BUSINESSES MUST TAKE ‘IMMEDIATE ACTION’ AS ENERGY SUPPORT FOR FIRMS IS REDUCED FROM APRIL

A lighting controls specialist insists it is vital that businesses and organisations take ‘immediate action’ by working to reduce their own energy consumption in the wake of the government’s decision to scale back support from April.

Under the new energy support scheme announced on 10 January, firms will now get a discount on wholesale prices rather than costs being capped. The current support package, which was first launched in September after prices were driven up in the wake of the pandemic and war in Ukraine, ends on 31 March.

Now the new energy support scheme, which is mainly used by businesses, public sector organisations and charities, will run from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024. However, Paul Jones, Director at lighting controls manufacturer B.E.G. UK, says businesses need to do all they can to reduce energy consumption themselves, especially as firms will only benefit from the new scheme when energy bills are high.

Paul says, “Rising energy costs have been a major concern for businesses, and indeed households too, for some time and whilst the government will continue to provide some help to businesses, it will be at a less generous level than before from April.

“It will also vary from industry to industry depending on how heavy energy-using these companies are in order to operate. Therefore, it is imperative that organisations take immediate action and do what they can themselves to reduce their own energy consumption.

“The lighting industry is constantly looking at ways to help ease the burden felt by businesses hit hardest by soaring energy costs and one of the most effective ways to use less energy is by ‘controlling’ how it is used. Modern motion and occupancy sensors are totally focused on ensuring that lighting is only used based on demand.

“These products are designed to consider the luminosity of the room in regard to natural light and engineered in such a way that the sensors automatically dim the artificial lighting to the required brightness. This means the sensor includes as much ‘free’ available natural light as possible in order that energy consumption is significantly reduced.”

“At B.E.G., we have seen organisations using lighting control sensors make energy savings of up to 50% in an office building, up to 60% in a high-bay warehouse and up to 80% in washrooms.”

B.E.G, beg-luxomat.com

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