An energy audit should help you identify energy waste areas that need attention within your building. After doing an energy audit you should be prepared to act based upon the results of the audit. If no action is taken, then the audit could be looked at as a waste of time and money.
The first step of the audit is to benchmark the building. This requires at least the previous 12 months of utility bills, including electric, gas and any other energy utilities. We would prefer to use the last 24 months of bills if possible.
A basic audit of a commercial building should also include at least one walk-thru of the building. Some basic areas that will be looked at are the lighting, HVAC, utility services, and the building envelope. A more in depth audit would include interviews with the building operators and maintenance personnel, review of the original plans and specifications of the building and its systems, as well as a summary of all of the equipment located throughout the building. This data helps in identifying problem areas as well as learning how the building is being operated.
The summary of the Energy Audit is put into a report that would then be reviewed with the owner to answer any questions as the report is explained. The report will contain a list of recommended actions with estimated cost that can be taken to improve the efficiency of the building.