How to Reduce Energy Costs in the Office?

How to save on office heating bills in the winter?

The winter inevitably leads to more expensive heating bills, but these simple ways can help reduce the cost of keeping an office warm:

• Don’t obstruct radiators – keeping furniture and desks away from radiators will allow heat to spread across the office and keep everyone warmer.
• Close doors after leaving a room – keeping doors to meeting rooms and corridors shut will trap all of the warm air in the room, keeping everyone cosy and satisfied.
• Only heat the rooms being used – encourage staff members to turn off the heating after leaving a room.

For more help, see our guide on how to keep the office warm for further tips.

How to save on office bills in the summer?

The warm summer months can lead to expensive bills and unnecessary expenses. Air conditioning and fans serve employees well, but they can be expensive to run. Here are some tips on saving on bills during the summer:

• Install an office water dispenser – water from a tap is sometimes less refreshing and less effective in cooling things down. Installing a mains-fed water dispenser will give staff access to cold, refreshing water, keeping them hydrated throughout the day.
• Open windows in the morning – if you arrive at the office early, open the windows to let cool air in, reducing the need to turn on the AC or a fan.
• Open doors – keeping corridor and meeting room doors open will allow cool air to travel throughout the office.

For further guidance, check out how to keep the office cool, and if your office is reliant on fans to keep staff chilled, see our advice on how to keep the office cool with AC.

The most common reason for wasted energy from office equipment and appliances is leaving them on standby mode. It is common for people to leave items like TV screens, monitors, printers, and coffee machines on standby when they are not using them. However, turning them off at the wall can make a small but positive impact on reducing energy consumption in the office. There are other ways to save on energy costs associated with office equipment and appliances.

• Invest in energy-efficient appliances – electrical items that are designed to use less energy, or last longer without a charge will contribute to lower energy bills. When purchasing new equipment or appliances, look out for their energy rating.
• Turn down screen brightness – encourage your staff to turn the brightness of TV and laptop screens down when they don't need to have them bright.
• Replace the kettle with a mains-fed boiling water dispenser – boiling a kettle costs 2-3 watts every time, and with larger offices, the same water can be boiled multiple times.
• A mains-fed boiling water tap stores enough boiling water to produce 25 cups of tea and coffee per hour and uses 50% less energy than a kettle. There are plenty of others, too; see our guide on the benefits of a boiling water tap over a kettle.

Not using energy efficient bulbs or keeping lights on in unoccupied rooms are the biggest contributors to wasted energy, and as one of the biggest office expenses, it can be a significant contributor to annual energy bills. Encouraging your staff to turn lights off and doing your part by replacing energy-sapping bulbs will go a long way to reducing those bills, but there are other ways offices can save on lighting.

• Use vertical blinds – during bright days, glare can prevent staff from being able to see their screens, leading them to close the blinds and turn on lights. Installing a vertical blind over a horizontal one will allow more light in, enough to keep the office lit and not create screen glare.
• Design the office around natural light sources – situating desks and workspaces where there are more windows will reduce the need to switch on lights.
• Paint the office in light colours - as well as contributing to a more positive mood, lighter paint will keep the office bright by reflecting light.
• Invest in motion detection lights – encouraging your staff to turn off lights in unoccupied rooms would be ideal, but sometimes, it's easy to forget. Installing motion detection lights will mean that the lights will turn off automatically when everyone leaves a room.

While some of these may seem common sense, adding up many simple ways to keep energy costs down in the office and investing a little into energy-saving equipment can reduce energy bills in the long run. At BRITA, we supply offices with mains-fed water dispensers that hydrate your staff with crisp, filtrated water and can help save on the costs of boiling and refrigerating water. Contact our team or browse our range of water dispensers to learn more.