There are plenty of reasons you should consider reducing the power consumption of your business. Not only are energy bills often inflated by unnecessary expenses, but excessive usage also leads to the production of more harmful CO2 emissions into the environment. Fortunately, you can make some significant steps with some minor changes.
Minimize Artificial Lighting
The first thing you should focus on is minimizing the amount of artificial light in your office. Not only will you be saving your business money, but you’ll also be improving your employee’s productivity. Fluorescent lighting is often overly harsh and can cause unnecessary eye strain which makes it difficult to focus. Exposure to natural lighting, on the other hand, has been proven to improve workplace performance.
Find the Optimum Temperature
Finding an office temperature that everyone can agree on is difficult. 69-73°F is considered to be the norm, though air-conditioned offices should be slightly warmer to minimize any discrepancy between outside and inside.
Keeping your office on the lower end of this scale could end up saving you more than you’d think. A study by EnergyHub found consumers could potentially be saving more than 5 % (about $10) for each degree they turn the thermostat down, almost twice as much as U.S. government estimates.
Make Use of Power-Saving Features
Almost all of our computers and office equipment come pre-installed with software features designed to reduce power when idle. Both desktop and laptops can both be set to hibernate mode when not in use.
This saves your existing work as it is and allows you to continue from the same point later on. Similarly, photocopiers, scanners, and other common office equipment will feature a standby mode.
Invest in More Efficient Equipment
If your equipment doesn’t have these features, it may be time to update to something more modern. With the power savings, this could end up saving you money in the long-term.
Processors, such as Intel’s latest range of Xenon processors, not only boosts performance, but also delivers enhanced energy efficiency. By improving real-time power awareness, power load balancing, and energy reduction, you’ll only need to invest in more machines when absolutely necessary.
These are just some of the ways you can help keep your expenses down. Give these steps a try and lead your business to success.
I would also recommend investing in solar panels to enhance your energy efficiency. But of course depends on the size of your business and budget, as they are still quite expensive.