The Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority’s Switch Off campaign is being lauded as a success, despite a drop-off in savings after the survey ended.
EECA’s campaign was aimed at energy users in the commercial sector, specifically computer users who don’t switch off their machines at the end of the day. In the US, computers and their associated hardware are responsible for nearly 10% of all power usage.
Four hundred and sixty companies registered for the survey, accounting for nearly 30% of all PCs in New Zealand. The survey reported an increase in switch-off rates from 43% to 87%. In dollar terms, EECA equates this to a saving of $4.6 million per year.
Following up on the results four months later, EECA discovered some “slippage”, lowering the switch-off rate to 74%.
Many PCs are left on overnight in the mistaken belief that switching them off will somehow damage them, but this is just not true, says EECA’s new Chief Executive Godfrey Bridger.
“Machine life is directly linked to running hours. Switching off PCs extends their life, especially as upgrades become the norm,” says Bridger.