Improve the performance of your equipment by reducing your energy consumption
Energy Efficiency Goal
Listen to Mathieu Joly and Claire Escudier, respectively Head of Energy Efficiency and Energy and Environmental Efficiency Engineer at Equans France
How long has Equans been addressing the issue of energy efficiency?
Equans has been involved in the field of energy efficiency for many years. I’ve been working on energy efficiency issues at Equans companies for 15 years.
These requests come from clients who wanted to reduce their energy bills and, subsequently, their carbon footprint. The major shift we’ve seen in recent years is a focus on carbon rather than just energy. We’re seeing more and more companies seeking to reduce their emissions with short-term goals. These requests are having a significant impact on our organization. We’ve grown from a team of 1 to 2 people 15 years ago to nearly 50 people today.
How does the team work to optimize energy consumption?
The areas where Equans will provide added value are our clients’ facilities in the fields of climate control, HVAC, and lighting.
In recent years, we have also been expanding our scope to include renewable energy, with a strong focus on solar power and hydrogen.
By taking a more holistic view of the building, our team is able to drive initiatives, improvements to the building structure, and technical systems that fall outside Equans’ scope. Now, clients are also asking to have a single point of contact who can coordinate all energy performance-related matters.
What are the key stages of the customer's energy consumption?
Reducing the customer's energy consumption
Improving the performance of essential equipment
Add renewable energy sources whenever possible, as part of a decarbonization strategy
Energy is a unifying sector that is essential both for our daily needs (transportation, heat—how do we stay warm? how do we get light? ...) and for environmental challenges.
My job is to balance our essential needs with environmental challenges. I support operational teams on issues related to the energy transition and decarbonization in the building sector. This involves everything from the initial design phase—where we assist with the implementation and selection of technical systems—through to the construction phase.
All of this is done while ensuring that the contractual performance levels—defined through commissioning and the measurement of energy consumption once the building is completed—are met.
These are the elements that shape my day-to-day work at Equans today.
How do you manage to meet such ambitious reduction targets?
It depends on the investment amount. Some customers ask us to achieve savings without any construction work. We’ll typically aim for about 10% savings through adjustments and optimization.
Then, depending on the renovation budget, if we focus solely on the energy system, we can achieve savings of up to 30 or 40 percent. By making improvements to the building structure, energy savings can reach 60, 70, or even 80 percent.
We’re taking you on an energy-filled journey, and to start things off, we’re stopping for a sweet treat at one of Equans’ clients. It’s a famous candy store that brightens the lives of young and old alike.
We helped Haribo reduce its energy consumption for heating by more than 70% by recovering heat from the refrigeration units.
We had a twofold opportunity with a client who wanted to lower their energy bill. On the other hand, we had financial incentives since we were supporting the client with energy savings certificates. These two factors combined made it possible to move forward with this project. We also formalized it under an energy performance contract, under which Equans commits for 5 years to maintaining the performance levels we announced prior to the work.
It took about two years from the project’s inception to the actual realization of savings. We had to conduct feasibility studies, develop the project, carry out the work, and commission the system. It was only after this final stage that we began to see savings.
How can organizations—whether they’re a major industrial company like Haribo, a small or medium-sized business, or a public institution—go about saving energy?
I implemented an energy performance contract for the Pays de l'Or Urban Community to ensure a certain level of energy consumption reduction over the long term. The purpose of the contract was to achieve a reduction in primary energy consumption of at least 25%. We achieved a reduction of nearly 33%. Our action plan was organized around various themes.
These could include measures focused on the proper operation of facilities where we did not need to propose an investment. We also proposed measures for various applications, such as relamping—which involves installing new, more energy-efficient lighting.
We sought to propose the installation of solar panels, particularly at the headquarters of the metropolitan community. We also wanted to implement an awareness campaign at the various sites and establish an energy monitoring system to analyze and correct their energy consumption.
In a completely different industry, let’s take the Sainte Victoire Aquatic Center in Venelles as an example—what have we done to optimize its energy efficiency?
What we’re most proud of regarding this project is having been able to support the client through every phase.
We interacted with various contacts throughout the process. Our interactions with the lifeguards and the pool director were particularly interesting because they could see the difference compared to other equipment they’ve used in the past. It’s rewarding to see that they now enjoy greater comfort and improved health and safety, especially since the air in swimming pools can sometimes be polluted.
In addition to having equipment that is highly energy-efficient, it’s very rewarding to provide pool users with this expertise, which benefits everyone.
The reductions in energy consumption that Equans has achieved for its clients are impressive. What kind of transformation has Equans implemented internally?
Equans has become its own client. We implement in-house what we offer our clients: our own internal SEO.
If we believe in our tools enough to use them in-house, it’s because they’re relevant to our clients. This allows us to test and pioneer certain solutions in our own environment before deploying them at the client’s site. This transformation has accelerated in recent months.
Equans aims to set an example, just as most of our clients do, and has set a goal of reducing energy consumption by at least 40% in our buildings by 2030. To this end, we were initially asked to implement a system to monitor the energy performance of our 600 buildings. We have conducted energy audits and developed an action plan for improvements through 2030 to meet management’s targets.
How does this story of energy and climate extend beyond the professional sphere and become part of a more personal narrative?
We are personally invested in energy efficiency issues.
I had a strong interest in these topics long before I began my professional career. Having lived in a big city, I saw firsthand how air pollution affects health. I’ve always been interested in these environmental issues with the goal of becoming an active participant in this field and doing my part to help reduce these problems of pollution and global warming for future generations.
The message I’d like to convey to everyone is to stop waiting for things to happen on their own in this regard. We must all take action.
Every action counts; every half-degree counts. Ultimately, every drop of water counts to keep our cup from overflowing. That’s what I’d say to wrap things up.
The future has many names: for the weak, it is called the impossible; for the timid, it is called the unknown; for the brave, it is called the ideal, said Victor Hugo.
