Achieving over 20% gas savings and reduced carbon emissions
Customer
The Best Western Belmont House Hotel is situated close to Leicester city centre and boasts 77 rooms with extensive conference and banqueting facilities, attracting business and leisure customers alike.
Problem
General Manager Simon West had long sought ways the hotel could reduce it’s energy consumption in the face of a prolonged period of price increases.
“Although wholesale prices have recently stabilised, the last few years has still seen a massive cumulative hike in our energy costs,” said Simon. “Our challenge was to find a way of reducing energy consumption without compromising comfort conditions, both in terms of heating and continuous hot water availability.”
Solution
A free survey of the hotel’s heating systems was arranged and a report was prepared with recommendations for installation of Intelligent Energy Management Controls.
Our controls are designed to automatically adjust the firing of the boiler plant to meet the varying demands placed upon it, ensuring that heating and hot water is provided as required at all times, whilst allowing for changes in outside temperature.
Belmont House Hotel’s system was installed in 2006:
“Since then we have observed a significant reduction in overall gas consumption exceeding 20% compared to the same period the previous year.”
Simon noted that “During that time our contracted gas price actually went up”, saying that made the system “All the more impressive, with no adverse effects on out residents comfort.”
Help Protect the Environment
A key benefit of installing the controls was the reduction of the hotel’s greenhouse gas emissions.
Simon West was impressed, “Reducing gas consumption by over 20% supports the hotel’s policy to reduce it’s carbon footprint in all areas.”
The hotel was able to fund the installation through an interest free loan available from the Carbon Trust, the organisation was set up by DEFRA to support businesses and organisations wanting to reduce their carbon footprint.
This was made possible under the Carbon Trusts’ “Action Energy” program, which also enables companies to claim Enhanced Capital Allowances against corporation tax when purchasing energy saving systems.
Simon said that even if they had opted to purchase the systems directly “The high level of savings achieved meant that the payback would have been below 25 months.”
Conclusion
The Belmont House Hotel is very pleased with the performance of the Intelligent Energy Management Controls and they continue to play a part in cost reduction and supporting the hotel’s Green Agenda. Simon concluded that the engineers “Installed and commissioned their systems quickly, with no disruption to the hotel’s activities,” saying he would recommend controls to “other hotels and businesses who want to make significant and sustained savings in energy costs and help protect the environment.”