A l’heure où les réglementations énergétiques commencent à arriver pour les départements d’outre-mer, nombreuses sont les entités qui travaillent à l’amélioration de la performance énergétique de leur parc immobilier. Devant l’importance des enjeux et des objectifs, la priorité est souvent donnée aux rénovations énergétiques (indispensables) et à l’optimisation de l’exploitation. Et si dans cette course aux économies d’énergie, on oubliait le maillon final qui permettrait d’atteindre, voire de surpasser les objectifs d’économie d’énergie ?
Energy savings are struggling to take off, but how to explain it?
That's it, you've just completed an energy improvement project: a new high-performance air conditioning unit installed on the roof, a super remote control mounted on the wall, high-performance air mixers and the latest LED lighting.
But here's the thing... after a few months in operation, all these efforts don't have the desired effect on your electricity bill.
Unfortunately, it is not uncommon to see a few months after an energy renovation, the consumption increase again, even exceeding the previous consumption... this is called the rebound effect.
Effet rebond : Par la recherche d’un confort accru, les rénovations ne donnent pas tous leurs effets en matière de réduction des consommations énergétiques. Exemple : de nouveaux luminaires LED viennent remplacer d’anciens tubes fluorescents. Comme il est connu que ce nouveau type de luminaires consomme moins que les précédents, la vigilance sur l’extinction des lumières est réduite.
But why a rebound effect?
If energy-consuming behaviors are not rare, they are not voluntary. Indeed, in the workplace, an employee has a thousand and one "reasons" for forgetting to turn off his or her computer when leaving in the evening, or for not realizing that his or her window is open while the air conditioning is on in the open space.
In reality, inappropriate behaviors are mostly due to the evolution of comfort standards, to the complexity of the technologies used, to a lack of consideration of the needs and behaviors of the occupants, to a lack of training and information of the users, or to persistent habits...
The rebound effect can occur at all stages of the energy production/consumption process.
Energy-guzzling habits: only one solution, automation?
We can then think that the solution to the rebound effect and to the associated behaviors is "simply" the automation of air conditioning systems, lighting, etc... But replacing human intelligence by a "robot" is not a permanent solution. Especially since this loss of control, especially over comfort, may lead to a decrease in user involvement.
And there, a significant financial surcharge is looming: surcharge generated by the purchase of the automatons AND surcharge due to the deterioration of consumption linked to bad usage.
As you can see, this would accentuate the rebound effect instead of cancelling it out.
On the other hand, this technical solution is not to be totally ignored. In other words, in order for the automatic management necessary for certain equipment to be seen by the user as a facilitator of life and not as a loss of freedom, the automations made must be communicated and explained.
But what is the solution? As is often the case, the key to the problem lies in the balance. In our case, a balance must be found between freedom for the users and automation.
If energy renovation and operation optimization are known and recognized levers to improve the energy efficiency of a building, the awareness and training of users are the great forgotten actions to improve energy performance ... and yet it is a combination of these three levers that will ensure the maintenance over time of the energy efficiency so coveted.
Raising occupant awareness: figures, figures!
Awareness/training can have a significant impact on energy consumption. Indeed, virtuous user behavior can result in energy savings of around 5 to 10% (Manexi, 2014), in some specific cases this percentage could even reach 20%! At the same time, the financial investments required to raise awareness remain relatively low and a group coherence is established. The benefits are therefore multiple.
For a global approach, this approach should be considered in parallel with energy renovation and operation optimization actions. It has been shown that raising user awareness in addition to operational optimization would represent an energy saving potential of 22% (Manexi, 2014).
Furthermore, as explained above, raising user awareness on simple daily actions can avoid the use of electronics and home automation that consume energy (sometimes hidden).
Raising user awareness: where to start?
Awareness is above all human and therefore involves a certain amount of psychology. It is important to look at the physical and psychological obstacles that "prevent" your employees from adopting a virtuous behavior. For this, nothing is better than exchange and communication.
Once these barriers have been identified, it is important to find the right tool to remove them. To do this, several persuasive psychological levers can help you to convince even the most reluctant employees. The final objective is to make the extra effort as natural as possible.
The will to change must be collective to be sustainable. Ainsi, il faut respecter le processus de changement ; qui comporte plusieurs phases dont certains petits retours en arrière indispensable pour permettre l’assimilation. L’important étant de garder une dynamique collective qui servira d’élan lors des pertes de motivation individuelle.
Putting people at the heart of energy improvement: a real commitment at INTEGRALE
At INTEGRALE INGENIERIE we are convinced: users are the missing piece of the energy efficiency puzzle, the final touch that makes it possible to reach the energy objectives, whether they are regulatory or not.
To do this, we have put our foot down by raising awareness and informing our employees on a regular basis (approximately every month) on how to reduce individual consumption in the office, on the distribution of consumption measured in the premises, on the energy savings achieved, etc...
In addition, INTEGRALE INGENIERIE's energy efficiency engineers are particularly keen to propose, during their various studies, recommendations on user training in the same way as more traditional energy recommendations.
