Before speaking about the main objectives of an Enery Manager and his tools, we need to introduce his role. This figure makes his official debut in Italy in 1982 with law 308, but it is with the subsequent law 10/1991 that the role and functions of the “Responsible for the conservation and rational use of energy” are defined (commonly called, according to Anglo-Saxon practice, energy manager). The intent of the law was to encourage the control of consumption in particularly energy-intensive private and public companies, introducing the best practices to follow.
The energy manager is a mandatory figure in all industrial realities with consumption in excess of 10,000 toe / year (tons of oil equivalent) and in those in the civil, tertiary and transport sector with consumption in excess of 1,000 toe / year.
Companies that fall into these cases (called “obligated subjects”), are required to communicate each year the appointed energy manager, who can be a person inside the company or an external consultant, a frequent case especially in smaller companies. The lists of nominated energy managers are managed by Fire, the Italian Federation for the rational use of energy, on behalf of the Ministry for Economic Development.
Given the push on energy efficiency by Europe to combat climate change and the regulatory adaptation that has taken place in our country, in recent years the energy manager has become a crucial figure, so much so that more and more companies, including those not subject to ‘legal obligation, make the appointment. In this regard, the numbers shown in the list managed by the Fire for 2017 are indicative: out of 2,315 total energy managers there are 1,564 people appointed by obliged subjects and 751 by non-obliged subjects.
The main objectives of an energy manager
As the name suggests, the energy manager deals with everything related to energy management in a company, public or private, with the aim of limiting consumption, lowering energy costs and increasing environmental sustainability by reducing the Polluting emissions. These are its main activities:
- Consumption measurement and energy audit / diagnosis
- Promotion of activities and investments to improve energy efficiency (and therefore cost reduction)
- Favor the use of renewable sources
- Report with verification and communication of the results obtained to all the company representatives involved.
In some cases, he also deals with the purchase of electricity and other energy carriers (such as methane gas, LPG, etc.), taking care to deal with economically advantageous conditions with suppliers.
The methodological and technical tools
The first task of the energy manager, namely the measurement of consumption, is preparatory to any other activity, also to verify that the company is in line with the benchmarks of its reference sector. This is not a simple activity, especially in the case of industrial companies with many plants, different withdrawal points (i.e. meters connected to the network) and with the use of different energy sources. For the verification of company consumption, the energy manager can use reports produced by
telecontrol and automation systems or from
internal audits or energy audits.
The energy diagnosis, defined by Directive 2012/27 / EU and mandatory for large and energy-consuming companies, is the procedure that allows to know the “consumption profile” of a company, and is therefore the first step of all efficiency initiatives. In this long analysis,
it is essential to elaborate energy consumption indices for the most relevant users or processes (they are called EnPI, Energy performance indicator), through ad hoc measurements.
The energy optimization
Optimization of consumption occurs on the one hand by correctly regulating the operation of the systems, on the other by spreading virtuous behavior among the staff, which will therefore be sensitized. Typical areas of action are the lighting and heating of the premises. Furthermore, based on the results obtained from the energy consumption indicators, it may be appropriate to propose the technological adaptation of the plants and machinery to adopt more efficient and performing solutions.
Energy models are the most effective tool for optimizing consumption, thanks to them it is possible to:
- intercept energy inefficiencies related to malfunction problems, poor performance of the operators or incorrect adjustments of the systems.
- size the energy expenditure and quantify the savings following interventions.
- build the reference consumption of the site or organization to evaluate where to act to minimize the expenditure related to energy consumption.
As can be seen from what has been described, the areas of intervention of an energy manager are diversified and its role is transversal, both at the level of corporate assets (all machinery and devices that consume energy), and for the corporate functions to be involved in decisions.
It is often advisable to adopt an Energy Management System, preferably certified according to ISO 50001, a complex procedure that places these activities within a permanent corporate energy strategy and extended to all areas of activity.
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