How Does Energy Management Help Manufacturing Companies Cut Energy Costs?

Energy management means monitoring electricity, gas and water consumption in real time, evaluating it and linking it with other systems so a company can see where and why it uses the most energy. It allows consumption limits to be set, alerts to be triggered for unusual deviations, and equipment operation to be planned around weather conditions or current energy prices. On its own, it won't reduce the consumption of energy-intensive machinery, but it gives a company the data needed to decide where to invest and what's worth changing.

What is energy management, and why are more manufacturing companies addressing it?

Energy management is a set of processes and tools that make it possible to monitor, evaluate and optimise energy consumption in operations. In manufacturing companies, this typically covers electricity, gas and water, inputs no production can do without and whose prices have risen in recent years. The larger the share energy takes up in a company's total costs, the more worthwhile it is to have a clear view of where and why the most is being consumed. Interest in the topic usually arises alongside rising energy prices and production expansion, when a company needs more grounds for deciding on further investments, whether that's solar power, changes to heating, or replacing older technology.

What does a manufacturing operation without energy dispatching look like?

Many manufacturing companies today only measure consumption at the level of the whole site, mainly for billing purposes with their energy supplier. They lack more detailed measurement at the level of individual halls, technologies or machines, so when consumption rises somewhere, the company often only finds out from the bill, not at the moment it happens. Deviations in consumption then get addressed retrospectively: management asks production why consumption was higher in a given period, and the answer is pieced together from memory or a shift log. Without more detailed measurement, it's also hard to tell whether an increase is down to seasonal effects, a change in the production programme, or an actual equipment fault.

What data does an energy dashboard track, and how does it work in real time?

An energy dashboard is a tool that displays the consumption of individual energy types, electricity, gas, water, and possibly solar generation, in real time, and allows limits or threshold alerts to be set. Besides fixed limits, it can also work with the average for a previous period and flag when consumption deviates by a set percentage above or below the usual value. A drop in electricity consumption, for instance, can signal a machine failure before staff notice it themselves, which is especially useful in operations where consumption isn't under direct human observation. The dashboard can also work with forecasting, an estimate of future consumption based on weather, through a connection to meteorological models or the company's own weather station on site. Forecasting makes the most sense where energy consumption is directly tied to outdoor temperature, typically for heating or cooling buildings.

Why do large production halls and frequently opened doors complicate energy savings?

Not every operation has the same savings potential from better data alone. In production halls with large doors used regularly to move goods or materials, every opening causes significant heat loss, regardless of how well the heating is set up. Strip curtains don't fully retain heat, and installing air curtain heaters tends to be an expensive investment from an energy standpoint that doesn't always pay off. Solutions such as an airlock or vestibule in front of the doors often run into a lack of space on site as well. In such operations, energy management can't replace structural or technological changes, but it does give the company the grounds to decide how much heat is actually being lost and whether a particular investment is worth making at all.

How does energy monitoring connect with facility management and other systems?

Facility management (FM) software is used to manage assets, plan maintenance and record inspections of technical equipment. In manufacturing companies, it's usually implemented before energy management and covers a different part of the operation, namely servicing, inspections and repairs, not energy consumption directly. Connecting the two systems via an API (an interface for exchanging data between applications) makes it possible, for example, to automatically start cooling based on a weather forecast, or to schedule a service intervention based on a piece of equipment's actual consumption. Without integration, the systems operate separately, each with its own data, and the company ends up gathering the same information, say, about an equipment fault, from different sources individually. Connecting systems with one another is now more the rule than the exception in manufacturing companies, because data left in separate silos loses much of its value.

Operations without energy monitoring vs. with an energy dashboard

• Consumption is tracked only in aggregate for the whole site, usually for billing purposes - With an energy dashboard: Consumption is tracked by hall, technology or individual equipment.
• Deviations in consumption are addressed retrospectively, based on memory or invoices - With an energy dashboard: The system flags deviations the moment they occur.
• Heating or cooling is run regardless of the weather forecast - With an energy dashboard: Equipment operation can be planned around the weather forecast.
• Energy data and maintenance data sit separately in different systems - With an energy dashboard: Systems are connected and work with shared data.

How do you know your operation needs energy management?

Based on practical experience, this is usually the case if:

• you track energy consumption only in aggregate for the whole site, not by individual halls or technologies,
• you find out about a spike in consumption only from your supplier's invoice, not at the moment it happens,
• you have no way of knowing whether current consumption is above average until someone points it out to you,
• heating or cooling operation isn't governed by the weather forecast or the production plan,
• your energy data and equipment maintenance data sit in separate systems that don't communicate with each other.

Frequently asked questions

What is energy management? Energy management is the monitoring, evaluation and control of energy consumption (electricity, gas and water) within a company's operations. It includes measuring consumption, setting limits and deviation alerts, and often linking with other systems such as facility management or equipment control.

Will an energy dashboard reduce energy consumption on its own? No. The dashboard provides data on where and when the most energy is consumed, but it doesn't change the consumption of energy-intensive equipment by itself. Achieving real savings usually requires a follow-up investment in technology or an operational change based on the data gathered.

How long does implementing energy management take in a manufacturing company? The timeframe varies depending on the scale of the operation and the number of measurement points. Implementation is usually handled in stages, from a pilot operation to a rollout across further halls or divisions, and is more of a long-term process than a one-off step.

Can an energy dashboard be connected to facility management software? Yes, if the facility management system in question supports it, usually via an API. The connection allows data to be shared between energy management and maintenance management, for example scheduling servicing based on actual equipment consumption or starting up equipment based on a weather forecast.

Is energy management worthwhile for companies without solar power? Yes. Monitoring electricity, gas and water consumption makes sense regardless of whether a company generates its own energy. Solar power and battery storage add a further dimension, such as working with spot prices, but the core benefit of having a clear view of consumption applies even without them.

Does an energy dashboard work on mobile as well? Yes, if it's a web application, it can be viewed on a mobile phone or tablet without needing to install a separate app. Charts and details are typically simplified on a smaller screen, but key indicators remain accessible from anywhere.

How does energy management help detect an equipment fault? An unusual drop or spike in electricity consumption can signal a machine fault or a leak before staff notice it themselves. The system flags such a deviation automatically, based on a set limit or a comparison with the average consumption for a previous period.

Summary

Energy management gives manufacturing companies a clear view of where and why they consume energy, which won't reduce consumption by itself but is a necessary foundation for any targeted savings. It works best where a company can use the data to change its operations, technology or investment priorities, and conversely has limited benefit where consumption is driven by hard-to-control factors, such as the large doors of production halls. The key is linking energy data with other systems, typically facility management, so the company isn't working with information isolated in separate silos. The result is a tool that won't replace investment in the technology itself, but will show where investment is actually worth directing.

If you're working out what energy management could look like in your operation, we'd be happy to show you how such a system works in practice, feel free to get in touch.