Increasing energy efficiency | Use of renewable energies
The most important tips you can use to increase the energy efficiency of your events: Use renewable energy sources. Always question your exact energy consumption so that the energy savings pay off for you directly. In the office, during transport, at the location, at the event itself. Don't leave lights, air conditioning or heating on unnecessarily. With LED technology, you save electricity and therefore money.
When transporting, pay attention to efficiency and utilization. Do the vehicles have the most environmentally friendly engines? And the suppliers? Are locations, hotels, caterers, stages and exhibition stand construction, transport companies and technology providers geared towards sustainability?
Always have those responsible on site, the location, the trades and the suppliers, randomly show you the measures you have taken to save money! Their obvious interest motivates enormously.
Switching to green electricity is quick, easy and protects the environment. But the savings potential in the energy sector is also enormous. Have your power requirements analyzed in detail, e.g. by the technology service provider, and have the generators specifically sized. Studies show that generators are often operated at less than 30 percent of their capacity. This oversizing causes significant unnecessary costs and higher emissions.
This is how your actions pay into the 17 SDGs, the Sustainable Development Goals:
- SDG13:Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts - reduce your CO₂ footprint.
Goal 13: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts - SDG7: Significantly increase the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix by 2030. Switch to a green power provider - Get involved as a green power ambassador:in.
Goal 7: Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy
More tips for increasing energy efficiency at events
At events, electricity consumption is usually high due to lighting, sound systems and other equipment. This high power consumption, poor energy efficiency, can have a significant impact on the environment. This is especially the case if you or your suppliers use non-renewable energy sources such as fossil fuels to power events. By using environmentally friendly energy sources such as solar or wind power, you as an event organizer can significantly reduce your CO₂ footprint and promote sustainable practices.
Save cash - with better energy efficiency
One of the main reasons why you should use and possibly even produce green power at your events is the potential cost savings from better energy efficiency. Although the initial investment in green power generation equipment may be higher, it can mean significant cost savings for you in the long run. Solar panels, for example, can provide energy at no cost for up to 25 years, making them an extremely cost-effective option for powering events.
Win environmentally conscious customers
In addition to cost savings, using green energy in the event industry can also help you attract environmentally conscious customers. Many consumers today are looking for companies that are committed to reducing their environmental impact and promoting sustainable practices. By using green power sources, event organizers can demonstrate their commitment to sustainability and attract customers who share the same values.
To actually save money with green power at events, there are several steps you can take as event organizers. For example, you can
- invest in energy-efficient lighting and equipment,
- Use as much natural light as possible,
- switch to environmentally friendly energy sources such as solar or wind power,
- Consider the use of battery storage systems to store excess energy from environmentally friendly power sources for use during peak energy consumption periods.
Examples of the use of renewable energy in the event industry
Amsterdam Arena
Among all commercial buildings, the soccer arena in Amsterdam houses the largest energy storage system in Europe. In total, battery cells with a capacity of 2.8 MWh are installed here. This is said to correspond to the battery capacity of 148 "Nissan Leaf" brand cars.
4,200 solar modules on the roof of the arena generate the energy that is then fed into the buffer storage made from used and new electric car batteries. The Irish-American company Eaton contributed the necessary power converters.
"Thanks to this energy storage system, the stadium can efficiently use its self-generated sustainable energy while offering available storage capacity to the power grid as a buffer," expresses Henk van Raan, Director of Innovation at the Johan Cruijff Arena. Even in the event of a power outage, the arena would have enough power available. In this way, the stadium would also contribute to the stability of the Dutch power grid. The project was initiated by Nissan, Eaton and The Mobility House back in 2016. More about the Amsterdam Arena project.
Darmstadtium
The event location Darmstadtium has made public that it has saved considerable amounts of CO₂ just by using regenerative energies. Instead of the 880 tons of CO₂ it previously consumed per year, the venue now only produces 264 tons of CO₂.
DGTL Festival
The festival site also uses solar panels, whose stored energy does not always last through the night. To compensate for this, the festival uses green batteries that are pre-charged with renewable energy sources. Would you have guessed? One battery can power an entire stage - and six batteries can power the entire festival.
Lowland Festival
Mounting Systems has supplied its Sigma Carport solution for Solarfields and Lowlands' world-first 35 MWp solar carport park in Biddinghuizen, the Netherlands. The solar park will be built on the Lowlands parking lots next to the open-air festival site and covers an area of 35 hectares. A total of 90,000 solar modules will generate 35 MWp of energy. This is equivalent to the electricity consumption of 10,000 households per year or 100 festival weekends. Currently, the parking lot is used by at least four major festivals between May and October. The annual CO₂ emissions avoided amount to 18,410 tons. The project is thus an important step towards a more sustainable festival. The electricity requirements of a single festival of 300,000 kWh no longer have to be covered by generators as before, but are replaced by sustainable solar energy. The carport systems were designed to make maximum use of the space on the site. This means that the structures do not waste potential parking space, but cleverly combine car parking and energy generation. The solar carport will provide shelter for 15,000 cars and will remain permanently at the site. Source and more on Lowland Festival.
Now it's your turn - how do you increase the energy efficiency of your event?
Let me know how you have increased the energy efficiency of your event or how you plan to increase it.
- Are you planning a solar roof?
- Are you replacing old energy guzzlers with new systems?
- Do you ask your AV service provider how you can combine and use rented stage spotlights and lighting systems more efficiently?
- Is the use of "green" batteries possible for you?
Discuss with me - for example directly on my LinkedIn profile.
Do you know the free Sustainability Rider? Discover what you can already do today for sustainable events.
