Energy saving trials to start this autumn

The idea to consolidate low occupancy buildings to save energy, raised by colleagues during recent all-staff talks and by the Our Future First Champions Network, has been given the go ahead.

Our Sustainability team will begin monitoring to establish which workspaces are quieter out of term time, indicating where we can consolidate low occupancy buildings. Asking colleagues in these spaces to share rooms or buildings would allow some to be closed for short periods, meaning fewer spaces to heat during colder months.

The initiative could make a substantive contribution to our strategic principle of environmental and financial sustainability.

Other energy saving proposals that the Estates Committee agreed to investigate include:

• a trial of reduced heating hours, including switching on heating later in the year, and switching off the heating for two hours at lunchtime
• monitoring 24-hour facilities on campus to understand occupancy levels, with a view to ensuring that opening hours meet real demand
• recruiting students to switch off lights and unused non-critical equipment.

The cost of the University’s gas bill has risen sharply in the past few years, with costs projected to jump dramatically from £5m in 2021/22 to £17.7m in 2023/24. These combined measures have the potential to save the University up to around £1m on its energy costs.

Energy champions

The Sustainability team will also work with the Our Future First champions across the University to identify bespoke measures that could have a big impact, such as identifying specialist equipment that could be switched off or used in more efficient ways.

Dan Fernbank, Energy and Sustainability Director, said: “The threat of climate change to our planet, combined with stark rise in energy prices, means we must take action and rethink our energy use. We’re making good progress in switching to green alternatives, but in the short to medium turn we still rely on expensive, high carbon gas energy.

“We’re trialling ideas that will make it cheaper and more efficient to heat our workspaces. We remain a campus University and encourage colleagues to work on campus, but when buildings are quieter, we can save a lot of energy and costs by thinking more carefully about which buildings are occupied and heated.

“This is just one way that we can all play a part in securing a sustainable future for the University.”

A steering group will be established in the coming weeks to oversee the energy trials, with the scope and timings of any trials to be confirmed later in the year.

For more advice on saving energy at work, contact your School or Function’s Our Future First champions, or email sustainability@reading.ac.uk.