Following the government announcement that it will be increasing support for UK businesses to help them get through the energy crisis, and ahead of tomorrow’s mini budget, Sharon Ellis, head of business networks at Virgin Money, has commented on what the new support package means for business.
Additionally, to help businesses cut down on their energy costs, Sharon has shared some practical advice for how companies can improve their energy efficiency and cut down on excess use and waste.
The government support package to help businesses deal with the soaring costs of energy this winter is a welcome decision that will hopefully prevent thousands of companies around the UK from having to make some difficult choices about their future.
While these measures are much needed and will help businesses to survive the energy crisis, business owners will still need to be prudent this winter, taking steps to protect themselves financially and reduce their energy consumption where possible.
So how do businesses do this? Here are three tips to help companies reduce their energy costs:
- Conduct an energy audit
You won’t know where you can save money on energy until you find out how you’re currently using it, and where it’s going to waste.
The best way to do this is to conduct an energy audit to help you understand where energy usage is having a negative financial impact. Some energy suppliers will conduct an energy audit for you, sometimes at no cost, and this will help you to identify areas of excess energy usage and suggest ways that this can be improved.
- Decrease waste and increase efficiency
Once you’ve identified areas of excess energy consumption, you can look to decrease waste usage and improve efficiency.
Some options for this are incredibly simple and can be implemented straight away, such as shutting down unnecessary equipment rather than putting it on standby, or using hibernation mode for computers during periods of brief inactivity rather than leaving them running.
Other steps require greater investment and planning, but can provide huge benefits in the long term. Improving the insulation of your premises can drastically improve heating efficiency and helps reduce how much energy is used. You should also look to change lighting to energy efficient LEDs if this hasn’t already been done. Another option is to go paperless as a company, if this is possible in your industry. This will help to cut down on paper expenditure as well as the energy spent operating the printers.
- Involve your employees
Whatever decisions you decide to make to decrease energy usage, it’s always worthwhile to involve your employees.
Getting the workforce on board and being honest with them about your future plans will help to increase the chance of success for any measures to take. Some decisions will also require cooperation from your employees, such as changes in operating processes to cut down on office energy expenditure.
You may also find that many of your staff are enthusiastic about helping the business cut down its energy costs, and may suggest helpful initiatives and ideas which you hadn’t considered before.”
For more information on how Virgin Money can help your business, and the business current accounts on offer, visit: https://uk.virginmoney.com/business/current-accounts/