Managing demand and loads is a key aspect of energy management, as it can help you optimize your energy consumption, reduce your costs, and improve your reliability and sustainability. In this article, we will explore some of the principles and strategies that can help you manage demand and loads effectively.
Demand and load are two related terms that describe how much energy you need and use at any given time. Demand is the amount of power that you require from the grid or your own generation sources, while load is the amount of power that you actually consume. Demand and load can vary depending on factors such as time of day, weather, season, occupancy, equipment, and activities.
I believe you are confusing power and energy as well as connected load and demand load. With all respect your definition of demand and load is not correct.
Demand and load management can have significant benefits for your energy performance and your bottom line. You can reduce your peak demand, which may affect your electricity bill, as well as shift and shed your load. Shifting your load means moving some of your energy consumption from periods of high demand to periods of low demand, while shedding your load involves reducing energy consumption during periods of high demand or grid stress. This can help you take advantage of lower electricity prices, avoid peak charges, save money, prevent blackouts, and participate in demand response programs that offer incentives for lowering your demand.
Load shedding and demand response is about reducing power demand from the grid and not energy reduction. Even though reducing power will lead to energy reduction, however the main purpose remains to reduce power demand in on-peak periods.
The most successful utilities I have worked with offer demand response programs that provide financial incentives for businesses and individuals to reduce their energy usage during periods of high demand. This not only benefits the customers financially but also helps stabilize the grid. The key word here is "financial incentives", frugal customers love saving money with these type of programs and I have found very little advertising dollars need to be invested.
To effectively manage your demand and load, you need to measure them first. You can use meters and submeters to record your electricity consumption and generation at different points of your facility or system. Sensors and controllers can measure and adjust the temperature, humidity, lighting, and other parameters that affect your energy use. Software and dashboards are also useful for collecting and displaying energy data, identifying patterns and trends, and providing insights and recommendations.
Once you have measured your demand and load, you can control them by implementing various measures and actions, such as scheduling and sequencing to minimize peak demand and optimize your load profile, adjusting and optimizing equipment and appliances to operate at their optimal efficiency and performance levels, replacing old and inefficient equipment with newer models that consume less energy, and automating and integrating smart devices and systems to adjust your demand and load according to your preferences. All these measures can help you reduce energy consumption.
Building automation systems, if properly configured and maintained, can help control demand and load in different ways. Time based scheduling can be used to reduce non critical loads during periods of high demand. Energy efficiency techniques can be programmed in building automation systems like occupancy based control, using occupancy sensors data system can adjust lighting, heating and cooling in real time based on actual occupancy. Reporting features in building automation systems can be used for energy monitoring providing visibility into energy usage patterns an help identify inefficiencies, anomalies, and opportunities for load optimization.
To evaluate your demand and load management, you need to track and compare your results and performance indicators, such as energy consumption, intensity, cost, savings, reliability and sustainability. Energy consumption is usually measured in kilowatt-hours (kWh), while energy intensity is the ratio of energy consumption to output or activity and is usually measured in kWh per unit of production or service. Energy cost is the amount of money paid for energy consumption and is usually measured in dollars per kWh or per month or year. Energy savings is the amount of energy avoided or reduced with demand and load management measures and is usually measured in kWh or percentage. Energy reliability is the degree to which you can maintain energy supply and quality without interruptions or fluctuations, usually measured in frequency and duration of outages or power quality issues. Finally, energy sustainability is the degree to which you can reduce environmental impact and carbon footprint with renewable or low-carbon energy sources, usually measured in greenhouse gas emissions or renewable energy certificates.
First thing to do is replace all light sources with led, not only less wattage but last longer. My house has been led for 13 yrs and only 2 bulbs replaced.