How To Make Your Retail Property Energy Efficient

Energy efficiency is something that all businesses should be striving to achieve today. We all have a responsibility to ensure that we do our bit to protect the planet. When you consider the fact that a lot of business operations can be a drain on energy resources, it is important to have a strategy to lower our carbon footprint. With that in mind, let’s take a quick look at some of the different steps that you could be taking now in order to make your retail property more energy efficient.

Heating

You can reduce the amount of energy you use in terms of heating your retail property. Here are some ideas…

• Consider outside temperature – Always consider what the outside temperature is like before turning up the heat. Every degree lower or higher accounts for around eight per cent of your total heating bill, so don’t simply blast the heating during the winter.
• Set up timers and temperature zones – Set up individual time profiles that will work around the opening times of your store to make sure that energy is not being wasted when the store is empty.
• Ditch the open-door policy – A lot of retail stores leave their doors open to entice customers, yet this wastes a lot of energy. Closing your doors may not seem good for business but there are a lot of ways around this. For example, you can ensure your store appears welcoming and open from the outside or you could simply install an automatic door.

Lighting

There are a number of different changes you can make relating to lighting in your retail property that are going to make a considerable difference to the amount of energy you use. This includes the following…

• Label light switches – This is a good way to make sure new and existing employees are not tempted to flick every switch without contemplating if it is needed.
• Install occupancy sensors in staff areas – This is a great way to manage light use, ensuring lights are only turned on when people are in the room in question.
• Replace outdated light fittings – They will use up more energy! This is an investment that will save you money in the long-term.
• Invest in low energy lighting – There are lots of different light bulbs on the market that have been made to give you the same level of brightness without using such a high amount of energy. Do some research and see what would work best for your operation.

Reduce Energy Consumption

We have covered the two main areas of energy consumption but there are plenty of other changes you can make, including…

• Ensure HVAC systems are clean, free from dirt and grime
• Make use of natural ventilation
• Involve staff in the energy reduction process
• Look for energy-saving opportunities as a monthly task
• Don’t allow the cooling and heating system to operate at the same time

So, there you have it: some of the different steps that you can take to make your retail property more energy efficient. If you follow the suggestions that have been mentioned above, you can go a long way to making sure that you cut your carbon footprint by a considerable degree. Plus, a lot of the ideas that have been mentioned do not require a lot of effort, but they can certainly make a massive difference. It’s worth putting an action plan together.

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