Energy Reduction
You cut consumption. So why didn't the bill go down?
Energy cost is driven by more than total consumption. Demand, power factor, operating schedules, controls, equipment performance, and rate structure can all matter. LCI identifies the cost drivers, quantifies the opportunity, and develops projects around measurable economics.
How the bill actually works
Energy cost has more than one driver.
Consumption and demand are common components of commercial and industrial electric bills, but the structure varies by utility and rate. Understanding the tariff and the facility's load profile is the first step.
Energy consumption
How much energy the facility uses
- Typically billed in kWh over the billing period
- Affected by equipment efficiency, operating hours, and production
- Can vary significantly with weather and operating conditions
- Reducing consumption lowers cost where the applicable rate rewards it
Demand & rate structure
When and how the facility uses power
- Demand charges are based on peak load over a utility-defined interval
- Rate schedules may include on-peak, off-peak, ratchets, or other demand components
- Power factor and other tariff provisions can also affect cost
- Managing the load profile can create savings even when total kWh changes little
The four levers
We work across the load, the equipment, and the operation.
The right approach depends on what is driving cost at the site. Most opportunities involve some combination of operating changes, controls, equipment, and rate-specific demand management.
Operating schedules and controls
Equipment schedules, sequencing, setpoints, and control logic can create unnecessary load or demand. We identify operating changes that reduce cost without interfering with production or facility requirements.
Demand and power factor
We evaluate peak demand, concurrent loads, power factor, and tariff structure to determine whether sequencing, load shifting, controls, or electrical improvements can reduce utility cost.
Load shifting and peak management
Where the tariff and operating profile support it, loads can sometimes be shifted, curtailed, or supported by storage or on-site generation to reduce exposure during higher-cost periods.
Turnkey system upgrades
Motors, drives, lighting, HVAC, compressed air, process equipment, and controls can all create opportunities. We evaluate the operating need and economics first, then develop the project with the appropriate technical partners.
What determines the economics
The same project can work at one facility and fail at another.
The applicable tariff matters. A demand, efficiency, or load-shifting project only creates value if it changes something the customer is actually paying for.
The load profile matters. Timing, operating constraints, production, and equipment interaction determine how much of a theoretical opportunity can actually be captured.
Capital cost matters. Savings have to be weighed against project cost, maintenance, risk, useful life, and the operational value the project provides.
Economics before investment
If the economics don't work, we won't recommend the project.
We evaluate opportunities against the facility's actual rate structure, load, operating conditions, project cost, and expected performance. Sometimes the right answer is a smaller project, a different approach, or no capital project at all.
“The goal is not to find a project. The goal is to identify the best use of the customer's time and capital.”
LCI Energy · Project approach
How we get there
From opportunity to implementation
The exact scope changes by project, but the work follows the same basic discipline: understand the condition, quantify the opportunity, develop the solution, and confirm the result.
Understand the load and cost
We review the relevant bills, tariffs, interval data, metering, equipment information, and operating conditions to understand what is driving the opportunity.
Quantify the economics
Potential changes are modeled against the facility's actual rates, load, operating requirements, and expected project cost so the customer can compare realistic options.
Develop and execute the project
When an opportunity moves forward, LCI helps define the scope and coordinate the utilities, engineers, contractors, equipment providers, and other technical partners required for implementation.
Measure what changed
Where the data and project scope support it, we compare post-project performance with the established baseline and review whether the expected operational and financial results are being achieved.
Have an energy cost or project worth looking at?
Start with a utility bill, interval data, operating issue, or project idea. We'll help determine what is driving the cost and whether there is a practical opportunity to act on.