An oppressive heat wave on the West coast. A late cold snap hits the East coast. An arctic blast that will hit 30 states in three days.
What do all of these things have in common? They will inevitably impact the energy needs of the people in their area, and the structures in which those people live, work and shop. This in turn means they will pose challenges for the companies and the facility professionals who oversee the portfolio(s) of distributed facilities — especially when they must juggle the energy needs of multiple sites, perhaps across state lines or even coast to coast.
SMG Energy is here to help. Today, let’s take a look at why multi-site retailers face such a steep challenge in managing energy use, data gathering, and accurately reporting on the energy usage associated with their buildings. Then we’ll discuss solutions you can implement today, that will save money while reducing carbon emissions across your distributed portfolio.
Energy Efficient Solutions: A Challenge for Multi-Site Retailers
Unfortunately, implementing energy efficiency solutions is especially difficult for multi-site retailers. Due to the broader scope of their operations, they often struggle with building a comprehensive understanding of their energy expenditures.
Similarly, they frequently have a hard time implementing energy strategies across operations, as well as using data to understand energy efficiency.
However, that’s not to say there isn’t a solution. If you want to improve the visibility of energy spending aand efficiency metrics, you can and should partner with someone who can help you implement the latest in energy-efficient facilities management across distributed retail portfolios.
What Business Energy Management Means for ESG
ESG is an increasingly important term in retail energy systems – and in general corporate management. It stands for “environmental, social, and governance,” and is one of the major drivers for business growth, sustainability, and shareholder value.
Whereas before, investors typically applied the bare financial implications of any decision, they now take a more holistic approach, assessing the human and environmental impacts as well. ESG allows them to scrutinize each decision to:
- Ensure it meets the company’s mission and social values
- Look for opportunities or risks that won’t present themselves in a purely financial analysis.
Business energy management is a critical component of ESG. Not only does it help companies save money through smart energy solutions, it measurably bolsters sustainability efforts. As pointed out above, however, it’s often difficult to implement cohesive energy efficiency solutions across multiple retail locations as you grow.
What are these challenges, exactly?
Challenges of Energy Efficiency for Multi-Site Retailers
A range of challenges face any multi-site manager, but the following are among the most nightmare-inducing.
Difficulty Building Efficiency Across Multiple Locations
It’s challenging to ensure all locations hold to the same standards without a single source of truth. Instead of precise reporting tools, most companies instead rely on a mix of metrics, desperately trying to cobble them together for quarterly reports or annual overhauls. This significantly hinders sustainability.
Difficulty Accessing the Actionable Data Needed to Improve Upon Efficiency
Even if the data is there, it’s often hard to access. Without actionable analytics, retailers struggle to see opportunities in business energy management and energy control solutions. This leaves them blind to improvement and at the mercy of different retail energy management systems at every site.
Lack of Expertise in Energy Management
Without expert guidance, it can be difficult for retailers to know where to start. Rather than making meaningful change, they quickly become overwhelmed and often simply give up. But there’s a better way.
3 Strategies to Boost Energy Efficiency for Multi-Site Retailers
No one is saying that retail energy management systems are easy to wrangle. There do exist three strategies for boosting the efficacy of business energy management.
1. Implement Easy-Access Data
First up, you want to ensure excellent data accessibility. This ensures that retailers can gain insight into operations across locations easily. Once you understand energy management patterns, it becomes easier to prioritize sustainability, reduce your carbon footprint, and save money.
2. Use a Sustainability Platform
A sustainability platform ensures that retailers can quickly communicate issues and resolve efficiency crises. If you always have somewhere to go, and a way to track automated energy solutions, then you’re guaranteed greater efficiency.
3. Get Expert Help
Experts in energy management can help build sustainable operations throughout fast-growing locations, so you stop floundering and start saving right away.
So, how can you make data more accessible, aggregate your sustainability metrics in one place, and leverage expert knowledge? Read on.
Final Thoughts: ESG and Building Energy Management for Multi-Site Retailers
If you’re tired of dealing with intractable data, mysterious sustainability metrics, or out-of-control facilities management, there’s a solution … and its name is SMG Energy. In addition to helping you meet ESG goals, we can also assist with utility management, energy procurement, rebates and incentives, and so much more.
Our women-owned business seeks to provide you with carefully tailored resources that meet your energy management and facilities maintenance goals, save you money, and free you up to focus on other tasks. We’re happy to take over the job of management entirely, or we can partner with your team to design a solution that works within your existing structure.We like to think of ourselves as the aspirin to your headache, the one most multi-site clients have in trying to manage distributed assets effectively. Ready for relief? Get a free energy assessment from SMG Energy today!
