25 Oct What to Do After an Energy Audit: Choosing the Right Building Upgrades
An energy audit is a crucial step in understanding your building’s energy use, pinpointing inefficiencies, and finding the best ways to cut energy consumption and costs. But what comes next? After receiving the energy audit report, the key question is: which building upgrades should you prioritize to maximize energy savings and comply with regulations like NYC Local Law 97? Choosing the right energy conservation measures (ECMs) can not only help lower your carbon footprint but also increase your building’s value, enhance occupant comfort, and reduce operating costs.
1. Understanding Your Energy Audit Report
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- Your normal energy audit identifies current energy usage, inefficiencies in the system, and ECMs recommended.
- Recommendations may suggest the upgrade of systems, such as HVAC, lighting, insulation, and renewable systems like solar panels.
- These are usually grouped as low, medium, and high-priority recommendations, depending on the cost versus the ease of implementation and potential savings.
- By understanding these categories, you can start planning your next moves.
- Energy audits such as those outlined in the Department of Energy’s guide often reveal opportunities that provide quick payback periods and substantial energy reductions.
- It’s critical to focus on energy conservation measures that balance short-term feasibility and long-term benefits.
2. Prioritizing Energy Conservation Measures (ECMs)
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- Once the audit has been reviewed, the second most essential thing is to prioritize which energy conservation measures are the most important to tackle first.
- It’s one of those tempting options to take a dive into the big-ticket items that promise the most significant savings, but too often, it would be more effective to first seek out lower-cost, high-impact upgrades.
- Energy-efficient lighting installations or smart thermostats alone can achieve huge reductions in energy use for a relatively low investment.
- Considering such strict local legislation as NYC Local Law 97, which aims at a 40% plus reduction in the emission of greenhouse gases before the end of 2030, it will be of essence that your building upgrades are in tandem with compliance matters; this will not only save you from penalties but also future-proof your building for sustainability.
- For example, this guide on energy efficiency can help streamline your decisions and focus on energy-saving actions that comply with local laws.
3. Evaluating the Return on Investment (ROI)
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- Each energy conservation measure has an associated cost while they also have associated savings.
- Computing the ROI from any building upgrade will enable you to prioritize changes accordingly.
- For example, changing out an HVAC system may be a very costly upfront expense but can yield large long-term savings in energy costs. Similarly, installing solar panel units may prove a little expensive at their upfront investment cost but are good to go to drastically cut down your energy expenses in the long run.
4. Consider Building Envelope Upgrades
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- The most value-added implementation of energy efficiency is in the building envelope upgrade.
- This includes insulation, sealing any gaps that cause air leaks, and upgrading windows and doors. These upgrades can drastically reduce heating and cooling costs by having your building maintain a more consistent internal temperature.
- While these upgrades may require a moderate up-front investment, they are long-term financial smart moves for any building owner.
- With NYC Local Law 97 in mind, building envelope upgrades not only reduce energy costs but also help meet strict emissions reduction targets. Given the increased importance of sustainability, these improvements can enhance your building’s value and appeal to eco-conscious tenants or buyers.
5. Integrating Smart Technologies
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- Smart technologies have changed everything in buildings, from control over automatic lighting systems to advanced HVAC regulation.
- Integrating smart building systems can help to ensure this optimally controls energy use in real-time.
- That means smart thermostats will switch in heating and cooling modes based on the number of occupants in every single room while motion sensors turn lights off where they are not needed.
- Such technologies allow for the paramount control of energy usage, wherein building managers can easily observe consumption patterns and further identify opportunities for efficiency improvements.
- Integrating smart building technologies helps you stay compliant with NYC Local Law 97 while offering convenience and control over your building’s energy use
6. Renewable Energy Integration
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- Renewable energy solutions—solar panels or wind turbines—in the building can provide a quantum leap in maximum energy efficiency.
- While there is generally a great amount of initial investment to make such a solution, it does dramatically reduce the dependency on traditional energy sources, hence reducing energy costs in the long run and your carbon footprint along with that
- Among these strategies, arguably, should be the implementation of renewable energy solutions to achieve NYC Local Law 97 carbon emissions standards for buildings.
- This extends not just to helping your building meet its compliance requirements, but can also provide potential incentives and tax credits for added renewables.
7. Work with Experienced Professionals
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- Picking the right building upgrades after an energy audit takes some level of expertise. Working with an experienced energy consultant or engineer can take the guesswork out of making the most informed decision for your building and budget
- Professionals can escort you through every phase, from breaking down your audit report to installing the recommended upgrades, to make your building as energy-efficient as possible.
8. Compliance with NYC Local Law 97
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- As the compliance deadline with NYC Local Law 97 draws near, building owners need to orient their focus toward upgrades that meet these very stringent emissions reduction standards.
- Since noncompliance entails substantial fines, it is of primary importance that energy conservation measures remain at the top of the to-do list for reducing your building’s carbon footprint, including HVAC system upgrades, enhancement of insulation, and integration of renewable solutions that help lower greenhouse gas emissions.
9. Plan for Future Energy Audits and Continuous Improvement
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- An energy audit should not be a one-time thing. To make sure your building stays as efficient as it can, plan for periodic audits and continuous improvements that reveal new savings opportunities.
- Energy use and building technology are changing continuously, and regular audits will unearth new opportunities for savings and efficiency.
- Thirdly, future audit planning may keep you at the pinnacle of compliance with laws such as NYC Local Law 97, whose standards may get more stringent over time.
- Ensuring energy audits are proactive means that you will continually reduce your carbon footprint while maximizing savings effectively.
Taking Action After an Energy Audit; Ready to Transform Your Building’s Future?
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- An energy audit can surely offer huge insight into your building’s energy usage, but the real difference it makes lies in the choice of building upgrades one selects to implement afterwards
- Prioritize energy conservation measures that offer financial and environmental benefits, as well as compliance with regulations such as NYC Local Law 97.
- Better building envelope upgrades, integration of smart technologies, or on-site renewable energy solutions can upgrade your building into one of efficiency and sustainability.
- For expert assistance on selecting the most effective building upgrades, visit The Cotocon Group, a trusted resource in guiding businesses through energy audits and building efficiency improvements