Can any business economically implement energy efficient changes to their space? Does size matter? For example, small stores and restaurants not located within a larger shopping complex, can they save money from the whole process of getting an energy audit? Are there certain indicators a business should look for to see if they are a good candidate for energy savings?

All companies have potential for energy savings, although larger size buildings often can achieve lower paybacks in areas like HVAC efficiency as those systems become more centralized based on the size of the building.

Many stand alone banks, chain stores, resturants can often benefit from energy audits.

The first step is still to benchmark your consumption of kilowatt hours and therms. If those units of energy do not vary much during a year that might be a good sign there is a lot of energy waste and an audit maybe beneficial. Do you experience irregular comfort conditions? that might be a sign of HVAC issues wasting energy that could be affecting energy usage.

If the facility is under 5,000 square feet you might want to call your utility company and see if they might have a representative survey your building to identify possible energy efficiency items.

If the building is larger or has usage that seems high and does not varry much during the year you might be better serviced with an company specializing in energy management services.