For high consumers of electricity, power usage monitoring and energy efficiency measures are of particular importance.

Effective monitoring not only assists with reducing energy consumption and costs, but is relevant for organisations aiming to achieve or maintain the ISO 14001 environmental standard.  ISO 14001 states that objectives and targets shall be measurable, where practicable, and that an organisation should regularly monitor and measure the key characteristics of its operations that can have a significant environmental impact – of which electricity consumption can be one.

Regular monitoring with tools such as the Tinytag Energy Logger from Gemini Data Loggers can be highly effective. It is often easier to look at logger readings than attempt to decipher electricity bills (which are often estimated) or meter readings! The Energy Logger uses non-invasive flexible coils to monitor the current in each phase of a three phase supply, while voltage information may be obtained via a standard 13A wall socket. Safe and easy to use, the logger records data which is downloaded to a PC. The unit also records ‘Power Factor’ (PF) data, a measure of power transmission efficiency: this can be significant because power companies typically charge a higher rate for industrial or commercial customers with a low PF.

Energy monitoring can sometimes lead to very direct savings. For example, in Gemini’s own production facility, recorded data revealed that one of the space heaters was coming on unnecessarily during the night. Temperature monitoring by school caretakers revealed that central heating had sometimes been set to come on over the weekend. ‘Before and after’ monitoring can help in the evaluation of, for example, replacement LED lighting or Building Environmental Management Systems. In another example, an employer, using an Energy Logger, discovered his employees were switching off their equipment and leaving early on a Friday…

In summary, energy monitoring can lead to specific and practical ways of cutting energy consumption and meeting environmental management targets.

See Gemini’s full range of data loggers at The Facilities Show, Stand Q1555, 17-19 June, Excel

Gemini Data Loggers (UK) Ltd
Scientific House
Terminus Road
Chichester
PO19 8UJ

+44 (0)1243 813000
sales@tinytag.info
www.tinytag.info