Monitoring of electrical energy - Why and how do Swedish industries do it? In search of energy conservation, efficiency and better performance in manufacturing industries

Abstract: Improvement of energy efficiency is seen to have an unexplored potential in relation to industrial energy users. Swedish manufacturing industries and their perception of electrical energy usage at production facilities are at the centre of this thesis. Reasons and approaches towards the monitoring of electrical energy at the operational level are discussed from a number of angles. The research effort to identify the appropriate placement of energy monitoring within an industrial organisation is assisted by an overview of legal, political, market, and management factors and multiple case studies. Based on the research conducted, cost reduction, detalisation and environmental concern are shown to have the strongest influence on the initiation of sub-metering in an industrial context. However, these drivers alone are not sufficient for the continuous exploration of energy saving potential by industries. Additional supportive forces capable of improving industrial energy efficiency are recognised. It is concluded that full integration of energy monitoring within an organisation and its business and production management is indispensable in the energy efficiency quest.