It’s natural to want to be efficient at the office. Get more work done, faster; isn’t that the American way? But how efficient is your office building? Most people don’t realize that their workspace could be eating up energy and money. Here are some ways to prevent your office operations from racking up watts on your energy bill, from light bulbs to AC units.
Upgrade your lighting
When anyone thinks of saving energy, the first thing that comes to mind is changing the lightbulbs. It’s an easy fix. CFLs (compact fluorescent lights) hit the market in a major way in the mid-2000s. Not only do CFLs last 12 times longer than incandescent bulbs, but they use 75% less energy. They were so efficient that many nations have phased out incandescent bulbs entirely. The U.S. has been slower on the take, with each state proposing different legislation on the issue; California is set to phase out the outdated bulb in 2018.Get ahead of the game and switch them out now. Not only will it save you energy, but they’ll last long enough to make it through the transition.
Make sure you buy Energy Star
You may be accustomed to seeing the Energy Star logo on appliances, but the scope is much bigger than that. With strict guidelines set by the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) and the Department of Energy, this standard of energy efficiency can apply to home electronics, servers, even entire homes. If you’re running an office and you’re worried about power consumption, it’s time to take a look at the computers you’re using. Legacy systems suck up energy. While this change requires a bit more investment, the savings in time, productivity and energy consumption are worth the shift.
Migrate to the Cloud
In the past ten years, the amount of time we spend on computers has dramatically increased, and office operations depend on their servers. Servers, though, need to be kept cool, prompting many computer-based companies (and what company isn't these days?) to run their AC units 24/7 to prevent outages. With the amount of power it takes to not only operate but cool servers, more and more people are opting to migrate to the cloud.
Maintain equipment
Besides computers and servers, there may be other electronics in your office that need regular maintenance. For example, did you know that dirty AC units take 30% more energy to run than a well-maintained one? Routine air filter changes and HVAC service can extend the life of your equipment AND save you on your energy bill. Plus, with a series of new thermostats, it’s never been easier to control the office environment.
