Arizona's Commercial Energy Audit Gold Rush

Oct. 19, 2012 - PRLog -- In the face of rising energy costs, increasing numbers of Arizona businesses and building owners are considering a commercial energy audit. The good news about an Arizona commercial energy audit is that it typically identifies 20% to 40% energy cost saving opportunities.

The not so good news is that commercial energy auditing in Arizona  has turned into something of a gold rush. As is the case in any gold rush, you need a score card to strike it rich (in terms of energy cost savings).

To help you identify the best Arizona commercial energy auditor, Big Green Zero has put together a scorecard.

AZ Commercial Energy Audit Scorecard

To identify a good Arizona commercial energy auditor, speak with and compare several vendors on the basis of their answers to these seven questions:

1. Will the audit be conducted by an experienced engineer, or licensed contractor?

2. Will the energy audit be analyzed with specialized software designed for that  
    purpose?

3. Will the energy audit explore a range of cost-reduction solutions and compare
    the cost and financial benefits of each?

4. Will the audit explore minimal and no-cost solutions (as well as more expensive
    ones)?

5. Can the vendor provide references from previous commercial energy audit
    customers ?

6. Does the prospective energy auditor have any "axes" to grind? Do they sell  
    energy-related products?

7. Will the cost of the audit make sense?

Five Questions are Pass/Fail

If the answer to questions one through five is "yes" the prospective auditor may be a good candidate.

Questions 6 Is More Subjective

Product sales people are unlikely to be unbiased commercial energy auditors. After all, selling their product is what they need to do. As a result, energy product sales people are seldom good energy auditor candidates.

Most contractors also sell products. However many contractors seem willing to, and interested in, considering an energy efficiency big picture. A contractor who is willing to consider the big picture may be a good candidate as a commercial energy auditor.

Finally, some engineers and other professionals specialize in performing Arizona commercial energy audits. Most sell no products and are good auditor candidates.

Question 7 Is All About Price

Finally, Question 7 is all about price.

Performing a professional Arizona commercial energy, on perhaps a 50,000 square foot building may require about four to five hours. Using state-of-art software, analyzing the costs and benefits of alternative solutions and preparing a report may require an additional four to five hours. At a fee of about $100 per hour, a reasonable price for an Arizona commercial energy audit of this nature would be in the range of $900 to $1,000.

Strike It Rich!

To strike it rich in Arizona's commercial energy audit gold rush, ask the seven questions on the AZ Commercial Energy Audit Scorecard. For more information, visit (http://www.biggreenzero.com).