Lisa Wilkinson of t-mac Technologies Ltd gives an overview of the changing face of FM and delves into the growing technological landscape, citing automatic monitoring and targeting (aM&T) devices as one of the key technologies for undertaking effective energy management.

• How do aM&T devices work?
• How does the government's emissions trading scheme, the Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC), impact on FM?

 'Eco-business ethics', the 'green pound', the 'green bottom line' - the growing dominance of the green theme is never-ending and is unlikely to stop anytime soon.

Turning off the office lights at the end of the working day, powering down the PC and recycling paper coffee cups will not cut it in the era of the eco-business.

Recycling initiatives and saving minimal energy is no longer enough; businesses of every size, and in every sector, cannot shy away from the importance of the UK's energy plight and must start looking ahead and being green, not just for today but for the future.

Energy-led legislation with more emphasis on the need to cut carbon emissions of buildings has put not only energy reduction, but also management and control of energy emissions and consumption, on the top of every businesses agenda.

The task of reducing energy and making a building and working area conform to legislation will most likely fall to the facilities manager.

Through more sophisticated energy management and maintenance, facilities managers can effect real change and reduce the carbon footprint of a building considerably.

However, this is where problems lie - time is of the essence and to undertake a full and accurate manual measurement of energy is difficult. Often there is not enough manpower to monitor the energy expenditure or the ability within the business to do this.

Inadequate air conditioning devices and heating appliances are major culprits of the increasing energy consumption of buildings, pumping out large amounts of wasted energy into the atmosphere and thus playing a significant role in climate change.

This equipment can often leak energy without being detected by the user - which is not only costly for the environment but also for business in terms of high and unnecessary utility bills.

Technological developments now make it possible for facilities managers to monitor the energy spend across every element of their building.

From the overheating in the server room to the chilling air conditioning in the boardroom, every element of a building's energy can now be monitored and effectively reduced via advanced technology.

With this new wave of FM technology, the industry now has their pick as to which energy management practice to adopt.

Traditional building management devices are the norm but now cannot keep up with the demands of energy management requirements.

One solution is to install energy management technology such as automatic monitoring and targeting (aM&T) devices, which help facilities managers to reduce carbon emissions by monitoring output and ensuring equipment is running efficiently.

Automatic monitoring and targeting

aM&T devices do exactly what their name suggests: automatically monitoring any area of the facilities manager's business, targeting how to reduce the energy being expelled and controlling the energy being consumed or emitted.

Many available aM&T devices are simple to use and provide instant results. By remotely controlling energy use and improving efficiency, they monitor exactly where energy is being used and provide recommendations to rectify this.

These systems remove the time and labour-intensive role of monitoring and control because they can be operated remotely via the Internet and work 24 hours a day, seven days a week with little intervention. Reports on energy use can also be accessed from any location online.

aM&T devices work by gathering energy consumption information from sources of power, such as a lighting or an air conditioning unit; they then highlight the energy that the unit is losing and ultimately wasting unnecessarily.

Analysis

From the collection of energy data, aM&T devices then transfer this information into easy-to-read reports. Facilities managers can then print these off to gain an understanding of and see unusual patterns of energy consumption.

The reports can be used to meet government targets and act as proof that the building is operating in an energy-efficient manner.

Identifying excessive energy use, aM&T systems highlight which equipment is using more energy and why, and from this establish a plan to reduce energy consumption, improve equipment performance and gain best practice techniques.

Facilities managers can then determine and measure where and how much energy is being used over a specific period and compare it to annual targets, helping them to reduce costs easily.

Automatic control

Offering an all-round energy management package, contemporary aM&T devices take traditional aM&T to the next level with an added element - control.

Facilities managers can now actively control equipment, such as heating or lighting, in accordance to changing conditions, such as weather, and co-ordinate suitable 'on' times in response to requirements. Without control, energy information is pointless and consumption cannot be reduced effectively.

As the most advanced devices work via the Internet, it means they are fully interactive from any location, ensuring the control is with the facilities manager. In practice, air conditioning units can be programmed to be turned on and off at certain times to ensure energy isn't wasted needlessly.

Alternatively, they can alert via text message or email when a lighting scheme is operating outside of preset criteria or an air conditioning unit is leaking energy.

For example, facilities managers can log on to dedicated Web pages where they can, by the click of a mouse, turn down the heating or turn off the lights instantly without having to go on site.

Devices can also make management as easy as possible by alerting facilities managers to arising problems. By sending out alerts via SMS or email when preset conditions change,  aM&T devices make energy monitoring simple and enable users to instantly act to resolve issues by remotely turning off, turning down or turning up equipment - either over the Internet or manually on-site.

For example, if the interior temperature of an office building rises, an aM&T device can 'talk' to the air conditioning system and literally tell it to turn the air conditioning up or turn the heating off.

Continually monitoring equipment for energy efficiency also ensures that the user will be aware of any irregularities, which will help facilities managers gain a greater grasp of machine efficiency and give insight into its capabilities so any inefficiency can be spotted early - in effect it enables predictive maintenance.

Legislation

The government's emissions trading scheme, the Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC), which comes into force in 2010, has an immediate impact on facilities managers, as charges for the scheme will be based on their buildings energy consumption in 2008.

At the start of 2010 all businesses consuming more than 6,000mWh of half-hourly metered electricity will be included in the CRC scheme, resulting in a requirement to purchase carbon allowances for the amount used through the 2008 qualifying year.

Managers must act now to proactively monitor, record and reduce their energy use in order to get the best possible energy rating and reduce their carbon footprint in the future.

The CRC will mean companies must showcase 90 per cent of their total consumption and ensure that their annual usage from 2010 onwards falls within the carbon allowances purchased (annual usage in 2010 falls within the same quantity used in the qualifying year, 2008). 

Businesses will also be rated against all other companies within the CRC and they will receive bonuses, or will be penalised, in accordance with where they feature on the 'leader board'. 

The easiest and most cost-efficient way of collecting this data is via an aM&T device that will enable businesses to accurately manage energy usage within their carbon allowance purchased, identify areas for improvement to reduce costs, reduce the carbon credit requirements for the following year, and move up the CRC league table.

The use of aM&T devices has huge benefits both financially and in terms of reducing environmental impact.

Ability to manage, monitor and control multiple sites' equipment from one single portal is one of the most significant advantages. Initial investment in aM&T systems can also be recouped within six months of installation, ensuring that devices are not only an effective way to save energy but they are also a sound investment from a business perspective.

Through the application of powerful, proactive tools such as aM&T devices, facilities managers can manage and reduce energy effectively, helping to ward off energy penalties, reduce energy bills and ultimately cut their carbon footprint.

Lisa Wilkinson is Director of t-mac Technologies Ltd.