Save money by using energy more efficiently

Saving energy will require your employees to take on some of the responsibility. So it's important to consult them and get their buy-in before changing your practices.

Energy-saving measures that are difficult, inconvenient or impractical to implement are likely to be ignored or withdrawn. This will undermine any future attempts to reduce energy use.

You might want to consider appointing an energy champion who is in charge of finding new ways of cutting the amount of power you use. Their responsibilities could include:

• reporting any energy waste they notice - for example, equipment left on unnecessarily
• ensuring equipment and machinery are well-maintained and working efficiently
• contributing and gathering ideas for improving the way things are done
• testing and implementing processes that are found to be more efficient
• communicating good practice and improvements

Remember to bear in mind any health and safety issues before you implement any changes. For example, could reducing lighting in an area of your premises make it difficult for your employees to move around safely?