Schneider Electric UK has launched its ‘Rethink Energy’ initiative, a programme aimed at changing business, consumer and government attitudes to energy waste and help combat climate change. A Schneider Electric commissioned study, of 2,000 UK adults and over 600 UK businesses, revealed that 68% of business leaders reported their organisations wasted energy, particularly in the form of inefficient building and office space.
Under half (43%) of company chiefs also shared their organisation had not implemented any measures aimed at tackling these inefficiencies in 2018. To launch its Rethink Energy initiative, Schneider Electric held a panel debate at Tottenham Hotspur’s new stadium, one of the world’s most energy efficient stadiums. Schneider Electric is THFC’s official energy management partner.
During the debate, Mike Hughes, Zone President, Schneider Electric UK & Ireland, commented: “We need to bring energy front of mind. The market needs to take an activist approach to advocate for and instil efficiency and build an investment mindset if we are to achieve the 2050 net zero goal.” He added that “as energy waste becomes more visible, businesses will increasingly be held accountable.”
Ben Golding, Director, Energy Efficiency and Local, Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy, added: “We’ve always needed to get to net zero. The question has always been when, not if.”
To encourage people to change their behaviour, David Joffe, Team Leader at the UK Committee on Climate Change, highlighted the need to: 1) to give people enough information to make decisions, 2) make it a desirable (almost competitive) thing to do, 3) enable people to take action.
“Much of the problem with energy efficiency is measurement, you need to know how the measures you have put in place are performing,” he commented.
Despite the findings, James Diggle, Head of Energy & Climate Change, the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) said that there is “a huge appetite for change from businesses, not just driven by reputation, but also by future business stability.”
An in depth case study providing an insight into Schneider’s installation at the new Tottenham Hotspur stadium will be featured in the printed August 2019 edition of Mission Critical Power.
