Why is Energy Efficiency Important in Buildings?

Efficiency is about using less to achieve the same outcome. This is important especially in HVAC systems where they account for a large percentage of building energy use.

Why is energy efficiency important in buildings?

Aside from saving on operational costs, lower energy use also helps the environment because of lower greenhouse gas emissions. In contrast, high energy use requires the burning of more fossil fuels or the building of more energy infrastructure to support the growing power demand. With this burning of more fossil fuels, the result is accelerated climate change which could be irreversible if taken lightly.

To achieve better energy efficiency, general strategies include using energy only on demand, preventing and sealing leaks, smart and real-time control, energy auditing to spot weaknesses and opportunities and using what’s already available such as cooler outdoor air instead of relying only on HVAC equipment. Better energy efficiency can also be achieved through updated and better building design such as better taking advantage of natural lighting to save on energy costs as well as more intelligent choices in fixtures such as double-glazed windows (these help reduce heat loss and heat gain).

Often a combination of the strategies above are required to achieve a significant and sustainable outcome. Ongoing monitoring is also often required to spot more opportunities for optimisation. This way the path is continuous improvement on energy efficiency. With the use of those strategies along with ongoing monitoring and continuous improvement, the ultimate result is significant savings as well as less environmental impact.

The government will also provide more and more incentives to better encourage energy efficiency. After all, the government allocates more and more funds to save and protect the environment. It could be cheaper and more practical to incentivise energy efficiency in the first place rather than cleaning up the mess afterwards caused by inefficiencies.

Here at ACG Commercial we prioritise energy efficiency because this has a direct effect on the bottom line of buildings. In effect, this reduces the environmental impact because less energy is used in the HVAC systems we design, supply, install and maintain. To know more about our projects and how we achieve better energy efficiency, you can contact us today.