// HOW GREEN ARE YOUR WAYS?
WITH PETER KAPLAN
Holiday Tips For Your Wallet
T
he holiday is an expensive time for everyone. For business owners it can be especially daunting as they show thanks for to their management, culinary and waitstaff teams for a job well done. Many times it is easy to get so overwhelmed by the cost of personal and business expenses that are associated with the holiday season. The warmth of holiday beverages often masks the cold outside and with that the silence of wasted energy. Despite a summer of affordable gas to put in your car, the reality is that in each of the last two winters, the price of electricity and natural gas has increased dramatically overnight due to the cold weather. So what should be a festive time of year can often bring the reality of a big increase in energy bills. So our goal is to help guide you to be in the best possible position to create a strategy that will minimize energy costs in 2016. It all begins with some good old fashioned common sense. Leave notes on doors so that your team switches off computers and lights, and keep the heating to a minimum when your dining facilities and offices have low occupancy over the holiday period. These are such simple steps to take, but they’re often overlooked. There are many simple steps that businesses can take to reduce energy bills during the holidays. When ev-
eryone leaves your premises for the holiday break, make sure, all holiday lighting and equipment that contributes to energy consumption in your office has been turned off at the plug socket. In particular, make sure monitors are switched off when not in use, as they can account for almost half of a computer’s energy use. Do a walk-round of your office and see what other non-essential electrical items you might have overlooked. Also over Christmas break turn off all the lights as they could burn excess energy and also burn your pocketbook, this alone can save you substantial money. If you need them on at a certain time for security reasons,
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use a timer. Turn off any Christmas decorations that light up. If you’re not there to enjoy them, there is no need to pay for them. It is also a good idea to turn these off to prevent fires, which would devastate your business. You can also consider LED lights rather than Christmas lights, which use less energy and also last longer. If you’re shutting down for extended periods during the holidays and no staff will be in, turn the heating down to the minimum it needs to be on for frost protection. We also know that you look at the water bill every month. Again a couple of simple steps can garner big savings. Teach your culinary team to make sure that
Peter Kaplan has served as Chief Operating Officer and President of United Energy Consultants since 2005. Behind his leadership and 20+ years of de-regulated energy and risk management experience, United Energy Consultants has developed several proprietary procurement and software systems that are a benchmark in the industry. Email him at peter@uecnow.com
no taps are dripping before you leave for the holidays. We wish you all a very Happy Holiday Season. Be safe, be smart and enjoy all the holiday season has to offer.