Big mistakes you are making with your warehouse energy efficiency

As many businesses across sectors have seen their energy bills rise in recent years the topic of energy efficiency has only increased in popularity. Not just a concern for rising costs, energy efficiency is also a key concern for businesses looking to reduce their carbon footprint. Many companies have targeted themselves with net zero policies to encourage sustainable energy by 2030. 

In fact, 135,080 people searched online for business energy efficiency tips in the past month alone (data from Semrush, January 2024).  Warehouses in particular are subject to high energy usage, making the efficiency of their energy paramount to cost reduction and sustainable practices. 

There are a few common mistakes warehouses are making when it comes to energy wastage, we have put together a guide here for common mistakes to avoid. Take a look below.

1. Not insulating your buildings

Insulating your building as much as possible is a great way to preserve heat and save on bills. Not only does it provide a cost-effective way to manage your energy usage but it can prolong the lifespan of your warehouse building as a result.

For doors or opening, you should make sure these areas are as airtight as can be. You can add seals or weather strips to improve the insulation of your doors as a first step for preserving energy. For doors or windows themselves, look for products with high energy efficiency ratings, it may be worth investing in higher rated items initially to save on energy bills in the long run.

1. Neglecting to clean vents or air filters

Adding a filtration system to your warehouse ventilation can improve indoor air quality (IAQ). IAQ refers to any type of indoor pollutant, which may include dust or exhaust fumes from equipment or machinery. Ensuring you have a process for providing clean airflow in your warehouse is not only good for staff but it also helps with temperature regulation of your building. Air vents should be regularly checked and maintained, as well as cleaned, for efficiency. In warmer weather this can be especially effective at reducing heat and providing a comfortable environment for staff.

1. Not switching to LEDs

The lighting you choose for your warehouse operations can make a huge difference to your bills and efficiency. Reports state, on average, incandescent lighting costs five times the cost of LEDs, LEDs use 90% less energy and last up to 25 times longer - giving you far more usage for your expenses. 

As incandescent bulbs have been phased out mostly over recent years, there has been a switch to fluorescent lighting for many businesses, which still has its challenges. One source (Wondermakers.com) claims ‘the mercury in a fluorescent bulb can be released as both dust and vapor if the light is broken. This heavy metal is dangerous to people and animals and easily migrates through the environment in the air, water, and soil.’

Making the switch to more efficient lighting can have lasting effects on employee wellbeing and long term costs. You should consult your lighting provider to find out how efficient your lighting is and what your options are.

1. Leaving doors and windows open unnecessarily

Leaving doors and windows open is one of the largest sources of heat loss for buildings, meaning you will need to use more energy to replace this heat in your building as a result. Where possible you should close openings, doors and windows. 

There are measures you can take if you need to leave these open for extended periods, such as air curtains which can provide some protection from cold air and winds. Automatic doors or second internal doors can also retain a lot of heat, as they keep air contained whilst allowing access in and out of your warehouse.

1. Failing to efficiently floorplan your stock

The logistics of how your warehouse is set up has a huge impact on the subsequent energy usage required. By optimising the way your stock is organised and the locations of different types of stock, you can boost your operational efficiency through reducing travel between different goods, making it easier for goods to be retrieved and moved by machinery. You may also have products which need to be stored at different temperatures and it makes sense to group these together to efficiently manage energy for providing heating or cooling for these sections.

Having a good grasp of your stock and goods in and out of the business is key to starting a process for this. You can create a floorplan of your warehouse, mapping inventory into different zones to create a simple workflow for moving and managing stock. This can mean less energy from machinery and space being saved in your warehouse as goods are stored more efficiently.

1. Leaving appliances on when not in use

This tip is simple but one which is commonly overlooked in day to day operations. You can reduce energy usage immediately by communicating and training staff on good practices when using machinery. Leaving machines idle will still be consuming power, even if not being actively used, so you must ensured these are switched off safely and only used in the recommended ways set out by the manufacturer.

If this is an issue within your business where employees frequently forget or have bad practices with energy wastage, you need to look at management process which could influence positive behavioural change to get your staff into better habits.

1. Not employing a recycling process

A lot of waste is created within a warehouse environment so it is important to review and implement a good process for recycling as any responsible business owner. The first way in which this can be achieved is through proper disposal of any excess packaging, be sure to separate papers and plastics and have these properly recycled. 

The storage boxes your goods come in could potentially be improved too, are you using boxes which are too large and creating more waste as a result? Speak to your suppliers about what they are also doing to reduce waste and see if they have plans to be more efficient with their packaging of goods.

Around your warehouse place adequate bins for staff recycling, ensure they do not have to struggle to find disposal areas for waste. In the UK, bin recycling at home has become common practice so most of us are well versed in the correct signage but it may be worth refreshing employees on what bins are for what materials to ensure you have done due diligence in educating them on proper recycling.

1. Using inefficient tools or machinery

Outdated or inefficient equipment may be costing you more than you know. Tools which haven’t been updated in several years will not be measured at today’s standards and generally use much more energy than more modern equivalents. Older tools or equipment may also tend to break more, have a shorter shelf life and require more maintenance over time to keep working.

Conducting a review of tools and machinery that is used in your business could be a good place to start. List the items frequently used by staff and look at energy efficiency ratings, whilst comparing the costs and sustainable impact of updating your tools over time. Investing in new equipment now will save you longer term as updated technology will provide more efficient usage and reduce energy consumption overall.

To keep your warehouse efficiently run, get in touch to discuss how our trolleys could improve your warehouse operations.