utility monitoring
Installing sub-metering at the point where utility feeds are taken
into a department, consumption can be determined precisely.
Usage costs can be apportioned to departmental budgets and
these help promote greater stewardship of resources. In terms of
a trust’s financial performance, the management can also
assess more accurately the viability of the services they provide.
Monitoring energy consumption leads to cost
savings and a reduced need for fossil fuel power
When energy costs were only a fraction Apportioning usage costs against those It is possible by using smart meter tech-
of what they are today, probably the best departmental budgets is seen to be eq- nology to monitor the amount of heat
way of allocating the cost of utilities uitable, and a spur to assume greater energy consumed at each of these
consumed was on the basis of floor area. stewardship of resources. In terms of a calorifiers and it is clearly important to
It was simple to implement: in practice, trust’s financial performance, the hospi- do it in order to be able to apportion the
it was probably the only way, as the tal management can also assess more utility charges fairly.
metering of gas, electricity and water accurately the viability of the services There are just three hospitals where
has traditionally been handled centrally they provide.” utilities could potentially be tracked. As
or – at best - at a building level. the Cancer unit at Mount Vernon is tech-
Extensive energy tracking
nically the tenant of another trust, it pur-
Energy metering
chases resources from that body under a
Gas, electricity and water are the obvi- Service Level Agreement which ensures
Bob Jones is an advocate of utility me- ous targets for utility tracking at a de- a continuity and consistency of supply.
tering down to the departmental level partmental level, but so is the energy At present, both acute hospital sites
so that cost of resources consumed can supplied centrally within a hospital for have had the monitoring technology in-
be charged back for actual usage rather heating water and the premises. stalled, but further investment is required
than levied crudely on the basis of floor Mr Jones explained that there are five to install sub-metering for departmen-
area occupied. boilers at the Lister Hospital, feeding a tal utility monitoring.
As he observed, “By installing sub- medium pressure steam ring main. Hertford County is a newer site (2004)
metering at the point where utility feeds Steam is drawn off in each zone, via and would eventually follow down the
are taken into a department, it is possible steam calorifiers, used to heat the hos- same investment route as and when util-
to determine with precision how much of pital’s domestic hot water and heating ity savings are achieved at the older sis-
these vital assets have been consumed.” systems. ter hospital sites.
The Informed Executive
47
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