The milder temperatures of spring, before the summer cooling load kicks in and after the coldest days are gone, offer a chance to take advantage of free cooling and adjust operational schedules. After decades of working with building engineers and energy managers to cut energy costs, Gridium’s data indicates that many overlook the shoulder seasons as a chance to optimize energy use. But those who take advantage of these transitional months consistently uncover significant savings. Here’s how:
1. Maximize Free Cooling with Economization
One of the biggest wins during spring is leveraging outside air to cool your building instead of relying on mechanical cooling. If your building has an air-side economizer, now’s the time to ensure it’s functioning properly. If you have water-side economization, you can bypass the chiller and use a heat exchanger to cool the space.
Example: A building in the Los Angeles area with a 450 kW load was experiencing mild spring mornings and warmer afternoons, causing mechanical cooling to kick in unnecessarily by midday. By slightly adjusting the economization set point and increasing the intake of cool morning air, the engineer reduced afternoon cooling demand.
This simple strategy, which requires no capital, can lower demand by approximately 50 kW per 15 minute interval over a few hours. Over the course of a month, this adjustment resulted in energy savings worth between $4,000 and $5,000 (depending on local utility rates).
Leveraging tools that tie interval meter data to local weather feeds and utility rates can help pinpoint these lucrative economization opportunities and verify ongoing performance.
2. Adjust Start-Up and Shutdown Schedules
Milder conditions mean you can delay start times without sacrificing occupant comfort.
- If your building has an optimized startup feature, verify that it’s adjusting based on actual conditions rather than a fixed schedule that doesn’t account for seasonal temperature changes.
- If your system runs on a hard start (e.g., everything turns on at 4 a.m.), consider manually adjusting this based on seasonal needs.
Example: A building engineer for a major property management company in Dallas noticed that their HVAC system was starting up too early, hitting peak demand in the morning when outdoor temperatures were still in the 40s and 50s. Because the building had low internal loads at that time, mechanical cooling was running unnecessarily before dropping off later in the day. By pushing startup back slightly and allowing a smaller ramp-up period, they were able to reduce demand spikes and smooth out energy consumption, ultimately leading to noticeable cost savings. Analyzing historical load profiles against weather data, especially when integrated with your building’s specific utility rate structure, helps identify the truly optimal start time to balance comfort and cost.
A heat map visualization of a building that could use a scheduling tune up.
3. Ensure Preventative Maintenance Is Done Without Creating Costly Demand Spikes
Spring is an ideal time for preventative maintenance before summer stress hits your HVAC systems. But testing equipment without considering what else is running can lead to four or five figure increases in demand charges in a matter of minutes.
- Stagger equipment tests instead of running multiple chillers or cooling towers simultaneously.
- Be mindful of when testing occurs—midday tests could inadvertently trigger peak demand charges.
- Use historical data or better yet, real-time demand visualization and alerts from an energy management platform, to schedule maintenance during true low-demand periods and avoid setting costly peaks
Example: We’ve seen a handful of instances where testing chillers during routine spring maintenance inadvertently set a new demand peak for the billing period. Maintenance tends to happen during work hours, which are also lease hours. So the building is already pulling load; running a primary chiller at full capacity can create a pretty significant demand spike. Additionally, the Gridium team has seen separate testing instances—one before cleaning and another after—create multiple peaks within the same day, further compounding the cost.
peak demand charges make up 40-60% of utility costs in most US markets.
Make the Most of the Controls You Have and Your Building Data
These strategies are easier with a robust building management system, but the core principle is universal: understand your energy patterns. Even simple adjustments to set points or schedules can yield savings. The key is having the right data visibility. Gridium’s platform provides this clarity: analyzing interval data against weather, visualizing demand trends, identifying your building’s unique balance point, and alerting you to savings opportunities tied to your specific rate structure. This makes it easier to implement optimization strategies effectively and track the resulting savings.
Want to see where your building can save? Learn if your building is eligible for a free trial of Gridium’s energy management platform:
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