The average business attributes 30% of their expenses to energy costs. Of that an average of 68% is attributed to items which can be significantly reduced through an energy management system, with improvements affecting your lighting and your climate control making the biggest difference. The value of these changes is not only in the immediate savings seen on your monthly bill, but the cost avoidance of significantly reducing or even eliminating your maintenance costs in these areas.

While the short term benefits of property improvements can be impressive, with payback periods as low as 1.2 years the case for your Energy Management System becomes even stronger when taking into account the increase in property value. This increase is dependent on multiple factors including original energy usage, mitigation strategies and extent of the energy management system, for example the inclusion of a solar energy system increases the property value more than any other EMS element.

With over 50% of Americans considering the green factor or the environmental impact of the companies they are dealing with this provides you with some powerful marketing material that can help you capitalize on this market. Progeneration energy, as a part of our Energy Management Systems can help you develop or provide the marketing material to ensure your business takes full advantage of this opportunity.

Other companies capitalizing on the advantages of going green are Wal-Mart and Kohl’s, to name two of the biggest renewables contributors with 105.1kW and 55.2kW of solar energy generation capacity, respectively. Property management and residential trusts are also taking notice with Prologis and Harts having 99,589 kWh of energy generation capability combined. Not only does this offset their energy expense, but research is showing that businesses that are going green can charge more.

The vacancy rate for a residential building is approximately 3% lower than in a comparable building without the same improvements. That same building with energy improvements, when marketed as a green building can charge rents 8% higher than its neighbor.

“This is all well and good, Erika, but its December and we don’t have the budget to be considering a full energy management system right now.” Ask us about our financing options and how we can work with your budget, your current spend availability in order to best take advantage of the opportunities available to you in energy. Getting rid of your energy bill within the next 5 years is worth giving us a call to find out more.

Furthermore, while addressing the components of your energy management system one at a time might initially seem preferable in the short term it will cost you significantly more in the long run. This is due to a number of factors related to project implementation. By taking advantage of a systems approach we can reduce system design costs, negotiate preferred rates with suppliers and ensure a cost effective method of implementation with the least impact on your business operations.