Energy Monitoring in Manufacturing Companies – Generating Energy Awareness through Feedback

Energy costs in manufacturing have been traditionally classified as overhead costs. Recently, manufacturers have witnessed a dramatic increase in energy costs. As a result, energy needs to be treated as a manageable, strategic resource. This can only be achieved by including energy flow information in the organizational and operational processes of a manufacturing company. This paper addresses the necessity to include energy monitoring feedback into all layers of the manufacturing management system. A fundamental set of energy-related key performance indicators combined with goal-oriented economic and technical information is proposed to foster energy awareness.