Effective Tips for Saving Electricity in South African Businesses
It seems that saving electricity is on everyone’s mind these days. Whether you’re a business owner or a homeowner, you have probably tried several methods to push your electricity bill down as far as it can go.
Surprisingly, many people are still unaware of the seriousness of our energy crisis, which tells us that the message of being energy-efficient still needs to spread far and wide. We’ve compiled a short but helpful list of tips for South African businesses to save electricity and survive the country’s battle for power with alternative options.
Reduce Peak Demand
When we refer to peak demand, it usually means a period of time in the day when the most electricity is being used. This would probably fall within regular working hours for South African businesses.
Imagine 50 to 100 employees all working on laptops, machinery, production equipment, stoves, coffee machines, photocopy machines and so on ‒ it can be very taxing on power systems. By staggering office hours or operating certain machines at night or early parts of the morning, you can reduce some of this demand and save electricity during peak hours.
Request An Energy Audit
An energy audit or forensic utility audit will involve a thorough investigation of the electricity usage on your property to identify any leaks, inefficient lighting, phantom energy (from equipment that’s plugged in but not being used), or insulation problems that could be contributing to a higher than necessary bill.
An audit by a professional energy management company will help you understand your bill and create awareness of what’s draining energy the most and what changes ought to be made.
Empower Staff To Save Electricity
Often business owners have some knowledge about energy consumption and reduction methods but are not sure how to put this into practice. A great way is to hold a staff presentation or training session to inform employees about how to save electricity with small daily habits. This could be in a live conference format, an online Zoom session, or an emailer that is sent out to everyone. Doing so will get everyone involved in a collective effort to cut down on electricity wastage and will likely encourage positive results.
What Are Your Alternatives?
There may be no silver lining to the country’s energy crisis, but there are a few alternative options to consider as a business. Keep your plant or retail operation running smoothly with happy customers all-year round by implementing the following:
- Natural light – Use natural light as much as possible and resist the urge to flip the switch when it’s not needed.
- Generators – Be prepared for power cuts with power generators that will keep your equipment running.
- Power factor correction equipment – Energy Management Solutions offers equipment that reduces energy spikes from motor-driven machines.
- Solar power – Invest in solar panels for uninterrupted electricity supply from a renewable source
Contact Energy Management Solutions today for energy audits and further tips to reduce consumption and save electricity for your business.