What exactly is voltage optimisation?
Voltage optimisation is a technology that controls voltage to minimise energy waste. VO can save you power on all sorts of electrical equipment, across your plant, estate and buildings.
Another bonus of setting voltage correctly, using VO, is reduced maintenance. But, uncertainty on how and where VO works best has left some firms wondering whether to implement the tech.
VO 101; reasons why implementing VO makes sense
For a start, existing data on the Curve website shows VO is extremely highly regarded, pays back in under 4 years and is a proven technology.
And outside the internet, in the real world, The Brewery shopping and leisure centre in Romford is benefiting from large energy savings and added resilience against an ever more unstable grid supply, as a result of Efficient Power Solutions’ industry leading VO technology.
Plus, the energy savings at The Brewery are offering an attractive ROI of 2-3 years.
VO 101; given all this, why is it unclear when to use VO?
The key point is, certain electrical equipment benefits greatly from VO, but other kit less so. Industry organisations have shown that some branded LED products, for example, don’t respond well to VO, yet other kit benefits drastically from VO tech.
So the crucial issue is; you have to understand what VO can and can’t do; not something the layperson necessarily realises.
Therefore, Efficient Power Solutions believe it’s essential to highlight the need for the right product and supplier, one that will talk you through how VO tech will work in your bespoke scenario. When it comes to VO, a one size fits all approach is unlikely to offer satisfactory results.
VO can offer great savings; but only if applied correctly
Some widely shared industry stats prove the point; the highest savings achieved by VO come from applying it to inductive loads and fluorescent lighting. But for loads such as a desktop PC, the savings aren’t noticeable.
That’s why it is so essential, as stated, to use a decent supplier. “At Efficient Power Solutions, we will undertake site surveys, looking at your estate, plant and buildings and painting a true picture of what VO has to offer in your specific circumstances,” says Duncan Biggins, Managing Director at Efficient Power Solutions.
“The problem has simply been that suppliers haven’t been specific enough about where VO really helps. A good comparison is solar panels. Put them on a roof shadowed by trees, and you shouldn’t expect amazing results.
“But that doesn’t mean solar panels don’t work, or aren’t a great, energy-saving technology. It just proves suppliers should do the work for clients and advise them in which circumstances the options work best.”
The Efficient Power Solutions difference
“I want to see VO rolled out in those situations where its benefits can be most keenly seen and delivered to clients,” says Biggins.
“Our voltage optimisation system is the technical leader in voltage management, but we don’t want to install where the benefits aren’t right. Rather, we want to build an exemplar of meaningful VO installations to prove to clients how the tech works, and to show to other energy efficient industries we are serious about transparency, and serious about how we can benefit firms from a sustainability perspective too.”
Want to understand how voltage optimisation can help your business? Contact us for a no obligation site survey.
