Log onto energy savings
January 1st 2005 CompAir is highlighting the availability of Government-funded loans for the purchase of energysaving equipment and is offering to help applicants obtain the vital evidence of potential energy savings to support their applications for loans to cover the cost of new compressors.
Funding is available in the form of Action Energy Loans, offered under the Carbon Trust’s energy efficiency programme. They are available to SMEs employing up to 250 people with a maximum turnover of £25 million – a sector of industry that consumes about 40% of all the energy that is used by UK business.
The scheme is designed to make interest-free loans of between £5000 and £50 000 to small and medium sized businesses that may previously have been unable to raise the capital to invest in energy saving equipment, such as new compressors.
Commenting on the role that CompAir can play in helping to support these loan applications, product manager Andy Pullen says “One of the key requirements of the loan application is that the projected energy savings resulting from the investment should exceed the amount of the loan over a 5-year period.
“Applicants will need to provide data that quantifies the savings and we can provide this by simply running a week-long audit of existing equipment and producing a computer model of the comparative energy savings that a new system could achieve.
“Many users would be surprised at the results of such an audit – most older systems, even if they are performing reliably, could be costing unnecessarily in wasted energy.”
Non-intrusive The audit involves data logging the existing compressor system over a 7-day period of normal working. This is a non-intrusive process that does not interfere with normal working. Data gathered is loaded onto a computer programme that shows patterns of real site demand.
The programme is designed to show the projected energy savings that an updated system could achieve, information that can be extrapolated to illustrate typical annual energy savings.
Free helpline Action Energy Loans are available to qualifying SMEs in England and Wales and a similar scheme, Loan Action, Scotland, is available for businesses north of the border. A free helpline for information is available on 0800 585794 or for online information visit: www.actionenergy.org.uk More articles from CompAir Redditch: | 
