energy efficiency measures or even larger budget investments that could provide greater benefit over a longer period of time.”
Use energy monitoring to identify savings
Regardless of sector, the top three draws on power for most small businesses are room and water heating, air conditioners and refrigerators. Lighting tends to be another major element. By simply monitoring where energy is used and being able to compare, business owners can learn exactly where they’re using the most power and identify where they can make the biggest savings.
Across pubs, clubs and restaurants an average 35% of energy is typically used on room and water heating. Improved hot water controls can save 20% of that energy use while better heating controls can save another 15%.
Energy saving advice line
To help with relevant advice, E.ON offers all its business customers a dedicated energy saving advice line, where advisers get to know a customer and their business to see where and when they are wasting energy and by identifying areas where changes can be made to improve efficiency.
Customers can also request the latest wireless energy monitor which displays how much energy different devices are using in a business and allows them to measure energy use by cost, kilowatt-hours and even CO2 emissions.
See the impact of turning devices on/off
The wireless energy monitor updates every 10 seconds so customers can see the impact of turning appliances on or off almost instantly. It has an innovative memory function that compares energy use by day, week or month and also displays daily averages to show when consumption of higher than average.
Case Study
By using E.ON’s monitor and taking advantage of bespoke energy efficiency advice, the Lime Indian restaurant in Nottingham was able to cut its energy bills substantially.
Sohail Rana from Lime explains: “With all the kitchen appliances we need, as well as the lighting and air conditioning, energy is one of our biggest single costs and can amount to as much as 10% of our total outgoings.
“The energy monitor from E.ON really opened our eyes to the running costs of certain items. We could see the impact of our energy usage instantly and quickly learned the air conditioning units were the most expensive items to run. We now only use them when they’re needed, rather than leaving them on out of habit, and that simple change has seen real savings – around £1,400 per year just by implementing some simple changes.”
Energy and money saving tips for pubs, clubs and restaurants
- Keep cool, cleverly – your customers’ comfort is key, so being able to control settings is invaluable. Time it so the temperature’s right as people begin to arrive, and starts to cool towards the end of business
- It’s the same for produce – this depends on what you’re cooling. It must be cool enough to provide proper food safety and quality but don’t set it too low – for every 1oC you cool things down, the amount of energy goes up by about 2%
- High-effiency condensing boilers are 90% efficient; running costs on older boilers can be over a third higher
- Heat water at the point of use – in areas with light usage, like staff rooms and toilets, it’s much more efficient and will let you turn the main boiler off in summer
- Choose LED spotlights – they use less than a fifth of the energy of Tungsten Halogen
- Use motion sensors where possible – light toilets, cellars and stockrooms only when needed
- Don’t leave items on when not being used, or pre-warm ovens and the like hours before they’re needed. Pizza ovens, conveyor toasters and hobs are common culprits for overuse
For E.ON’s Energy toolkit click here