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Warehouses

Energy consumption generates greenhouse gases (GHG) and accounts for a significant business expense. By implementing energy efficiency measures and practices, businesses get more value from the energy they purchase while lessening their impact on the environment. Many opportunities exist for warehouses to decrease energy consumption and realize cost savings.


The energy efficiency measures listed below include recommendations for upgrades that can improve aesthetics, enhance employee environments and lower maintenance costs. All of these measures should be evaluated for each individual building first by a professional and a comprehensive energy audit may be beneficial.


Typical energy efficiency measures



HVAC  

 

  • Control heating, ventilating, and cooling systems as a function of occupancy and the needs of goods stored using automatic controls as appropriate.


  • Use variable-speed drives, high-efficiency motors, and cast aluminum fan blades for ventilation fans, using demand control to adjust ventilation rates as needed.


  • Install gas-fired infrared heaters instead of forced-air convection heating systems.

  • Outdoor air economizers should be included with air-handling units, so outdoor air can be used for free cooling during spring and fall or on cool summer nights when the humidity level is not too high.

  • Programmable thermostats provide preset limits for heating and cooling – overriding unnecessarily high or low settings by staff. These thermostats also feature digital controls and readouts that ensure greater accuracy than the sliding levers on traditional units.


  • Night temperature setbacks involve the installation of an automatic thermostat that controls the temperature when the store is closed.

  • Scheduling or cycling is the practice of shutting down your HVAC equipment for short periods throughout the day. For example, shutting down fans and other systems for three minutes an hour represents 5 % of your consumption, but may not be noticed by customers or tenants. The trick is to reduce consumption without a perceptible change in temperature. If the temperature changes, your system will have to work harder to return to desirable temperature and humidity levels.

  • Heat recovery ventilators (HRVs) and energy recovery ventilators (ERVs) have balanced exhaust and supply fans that meet all ventilation needs without creating drafts and air-pressure imbalances. HRVs can feature efficiencies as high as 85 to 95 %, with payback in roughly 3.5 years. Consider these units whenever air is continuously exhausted and make-up or ventilation air is required.
Building Envelope  


  • Ensure that entry doors are weather-stripped and other sources of infiltration are carefully air-sealed.

  • Install an air curtain.
Lighting  


Compact fluorescent lights (CFLs)

  • Use 75% less energy than standard incandescent bulbs to produce the same amount of light and last up to 10 times longer.
  • Ideal to use in hard-to-reach places, in guest rooms and where lights are left on for long periods of time.

High Performance T8 fluorescent lamps
  • Use 15% less energy than standard T8 systems
  • Better colour rendering up to 25 years
  • Maintain light output for longer periods of time
  • Longer lamp lifespan

LED & Photoluminescent EXIT signs
  • Extremely long product life: LEDs last 10 to 15 years
  • LED signs reduce energy consumption by up to 90%, photoluminescent by 100% as these EXIT signs require no power.

Halogen infrared lamps
  • Approximately 30% more energy efficient than standard halogen and 40% to 50% more energy efficient than similar wattage incandescent lighting.
  • Longer lamp life
  • Excellent light quality and colour rendering
  • Produces less heat than incandescent and standard halogen lighting

For more information on commercial lighting, visit this website:
http://oee.nrcan.gc.ca/publications/equipment/lighting/index.cfm?attr=20

 

Financial incentives available


Efficiency NB’s Energy Smart Commercial Buildings Retrofit Program provides financial incentives of up to $3,000 towards an evaluation to determine the potential for energy efficiency upgrades and a maximum of $75,000 towards the energy retrofitting project costs. For more information about making your warehouse more energy efficient, click here or contact us at 1-866-643-8833 ext.128.

 

Best Practice Guide

Warehouses.pdf 125.7KB