water management services - schneider electric
TRANSCRIPT
Despite increasing at above inflationary levels, with prices being consistently less volatile than those of the electricity and gas markets and for many organisations representing a lesser part of the budget, water has typically remained at the bottom of the boardroom agenda.
However, with prominent NGOs such as the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and Carbon Trust now calling for companies to demonstrate corporate water stewardship and promote responsible use of water resources, hitherto regarded as a basic human right and of unlimited supply, companies are now facing growing financial and social pressures to widen their utility focus from energy and introduce sustainable water operations across their business.
Excellence in Water Management
The Energy Awards 2012
Winner: Best Advice - 2013 & 2014Winner: Large Consultancy of the Year - 2013, 2014 & 2015
Scotland has, for some time, led the calls for change by their introduction of a competitive retail market in 2008, that despite a slow start is now starting to deliver tangible benefits to customers in terms of both cost and service. However, in England and Wales businesses are presently unable to leverage volume and brand to negotiate discounted pricing and improved products by switching their business to a preferred service provider – despite many feeling that they are not receiving value for money from their regional suppliers.
Although the Welsh Government remains unconvinced of the merits of opening up the not-for-profit firm Dwr Cymru Welsh Water to competition advanced discussions are underway for England to follow Scotland’s lead and introduce a fully deregulated market by 2017.
However, still some years away, customers should not sit idly by and wait for the outcome of the bill to take effect, but instead recognise that the prospect of increasing prices to fund the industry’s much needed asset investment programmes creates the need to understand and optimise costs.
Schneider Electric’s team of experts are ideally placed to help our clients understand their obligations and identify opportunities to reduce costs through an independent examination of charges against tariff parameters and site infrastructure, together with an assessment of the scope for introducing water efficiency improvements.
Helping our clients understand their obligations and optimise their costs
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Scope of the Service
Whether your business is striving for long-term measurement and control through smart metering, staff engagement and accreditation or simply wants to understand and mitigate cost through an independent review Schneider Electric’s water management service represents the logical starting point for your business.
The primary objectives of the service are to carry out a thorough and on-going assessment of charges relating to water and wastewater services with a view to identifying and implementing measures that will:
We take a very proactive approach to our utilities, however, with no up-front costs we felt commissioning a third party to perform an independent audit was a win-win. Even so, the extent of the savings achieved by Schneider Electric has taken us by surprise, as has the speed at which they were secured. Schneider Electric were able to deploy a dedicated professional team to undertake what was a comprehensive review, not only of our bills but also our infrastructure and metering systems.
John Wright - Director of ICSS, NHS Ayrshire & Arran
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Water savings
Without solutionBaseline water@ measured@ recorded
Time
With solution
Implementation of water management solution
Measurements recorded for comparison to the reference
Measurements recorded during the reference period
3
Invoicing check
Tariff evaluation
Contract and licensing review
Consumption assessment
Refund + savings notification
Risk awareness (undercharging + non-compliance)
Savings assessment
Investment + ROI appraisal
Validation of charges against site infrastructure
Meter asset register
Water efficiency appraisal; fittings + behaviour
Negotiation with suppliers; contracts, billing adjustments
Co-ordination of remedial works
Quantification of savings; before and after comparison
Desktop Audit
Recommendations
Survey
Implementation
ClientApproval
• Validate historic and present charging arrangements
• More efficiently utilise water resources and minimise unnecessary water use
• Reclaim overpayments from suppliers
• Lead to a reduction in expenditure on water andwastewater services
• Bring clarity to legislation and compliance
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Tariff Optimisation
Schneider Electric not only checks the mathematical accuracy of each bill and determines pricing against published rates but seeks to validate charging structures against supply infrastructure in order to ensure that they accurately reflect your organisations’ site profile.
Examples of areas covered include:-
Within the 6 months of your appointment you have already implemented savings of £100,000 per annum impacting significantly on the Council’s utility costs. In addition you have successfully negotiated with our supplier refunds exceeding £200,000 in value following your comprehensive auditing exercise and physical site inspections by your Engineering team.
By presenting your recommendations to us for approval through regular review meetings we have been kept fully updated of your progress at every stage. Your ability to liaise directly with the supplier on our behalf to obtain these refunds has allowed us to target our limited resource on other priorities.
Bill Henderson – Council & Energy Manager, City of Edinburgh Council
Cross reference of charges against
portfolio list
Arithmetical check of each invoice
line item
Confirmation that the most cost
effective tariff rates have been consistently
applied and scope for adjustment
Evaluation of meter sizes against loading units and assessment for
downsizing
Validation of standing charges against
in situ metering
Assessment for metering of
unmetered supplies
Analysis of rateable values used
by suppliers for raising charges against VOA
assessments
Validation of site area based charges
through analysis of satellite imagery, site plans and
survey
Analysis of existing retail agreements,
and where not already in place, the scope for
introduction
Review of trade effluent charging and
measurement mechanisms
Validation of sewer connectivity through analysis of
satellite imagery, public sewer records checks
and site inspection
Review of wastewater allowances
against headcount, areas of non-returns and regional supplier qualifying standards
Review and comparison of effluent
discharge strengths
Review of existing licensing
agreements and their compliance, together
with the scope for adjustment or
introduction
Monitor market developments and
communicate renewed opportunities to the
client
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Procurement
Offering independent market advice and providing focussed support throughout the decision-making process, our team of experts engage with the retailers on a daily basis in order to deliver an end-to-end procurement service, not only identifying the right deals for our clients but managing the exchange of contracts through to billing.
Establish existing contractual position
Determine client buying strategy
Perform tender exercise
Evaluate and present tender results
Manage exchange of contracts with winning retailer
Ensure agreed retail terms are applied to billing by the winning retailer
Ensure that final billing from the outgoing retailer is invoiced correctly
Check invoicing against agreed rates
Quantify the savings achieved as a result of any newly agreed terms
Monitor market developments and communicate renewed
opportunities to the client
Despite our having previously contracted with the incumbent supplier Schneider Electric was able to negotiate much improved rates by arranging our switch to a new service provider. The water market in Scotland is rapidly changing and Schneider Electric’s positioning as utility procurement specialists means that they are able to react to the changes and exploit the opportunities created on behalf of their customers.
The transition to our new supplier was seamless and the whole exercise has acted as a valuable learning curve in advance of the market opening up south of the border and in expectation of the opportunities it will yield.
Tony Marland – Administration Manager, Yearsley Group
Deliverables within the procurement package include:-
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Procurement
Strategy
Monitor &
Manage Results
Tender
Implementation
The appraisal comprised not only of a desktop examination of supplier billing data but an on-site inspection of water fittings and behavioural practices by their specialist engineers. The audit identified an opportunity to reduce water usage levels in the common areas and on completion of an agreed programme of works the forecasted reductions were clearly demonstrable through the use of logging data – comfortably achieving the ROI target.
The solutions not only will generate immediate financial savings but has encouraged the shopping centre to take a more proactive approach to water management through the investment in permanent AMR. Any consumption variances are now identified in real time for instant resolution, and with the added benefit of much improved reporting functionality we are now able to exercise a much greater level of control over the utility.
Euan Mackay - Operations Manager, Buchanan Galleries
Water Conservation
Where appropriate Schneider Electric will conduct site surveys in order to investigate anomalies
identified during the desktop audit and/or independently review supply arrangements.
Examples of areas covered include:-
• Benchmarking against industry standards and comparable client premises
• Verification of invoice data against actual meter readings
• Analysis of supply points, existing metering installations and the scope for additional metering
• Data logging of water supply meters to verify flow profiles
• Investigation of water using appliances and the scope for controlling water demands orreducing/eliminating excess water use
• Leak detection
• Preliminary investigation into the scope for alternative water sources
• Study of working patterns and practices
• Throughout the survey discussions with site personnel are carried out to assess water useawareness on site
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Site Appreciation Testing Solutions
Profiling
Metering
Appliances
Behaviour
Legislation
> Measure, Improve, Monitor
> Technology
> Leakage
> Best practice
> Smart metering
> Sub metering
Smart Metering
Huge volumes of water are wasted by businesses each year through leakage, ineffective appliances and poor behavioural practice. With the cost of water and wastewater increasing each year together with the effects of climate change on deteriorating distribution systems organisations have a commercial and environmental responsibility to demonstrate a proactive approach to water management by measuring and monitoring usage, identifying wastage, taking corrective action, and continually striving to improve efficiency and performance.
Schneider Electric’s water smart metering service uses state of the art technology to deliver best-fit metering solutions to our clients, downloading information from data loggers onto an Automatic Monitoring and Targeting (aM&T) system which receives main and sub meter consumption data and provides system water reporting, alarming, monitoring and analysis.
The system is a hosted, web based application; metered data is sent to a remote server and is available for user analysis at a web browser anywhere in the world. The correct analysis of different types of reports can highlight unusual or high water consumption, with the results of any cost saving measures being immediately apparent. The system can also be set up to send alarms by e-mail to key users, helping organisations identify and quantify opportunities to save money and better understand where to focus time and energy.
Water metering is a complex activity with the appropriate solution dependent on the end user’s individual and very specific situation. Schneider Electric has extensive experience in delivering multi-utility sub-metering and aM&T type projects, and using a combination of in-house expertise and specialist partners is able to provide a cost effective end-to-end solution that delivers the intelligence that customers need to effectively manage their portfolio.
Challenge
> Reliance on supplier reads or manual intervention to monitor consumption and identify exceptions
> Supplier reads are often inaccurate / irregular / estimated
> Even regular monthly reads do not help establish a meaningful consumption profile / baseline
> Increases can go unidentified for prolonged periods
> Left unresolved inefficiencies / wastage can quickly generate significant costs that cannot be recovered
Solution
Real-time data giving your business control from the comfort of your PC by helping …
> bill validation and cash flow
> create a true consumption profile
> identify inefficiencies / wastage quickly
> save your business time and money
Water company approval secured
WRAS approved logger installed to fiscal/sub metering
30-minute interval data streamed to your PC at Day+1 and accessed via a secure web browser
Typically reclaiming between £1m and £2m of overcharges from UK suppliers each year and delivering year-on-year savings of a similar value through a mix of tariff, efficiency and procurement based solutions Schneider Electric has a proven track record in helping organisations make sense of the risks, obligations and opportunities presented to their business whilst delivering tangible financial benefits.
What our clients say
The working relationship between the College’s estates personnel and the
professionalism of the Schneider Electric Water Engineer was such that when a
critical loss of water within the system was identified the Water Engineer provided
both professional advice and assistance to bring about a quick resolution of the
problem.
Your Water Team have secured substantial savings, both by desktop analysis and
onsite investigations. Anomalies identified by your company have resulted in the
cancellation of backdated charges of over £60,000 as well as further ongoing
savings achieved through implementing water conservation.
Your independent status and transparent method of working leaves me no
hesitation in referring your company to other organisations.
Schneider Electric Energy & Sustainability Services are efficient, professional, friendly
and pro-active. We continue to benefit from their expertise and would definitely
recommend their services to others.
Keith McIntyre, King’s College London
Mike Gardner, Tenneco
Mark Tatham, First Great Western
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Schneider Electric installed controls to improve water efficiency and I was
impressed with both your professional manner and the timescale within which the
job was completed.
The work was arranged at a time convenient to us and carried out quickly
and efficiently by one of your own water engineers, who made sure we were
satisfied with the quality of the work before he left site. We are now benefitting
from a significant reduction in water use as a result of Schneider Electric
recommendations.Sean O’Connor, Arsenal Football Club
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I am very pleased with Schneider’s work. Their consultants remained focussed
on finding the location of the leak, even though it proved very elusive. They
demonstrated an admirable ‘can-do’ attitude. There was limited time to carry out
leak tests and they worked well with the University to conduct these. They were
willing to accommodate us by working weekends and even attending site late at
night or very early in the morning. I shall certainly continue to use their services in
the future.
Phill Patrick, Staffordshire University
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Mark Tatham, First Great Western
Answers that transform energy into an asset
Schneider Electric believes effective energy management begins and ends with strategy. That’s why our energy management life cycle addresses questions at five key stages beginning with the most fundamental:
“What is my strategy?”
Companies and organisations that can address this question are well-positioned to move through each stageefficiently and effectively to achieve maximum return on their energy investment. And Schneider Electric’s energy management and sustainability experts are there to support you at each stage of the life cycle.
Whether you have a specific need or are ready to address your entire programme in a consistent, streamlined fashion, Schneider Electric is the only solutions provider that offers a consistent, global capability that is backed by substantive, local resources. We blend global thought-leadership with local knowledge to match the specific needs of your business.
Schneider Electric makes comprehensive plans that fit your goals, and chart your progress. We negotiate the best terms with every supplier and minimise risk. Through our energy procurement services and our energy & sustainability consulting we can help you improve your bottom-line while you concentrate on your core business and customers.
EnergyChallenge
Make the most of your energySM
UK contact details -
0870 608 8 608Fax 0870 608 8 606
Ireland contact details -
01 601 2200Fax 01 601 2201
As a global specialist in energy management with operations in more than 100 countries, Schneider Electric offers integrated solutions across multiple market segments, including leadership positions in energy and infrastructure, industrial processes, building automation and data centres/networks, as well as a broad presence in residential applications.
Focused on making energy safe, reliable, efficient, productive and green, the company’s 150,000 plus employees achieved sales of 24 billion euros in 2013, through an active commitment to help individuals and organisations Make the most of their energySM.
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United KingdomStafford Park 5, TelfordShropshire TF3 3BLTel: 0870 608 8 608Fax: 0870 608 8 606www.schneider-electric.com/uk
IrelandHead office, Block aMaynooth Business CampusMaynooth, Co. KildareTel: (01) 601 2200Fax: (01) 601 2201www.schneider-electric.com/ie
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