Buffalo’s new energy audit program is aimed at helping small businesses discover how to use less energy.
You are a small business owner, and the recession has you brainstorming for ideas to reduce costs and save money. You would like to find ways to reduce costs for electricity and climate control, but a myriad of offers, services and systems are being advertised. How do you know which one will work best for you? You would like to get an energy audit conducted, but so many companies and agencies offer them, how do know which one will be effective and cost efficient?
Answers to these questions are being provided in Buffalo by a first of its kind energy audit program. Joe Steffel, the City of Buffalo utilities director, calls it the Commercial Building Energy Conservation and Benchmarking Program.
Steffel, who has been actively looking for and using energy conservation methods and devices both at home and at work, noticed that many energy saving services and products are promoted at the residential and industrial levels, but not so much is directed toward small businesses.
“About four years ago, I noticed there was a gap between efforts at the residential and large commercial levels. I could see small businesses were using a lot of energy, and they could save money with some energy conservation methods,” Steffel said.
He added that the public is inundated with energy saving ideas. Some are good, and some are not so good. Some energy conservation devices malfunction after a relatively short time. “Bad experiences with malfunctioning devices can turn people off,” Steffel said.
