Member Article

Top ranking in national energy table

Carbon-conscious staff at the Ricoh Arena have secured a top ranking in a national energy performance league table.

The award-winning venue is 16th out of over 2,000 businesses across the UK in the Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC) Energy Efficiency Scheme which is published by the Environment Agency.

The Ricoh Arena has achieved the placing for set metrics maintaining its green initiatives and continuing to educate staff.

Alan Pickering, energy manager at the Ricoh Arena, said the CRC league table was set-up to help UK businesses achieve their carbon reduction targets.

“Energy efficiency remains a high priority at the Ricoh Arena and we are pleased to have finished in 16th place,” he said.

“Over the last three years, we have been reducing energy and our carbon levels are currently stable.

“We have achieved our targets by managing the building. Since the venue is used by so many different visiting event organisers and every day of the week, it is important that we manage our energy systems correctly.

“It is straight-forward items such as installing passive infra-red lights which switch on and off depending if visitors are walking in corridors to switching off equipment which is not in use.

“A vital part of our green agenda is reminding people to switch off computers and lights instead of leaving them on stand-by when they are not at their desks.

“Reducing carbon footprint is often achieved not by introducing technology but by making sure people who are inside the building have the knowledge and drive to cut down on energy waste because their actions make the difference.”

The Ricoh Arena finished with a score of 1826.1 which includes 5,424 tonnes of CO2 emissions in the league table in which the BAM Group, Motorola and Skanska occupied the top three spots.

Alan said this was the second and final year the performance league tables had been published by the government and in future organisations will no longer be officially ranked as the CRC looks to make the system simpler.

He added: “Even though there will no longer be an official CRC table, it won’t stop businesses such as the Ricoh Arena taking their carbon footprint very seriously.

“It is important to keep control of the management of the building to ensure it is running as efficiently as possible from an energy consumption point of view and this is a key priority for the energy management team at the Ricoh Arena.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ricoh Arena .