Energy efficiency is becoming increasingly important: what is now changing for companies

Energy as a resource is of great importance both in everyday life and in the economy. Global energy consumption has risen steadily over the last century and is now becoming increasingly important. Recent news such as the declaration of the alert level in the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection's (BMWK) gas emergency plan on 23.06.2022 is raising fears of a potential energy shortage. The importance of energy efficiency is therefore constantly increasing and is on everyone's lips against the current global political backdrop. The formal Energy Council of the European Union met on 27.06.2022 to discuss the current situation and other relevant topics relating to the energy transition and climate protection. One of the results is a so-called "General approach for the EU directives on energy efficiency". This means that a binding EU-wide target for the development of energy demand will be set for the first time. Compared to a forecast for consumption development by 2030, primary and final energy consumption in the EU must be reduced by 9%. Previously, the EU target was a reduction of 32,5%, albeit based on an outdated reference value. Moreover, this target was not binding. If we look at the new EU target in relation to the old reference figure, the previous target is raised to around 39%. To achieve this target, the requirements for companies will be increased, among other things: In future, companies with large energy requirements will have to introduce a mandatory energy management system.

The efficient use of energy not only protects the climate, but also generally results in enormous cost savings. Especially against the backdrop of drastically rising energy prices, inefficiency can become an existential threat for many companies. An energy management system provides a transparent overview of a company's energy consumption and thus offers a data basis for identifying potential savings. The econ4 energy management software is ideal for this.

One way of saving costs and energy using energy management is to analyze and take into account various key figures. The first potential savings usually become apparent during the initial analysis of the measurement data. This could be, for example, comparatively high consumption of individual machines or unusually high consumption during idle times. In addition, targeted analyses can also reveal other types of waste, such as leaks in compressed air production. Inefficiency in the area of compressed air quickly becomes very costly and should therefore always be avoided.

A suitable energy management system such as econ4 offers all the advantages and possibilities mentioned above, leading to both cost and CO₂ reductions. With econ4, industrial and commercial customers of all sizes and from all sectors are offered the opportunity to comply with increasingly stringent regulations and to generate sustainable business success by reducing costs and CO₂ emissions.