Energy Management Systems (EnMS)

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) defines an Energy Management System (EnMS) as a system “whose purpose is to enable an organization to follow a systematic approach in achieving continual improvement of energy performance, including energy efficiency, energy use and consumption.” Energy Management Systems are a set of business processes that enable facility managers to act on energy usage data and optimize efficiency while identifying areas for improvement.

No matter how large or small your organization, implementing a structured energy management system can be a key step to:

• Cutting operational costs
• Achieving continual operational improvement
• Improving risk management
• Staying competitive in the marketplace 

Energy Management Systems include energy assessments and the development of action plans that detail sustainability and energy performance improvement efforts to be implemented in buildings. Consider the following resources when implementing these action plans to improve building performance:

• The Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) provides minimum energy efficiency requirements for product categories, as well as approved products that can help your facility meets its energy goals.
• Check out the Green Procurement Compilation for details on green purchasing facility-wide to help meet goals.
• Submetering is a great way to monitor energy usage by building system and identify significant energy uses.
• The US DOE has developed the 50001 Ready program, a self-guided approach for facilities to establish an energy management system and self-attest to the structure of ISO 50001, the global standard for energy management systems (EnMS), in industrial, commercial, and institutional facilities.

  Learn more about the U.S. DOE 50001 Ready Program

  The 50001 Ready program is not a certification program, and does not require any third-party audits or verification. Instead, the program offers a no-cost way to receive recognition for establishing a business practice around energy.

  Managing energy use in any facility is a team effort, and the 50001 Ready Navigator is an online guide to assist you in putting an energy management system in place. Developed by DOE and with support of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, the Navigator aligns with the structure and requirements of ISO 50001, to ensure that you are instituting and maintaining your EnMS to the best practices of the global standard.

  Guide: Getting Started with the 50001 Ready Navigator

  The Navigator is freely available for public use; you do not need to set up an account or pursue a 50001 Ready designation to have full access to guidance and resources within the Navigator. Set up an account to use Navigator to track your progress and invite team members to collaborate on your projects.

  DOE has broken down the structure of ISO 50001 into 25 tasks with supporting guidance that your team will need to complete in order to implement a 50001 Ready system. The 25 tasks are grouped into four sections within the Navigator:

  1. Planning (tasks 1-5)
  2. Energy Review (tasks 6-13)
  3. Continual Improvement (tasks 14-18)
  4. System Management (tasks 19-25)

  DOE’s voluntary 50001 Ready effort aligns with existing corporate business management systems and operating practices, and enables companies to increase their energy productivity while also improving health, safety and comfort, reducing emissions, and creating processes for energy management that endure staff turnover.

  In the Navigator, you and your team members will note the status of each task – either Not Started (the default setting), In Progress, Ready for Review, or Complete. Once all 25 tasks have been completed and designated as such, your team can upload your 1) self-attestation file and 2) energy performance report, and request DOE recognition directly through the Navigator.

  To work through the 50001 Ready Navigator tasks offline, check out the 50001 Ready Navigator Playbook, a companion resource that offers a repository to organize, save, and track completed documents on a local drive or network.

Related Topics

Energy Management Systems (EnMS)

Energy Management Systems are a set of business processes that enable facility managers to act on energy usage data and optimize efficiency while identifying areas for improvement. No matter how large or small your organization, implementing a structured energy management system can be a key step to:

• Cutting operational costs
• Achieving continual operational improvement
• Improving risk management
• Staying competitive in the marketplace 

For more, see Energy Management Systems and DOE's 50001 Ready Program.

Energy Performance

Assessing a building’s energy performance involves comparing its energy use to that of peers or a standard. The ENERGY STAR program provides recognized benchmarks for assessing a building’s energy performance.

Sustainability

Sustainability and sustainable mean to create and maintain conditions, under which humans and nature can exist inproductive harmony, that permit fulfilling the social, economic,and other requirements of present and future generations.

Sustainability Program Development

Sustainability Programs incorporate all building stakeholders into the green design process, promoting awareness, goal development, implementation, acceptance, and effectiveness of facility sustainability efforts.