Retrotec USACE - Manual (Page 37)

Chapter 2 15
Step 5: Communicate
To be successful, energy management and assessment must involve all levels
of organization from the key decision-makers to the users and operators of the
building. Therefore, it is vital to communicate the energy management plan
and assessment results to the members of an organization at every stage. To
achieve full support, everyone must understand
Why action is being taken ■
What the main targets and objectives are ■
What will be done ■
Who is responsible for each action ■
When and where the action will take place ■
What the major milestones are ■
What role different personnel groups will assume ■
When implementing energy conservation measures, the target audience
must be identifi ed, and appropriate feedback must be produced to keep
people motivated. Providing too much detail and information must be avoided.
Often a “quick and dirty” approach is better than a very accurate and scientifi c
method, which can easily make people feel overwhelmed, causing them to lose
interest.
Communication methods depend on the size and nature of the organiza-
tion. Besides briefi ngs, fl yers, leafl ets and posters with information about easy
ways to reduce energy consumption, e-mailed newsletters, regular meetings,
and information campaigns, common Web sites (portals) can be established to
ensure that everybody in the organization has access to the most relevant and
up-to-date information.
A proper monitoring system can offer continuous data for the Web site so
that the users and M&O personnel of a building or site can easily see perfor-
mance levels and the development of their own facilities. Similarly, assessment
reports should be made available to all interested parties. The target should be
compared against the actual development at least monthly. Figure 10 shows an
example of a Web-based commissioning and communication tool that visualizes
the target values for energy consumption in a relatively new education facility
put into use in autumn 2003. Unfortunately, the realized monthly consumption
has clearly passed the targets during the last years. In yearly fi gures, consump-
tion was over 30% (400–500 MWh) above the target set by careful simulations
in the design phase. Level II–III assessments should investigate the reasons
for these shortfalls. Work has started, but results are not yet available.