A company spends on average half of its energy budget on heating. While energy prices have increased and the call for sobriety is renewed, here are the best ways for your business to reduce its heating bill this winter.
Heating, the main source of energy expenditure in offices
Whatever its source, heating is a major cost item in business. In the tertiary sector, it represents more than 50% of energy expenditure, according to estimates from the Ecological Transition Agency (ADEME).
With the rise in energy prices, companies are therefore more encouraged than ever to review the regulation and management of heating in winter, both to participate in the collective sobriety effort and to better control their energy expenditure. .
7 Tips to Reduce Your Business' Heating Bill
#1 Raise awareness among your employees about sobriety issues
Raising employee awareness of the importance of energy efficiency is an effective way to reduce your heating bills in the short term. It allows savings of up to 10% without significant investment. The challenge is to succeed in extending certain eco-gestures already carried out at home to work. And they are simple:
- Adjust the set temperature carefully and dress a little warmer.
- Avoid cluttering radiators for better heat diffusion;
- Do not open windows when the heating is on;
- Close the doors to avoid heat loss;
- Take advantage of the sun during the day by opening the blinds to accumulate solar energy;
To raise employee awareness, having visible thermometers or connected sensors in work areas is recommended. Knowing the temperature in real time makes us aware of the reality of heating, sometimes completely out of sync with the temperature set on the thermostat, and encourages eco-friendly actions.
#2 Reduce (and regulate) the temperature in your premises
Reducing the temperature by 1°C allows you to reduce your heating consumption by more than 7%, ADEME often reminds us! Optimal temperatures are 19°C during the day in occupied rooms and 16°C if they are not occupied, especially at night. For premises unoccupied for more than two days, it is recommended to set the temperature setpoint to 8°C. Finally, areas with little presence or passage, such as storage areas, reserves or archives, can be satisfied with heating at 10 or 12°C.
#3 Optimize the winter heating period
Another quick eco-friendly gesture to implement is reducing the winter heating period. Businesses are encouraged to start it 15 days later and stop it 15 days earlier than usual. Generally, this heating period is between October 15 and April 15. It must of course be adapted according to the weather, the geographical location and the quality of the thermal insulation of the buildings.
#4 Have your heating and ventilation system maintained
Boiler, heat pump... Thorough maintenance of a company's heating system is a real source of energy savings, because it allows you to improve the efficiency of your equipment. Clearing heating circuits consists, for example, of removing sludge deposits accumulated in the heating circuits. According to the Ministry of Ecological Transition, this process avoids a 17% loss in efficiency of the heating system. Hence the interest in tackling it in the fall. At the same time, good maintenance of the ventilation system is beneficial.
#5 Insulate water and heating pipes
Insulating the pipes of the heating system, but also of the domestic hot water, makes it possible to significantly reduce energy loss (up to 20%) when transporting water to the radiators.
#6 Remove thermal bridges
Combating thermal bridges is a priority if you want to reduce your business's heating costs in the long term. ADEME estimates that they are responsible for 40% of energy loss in a building. The removal of thermal bridges must be integrated into a larger thermal renovation project for your buildings.
#7 Focus on intelligent building control devices (BACS, etc.)
BMS (technical building management) system technology improves the fight against energy waste and can lead to a reduction in heating bills. The BACS (Building Automation & Control System) decree, published in 2020, aims to impose on all tertiary buildings equipped with a heating and/or air conditioning system with a nominal power greater than 290 kilowatts (kW ), a building automation and control system by 2025. The obligation has been extended, for 2027, to tertiary buildings equipped with a heating system and cold with a power greater than 70 kW. Given the potential savings and the inevitable nature of this upgrade, you might as well plan ahead.