25+ Warehouse Energy Consumption Statistics You Need To Know
Here are some of the most important warehouse energy consumption statistics that you need to know and understand
When you manage or run a business, it is important for you to understand the energy your warehouse operations consume and how you can lower this. If your warehouse energy consumption is lowered, not only do you cut down your expenses significantly, but your business operations also become more eco-friendly and ethical.
It is no secret that energy is one of the leading costs for every business operating a warehouse. There are various aspects of your warehouse that take up energy and can increase your overall costs. To improve your warehouse cost efficiency, lowering your energy consumption can play a crucial role.
Before you can take the relevant steps that can help you bring down your warehouse energy consumption, it is important to understand how the energy is consumed and which processes take up the most energy. Understanding this can help you make more well-informed decisions for your business in the future.
Let’s dive right in and learn more about some of the most important warehouse energy statistics!
Global Warehouse Energy Consumption Statistics
The energy consumption of buildings is a key subject for the profitability of companies and weighs nearly 50% of their overall expenses
There is no question about it, running a storage facility or warehouse takes up a lot of energy. This high amount of energy consumption can be the leading cost or expense for many businesses. For you to lower your expenses, you need to start by lowering your energy consumption. Not only will this help you save money and reduce overhead expenses, but it is also a step towards sustainability and eco-friendly operations. In today’s day and age, energy consumption is a massive challenge and you need to have measures in place that will help you lower your warehouse energy consumption.
Warehousing costs can account for almost 10% of a company’s revenue in the United States
If more 10% or more than 10% of your revenue is going towards warehousing costs, it can become challenging for your business. Many companies in the U.S. have to deal with high costs for warehouses and storage facilities. The main reason why warehouse costs are so high and take up this much revenue for a business is because of the warehouse energy consumption. The energy you use in a warehouse, whether it is a refrigerated one or a non-refrigerated warehouse, can drain your revenue and hinder your profitability.
An average non-refrigerated warehouse consumes approximately 6.1 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electrical energy per square foot each year
One single non-refrigerated warehouse can take up around 6.1 kilowatt-hours of energy. This is a massive problem for businesses and warehouses. It shows how high the energy consumption for an average warehouse is and storage facilities need to come up with ways to lower the warehouse energy consumption. Not only is it costly and expensive, but it is also harmful for the environment.
An average non-refrigerated warehouse consumes approximately 13,400 Btu of natural gas per square foot each year
An average non-refrigerated warehouse has high electrical energy consumption as well as high natural gas consumption. This high amount of natural gas consumption is expensive and can take up most of the revenue for any business. It is also harmful for the environment and warehouses need more sustainable energy alternatives to combat the high natural gas consumption rates for their business.
Heating and lighting account for 76% of the total warehouse energy consumption
Heating and lighting are the main sources of warehouse energy consumption. Of course, every warehouse needs proper lighting and heating. However, businesses and warehouses can come up with alternatives that take up less energy. Not only will this help your business become more sustainable, but it can also help with lowering costs and overheads.
Computers take up 6% of the electrical energy used in a non-refrigerated warehouse
Computers and technology are essential elements of every warehouse now. You cannot make your operations efficient and streamlined without proper software and technology to help you out. Computers also take up a little amount of electrical energy that is used in a warehouse. It is important to have as much technological support as possible for your business to make sure you can run everything effectively, which is why you need to let computers run at full capacity and use them to manage all your operations better. When it comes to lowering the energy consumption, you can focus on other aspects, such as heating and lighting, that take up a lot more energy than computers.
Ventilation takes up 5% of the electrical energy used in a non-refrigerated warehouse
Just like computers, ventilation is another aspect of your warehouse that takes up a little amount of electrical energy. Ventilation is also important for your warehouse as it helps maintain the appropriate environment for all the goods and helps make sure that nothing is affected badly while it is being stored. It can be more important to focus on reducing energy consumption by other aspects of your warehouse compared to ventilation, as it already does not take up a large amount of energy.
Cooling takes up 14% of the electrical energy used in a non-refrigerated warehouse
Cooling, just like heating, also takes up a lot of electrical energy. Finding alternatives to electrical energy for your cooling operations can be beneficial for your warehouse’s energy consumption rate. However, you have to keep in mind that you cannot save energy by turning off the cooling inside your warehouse as the condition of the items in your storage depends on the temperature and they can end up getting damaged.
Refrigeration takes up 6% of the electrical energy used in a non-refrigerated warehouse
Even if the warehouse is non-refrigerated, there is still a small section that must be refrigerated for some special goods. This also takes up a little amount of the total electrical energy consumed by a warehouse. For a non-refrigerated warehouse, you don’t need to focus on lowering the energy used by refrigeration as it is already at the lowest possible percentage.
87% of the natural gas used in a warehouse is for heating purposes
Along with electrical energy, natural gas is also a source of energy that is used by warehouses. In an average warehouse, more than 85% of the natural gas is used for heating purposes. Finding alternatives for heating for your warehouse can be beneficial for you in a lot of ways and can help you bring down the expenses of energy consumption.
The electrical energy consumption is even higher than 6.1 kilowatt-hours (kWh) for warehouses that are refrigerated
Compared to a non-refrigerated warehouse, a refrigerated warehouse takes up even more electrical energy. This can be even more challenging because this means the expenses for electrical energy consumption and the footprint left by a refrigerated warehouse is also a lot more.
When it comes to refrigerated warehouses, refrigeration accounts for 60 percent of the electricity used
Unlike non-refrigerated warehouses, where lighting and heating take up most of the electrical energy, most of the electrical energy is taken up by refrigeration in a refrigerated warehouse. If you want to make sure you can keep your warehouse energy consumption rates low and manage your expenses better, you need to find more sustainable and affordable alternatives. This can help you make your operations more environment-friendly and bring your overhead expenses down.
Overall, the energy costs account for roughly 15 percent of warehouse overhead expenses
When you run a warehouse, you have to deal with a lot of overhead expenses. It can be challenging to lower your expenses. Energy consumption costs are also a significant portion of the total overhead expenses for your warehouse and lowering your energy consumption can help you bring your expenses down and save money and resources.
Controlling Your Warehouse Energy Consumption
According to reports, properly run energy management programs targeting energy efficiency can save 5% to 20% on energy bills without a significant capital investment
If you want to save money and reduce your energy consumption costs, you need to start running effective energy management programs. These programs can help you reduce your costs and also lower your warehouse’s energy consumption rates, helping your business become more sustainable.
Vertical warehousing helps some companies beat the high cost of land, cut transportation costs, and reduce the warehouse’s environmental impact
A lot of warehouses are spread across a large area of land. This can be less cost-efficient than warehouses that are built vertically. Vertically built warehouses take up less land, so they pay less money for the land, they also have lower transportation costs, and the negative impact on the environment is also less for the vertically built warehouses.
By reducing the amount of space required for storage and retrieval operations, organizations can construct smaller, more energy efficient buildings, shrinking the construction footprint by up to 15% in some cases
If you are looking to build your own warehouse, it can be more cost-effective and environment-friendly to build it vertically. You can take up less space on the land and reduce your footprint by as much as 15%.
Many companies across the U.S. have installed solar panels on their warehouses to generate natural energy directly from the sun in the daytime
Using solar panels for your energy generation is also an excellent way of controlling your warehouse energy consumption. Solar panels generate natural energy and are a renewable source, unlike electrical energy or natural gas. It can also be more cost-effective for your warehouse in the long run.
LED lights use a lot less energy and also last up to eight times longer compared to tungsten GLS lamps
Lighting is one of the aspects of your warehouse that takes up the most amount of electrical energy. The tungsten GLS lamps that are used most often in warehouses are less energy-efficient and can also lead to higher energy bills. Replacing them with LED lights is a much more effective and sustainable solution.
Upgrading to an LED lighting system across 1.2 million square foot of warehouse space is projected to save more than 2 million kWh annually with the added benefit of eliminating the emission of 2.7 million pounds of greenhouse gasses each year
As a lot of warehouses all over the world have already proved, upgrading your lighting system to an LED lighting system can help you save a lot of electrical energy and reduce your greenhouse gas emissions significantly. It helps lower your warehouse energy consumption rates, which also reduces your expenses.
Networked lighting controls can save 70% to 80% of energy consumed in warehouses
One other method of reducing the lighting energy consumption for your warehousing is by using a networked control system. Creating a network to control your lighting can save 70-80% of energy used up by your warehouse.
Along with indoor lighting, upgrading outdoor lighting to LEDs can result in more than 30% savings for your energy consumption expenses
Not only is it important to switch to LED lighting for your indoor operations, but switching to LED lighting for your outdoor needs can also help you save more than 30% of your warehouse’s energy consumption expenses and lower your overhead costs.
One of the key energy efficient improvements in the food supply chain is automated equipment
When it comes to food and beverage warehousing, using automated equipment and advanced technology has also helped warehouses lower their energy consumption and make their operations more efficient.
Compared to lead-acid batteries, hydrogen fuel cells produce zero harmful emissions, with only water and heat as by products
Using lead-acid batteries for your forklifts and other tools can be another waste of energy and leave a higher footprint for your warehouse. Instead, it is better to use hydrogen fuel cells as they produce 0 harmful emissions and the only byproducts are heat and water.
When it comes to refrigeration, controllers that initiate defrost cycles based on actual ice buildup are more effective than those that run on timers
If your warehouse is a refrigerated facility, you should keep in mind that your defrost cycles depending on ice buildup can be a lot better than setting a timer. This can make the defrost cycle more effective and actually combat ice buildup in your refrigeration systems.
Waste heat from condenser coils can be recovered and used for domestic water heating
To make your warehouse energy consumption more environmentally-friendly, you can use tactics such as using the waste heat from condenser coil for water heating. This can also lower the natural gas used for heating and help your warehouse become more eco-friendly and also cost-effective.
HVLS fans save energy by improving air flow, which allows you to raise the temperature in your facility by as much as 4.5°F (2.5°C) while still maintaining occupant comfort
One of the most important things to do is start using HVLS fans for your warehouse. These HVLS fans help you save energy and lower your warehouse energy consumption. Not just that, but the airflow for your warehouse is also improved and you can easily lower temperatures by more than 2 degrees.
Team Up With A Leading 3PL To Control Your Warehouse Energy Consumption
If you are a business looking for ways to lower your warehouse energy consumption, you have come to the right place! One of the best steps you can take to cut down the energy consumption costs for your business is to outsource your warehousing and fulfillment processes to a leading 3PL, like Meteor Space!
When you outsource your warehousing and fulfillment processes to a 3PL, you no longer have to build or manage your own storage facility or fulfillment infrastructure. You can sit back, and relax as the 3PL company will store your inventory in their warehousing facility and fulfill orders from their own fulfillment center.
A leading 3PL, like Meteor Space, can be the best option for you as we can grow with your business and help you maintain flexibility. We help you bring down your warehouse energy consumption expenses and become more sustainable and eco-friendly. Here at Meteor Space, we make sure that all your inventory is managed effectively and your customers receive their orders on time.
With our help, you can save money, lower your expenses, and use your time and resources to invest in other aspects of your business. Meteor Space takes care of your storage, inventory management, pick and pack fulfillment, shipping and delivery, and so much more, with our own sustainable and eco-friendly practices.
You can team up with Meteor Space to lower your warehouse energy consumption rates and unlock the full potential of your business!