Leveraging the power of good data

It’s a much-used saying but in today’s energy landscape it’s more relevant than ever and I make no apologies for repeating that: ‘Knowledge is Power’.

There is a massively strong business case for ensuring visibility and that good management of energy data is multi-faceted and powerful.

Most businesses may think they have a strong grip on their energy management. True, it is becoming increasingly important in the boardroom and day to day operations.

But the fact is many are failing to truly leverage the power of the knowledge they have. And what is more serious is they may not even know all the data that they can – and should – have access to and why it’s vital they seek it out and use it.

True energy management goes beyond analysis and awareness of consumption and its cost. Knowing how much you’re using at any one time, or how much you’re paying per kilowatt hour, is not even half the story.

It involves looking at all the relevant data that exists both inside and outside the business to make the right, informed decisions.

It’s about drilling down into your organisation’s financial data and seeing how that relates to energy use and consumption.

It’s looking beyond the top line figures and recognising that there is energy bill data that is not directly related to your energy consumption.

And it is about forensically examining the figures to ensure that those fixed charges are correct, looking to ensure there aren’t overpayments.

Organisations also need to look at their estate data, which is particularly important if they have multiple sites. Again, it should be about gaining knowledge that can be used for its benefit.

If you don’t know what each site does and what energy it needs to function, how are you going to benchmark your consumption and understand your bills? How can you make accurate forecasts and make informed decisions? Know your estate and look at what each site’s energy use should be.

Look at the metering that exists across the estate. See if those meters are set up on the right measurement ratio. That way you can avoid being hit by a massive back-bill because you haven’t checked that your meters are configured correctly.

Operational data is also really important. Know your people and your processes and examine how they are influencing your energy usage.

In manufacturing, look at how your energy consumption relates to your output. In offices, understand how opening times affect energy usage, and commercially how your energy usage impacts your business. Retailers should understand the relationship between footfall and energy use.

This knowledge will help prevent you making ill-informed decisions that could have an adverse effect on your operation and your business.

Not having that information can also add to internal resistance to changes which you need to make to manage your energy costs.

You need to build trust with the people on the shop floor and that comes from knowing how things work and understanding the true energy needs of the operation. They’ll have confidence in you and your proposals if they know you have that strong level of understanding.

Leveraging the power of good information also means forensically examining your organisation’s network data, something most businesses still don’t realise they should do.

This really is powerful information. Up to 25 per cent of your energy bill is made up of network costs. It’s regulated and not up for negotiation and is calculated using complex formulas.

However, one of the biggest impacts we have for our customers is getting money back for them because flawed network data has been used to calculate their costs in the first place. It may sound simple, but if you don’t check you don’t get recompensed and you’ll keep on overpaying.

Security of supply is another area where organisations that are serious about energy management should seek to get all the relevant information in order to truly manage the risk. Here it is about understanding what capacity there is in your local area – and what you may need going forward.

Finally there is regulatory data. This is where the charges you are being billed for can be traced back to. And the documents containing these regulations and charging policies, many up to 1,000 pages in length, are changing all the time.

It is through those changes that things like distribution costs are altered or penalties on excessive capacity are imposed and it’s vital that you know these changes are being made so you can manage your energy use accordingly.

Understanding the regulatory landscape and having access to the relevant regulatory data allows you to shape your forecasting and to prevent decisions being made with out-of-date or wrong information. But, importantly, it also allows you to make a difference and actually shape the energy landscape.

What most businesses don’t realise is that they can have an input in many of these proposed changes and can get involved in the process that shapes what they look like by engaging in work groups and consultations. You have a voice, so use it. That way knowledge truly is power.

PCMG is a world-class operating cost consultancy. It can maximise your organisation’s liquidity by applying highly specialist expertise to reduce operating costs and improve overall performance in the areas of energy, telecoms, water and accounts payable.

By looking deeper below the surface, PCMG has recovered well over £300m for its clients to date.

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