From restaurants to room service, bars to banquet halls, and catering to continental breakfasts, hotels offer a broad range of food service options. Since commercial kitchens and restaurants consume roughly 2.5 times more energy per square foot than other commercial building space types, any hotelier seeking to reduce energy consumption and costs cannot ignore food service operations when designing an energy management strategy.
ENERGY STAR estimates that the total savings potential in a commercial kitchen ranges from 10 percent to 30 percent, based on the technologies installed and the overall energy management strategies put in place. By making energy-efficient choices when it is time to upgrade or replace commercial kitchen equipment, and by ensuring that these technology choices are supported by smart operations and maintenance practices, hoteliers can improve energy efficiency, reduce costly utility bills, and make significant contributions to a cleaner environment—all while maintaining and even improving the service, quality and style that guests demand.
Across more than 60 product categories, ENERGY STAR qualified products meet strict specifications for efficiency and performance to ensure that they use less energy, save money, and help protect the environment. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently introduced a number of updates to its ENERGY STAR specifications for commercial food service products.
New Refrigerator, Freezer Guidelines
The first group of specifications, announced in April, updates the requirements for commercial refrigerators and freezers seeking to qualify for the ENERGY STAR. Under the revised specification, ENERGY STAR labeled commercial refrigerators and freezers will be more than 30 percent more efficient than standard models. Furthermore, by choosing ENERGY STAR qualified commercial refrigerators and freezers, purchasers can expect to save an average of $170 annually per refrigerator and $120 per freezer. The updated specification will go into effect for all commercial refrigerators and freezers on January 1, 2010; however, models with glass or mixed glass/solid doors are eligible to qualify under the revised specification as of April 1, 2009.
In May 2009, EPA also announced two new ENERGY STAR specifications for commercial griddles and ovens. The addition of these two new specifications expands the list of ENERGY STAR commercial kitchen equipment available to users, and provides even more opportunities for energy savings. On average, griddles that qualify for the ENERGY STAR are expected to be about 10 percent more energy-efficient than standard models, and can help users save from $175 per year (for gas models) to $190 per year (for electric models). Qualifying commercial ovens are expected to be about 20 percent more energy-efficient than standard models, and can deliver savings of $190 (for electric models) to $360 per year (for gas models).
Hotel owners and operators interested in ENERGY STAR qualified products for commercial food service should begin by conducting an inventory of their current equipment. Some pieces of equipment may be closer to scheduled end of life, or may be especially inefficient, making them good choices for replacement or upgrade. Especially when budgets are limited, and not all projects can be implemented at once, this process of prioritization is crucial to ensure you are making the best use of your time, effort, and money.
To help in the decision-making process, the ENERGY STAR Commercial Food Service web site features the most up-to-date list of qualified product models, as well as other resources including savings calculators and sample purchasing and procurement guidelines. In addition, ENERGY STAR maintains a searchable database of current product rebates from utility companies and other energy-efficiency program sponsors through the Commercial Food Service Equipment Incentive Finder.
Proper Maintenance Also Important
It is important to note that the purchase and installation of ENERGY STAR qualified products is only one component of successful kitchen energy management. Other significant factors include regular equipment maintenance, optimization of operating schedules, and a focus on proper kitchen ventilation—all of which must be considered as part of an overarching strategy. To help, ENERGY STAR offers a commercial food service guide to provide strategic guidance and best practices that can help maximize energy efficiency in food service operations.
As an additional strategic resource, ENERGY STAR is also working closely with the National Restaurant Association (NRA) as NRA implements its “Conserve” initiative to help restaurants and other food service locations achieve financial and environmental benefits through reductions in energy consumption, water consumption, and waste generation. Hoteliers interested in improving the energy efficiency of their restaurant and/or food service operations are encouraged to review the “Conserve” resources and to take the Conserve/EPA ENERGY STAR Challenge.
For more information about ENERGY STAR resources for hotels, visit www.energystar.gov/hospitality. For specific information on ENERGY STAR qualified products for commercial food service, see www.energystar.gov/cfs. And for more information on the NRA “Conserve” initiative, visit http://conserve.restaurant.org/.
Anna Stark is the national program manager for commercial property markets, ENERGY STAR, United States Environmental Protection Agency. Una Song is the national program manager for the commercial food service program, ENERGY STAR, United States Environmental Protection Agency.
