New year’s resolution: talk energy use with the landlord
One of my predictions for 2012 is that energy efficiency will rise up the corporate agenda. Above inflation increases in energy costs over the last decade have taken energy from an incidental item of expenditure to one which demands to be taken seriously.
According to the latest Department of Energy and Climate Change data, over the last five years alone electricity prices have risen 54 per cent, and gas 25 per cent. Other fuels have shown similar increases. With hindsight, the levelling out of fuel prices towards the end of 2010 can be seen as a temporary aberration only with provisional data for 2011 showing the costs of gas, fuel oil and coal, in particular, on the increase.
To see how you are performing as a business, a good rule of thumb is to divide your total annual energy consumption (in kWh) by treated floor area (in m2). For a typical office, consumption over 500kWh/m2/year can be considered high and indicates room for improvement. Good practice is between 150kWh/m2 and 300kWh/m2 depending on your building type. That equates to a potential saving of around £15 per m2 per annum.
What can be done about the landlord?
One problem faced by businesses seeking to reduce their energy use is that they are often beholden to a landlord who stands little to gain directly by improving building performance. I hear this ‘excuse’ a lot from our otherwise keen clients and, indeed, Best Foot Forward is in a similar position. We made great efforts to eco-renovate our building (a former light industrial unit) when we moved in. We managed to use entirely reclaimed carpet and furnishings, recycled all the construction waste and installed a new low energy boiler. But the building fabric still leaked heat like the proverbial sieve with the thin, vaulted roof being the main culprit.
So, after a couple of years of procrastination, we sat down with our landlords to discuss options. Far from being the stereotypical disinterested and unreasonable hard-nosed money-grabber of cartoon myth, we found some common ground on which to develop some alternatives. And last winter we got a new super-insulated roof which is already proving a real money-saver (as well as making our upstairs office a more peaceful place to work).
If you rent your building and are still looking for a new year’s resolution – why not promise yourself a session with your landlord to discuss energy efficiency? It may be an easier sell than you think!
