Climate change is the greatest environmental challenge facing the world today. The UK Government’s response to this includes clear objectives for reducing CO2 emissions, but also a comprehensive strategy to improve energy efficiency. Local Authorities in particular have a crucial role to play in reducing the environmental impact in the UK, by helping to increase energy awareness and efficiency within their districts.

One such authority is Redditch Borough Council. Located approximately 14 miles south of Birmingham, the Council delivers a full range of services for the benefit of around 79,000 residents and has a proven track record of proactive environmental management. Working within the framework of the Worcestershire Local Area Agreement to adapt to the impacts of climate change, the Council has implemented an Energy Strategy, which forms part of their Asset Management Plan. A commitment to best practice in the management of all energy and water resources across 300 public buildings, plus 6,000 flats and houses, was formalised when the Council adopted its Local Agenda 21 Strategy in 2000, and again when they signed up to the Nottingham Declaration on Climate Change in 2006.

Reductions in energy and water consumption have always been a priority for Redditch, but a recent push by central Government to benchmark energy efficiency of public buildings triggered a requirement for improved management of utilities across the board. Working initially with utility management advisors, Smith Bellerby, significant improvements were made in the quality of cost and consumption data available to the Council from invoices and ad hoc meter readings. As a direct result, the Council’s Asset Management score improved from poor to good. However, it was quickly recognised that as part of a managed programme of activities, more detailed monitoring would be required on selected sites to understand trends and proactively drive down consumption. Smith Bellerby were asked by Redditch BC to lead primary investigations into acquiring a system that would meet the Council’s needs.

In the preliminary search for a system, careful consideration had to be given to various issues. First, the Council had approved a finite budget on monitoring equipment, which meant that a stepwise approach to monitoring and targeting was required. Four pilot sites with a requirement for multi-utility monitoring had been selected for initial trials, however, once the principles and benefits of the system had been proven, it was expected that additional sites would be signed up at a later date. The four carefully selected sites were:

• Redditch Town Hall: Selected for data monitoring due to a high profile within a portfolio of operational buildings. This building was the second highest user of gas and with a scope for making major cost savings, it was hoped it would act as a beacon of good practice.
• Arrow Valley Countryside Centre: A flagship environmental site for Redditch, Arrow Valley has a range of sustainable development technologies including PV arrays on the roof of the centre, and a wind turbine. It has a high profile and educational benefits for visiting members of the public.
• Crossgates Depot: This houses personnel from the Environmental Services Management team. The building showed high electricity, water and gas consumption, so there would be good potential for savings and the opportunity to develop a more positive environmental image for the site.
• The Palace Theatre: A Grade II listed building in the heart of Redditch town centre, the theatre was selected due to relatively high electricity consumption and atypical occupancy patterns. It was expected that data monitoring would help maximise the impact of new energy efficient equipment, installed as part of a £4m refurbishment funded by the heritage lottery grant in 2006.

Once a survey had been carried out at the sites, Jenny Smith of Smith Bellerby was able to ascertain the most important elements of the required system:

• The need to monitor all utilities i.e. gas, electricity, water and renewable energy sources
• The ability to monitor meters in many different locations
• A web based system with a basic charting capability
• The ability to download data for advanced analysis
• The ability to set alarms, especially on water supplies

After a thorough evaluation, Qonnectis plc were selected as the optimum choice. A market leader in smart metering and endorsed by The Carbon Trust, Qonnectis provide a fully managed Internet-based service and technology solution for the automated collection of multi-utility meter readings, wireless communications of meter readings and meter data management. The process involved the installation of iStaq-LG GSM-enabled universal data loggers on each of the site meters, which continuously posted utility consumption trends to the Qonnectis myMeter.info web site. This web-based communications solution enabled the end user to fully automate meter reading and data collection and access the information via the Internet. This allowed Property Management and Asset Maintenance staff to read and download data either in a table or as a chart format to show trends. The myMeter site has enabled staff to see current meter readings, which provides an instant check on invoices. The charting tool has proved important for monitoring consumption anomalies, particularly out of normal business hours – an invaluable asset at sites such as the Palace Theatre. In addition, alarms have been programmed on the water loggers to provide an immediate alert if activity falls outside pre-set parameters.

So far, the available data has been used to analyse the relationship between energy and water consumption and activity within buildings, with a view to reducing overall consumption. Any unusual activity is investigated and the appropriate steps are taken to reduce or eliminate it. For instance, at the Town Hall, the data has been used to provide accurate and timely feedback to staff involved in a recent campaign encouraging people to switch off equipment when it is not required. The data has also proved invaluable in a variety of other ways, e.g. validating invoices, identifying equipment problems, quantifying consumption reductions and hence savings from the installation of energy saving equipment, to name but a few. Furthermore, it has enabled staff to quantify benefits from recently installed ‘renewable’ energy sources such as the solar thermal panels at the Town Hall, and the photovoltaic arrays at Arrow Valley. The list goes on and is growing all the time. Jim Prendergrast, Head of Property Management Services at Redditch Borough Council says of the scheme, “We now have a much better understanding of the way in which our energy and water resources are being used on these sites. We are delighted with the results achieved so far and hope to build on this success in the future.”

Detailed data monitoring has identified a number of unusual patterns in energy and water consumption. Investigative work was focused initially on the Town Hall and has now moved on to Crossgates Depot, with the Palace Theatre and Arrow Valley following closely behind. Findings have shown:

· High base load water usage at Crossgates Depot – subsequently found to be due to faulty urinal controllers

· Unexpected gas usage at the Town Hall at specific times of the day – a detailed investigation found a problem with some zoning valves on the heating system, which meant that optimal temperature control was not being achieved

· High water usage at certain times of the day at the Depot – found to be due to filling (and over-filling) of road sweeper vehicles. A time switch has now been fitted to this supply so that the vehicles cannot be over-filled and hence no water is wasted

Jenny Smith has seen dramatic improvements since the Qonnectis equipment was installed. She commented, “We have been working with Redditch Borough Council for over four years and one of their most impressive achievements is not only to install the data monitoring equipment but also to spend time understanding the data and taking the appropriate actions to reduce waste. Their results speak for themselves.”

And they really do. To date, the Council’s usage monitoring programme on the pilot sites has delivered significant benefits, with a 29% reduction in out-of-hours electricity usage and a 39% reduction in annual gas usage at the Town Hall, as well as a reduction in water usage at Crossgates Depot by 2,000m³ per annum. Annual cost savings achieved to date are in the region of £20,000, meaning that the payback period after deployment of the system is less than a year. Emissions savings at the Town Hall alone amount to more than 125 tonnes of CO2 per annum.

Mick Merrick, Sales Director of Qonnectis is impressed at the resolve of Redditch Borough Council to tackle their utility consumption issues. He commented, "Local Authorities are large users of water, gas and electricity over many disparate sites. It's impressive to see Redditch Borough Council using very modern technology to cut wastage, save council tax payers’ money and reduce their overall carbon footprint."

The Council has now identified funds for a further two years and two more sites have since been targeted, including one high usage gas site where the meter is particularly inaccessible. Here the system will be used to provide both a remote meter reading capability plus data to allow gas consumption to be monitored and hopefully reduced. The other is a high water usage site where an initial audit has identified scope for consumption reductions and hence savings via changes in work practices. It is still worth remembering that investigative work is far from complete at the four initial pilot sites, hence, further savings could be identified in the near future.