The use of advanced metering for energy consumption could save UK's small to medium size enterprises (SMEs) £300 million a year and up to 2.5 million tonnes of CO2 emissions, equivalent to the entire carbon footprint of Bristol.

The finding was the result of a three-year study by the Carbon Trust to determine the benefits of more accurate data. Advanced metering can measure variable energy use, peak usage and which areas of a building are consuming more or less energy than others.

Advanced meters were installed at 580 sites and indicated that SMEs can identify potential carbon savings of 12% and achieve cost savings of more than 5%.

On average, companies that took part in the trial, including Bandvulc Tyres and the World Museum Liverpool, saved over £1,000 a year on their energy bill.

The largest savings were at multi-site businesses such as retail sites, and for high energy users such as manufacturing plants.

Advanced metering has been taken up by large users, but SMEs have been slow to adopt. The Carbon Trust said take-up has lagged because there are few financial incentives for suppliers to offer these services to SMEs.

Source

Building Sustainable Design