Energy Management Survey Results

In November 2005, the Alliance to Save Energy conducted a survey to understand the variation in current energy management practices. The survey posed the following question to energy management professionals: “Which of the following best describes the energy cost-reduction strategy taken by your organization?” Respondents were asked to indicate which ONE of the following selections best answers that question:

• Pay the fuel bill on time to avoid late fees [Do Nothing];
• Price-shop for the lowest fuel prices available [Price Shop];
• Pursue occasional, low-cost (non-capital) projects when time and resources permit [OPEX projects];
• Select strategic, capital (hardware) projects that improve plant performance [CAPEX projects]; or
• Follow a multi-year business plan that budgets for projects and staff training, and identifies energy-smart standard operating procedures [Business Plan].

Full descriptions of all five energy management strategies.

TABLE 1: Summary of Survey Responses*

* Note that this is not a scientific survey. A scientific survey would require a random sample of responses from the universe of large, energy-using facilities. Instead, respondents were drawn from the Alliance to Save Energy’s communications database. Respondents were decision-makers who are at least motivated to think about their organizations’ energy management, because they have done one of the following: (1) attended a workshop of conference on energy efficiency, or (2) subscribed to the Alliance’s communications to receive current program information. Therefore, the survey did not reach energy-users who are generally uninterested in controlling their energy costs.