Latest video featuring Cork Co Council

Find out how much money Cork Co Council are saving  by implementing Energy Watch IT and see how a large Community school and a  Girls primary School are tackling climate change while bagging some serious School cash savings.

It’s all here……learn and enjoy !

The Green Button Campaign – Energy Watch IT

Many of the UK’s coal and gas power stations come to the end of their usefull life in the near future . The UK Government plans to reform the electricity market in May. This offers an opportunity to firmly establish renewable  energy as a viable alternative in the country  to drive towards a  zero-carbon electricity infrastructure  by 2030 , a date set  by the Committee on Climate Change (CCC).

While the government dithers, the UK’s  energy bills keep rising. Just six energy companies EDF, E.ON, Centrica, SSE, Scottish Power and npower control 99 per cent of our domestic energy market . So far these have shown only relative minor interest in renewable sources.

And why are UK consumers bills rising? Well it’s largely because of the big six’s over-reliance on costly fossil fuels, whose pricing is volatile and governed by world commodity prices.  While some have argued that rising bills relate to recent  ‘green taxes’, such as subsidies for renewable energy e.g. solar panels and feed in tariffs, a recent report from the CCC, an independent body, found the major cause was in fact rising wholesale gas prices.

Energy bills have doubled in the last six years, plunging a quarter of  UK households into fuel poverty, with Northernm Ireland particularly hard hit. You may recall that Energy watchdog Ofgem found the big six guilty of overcharging customers £250 million during the winter of 2010-11. In spite of rising wholesale costs of input fuels their profits continue to rise. They reported profits of around £3.5 billion,  for the first 2 quarters of 2011 and profit margins keep increasing.

Understandably, we’re getting angry and the proof is there to see. Complaints about the big six rose 26 per cent last summer, politicians from all parties and Ofgem have questioned their influence and power. It’s not just consumers who are irked. Environmental groups, NGOs and pressure groups and smaller energy companies have joined the complaints chorus in recent months.

The biggest issue for us is that investment in renewable sources is very low on their priorities, judging by the budget spent in this regard.  Environmentalists say that not only are they stifling smaller innovative companies,  offering renewable energy, by exploiting their dominant position in the market, they are also to invest sufficiently in clean, affordable and sustainable energy projects.

The results speak for themselves Currently, three-quarters of the UK’s electricity comes from fossils (coal and gas) with renewables at only eight per cent.

 We would like to see that investment in alternative energy sources by the large companies will be proportionally higher. We need to avoid a future ‘massive over-reliance’ on increasingly expensive imported gas. ‘The Government estimates that Britain will need just 11 GW of new gas but 30 GW of new renewables by 2020. However, there are close to 30 GW of new gas proposals in place right now. We need this folly to be scaled down and the gap filled by renewable proposals instead.

Regardless of what new capacity is made available the urgent need today is to reduce our consumption. This will have a direct impact on our bills. Energy savings products such as the EnergyWatchIT PC power saver, LED lighting and increased insulation all play a part in the quick wins needed to keep our energy bills affordable.

It’s ideal for home use where teenagers ’forget’ to turn off the PC. For small business users it’s also a very attarctive option. In fact any PC user who wants to cut costs and CO2 can buy it and use it regardless of their situation. The price is very affordable and the licence applies to both non-commercial and commercial environments. 

The  great news is that we’ve prepared a FREE taster in advance of the EnergyWatchIT Solo launch in mid April. 

So from today EnergyWatchIT LITE is available for single users anywhere for FREE , for 45 days. While the taster is a subset of the  forthcoming EnergyWatchIT Solo version of the Product,  it still allows users to set Scheduled Shutdowns and Press the Green Button whenever they need to and has all the simplicity of use of the full product. Downloads are FREE and you can purchase a pack of self adhesive buttons if you want from our online shop. (but this is not necessary to use the button since it is a softkey).

The EnergyWatchIT Solo version will appeal to all individual PC users worldwide who want a simple way to save energy waste when their PC is idle. So within a minute you can download the installer file, run the one click install and set up your shutdown schedule.  Then your savings start.

And while you’re enjoying EnergyWatchIT  LITE for 45 days,  why not buy a pack of self-adhesive buttons and give one as a gift to a friend, who can download the software and start their own savings.  They will thank you when they see their electricity bills reduce. Calculate your potential savings here.

 So no more shouting at the kids to turn off when they’re done. Just press the green button and the PC hibernates within a few seconds.

 Enjoy !

To download your free trial just click on the button orsearch Google for ‘EnergyWatchIT lite’  or go to www.download.cnet.com  and search for ‘EnergyWatchIT Lite’.  

In the UK and Ireland enforced Government cutbacks and rising taxes (direct and indirect) have put a squeeze on all budgets. But there are always opportunities to find savings, re-cycle revenues and work smarter. That’s what we do at Energy WatchIT. And we’re delighted to partner with Keep Britain Tidy to explore better ways of working sustainably. We’re delighted to participate in the forthcoming Keep Britain Tidy Network Conference to address today’s challenges and build a better future. Deep in a time of austerity, with budgets still to be cut deeper, how can services be maintained and even improved? The Keep Britain Tidy Network Conference 2012 aims to provide the tools to enable and empower you to make informed decisions to help create a stable and sustainable future.

Keep Britain Tidy(KBT) has listened carefully to the issues that challenge members and partners of their Network, integrating these topics into the conference agenda. KBT aim to inspire, empower and support councils and communities in the delivery of your services, to achieve  targets from a strategic to operational level. They have developed the conference agenda to cater specifically for the current challenges of doing more for the environment with less.  The conference agenda will look at themes such as new and innovative models of service delivery, localism and decentralising power. Delegates can chose from a range of workshops featuring strategic speakers and good practice examples from organisations with strong frameworks and strategies that enable neighbourhoods to take control of the decisions that affect them, increasing citizen participation and promoting community ownership.

The Keep Britain Tidy Network is one of the longest running local environmental quality programme and environmental awards schemes in the UK. Its principal aim is to assist local authorities and other land managers to improve performance in local environmental quality by providing expertise, advice, support, opportunities for up-skilling, networking events and partnership working.

A major part of the conference is the presentation of the annual Network Awards, which not only recognise and promote the hard work and dedication involved in delivering continuous improvement but also provide an invaluable opportunity for information to be shared with colleagues in other organisations.

We look forward to sharing in the creativity and enthusiasm this event will generate. You can meet us there.  Conference info here.

The latest store opened in Cabra, Dublin is the first in Ireland and their fourth “zero-carbon store” to be opened since 2009. Others are located in Cambridgeshire, Lincolnshire and Powys in the UK.
In order to meet “zero-carbon” standards the supermarket has been designed to require a very low energy demand and to avail of all onsite renewable energy technologies installed instead of inward draws of energy. The building design ensures that over the course of a year it exports as much energy to the Grid as it consumes – i.e. it’s energy neutral.

The Cabra store features a biomass-fuelled combined heat and power (CHP) system to provide electricity, heating and cooling to the store, as well as advanced lighting controls that reduce lighting demand based on the ambient sunlight available.

Daylight to the shop floor is maximised by roof windows. Super efficient refrigeration units containing LED lighting have been installed.
LED lighting in the underground carpark saves approx €44,000 per year in running costs for the external car park and lowers energy consumption by 70% in comparison to traditional linear fluorescent lighting.
Every little modificatiopn along the way will help Tesco become a zero-carbon business by 2050, which is their aim. All of us in the Green button Campaign congratulate Tesco on their commitment.
Let’s hope many more retailers follow their example.

Academy schools are the darlings of the current UK Government. They tend to be progressive and want to make their mark quickly. But is their rush to establish themselves with the latest technologies having an unintended environmental impact?

Well, a recent study published by Building Research & Innovation points a finger at their modern buildings being responsible for higher energy consumption and rising carbon footprint as a result.

The study , entitled ‘ Using Display Energy Certificates to quantify schools’ energy consumption’, was released on Oct 31^st 2011 and  suggests that these new academies have ‘significantly higher’ energy consumption compared to traditional secondary schools, because they tend to be ‘new builds’ with more ‘state-of-the-art’ facilities.

But this could apply to all newer buildings in any School however and it may be unfair to single out the Academies for criticism.

The teams of researchers, from the University of Cambridge, Shinawatra International University  and Thammasat University, in Thailand, made the conclusions by trawling through  over 12,000 School buildings Display Energy Certificates (DECs) produced between 2008 and 2009.

They found that:

• Overall energy use in schools is on the increase and with this comes rising CO2 emissions despite a fall in demand for heating (due to better insulation).
• That newly built buildings have not been constructed with energy efficiency as a top priority.
• After allowing for different pupil densities related to School type, typical CO2 emissions per pupil were found to be 47% higher in secondary schools and 116% higher in academies, compared with primary schools.
• That design strategies to reduce heat loss have been moderately effective but these gains have been offset by increasing electricity demands, for mechanical ventilation, lighting or  ICT equipment (which is fast becoming a major source of energy consumption as Schools add more and more computing and electronic teaching aids).
• Another worrying finding was that CO₂ from English schools has been rising steadily over the last 9 years. Given the reasons outlined above, this may continue to rise, suggesting that significant work needs to be done if the UK is to meet its CO₂ reduction targets for 2050.

The study establishes the need for continued monitoring and research into the relative roles of building design, heating systems, electrical and ICT systems and occupant behaviour to ensure that the emissions trend is downwards.

 There are many ways that Schools can address this increase. For example lighting retrofits to cut lighting energy and ICT power management systems such as ‘ The Green Button Campaign’  will cut energy waste on two key areas.

The full findings are published in the latest issue of the journal Building Research & Information. Access to the report is available here

Let’s see what happens if the Gas price falls…don’t hold your breath for a rebate!

But there IS something you can do to strike back and turn these increases to your  benefit.

With a price increase like this it means that energy savings solutions save even more cash for you. Take the  following example of a 100 PC School that user Energy Watch IT to cut wasted power used by idle PCs. Well under the old price levels that School saved a nett €4450 per annum by using the product as part of their Green Button Campaign activity. Now that saving reaches €4730 per annum (based on the same criteria such as 115W consumed per PC, over 38 weeks).  That’s a €280 increase in saving for NO extra work. The Energy Watch IT licence is fixed and does not increase so your savings will always improve as Electricity prices increase. Work out what you could save for your own school (just take the 100PC model as the basis).

There really is a silver lining sometimes!  To pocket your savings contact the folks at www.energywatchit.com right now and stop wasting your precious School funds.

So we’re following the trend with a special School’s Autumn price drop. 

For the first 10 days of October we’re taking 10% off our regular Schools price for new orders.

(Regular price €450 +VAT).

   That means you can now join the Green Button Campaign for €405 + VAT

(saving €45 + VAT) off our regular price. Remember our

 Green Button Campaign price for Schools is for UNLIMITED numbers of  School PCs.

BONUS.

Your licence renewal will also be fixed forever at this price. That’s 10% off each and every year.

With an estimated €4,000 saved every year for every 100 computers in your School , your investment in EnergyWatchIT yields almost

1,000% annual return on investment right now and this will grow with rising electricity prices….but your costs

will remain fixed at our discounted School 10-10 price.

So why wait any longer?

Call us now at 021 -4368540 or reply to this email , and quote ‘CODE 10-10′ to avail of this offer.

Addressing a conference on retrofitting in Ireland, today Sept 23rd Energy Minister Pat Rabbitte announced  a “pay as you save” scheme is to replace the current grants for retrofitting old housing stock with insulation . As always with these Ministerial announcements the details must yet be teased out with the relevant parties.  Since only 30,000 homes availed of grants this year to have work done we need to significantly boost our adoption rate to meet  2020 targets of reducing energy consumption by 2020.  As cash is very tight both for the Government and the householders and  current grant aids run until 2014 we would expect that the funds may not reach that far. So a ‘ Pay As You Save Option (PAYSO) is the only way to achieve these goals.

Schemes similar to this method are already in operation in the USA and Ireland, by product suppliers  (e.g. Energy Sense Ireland Ltd operate a PAYSO scheme for Public Sector clients). The scheme is a win -win for both with the environment the biggest winner. The energy savings get activated immediately, the consumer benefits by lower bills , a portion of the savings pays back the cost of the work. Over a defined period (e.g.  3 years) all costs are paid back and the full 100% savings are to the benefit of the client. the neat trick is to enlist the utility suppliers to actually collect the money.

SWITCH ON AMBITION

We should however , be more ambitious with the scheme. If every house and business  was upgraded to the most efficient lighting such as LEDs,(which are expensive in comparison with CFL bulbs)  ,  or lighting retrofits, there would be up to 90% power savings in many cases. The costs of the products could be recovered over 2-3 years through electricity bills still leaving consumers with big savings immediately. But the big winner is the CO2 reduction which will see instant reduction as electricity demand drops. Remember every kwh of electricity generated from fossil fuels is responsible for 520g of CO2 (ESB figures).

The SEAI back in April 2010,  reckoned that simple energy housekeeping actions would result in over €300 million savings for the SME sector  alone which has over 200,000 businesses. 

So how much can householders save ?

 According to the SEAI , average Irish household is responsible for emitting approximately 8.1 tonnes of CO2 ,  4.8 tonnes of those CO2 emissions are from direct fuel use with the remainder relating to upstream emissions from electricity usage., that’s  3300 kgs.Let’s say you use the bulbs an average of 5 hours a day with 16c/kWh tariff.

CFL savings : Each 100W bulb costs €29.28 per year in electricity or €1758 over the six year lifetime of  a CFL bulb. By replacing 10 ordinary bulbs with energy saving CFL ones an average family household could save €1407 over the bulbs lifetime on electricity charges. (ESB figures). Take out the cost of these 10 CFL bulbs of approx €40 and we have a net saving of €1367 over 6 years or €281 per year.

• LED savings :If we replace 10 ordinary 60W bulbs with 6W Pharox LED lamps these savings are a whopping €3164 over the lifetime of the bulbs. Each 60W bulb costs €17.58 per year in electricity or € 3516 over the 20 year lifetime and the 6W Pharox will reduce this by 90%. Factor in the cost of the 10 x LED at €250 approx and the net savings are €2914. Each LED bulb costs a paltry €0.15 pm to run. In the 20 year period you would also save the costs of replacing 20 incandescent bulbs and 5-6 CFL bulbs. Total CO2 savings are 12352 kg over the lifetime or the equivalent of 7.3 years total household CO2 emissions due to electricity use.. i.e you are avoiding the average household’s total annual electrical CO2 emissions for 7 years.

 So if each household saves approx 617 kgs per year from their 3300 kgs that’s already 19% saved  just from lighting changes.  There’s the 2020 target in sight from day 1 !

 Just work this out for the nation as a whole and the results are pretty impressive. And it’s easily done……just provide the bulbs on a PAYSO  scheme now to householders.

In addition to the national benefit, a lighting  retrofitting programme will create many jobs.

The Sustainable Energy Authority’s cost benefit analysis concludes that for every €1 it spends on the current retrofit scheme, the economy benefits to the tune of €5.

The scheme is, they say, self-financing . The new PAYSO scheme can be even better, yielding a triple win. So why wait?

We would like to see this scheme kicked off right away, with lenders committed and energy suppliers facilitating the cost recovery. The nights are getting darker and energy costs are rising….