SURVEY


Foreword Kanat Emiroglu, managing director of British Gas Business


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n this climate of fragile economic recovery, we are aware that the top priority for businesses is cost control. There is uncertainty around longer-term energy prices and how companies can effectively manage their costs. Businesses are also mov- ing into a low-carbon energy market and face pressure to make serious cuts in carbon emissions. A recent survey of Leisure Management readers, the results of which are covered in this supplement, showed that over 60% of leisure busi- nesses take a short-term approach to energy management, with more than two thirds claiming they need help to develop an effective energy strategy. We appreciate the importance for businesses to adopt a sensible approach to energy use in order to thrive in the coming years, and we want to help them achieve this. More efficient energy management is currently an untapped opportunity in the leisure sector. Nearly half of leisure operators surveyed have not implemented any energy-saving meas- ures in the last 12 months. Yet many of those that have are achieving sav- ings of up to £10,000.


This supplement identifies the current issues affecting leisure busi- nesses and provides expert advice and solutions to help them gain a firm grip on their energy consumption. Even by adopting simple measures, they could make savings of 10-20%.


There has never been a better time for businesses to invest in their energy strategy – and they need not be alone on their journey. With unique insight from working with 679,000 UK busi- ness customers, British Gas can help them make the energy efficiency deci- sions that will have the biggest impact on their business.


The battle to control costs


Our survey of leisure industry managers shows that most leisure businesses know they should be more proactive in bringing down their energy costs, but a lack of time, focus, knowledge and capital is preventing them from doing so


aced with ever-growing utility bills, operators know they need to improve the energy efficiency of their facilities and operations to deliver cost savings. However accord- ing to our survey, just under half of respondents (48%) said they had not implemented any form of energy-saving scheme in the past 12 months. Also, 61% of leisure businesses admitted that their organisation took a short- term approach to energy management, meaning that they could be missing out on longer-term efficiencies and energy deals, and therefore greater energy savings.


F A substantial 68% of our survey


respondents admitted they needed some help to identify the best way for- ward when it came to developing an effective energy management strategy. Most leisure operations consume


large amounts of gas and electric- ity (some organisations said it was up to 30% of operating costs, with an 8.3% average across the sector), so their direct energy bills are inevitably a major concern. However, an over- whelming 86% agreed they should not merely focus on their monthly bills, but seek help in finding ways to tackle their longer-term energy use. When asked about the key priorities for managing their business over the next 12 months, most were focused on improving operational efficiencies (60%) and facility refurbishment (63%). Only 18% identified improving energy use and efficiency as a priority, even though this can be one of the key ways to achieve operational efficiencies. With so many different priorities within a business, it is easy for energy efficiency measures to be pushed to the


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back of the queue – however the 49% intent on growing their business may well see rising energy costs as a result, and the 63% planning refurbishments could benefit from installing energy improvements at the build stage. Thirty per cent of respondents admitted they mostly focused on mar- ginal energy savings, sometimes at the expense of savings that were harder to achieve but they knew would have more impact in the longer term. However this doesn't mean that all operators need to be considering the ‘big’ energy savers such as solar pho- to-voltaic panels and wind turbines, which represent a major commitment. Operators can also benefit from some very simple devices and pro- grammes that can be easily introduced into a facility to start producing results overnight. Implementing a behavioural change programme for staff costs relatively little, but can have a big impact on energy savings in the short- and long-term. In terms of hardware, boiler and voltage optimisers can be


Find out more: www.britishgas.co.uk/business 0845 955 5820 THE SURVEY


In July 2011, Leisure Management invited readers who play a part in energy procurement and manage- ment within their leisure organisation to take part in an online survey of all aspects of energy control, effi- ciencies and costs. The responses were received anonymously, but were invited from all sections of the leisure industry, including local authority leisure centres, health and fitness clubs, hotel and restaurant chains, spas and visitor attractions.


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