Submetering has revolutionized the way companies can monitor their energy and resource consumption across the entire organization. The industrial sector is no different. Wasted energy is wasted money. Submeters enable management to fully understand the cost impact of each process and in turn profitability.
The overall efficiency of an entire industrial or production facility can be monitored with submeters to highlight opportunities for improvement.
Just like cellular phones, TVs and other electronic appliances have come down in price over the years. Energy and Water meters, along with the communication infrastructure have become more affordable. Having access to granular data in real-time allows manufacturing companies to monitor energy consumption constantly and in finer detail to identify abnormalities in consumption, and outlier situations, permitting them to address issues as they arise. Submetering technology can identify the precise location and timing of abnormal energy use in a large factory.
Visibility brings value. Managers can swiftly respond to power consumption problems that once went unnoticed. Real-time consumption data also greatly increases productivity and reduces cost over time, improving business performance
Identifying energy waste and making operational decisions become more accurate when facilities monitor consumption at a circuit or at a tap level. Finding why a heater is consuming more energy than a similar one across the aisle, or why a boiler is consuming more gas than another, raises questions about the state of maintenance of the equipment. A Graphic representation of the consumption simplifies and accelerates the identification of changes that can clearly show if a machine is consistently using more energy than others. Quick action can be taken to either fix or replace the machine. In most cases, by submetering, companies find multiple areas for improvement throughout their facility.
Facilities with submeters can see the exact time and duration of high consumption periods and their contributions to Peak Demand. The proper identification of the equipment and time of use, along with the evaluation of the demand charges by the utility can be used to make operational decisions to reduce utility demand charges.
Is it possible to keep high energy-consuming machines shut during peak demand hours? If so, scheduling their operation outside the peak periods can balance demand leading to additional savings in the utility bill and more efficient use of the factory infrastructure.
A good Demand Management process involves closely monitoring the facility's energy consumption, and evaluating costs variations by scheduling that consumption at different times of the day and of the week. Knowing exactly which pieces to move eliminates the guesswork about what works and what doesn't.
Accountability is a huge incentive for saving money. Numbers, numbers, more numbers, and results, are the drivers of efficiency and profitability. Providing direct access to power consumption information, and the costs of each production line or each department in the facility is a powerful motivator.
It’s often found that a facility's overall power consumption will trend downwards when facility managers are held accountable for the electricity they use,
Submetering data analytics help companies understand and manage energy and water consumption saving money in the process. Detailed Real-Time monitoring means better visibility of waste and more opportunities for improvement across the entire facility. With higher accountability and shorter response times to problems, manufacturing companies can see the impact submetering technology can make on their bottom line.