Building Energy Management Systems Aren’t Just For Giants

Building energy management systems (BEM) have been around for ten years or more but were mostly restricted to large facilities where they produced big cost savings and allowed management a better understanding of what went on in their buildings. That has been changing, and systems are now spreading among the managers of smaller facilities, to the extent that Navigant Research says the market, currently worth $235 million, will reach $1.6 billion by 2025.

Until recently, BEM companies have focused on facilities in the 100,000 square feet and upwards bracket. Now, though, Navigant states that the development of intelligent buildings means that BEM is giving a good return on investment to owners of buildings of between 10,000 and 100,000 square feet.

Unless the building was already being run at peak efficiency – and, without the aid of a sophisticated computer program, achieving that is difficult – being able to control and manage heating and cooling systems is almost guaranteed to reduce the amount of energy used and, therefore, the cost. That is not, though, the only gain from BEM. Collecting data from the entire facility and offering a variety of filters through which to look at it means you can check performance, all the way from an integrated view of the facility as a whole down to each specific machine and device. If a single furnace, compressor or fan unit is letting down the whole system, you can identify it – and then do the math. Cheaper in the short/medium/long term to keep it and pay for the energy it uses? Or to invest now in a replacement and reap the benefits in lower bills?

The Navigant Research report lists the people it’s designed to help. They mention:

• The people who sell building automation systems, and the people who sell IT systems generally
• Tech startups
• Electric utilities and ESCOs
• Investors

The list ends there. Well, whoa! Isn’t there someone missing here? What about the people – maybe the family company; maybe the husband and wife team – who build or buy a medium size facility not as an investment but as a place to run their business? What about the big warehouse operator, the big factory owner, the big retailer? What, in short, about people like you?

Okay, so maybe you’re not the kind of people Navigant Research thinks about when it writes its reports. But you’re the kind of people Climate Control Services thinks about – seven days a week, fifty-two weeks a year. If you have a building in which you’re afraid energy costs are getting out of hand, and you want expert advice, call us. Giving expert advice is what we do.