Energy consumption in non-domestic buildings based on empirical data

Abstract

The electricity demand data for a variety of buildings throughout the UK has been made available for analysis. This consists of half hourly resolution data spanning several years for 48 schools (with a mixture of secondary, primary and specialised secondary) and two office buildings, allowing key trends and patterns in energy use to be identified. These trends can include differences between annual profiles, differences between winter and summer months, and differences in weekday and weekend energy use. Additionally, the effect of other variables such as climate, user behaviour and general building data on the building’s energy consumption can be investigated. A database of half hourly school energy demand data, with corresponding building details has been set up and a preliminary analysis preformed. Alternative methods of pattern recognition in non-domestic energy usage are discussed, and the variables necessary to calibrate this information are evaluated. This allowed the possibility of creating ‘generic’ electricity demand profiles for each category of school in each season, leading to a more detailed energy performance benchmark table. Understanding the energy demand, both electricity and gas use, of a building can help the issue of determining how and when energy is used in a day, week, month or year. Only after this knowledge has been gained can energy saving measures be successfully applied and, in turn, can the energy consumption of the non-domestic sector be reduced.