Medición de energía: guía paso a paso para monitorizar los consumos de tu empresa

Measuring the energy consumed by a facility (where, when, and how it is used) is the first step to being able to act upon it. Without this data, it is impossible to know which saving measures make sense, or if they are working.

How to conduct a good energy measurement. To have a quality measurement, with real-time tracking of consumption, two pieces are needed: the hardware, that is, the devices that collect consumption data, and the software, which stores and interprets this information. The hardware example we all know is the fiscal meter, which measures the total consumption of a facility. The problem is that this aggregated data is of little use if it cannot be broken down by process or by point of consumption. Therefore, true monitoring involves placing meters on the processes that matter most, adapting the level of detail to the type of company and always looking for a balance between investment in measurement and the potential savings that can be achieved.

Once the meters are up and running and collecting data, whether of energy consumption or any other relevant variable, such as the number of people, units produced, or operating hours, it is time to connect them to a monitoring platform where this information is displayed clearly and is easy to analyze.

What parameters need to be monitored. The data of interest to track varies greatly depending on the type of organization, because each process has its own energy circumstances. Therefore, it is convenient for the platform to be adaptable to what each company needs to measure. In Smarkia, for example, the dashboard can be completely customized: graphs of consumption, costs, or any relevant variable, comparisons with previous periods, and the possibility of adjusting the information according to what needs to be seen at any given moment. And it is not all about consumption, a good energy management system must be able to measure any variable that provides context, not just kWh.

In addition to the information within the platform, it is useful to have customized reports that can be shared within the organization, to involve more people in the savings process than just those who work directly with the data.

Automate to save time and money. Constant monitoring of consumption falls short if it is not accompanied by automation: scheduled periodic reports, alarms that warn of a technical failure or a deviation in consumption. This is where the calculation of baselines comes into play, which through mathematical models estimates what the expected consumption should be according to the activity of each moment. Comparing real consumption with that baseline is what allows deviations to be detected before they become a problem, or a surprise on the bill.

Energy management software should not be limited to showing consumption; it must also provide access to tariffs, contracts, utilities, and reports, and allow variables to be compared against each other, for example, energy consumption in relation to the number of workers, square meters, or units produced. This enables useful comparisons, both within the company itself, between two production lines for example, and against the average consumption of the sector.

How to measure if improvements are working. The most reliable way to know if the implemented saving measures are yielding results is to monitor the appropriate indicators, compare them with previous periods, and contrast both the degree of compliance with objectives and the actual cost reduction. With customized dashboards that cross-reference current data with historical data, and using baselines as a reference, it is possible to see clearly how much is being saved and if it is appropriate to update that baseline once the improvements are consolidated.

In summary, measuring energy well is the starting point of any serious energy saving strategy. Pinpointing areas for improvement, acting upon them, and tracking results in real-time is what allows these improvements to be maintained over time, rather than remaining a one-time action.