How a Preventative Maintenance Program Can Help Save on Energy Costs

How a Preventative Maintenance Program Can Help Save on Energy Costs

If you have already implemented a Preventative Maintenance Program (PMP), you might be surprised to hear that you also have access to energy efficiency experts as well. Your Planned Maintenance team should consist of local field representatives and certified maintenance technicians who can identify problem areas, find new opportunities for heating/cooling savings, assign responsibility, and help track progress toward your energy savings goals at your facility.

Every Warehouse is Unique so your Energy Plan Will Require Customization

Your specific Preventative Maintenance Program combines best practices, a tailored approach, and should incorporate the following:

• Time of Year (Winter or Summer)
• Heating and Cooling Needs
• Old and New Automations Onsite
• Size/Layout of the Facility
• Detailed History Reports

These are all energy efficiencies that can be difficult to implement without some level of personalization.

Some service companies offer a free Energy Savings Analysis for your facility as a first step to identifying next steps to help attain the highest energy efficient output for your specific business.

Work with an Experienced and Specialized Team

If you want to audit your own property for energy improvements, you may lose the advantage of bringing in an experienced outside source. Expert service representatives work with a variety of warehouses and facilities, across unique industries, and will have accrued experience and use cases that can help identify areas in your warehouse or distribution center that are prone to energy loss.

Your Preventative Maintenance Program Can Factor in your Energy Bill when Calculating ROI

If you are looking for ways to cut down on your monthly energy costs, or you follow lean manufacturing, it may be worthwhile to share your energy bill with your local service representative. They can also help you identify inefficient or older equipment that could be responsible for higher bills and calculate the ROI on repairing or replacing the machine.

New Warehouse Technology can Lead to Lower Costs

You may not be on the cutting edge of warehouse technology, but a skilled service representative and a few smart upgrades can roll out easy changes with high impact.

Here are a few examples:

• Streamlining your loading dock communication system allows a trailer driver to know exactly where to go and in turn could shorten the period of time where the dock doors are left open, saving on heating and cooling
• Installing a timer on lighting or automatic equipment, saving energy when the room or the machine is no longer in use
• Deploying new warehouse software can help you monitor and track energy output, so you can identify the biggest opportunities for savings and gather data for a proposal

Recommended Facility Improvements can Conserve Energy

Your repair, maintenance and service team is already familiar with your facility, the geographic area in which you are located and how the seasons impact production. This allows them to identify problem areas more easily or find opportunities to improve your energy output.

Facility recommendations might include: 

• Improve the dock seals or dock shelters to reduce outside air infiltration
• Inspect the insulation on your loading dock doors and pedestrian walkway doors
• Design temporary or permanent walls or barriers to control or help heating and cooling systems
• Introduce the appropriate number of HVLS fans and train staff on how fans help for both summer and winter months
• Track the efficiency of any refrigerated areas or cooler/freezer areas over time so seals, panels, doors, or units can be flagged when issues arise

Your Local Service Team Considers the Human Element

You might have checklists, best practices and industry standards at hand, but these papers won’t take into account the human element. New processes or upgrades require personalized training for your employees and assessments must also consider the comfort of your team when measuring heating and cooling.

A trained representative, who knows your facility and prioritizes your bottom line, makes an impactful difference to your energy savings plan.

When you are ready to reduce energy costs, or want to see the results from other companies’ winter and summer savings, get in touch with your local Rite-Hite representative. We’re here to help! 

Contact Your Local Rite-Hite Representative