Selco – Reducing electricity costs through voltage optimisation

Following proven gas savings of up to 52% across 72 sites, Selco looked to us to tackle electricity consumption. Our voltage optimisation solution delivered savings of up to 7%, reducing electricity bills by £17.5k in the first year alone.

Industry

Construction

Number of sites

Key goals & challenges

Deliver energy savings

5.75 %

Average savings

2.5

Years payback period

19.2 Co2

saved

Context

After delivering measurable gas savings across Selco’s national estate, the relationship evolved toward tackling electricity use with our voltage optimisation solution. Selco wanted a proven, scalable approach to reduce electricity consumption without disrupting operations or requiring major capital investment.

Most businesses don’t realise that the National Grid supplies around 242 volts (V) to everyone. Usually, the equipment is actually designed to run at 220 volts – that’s where it works most efficiently. All supply above 220V is a waste. Using Ohm’s law, optimising the voltage on any supply produces immediate kWh savings of 5-8%. This gives businesses like Selco an immediate reduction in electricity bills and a smaller carbon footprint. Additionally, according to the UK’s wiring regulations (BS7671), any electrical equipment required to incorrectly operate at 242V will have a reduced service life of up to 46%.

Solution

We initially installed across five Selco sites to validate the level of savings and performance.

Each location got voltage optimisation units fitted between the mains supply and its electrical systems. These regulate incoming voltage, bringing it down to the appropriate level for all on-site equipment.

The technology handles this in real time, so there’s no drop in performance, and nothing changes for the people working there day to day.

The aim of the trial was to get solid data – how much they were actually saving, whether the kit held up, and when they would see payback. We needed to assess before rolling voltage optimisation out further.

Impact

All five installed sites returned consistent results. Electricity use dropped by 4.6% to 7%. These have resulted in direct financial savings of £17.5k in the first 12 months of installation. Since the original installation, Selco are now looking to roll out to another 20 locations within the next year.