What is an Energy Audit?

An energy audit is a critical assessment of your energy efficiency, quality and consumption. By undertaking an energy audit an organisation can identify improvement opportunities. This should  lead  to a reduction in consumption and therefore capital savings. 

Be it implementing more efficient lighting, heating, cooling, pumping etc. fixing / replacing inefficient equipment using more energy than necessary, or even making process changes.

The outcome of an energy audit of any level is identification of solutions and action items. An organisation should be provided with a roadmap toward being more energy efficient and thus closer to net zero.

What does an energy audit look like?

Energy Audits in Australia are classified into three levels. There are established standards that practitioners must abide by for each level of inspection. The audit selected by an organisation is dependent on the individual goals and motivations for improving business energy efficiency.

Energy efficiency assessments can involve everything from a general survey to compare the organisation against benchmarks through to multi-day inspections of your site and ways of working.

These comprehensive inspections (seen in Level 2 or 3 Energy Audits) can include energy measurements, thermal imaging, visual inspection of processes, inspection of pumps and motors, vibration analysis and more. The higher the level of audit the more specific and granular the process. 

Each energy consultant will have their own way of working within the framework established by our industry standards. Energy Engineers operates on a process of ‘Inspect, Correct, Monitor’ to make the road to improved energy usage clear and simple. This enables us to best support organisations in understanding their energy consumption, take action, and continue to make (and validate) improvements over the long term.

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Selecting the Right Energy Audit for Your Organisation

Understanding what you want to achieve by engaging an energy consultant is a critical first step. A defined goal, alongside clarity of purpose, keeps all parties focused and accountable. A quality, accredited energy auditor can even help you in defining these goals by discussing your needs, as well as identifying your current state and capabilities.

When it comes to audit levels themselves, here’s a brief overview of what to expect from each:

Level 1 Audit

A basic overview of your company’s energy consumption to identify quick wins and solutions for glaring issues. on offer for your organisation. A good energy auditor will also provide a comparison of your organisation’s current state against similar businesses. These audits are useful for smaller businesses looking to take their first step towards lowering their energy usage.

Level 2 Audit

A comprehensive audit comprised of detailed data analysis with special instruments, in-depth assessment of energy usage and operating conditions at your site(s). As well as quantifying potential energy usage savings, these audits generally also include an estimate of costs to achieve outcomes, helping to form a business case for the project.

These audits generally require site visit by a Certified Energy Manager.

Level 3 Audit

Audits of this level are great use to larger businesses, organisations with specialist equipment, and those who have already implemented the actions from a Level 2 audit.

Utilising asset-specific monitoring equipment we are able to most accurately record energy efficiency (and consumption) to quantify opportunities. There is significant focus, along with time spent, on assessing the efficiency of specialist assets or subsystems. These audits get into the weeds of energy consumption, helping to make those minor percentage gains and achieve net zero.

How is an Energy Audit delivered?

It is best to an engage a professional energy auditor / expert to help find the best solution for your needs and make an economical case with you. With this in place they can then help you access finance and funding for your energy efficiency projects.

Effectively tackling energy issues within an organisation requires time and skill. Finding a professional partner to own the energy auditing process (as well as implementation of recommend actions) enables you and your teams to remain focused on working in the business.

Of course, you can undertake an audit internally – though generally this does not yield much as often we are blind to our own problems.  Wwhen one weighs up the time, resources and skills required to complete energy audits at the defined standards engaging a Certified Energy Manager is the best option. Plus a quality partner like Energy Engineers can not only conduct the review but also implement the solutions and tools to monitor efficiency over the long-term.

Why Should I Factor In Energy Monitoring?

The implementation of monitoring and processes allows organisations to validate the effectiveness of a project to improve energy efficiency and reduce energy consumption. It also provides real-time measurement of your overall system health to help adjust / correct on the fly. 

Ideally, energy reporting tools are installed on your equipment and made part of your everyday process. However, we understand that not all businesses have the capability or capital to achieve this – not to mention some legacy equipment / systems may not be compatible. At the very least, your organisation should strive for a bi-annual review of energy efficiency once an energy audit is conducted and solutions are implemented.

This enables your organisation to identify new opportunities for improvement and continually optimise your energy usage practices.

Energy Engineers are qualified CEMs delivering audits and practical solutions for Queensland businesses. Speak to our team today if you’d like to learn more about our process, energy audits in general, or where to access quality resources for improving efficiency.