There needs to be a radical difference in the way we use energy if we are expecting a sustainable future. Operational Technology's increasing collaboration with Information Technology creates hope to bring about this transformation. Another development that will add to this change is the Internet of Things (IoT). Both these advancements have helped in inventing analytics-driven and customized energy saving solutions. With the smart technology, the demand and consumption of energy are automatically monitored and controlled. When automation and energy are backed by software and analytics, it takes operational efficiency to another level. Enterprises around the world need to be backed up with strong energy management services by forming a robust ecosystem of partners. Governments must support enterprise-wide energy operations with sustainable energy solutions. Organizations working towards building up analytical models to make efficient energy saving solutions must be encouraged. Only then will the overall carbon footprint and energy wastage reduce and the energy losses that have occurred till now could be recovered.

1. Energy saving solutions, an inevitable need
Saving our planet, lifting people out of poverty, advancing economic growth... these are one and
the same fight. We must connect the dots between climate change, water scarcity, energy
shortages, global health, food security and women's empowerment. Solutions to one problem
must be solutions for all. ---Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary General.
Saving energy is so integral to life. Although organizations were first attracted to energy savings
for the cost reduction it brought, they have now realized that creating sustainable energy
solutions is no longer optional, but inevitable.
Technology is advancing, but then tracking the usage and wastage of energy for this is getting
tougher by the day. Cutting energy waste becomes the hardest challenge for organizations across
the world, mainly because of the very little data on the amount of energy used and wasted.
You can't make energy saving work without data.
Energy saving solutions need of the hour
Not just companies, but communities in the entire world need to work as one society towards
reducing energy consumption. A recent study by top Chinese professors, on the amount of
energy consumed in homes, showed that a lot can be achieved if the society follows small and
simple energy saving solutions or measures. They monitored the various ways households use
power, to calculate energy consumption. They then made recommendations to reduce energy use
and thereby cost. Some of the recommendations were keeping windows shut in winters, install
solar panels to reduce the load on an electric heating source, keep adjusting thermostats, and
keep lights off when not required.
Besides, due to technological breakthroughs, there are a host of customized energy solutions in
the form of appliances such as the modern heat-pump systems that save energy up to 45%, the
magnetocaloric effect in refrigerators that uses magnetic field instead of electricity to make it
cold, insulated windows that automatically adjust shading according to the sunlight, cool roofs
for hotter regions, LEDs for brighter lighting, etc, that have come as effective energy saving
solutions.
Conclusion
There needs to be a radical difference in the way we use energy if we are expecting a sustainable
future. Operational Technology's increasing collaboration with Information Technology creates
hope to bring about this transformation. Another development that will add to this change is the
Internet of Things (IoT). Both these advancements have helped in inventing analytics-driven and
customized energy saving solutions. With the smart technology, the demand and consumption of
energy are automatically monitored and controlled.

2. When automation and energy are backed by software and analytics, it takes operational
efficiency to another level. Enterprises around the world need to be backed up with strong energy
management services by forming a robust ecosystem of partners. Governments must support
enterprise-wide energy operations with sustainable energy solutions. Organizations working
towards building up analytical models to make efficient energy saving solutions must be
encouraged. Only then will the overall carbon footprint and energy wastage reduce and the
energy losses that have occurred till now could be recovered.
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Sources:
URL:
https://wiproecoenergy.com/
http://science.time.com/2013/03/26/smart-power-why-more-bytes-will-mean-fewer-and-cleaner-
electrons/
http://blog.schneider-electric.com/smart-cities/2016/04/06/innovation-every-level/
http://phys.org/news/2013-03-optimize-energy-consumption.html
http://phys.org/news/2013-03-optimize-energy-consumption.html