By Russell Gold
We heard a lot last year about how improving energy efficiency was cheap, low-hanging fruit and how it was the best way to curb greenhouse-gas emissions. Break out your caulk guns!
- Brian Zak/Sipa Press
- Morgan Stanley HQ, now with less energy usage
Frankly, it all sounded a little too good to be true. Without any big sacrifice or a change in lifestyle, less energy would be needed. Just keep your tires properly inflated. Oh yeah, targeting energy efficiency would create jobs also. A double shot in the arm for the ole economy!
Is there really that much waste? Consider the lesson of Morgan Stanley’s trading floors. At its global headquarters in Times Square, Morgan Stanley kept its trading floors at a nice temperature 24 hours a day, five days a week. Even at 3 a.m. Why push so much heat in during the winter – or cool air in the summer – in the middle of the night?
That was one of the questions posed by EnerNOC Inc., a Boston-based darling of the energy efficiency industry, after it began monitoring the 42-story building. Another finding: Morgan Stanley, which owns the building and occupies somewhat more than half of it, was keeping the elevator machinery rooms and other mechanical spaces as cool as the corporate suite. And the bathroom fans were running 24/7.
In all, EnerNOC said it found about $100,000 in savings for Morgan Stanley last year. (The Wall Street firm posted a $729 million profit in the first three quarters of 2009, so the energy savings are not a make or break figure.)
Morgan Stanley has “definitely recouped all of their investment,” says Tim Healy, EnerNOC’s chief executive. “They were ahead of the game within months.” Since he’s selling monitoring – not expensive new lighting or higher-efficiency furnaces – it was a relatively low upfront cost. (Morgan Stanley confirmed EnerNOC’s account of EnerNOC’s work and the savings uncovered.)
EnerNOC’s business is all about using information technology to monitor buildings and ferret out inefficiencies. Mr. Healy calls is data-driven energy efficiency.
“Let’s put a super computer inside that building that processes all the ways energy is being used, the way air is being used, the way lights are being turned on or off and try to optimize that,” he says. (No people wandering around the building with notepads are needed. The company can monitor carbon monoxide levels to figure out how many people are working in a certain space.)
He figures active monitoring of buildings to save energy will be a $30 billion to $40 billion market in the U.S. in a few years. That seems pretty bullish, but there are a lot of people who see a big potential in efficiency right now. In 2009, energy efficiency got $1.6 billion in venture capital and private equity investments, according to New Energy Finance, not far behind leading sectors wind ($1.75 billion) and solar ($1.74 billion.)
Is there really that much waste? Yes. But for many reasons our businesses burn money and energy blindly. The global debate around renewables has distracted us from the 30% solution we have in our hands – energy management.
The article talks about “data driven EE” and “getting out the caulk” but in fact it’s more than that. It requires Active Energy Management - automating, metering, monitoring, and continuously commissioning our buildings and industries. Our experience shows that most existing facilities can operate with 15% to 30% less energy right now.
What will solve this problem? It will take a combination of legislation, education, and awareness. Businesses must manage energy use in the same way they manage quality. All buildings must be metered, sub-metered, and monitored. Clear reduction goals must be in place. Governments must mandate labeling and public benchmarking for all facilities.
A stronger national Active EM initiative will create local jobs, save energy, avoid new power plants, and give the renewable industry time to mature. What are we waiting for?
Paul Hamilton, SVP EE Programs, Schneider Electric
Obama Must Wake Up to Natural Gas
By Jim Cramer
http://secure2.thestreet.com/cap/login/rm_mbp_yho_clean.jsp?cm_ven=YAHOO&cm_cat=PREMIUM&cm_ite=003190&flowid=2dbfe241df&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thestreet.com%2Fp%2F_yahoo%2Frmoney%2Fjimcramerblog%2F10658501.html
Mr. WSJ, there was mention in the blog of a smart valve that was explained in the MIT Tech Review that if successfull could reduce the energy usage if the typical dx (house) a/c, heatpump, etc., unit 25%. Development of this smart valve was expected to be complete at about well, now. Please consider following up on the announcement of this smart valve to see if development is now complete because the gov’t could provide these units to home owners free that would pay for all the other cost effective weatherization energy conservation measures as an incentive for home owners to weatherize their homes and create jobs that provide a significant return to the economy as well as significantly reduce CO2 emissions. The gov’t funds would be money the banks are paying/have paid back. Thanks!
“”"
In all, EnerNOC said it found about $100,000 in savings for Morgan Stanley last year. (The Wall Street firm posted a $729 million profit in the first three quarters of 2009, so the energy savings are not a make or break figure.)
“”"
Hold on. That $100k savings must be just for that _one_ Manhattan tower, and the profit figure is world wide.