Energy Audits

Energy Audit
• Energy Audit is the key to a systematic
approach for decision-making in the area of
energy management.

• It attempts to balance the total energy inputs

with its use, and serves to identify all the
energy streams in a facility.
• It quantifies energy usage according to its
discrete functions.

• Industrial energy audit is an effective tool in

defining and pursuing comprehensive energy
management program..
• Energy Audit will help to understand more
about the ways energy and fuel are used in
any industry,

• It also assists in identifying the areas where

waste can occur and where scope for
improvement exists
 Energy Audits
• It thus gives a review of current energy
costs so that a company can achieve
savings.

• The primary objective of Energy Audit is hence

to determine ways to reduce energy
consumption per unit of product output or to
lower operating costs.
• An audit can be conducted by a
company's in house personnel or by a
professional energy audit firm.

• The energy audit is one of the first tasks to be

performed in the accomplishment of an
effective energy cost control program.
• An energy audit consists of a detailed
examination of:
 how a facility uses energy,
 what the facility pays for that energy, and
 Finally a recommended program for changes
in operating practices or energy-consuming
equipment that will cost-effectively save
dollars on energy bills.
 COMPONENTS OF AN ENERGY AUDIT
• Steps involved in conducting a successful
energy audit in an industrial or business
includes:
• collecting information about a facility’s
operation and about its past record of utility
bills.
• This data is then analyzed to get a picture of
how the facility uses—and possibly wastes—
energy,
• This helps the auditor to learn what areas
examined can help to reduce energy costs.

• Specific changes- called Energy Conservation

Opportunities (ECOs)—are identified and
evaluated to determine their benefits and
their cost-effectiveness
• These ECOs are assessed in terms of their
costs and benefits, and
• An economic comparison is then made to rank
the various ECOs.
• Finally, an Action Plan is created where certain
ECOs are selected for implementation, and the
actual process of saving energy and saving
money begins
 The Auditor’s Toolbox
• To obtain the best information for a successful
energy cost control program, the auditor must
make some measurements during the audit
visit.
• The amount of equipment needed depends
on the type of energy-consuming
equipment used at the facility, and on the
range of potential ECO’s that might be
considered.
Tools commonly needed for energy audits

• Tape Measures
• Lightmeter - to measure illumination levels
• Thermometers
• Voltmeter
• Wattmeter/Power Factor Meter
• Combustion Analyzer
• Airflow Measurement Devices
• Safety Equipment etc
 CONDUCTING THE AUDIT VISIT
• Once the information on energy bills, facility
equipment and facility operation has been
obtained, the audit equipment can be
gathered up, and the actual visit to the facility
can be made.
 Introductory Meeting
• The audit person-or team; should meet with
the facility manager and the maintenance
supervisor and

• They briefly discuss the purpose of the audit

and indicate the kind of information that is to
be obtained during the visit to the facility.
• If possible, a facility employee who is in a
position to authorize expenditures or make
operating policy decisions should also be at
this initial meeting.
 Audit Interviews
• Getting the correct information on facility
equipment and operation is important if the
audit is going to be most successful in
identifying ways to save money on energy bills.
• Company philosophy towards investments,
impetus behind requesting the audit, and
the expectations from the audit can be
obtained through interviews
 Who are the interviewees?
• General manager,
• Chief operating officer or other executives.
• Facility manager or plant manager is one
person that should have access to much of
the operational data on the facility, and a file of
data on facility equipment.
• Finance officer- to provide financial records (e.g.,
utility bills for electric, expenditures for
maintenance and repair, etc.)
 Who are the interviewees?
• The auditor must also interview the floor
supervisors and equipment operators to
understand the building and process
problems.

• Line or area supervisors usually have the best

information on times their equipment is used.
• The maintenance supervisor is often the
primary person to talk to about types of
lighting and lamps, sizes of motors, sizes of
air conditioners and space heaters, and
electrical loads of specialized process
equipment.
• Finally, the maintenance staff must be
interviewed to find the equipment and
performance problems
The auditor should write down:
 these people’s names,
 job functions and
 telephone numbers,

• Since it is frequently necessary to get

additional information after the initial audit
visit.
 Walk-through Tour
• A walk-through tour of the facility or plant
tour should be conducted together with the
facility/plant manager,

• It should be arranged so the auditor or audit

team can see the major operational and
equipment features of the facility.
• The main purpose of the walk-through tour
is to obtain general information.

• More specific information should be obtained

from the maintenance and operational people
after the tour.
 Getting Detailed Data
• Following the facility or plant tour, the
auditor/ team should acquire the detailed
data on facility equipment and operation
that will lead to identifying the significant
Energy Conservation opportunities that may
be appropriate for this facility.
• This includes data on lighting, HVAC
equipment, motors, water heating, and
specialized equipment such as refrigerators,
ovens, mixers, boilers, heaters, etc.

• This data is most easily recorded on

individualized data sheets that have been
prepared in advance
 What do we look for in
a Lighting Systems Audit?
• Making a detailed inventory of all lighting is
important.
• Data should be recorded on numbers of each
type of light fixtures and lamps, wattages of
lamps, and hours of operation of groups of
lights.
• A lighting inventory data sheet should be used
to record this data.
• Using a lightmeter, the auditor should also
record light intensity readings for each area.

• Taking notes on types of tasks performed in

each area will help the auditor select
alternative lighting technologies that might be
more energy efficient.
• Also note areas that may be infrequently used
in the facility

• Such areas may be candidates for installing

sensor controls of lighting,

• or areas where day lighting may be feasible.

• Nearly all buildings have lights,

• So, opportunities for lighting retrofits are very

common and generally offer an attractive
return on investment.

• many lighting retrofits can provide savings in

both demand and consumption charges.
 Measures to reduce electricity
consumption by lighting
1) Reducing operation time
• Main parameter when working with energy
efficiency is the time of operation, since it has
the largest impact on the total energy use.

• A positive side of this is that operational time

for lighting systems is often easy to reduce.
2) Efficacy
• Similar to efficiency, efficacy describes an
output/input ratio, the higher the output
(while input is kept constant), the greater
the efficacy.
• Efficacy is the amount of lumens per watt from
a particular energy source.
• A common misconception in lighting
terminology is that lamps with greater
wattage provide more light.

• However, light sources with high efficacy can

provide more light with the same amount of
power (watts), when compared to light
sources with low efficacy.
3) Light Quality
• Lighting quality has a dramatic influence on
the attitude and performance of occupants.

• In fact, different “moods” can be created by a

lighting system.
• Consider the behaviour of people when they
eat in different restaurants.
• If the restaurant is a fast-food restaurant, the
space is usually illuminated by bright white
lights, with a significant amount of glare from
shiny tables.
• Occupants rarely spend much time there
partly because the space creates an
uncomfortable mood and the atmosphere is
“fast” (eat and leave).
• In contrast, consider an elegant restaurant
with candle-lit tables and a “warm”
atmosphere.
• Occupants tend to relax and take more time to
eat.
• Although occupant behaviour is also linked to
interior design and other factors, lighting
quality represents a significant influence.
 Uniformity
• The uniformity of illuminance describes how
evenly light spreads over an area.

• Creating uniform illumination requires proper

fixture spacing.
• Non-uniform illuminance creates bright and
dark spots, which can cause discomfort for
some occupants.
 Glare
• Glare is a sensation caused by relatively bright
objects in an occupant’s field of view.
• The key word is relative, because glare is most
probable when bright objects are located in
front of dark environments.
• E.g. A car’s high beam headlights cause glare
to oncoming drivers at night, yet create little
discomfort during the day.
• Contrast is the relationship between the
brightness of an object and its background.
• Visual tasks generally become easier with
increased contrast,
• However, too much brightness causes glare
and makes the visual task more difficult.
• Glare in certain work environments causes
discomfort and reduce worker productivity.
 Colour
• Colour considerations have an incredible
influence on lighting quality.

• Light sources are specified based on two

colour-related parameters:
the Colour Rendering Index (CRI) and

the Coordinated Colour Temperature (CCT).

 Colour Rendering Index (CRI)
• In simple terms, the CRI provides an
evaluation of how colours appear under a
given light source.

• The index measured from 0 to 100, with a

perfect 100 indicating that colors under the
light source appear the same as they would
under natural sunlight.
Generally,
 The higher the number, the easier it is to
distinguish colours.
 Sources with a CRI > 75 provide excellent
colour rendition.

 Sources with a CRI < 55 provide poor colour

rendition.
• It is extremely important that a light source
with a high CRI be used with visual tasks that
require the occupant to distinguish colours.

• E.g a room with a colour printing press

requires illumination with excellent colour
rendition.
• In comparison, outdoor security lighting for a
building may not need to have a high CRI, but
a large quantity of light is desired.
Coordinated Colour Temperature (CCT)
• The CCT describes the colour of the light source.
• Each light source has a unique color, or 'color
temperature', which varies from red to blue.
• Candles, sunsets and tungsten bulbs give off
light that is close to red (hence they depict a
'warm' look),
• Whereas clear blue skies give off a ‘cool’ blue
light.
• These different colours can be expressed using
a number, and this number is known as the
colour temperature

• Colour temperature is measured on the Kelvin

scale,
• CCT is not related to CRI, but it can influence
the atmosphere of a room.
• Laboratories, hospitals and grocery stores
generally use “cool” (blue-white) sources,

• while expensive restaurants may seek a

“warm” (yellow-red) source to produce a
candle-lit appearance.
• Traditionally, office environments have been
illuminated by Cool White lamps, which have a
CCT = 4100K.
• However, a more recent trend has been to
specify 3500K tri-phosphor lamps, which are
considered neutral.
 Light levels
• Light levels are measured in Lux (or
footcandles) using an illuminance meter.

• 1 Lux = 1 lumens / m2
• 1 FC = 1 lumens / ft2

• Lumen is a measure of brightness.

• After determining the quantity and quality of
illumination required for a particular task,

• An efficient lighting system design should

ensure that it:
Meets the target light levels
Efficiently produce light
Efficiently deliver light
 Balance efficiency with aesthetics, lighting
quality and visual comfort

 Automatically control lighting operation

The Illuminating Engineering Society of North

America came up with standards for light
levels
Standards from the Illuminating Engg
Society of N. America
TWO LIGHTING SYSTEM DESIGN METHODS

i) Lumen Method-
 Method assumes an equal lux level for the
space in throughout the area.
 Method is simple & is frequently used
ii) Point by Point Method
 It uses Fundamental Law of illumination.
 Requires computer programming and
extensive computation.
LUMEN METHOD FORMULA
 QUESTION
• Find the number of lamps required to provide
a uniform 500 Lux on the working surface in a
15 x 10 room.
• Assume two 3000 lumen lamps each per
fixture, and assume that LLF is 0.65 and CU is
70%.
COEFFICIENT OF UTILIZATION (CU)
• CU is a measure of how well the light coming
out of the lamps and the fixture contributes
to the useful light level at the work surface.
• It is given, or you may need to find it by either:
• Using Room Cavity Ratio (RCR) to incorporate
room geometry OR
• Use of Photometric Chart for specific lamp and
fixture
 ROOM CAVITY RATIO (RCR)
RCR = 2.5 x h x (Room perimeter)/(Room Area)

Where
 h = height from lamp to top of working surface
QNS
 Find the RCR for a 10 by 15 rectangular room
with lamps mounted on the ceiling at a height
of 3m, and the work surface is a 60 cm bench.
PHOTOMETRIC CHART METHOD
EXAMPLE
• Find the Coefficient of Utilization for a 10
by 15 rectangular room with a ceiling
height of 3m, a ceiling reflectance of 70%
and a wall reflectance of 50% using a
photometric chart.
• The RCR from before was 2.0.
• Using RC = 70% and
• RW = 50%,

• the CU is found as CU = 0.81, or 81%