Reduce Costs in Retail through Energy Management Solutions

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Many people find it challenging to reduce operational expenditure costs, especially when there is little to no data transparency on the cost breakdown. And when there is, most of the costs seem to be out of your control. However, it doesn’t have to be that way when it comes to seeking opportunities to save on energy usage costs for your retail store.

Improving your retail business’ energy efficiency will save on OPEX costs, whilst also reducing your CO₂ impact on the environment. In fact, the government also sees this as an opportunity, by proposing local and state-based government programs available specifically to help retail businesses reduce their energy usage.

HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning) and Refrigeration consume huge amount of energy across most food retail stores. If we better monitor and control these electrical assets, there are potential energy cost savings. For example, when Carrefour Supermarket in Egypt came to Schneider Electric looking to reduce their energy bills across 19 of their retail stores, an EcoStruxure Facility Expert Solution was deployed and has been instrumental in reducing the retailer’s annual energy bills by 7%. Likewise, at Morlacchi Pasticceria in Italy, Schneider Electric’s connected technology has helped the bakery run smoothly and ensured refrigeration temperatures are monitored continuously for HACCP reporting requirements.

What this means for you

By monitoring all your critical energy assets, you can pinpoint where the savings can be made. If you are looking after several sites, you can benchmark energy usage across all your retail stores and potentially find even greater efficiencies through power purchasing agreements and other sustainability services.

At Schneider Electric, we have created the HER (HVAC, Energy and Refrigeration) architecture, designed specifically for food retailers and small-sized retail stores. It is an energy monitoring system which can monitor and control HVAC, Energy and Refrigeration equipment in both single and multi-site retail chains. The architecture consists of Schneider Electric’s connected technologies to collect comprehensive data which can be visualised on the EcoStruxure Facility Expert mobile app and web platform.

• Heating and Cooling

Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure for Retail allows food retailers to monitor and control the air temperature of the store depending on the operating times and the number of people in store. It can also connect with other sensors such as Window/ Door, Refrigeration Temp, CO₂, Humidity and Water Leak Sensors to receive real-time energy consumption. This information can help provide evidence to reduce the premium for insurance policies.

• Refrigeration

EcoStruxure Facility Expert allows you to save time and effort when it comes to controlling and fulfilling reporting requirements for your refrigeration assets. Take for example, the need to check and record temperatures inside fridges and freezers. In most food retail environments, this should be completed twice a day to ensure food is stored outside the temperature danger zone of 5-30 ^oC (at this range bacteria can grow rapidly, which can potentially be harmful to people).

Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure Facility Expert software can monitor and control refrigeration 24/7, providing alerts if the temperatures deviate from the set thresholds. Temperature reports can be generated on demand to ensure HACCP compliancy, and to give you visibility into peak consumption trends.

• Energy Monitoring and Control

Tracking and monitoring the energy consumption of all electrical assets 24/7 is easy and effortless with EcoStruxure Facility Expert. The software allows you to set up alerts, to keep you notified in the event of a circuit trip or excess power usage. You can also view your consumption per circuit, so you can clearly identify where energy is being used. All connected assets such as fryers, ovens, toasters etc. can be controlled via the app, either based on a schedule or manually.

EcoStruxure Facility Expert can also track other resources including water, gas and thermal energy.

How can you start today?

The first step to reducing your energy usage is to understand where your energy is going. You can do this by monitoring your energy consumption with energy metering and monitoring technologies as shown in Schneider Electric’s HER architecture for Retail stores. From there, Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure Facility Expert software can help to reduce energy costs by spotting energy inefficiencies with real data.

Our platform also allows you to control your electrical assets remotely, helping you run your facility better. If you have more than one store, you can monitor all of them under one single platform and benchmark their energy consumption based on different sub-categories such as lighting, refrigeration, kitchen equipment, etc. Download our Facility Expert EcoStruxure for Small Business App on App Store or Google Play to try out the free demo version today!

Find out more

To find out how Schneider Electric can help you with your energy management goals, visit our blog or contact one of our Sales Representatives today.

We’re also running a competition to Master your Energy. Enter the competition to win $5,000 worth of monitoring and control products for your retail store. Simply visit the master your energy registration page for details.