This article is provided by BRC Associate Member Optimised.
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BEMS Optimisation results in significant energy savings across retail portfolio
About the Client
This supermarket chain operates 497 stores, as well as 339 petrol stations, across the UK, offering a wide range of groceries and household products.
Our client has a Trend BEMS (Building Energy Management System) across their retail portfolio, that controls HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning), lighting and hot water. Half hourly meter data from both gas and electricity was available to baseline and manage the stores energy performance.
Challenge
Maximising efficiency of existing building energy management systems
The client’s journey began with Optimised undertaking a trial on 4 pilot stores to ‘optimise’ the BEMS and monitor the potential impact this could have on energy savings. This optimisation was to be undertaken through maximising the efficiency and operation of existing assets (specifically the BEMS/HVAC), with no additional capital equipment installed. After just 4 weeks, savings of 51% on gas and 6.5% on electricity were achieved, compared with the same month of the previous year. Following this trial, the supermarket chain contracted Optimised to do the same across 450 of their UK stores, over a 6-month engineering project, followed by a remote optimisation managed service, to ensure savings were maintained for the longer term.
Solution
Optimising BEMS control strategies to store performance specification
The first objective was to upload strategy from the Trend BEMS system and ‘optimise’ the control strategies. Over a 6-month period, we pulled together a dedicated project team of engineers, to meet both the aggressive technical goals and programme that had been set before us. Once the software had been optimised for a specific store, our commissioning team then moved in. They uploaded the software while on site at each specific store and recommissioned the BEMS controllers, addressing any faulty sensors, equipment in hand, wiring issues and much more besides. At the peak of the project, we were commissioning 80 stores a month with 17 dedicated engineers.
While the software was being optimised, along with the onsite commissioning, our team of remote optimisation engineers were importing the 270,000 data points into the new Trend IQ Vision platform, setting up around 50,000 analytics points and pulling in 1,500 half hourly fiscal meters into our Energy Analysis platform. The fiscal meters were already available, which negated any integration requirements, so the half hourly data was logged and ‘pushed’ to our cloud-based Automatic Monitoring and Targeting software. This created the transparency and baseline data to effectively monitor and measure the impact of the building optimisation project.
BEMS Analytics were then added to monitor the BEMS and HVAC systems through intelligent algorithms and rules. This cloud-based platform tracks the performance of assets, equipment and systems, to quickly identify anomalies in plant operation, saving energy and maintenance costs. Once the systems were set-up, we were able to start analysing the baseline data and energy profiles for each store, aligning time schedules to match trading times, operating at suitable temperatures during trading periods, without affecting store environmental conditions, and ensure that lighting overrides were minimised.
Upon completion of the on-site work, our Remote Optimisation team took over, monitoring the performance of each stores HVAC, BEMS and lighting circuits to ensure continuous operational efficiency, via the cloud. The team is now providing ongoing monitoring for the client, to identify anomalies, energy issues, BEMS analysis and ongoing energy management recommendations. It is this combination that generates great results and return on investment, whilst ensuring portfolios continue to improve in their efficiency and performance. The analytical technology drives the human analysis, which creates a winning combination in terms of a competitive solution and business outcomes for the client.
Results
12-Month return of investment from BEMS optimisation
During the first 18 months of this project, our client saved over £9m in energy savings, equating to £2.50 returned for every £1 invested. All of this achieved through optimisation of existing assets and systems, without any additional controls being installed.
By providing our Remote Optimisation services for the whole retail portfolio, which at the time of the initial project, included 494 stores and 336 petrol filing stations, the store managers have been able to call our Remote Engineers at any time of day, for any issues / support around the temperature, heating, environmental issues, lighting or domestic hot water.
While energy efficiency has been the biggest driver of this project, other benefits include; reduced maintenance costs due to the remote analysis and first-time fix, improved staff satisfaction as issues are resolved before they know they have an issue, improved asset life, due to reduction in operating hours, greater analytical understanding of the retail portfolio’s performance, current and future opportunities.
Client Testimonial
The Optimised Remote Optimisation service has given us greater visibility of our portfolio of stores and as a result has contributed to significant savings since we started the HVAC and BMS optimisation. The insights, processes and expertise that we now have in place has created key foundations for further savings across the portfolio as strive for a more sustainable future.
Senior Property Manager - Energy
UK Supermarket
Services Delivered
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