E-Genie tool could grant energy saving wishes for businesses

A new monitoring tool for businesses has been developed by researchers at the University of Nottingham to help reduce energy use and cut costs. The e-Genie tool is an energy feedback system created by researchers at the University of Nottingham's school of Psychology and Horizon Digital Economy Institute with the purpose of engaging staff with energy data and supporting them to take action to reduce energy use. The first field based trial of the tool was carried out at Nottinghamshire County Council offices and the results of this have recently been published in Building Research and Information which showed reductions in energy use of between 14% and 25%. Digital insights Dr Alexa Spence led the study and says: "Non-domestic spaces account for around one fifth of UK carbon emissions, making energy efficiency and conservation in these built environments of paramount importance. Energy saving in the home is relatively well researched; however, an increased focus in recent years on non-domestic buildings means insights are also beginning to emerge around the digital technologies and behavior change interventions which can reduce energy use in the workplace. We have seen with the roll out of smart meters in the home that the provision of energy information can have a significant impact on energy saving behaviour. Reducing energy use in non-domestic buildings is more of a challenge because so many people are involved and buildings have many different uses and energy needs.