Stopping energy leakage from devices that are not in use — aka "energy vampires" — has long been a dream for people who manage corporate buildings.
According to Environment + Energy Leader, Honeywell's Connected Power solution offers the ability to do just that. It allows those who oversee corporate buildings to automatically power down certain outlets at certain times. They can base this schedule on when rooms are supposed to be used.
The U.S. General Services Administration says that plug load usually accounts for 25-50% of the total energy consumed by a corporate building. That number goes up as the building becomes more efficient because it has always been hard to make plugs and the items that use them draw less electricity.
You might be tempted to say that individual employees are at fault. They could simply unplug devices when they aren't being used. After all, that's what they have to do at home if they want to save money.
However, when Honeywell asked Wakefield Research to conduct a study on this topic, they found that employees disagree. More than 80% of employees think that their employer shares a level of responsibility equal to their own when it comes to device and plug power usage.
While employees still need to do their part, Connected Power allows employers to come alongside them to lower the company's power usage. Even the most responsible of employees may forget to unplug devices sometimes or get called away in an emergency situation. When that happens, Connected Power can ensure that their devices are not left on as energy vampires until they get back.
Connected Power has some emergency safeguards, too. Users on devices that are about to lose power will receive messages notifying them of the impending shutdown so they can take any necessary action before that happens.
Honeywell has already rolled out Connected Power options to some buildings. Those who have implemented it and reported back say that it is easy to install and that they saw its benefits immediately.
Buildings don't have to use Honeywell for anything else since Connected Power can be integrated into many of the existing building management systems. It can also work independently of these systems, though it can only manage up to 2,500 outlets that way.
Corporate buildings consume 35% of all electricity used in the U.S. and produce 16% of all carbon dioxide pollution, according to the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. Lowering the amount of electricity they use would reduce their dependence on dirty energy.
Integrated systems like Honeywell's, which allow for intentional outlet management, could be the start of bringing the amount of planet-warming pollution produced by energy consumption down significantly.
If you work in a corporate building, try to talk to your building manager. Ask if they have heard of the Connected Power system and see if they would be willing to learn more. You may help your company save quite a bit of money on electrical costs and reduce its polluting impact.
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