Energy Monitoring: 5 to 25 Percent Savings Through Transparency

Who Production Energy Monitoring Anyone planning this usually has a figure in mind. The International Energy Agency and Fraunhofer ISI estimate the realizable potential at 5 to 25 percent of energy consumption, depending on the industry and initial conditions. Anyone who interprets this range as a guarantee will be disappointed, because a meter alone does not save a single kilowatt-hour.

This is not a side note, but the heart of the matter. Transparency reveals where energy is being wasted. Whether this results in savings is determined only by the subsequent action taken—whether it’s repairing a leak, modifying a system’s circuitry, or investing in more efficient technology.

Energy Monitoring in Production: What Measurement Reveals

Energy monitoring tracks consumption at the point of use and separates it from the electricity bill alone. Load profile measurement reveals when specific loads are active—information that is lost in the simple monthly total. That alone provides starting points, since many load peaks result purely from simultaneous usage.

Of greater practical interest is the allocation of consumption to individual machines and, where possible, to individual orders. Only then can you determine whether a particular component consumes an above-average amount of energy because of the lot size, the machine or a poorly adjusted process. Methodologically, this allocation resembles the allocation of machine data to availability and performance used for overall equipment effectiveness. Without it, any discussion of savings remains guesswork.

Partial load, idle, and the base load at night

The most uncomfortable finding from an initial monitoring assessment is usually the baseline load outside of production hours. Compressors that continue to run on weekends, ventilation systems on standby, machines that aren’t actually turned off overnight—they’re just not producing. This idle consumption isn’t noticeable in the annual statement alone, but it is evident in the load profile.

Partial load is the second major area of interest. Many drives operate unregulated at a fixed speed, regardless of whether full power is currently needed. This effect can be measured as soon as a system displays energy consumption over time rather than just as a total. What happens next—whether technical retrofitting or a change in shift logic—is a second decision that monitoring prepares the ground for but does not make itself.

Compressed Air: A Time-Tested Method for Saving Energy

Few topics in energy consulting are as well documented as compressed air. Compressed air applications account for about 7 percent of industrial electricity consumption in Germany; according to the dena often reduce it by up to 50 percent.

The reason is almost always the same: leaks. They remain invisible until a measurement detects them, and they cost money around the clock, even when no machines are running. A Study by Fraunhofer ISI A study of compressed air systems at several companies identified potential savings of between 21 and 66 percent, with payback periods ranging from two to four years. The quickest results almost always came from leak repair, not from new compressors.

The Legal Framework: the Energy Efficiency Act and ISO 50001

The Energy Efficiency Act Since November 2023, companies with an average total final energy consumption of more than 7.5 gigawatt-hours per year have been required to implement an energy management system in accordance with DIN EN ISO 50001 or an environmental management system in accordance with EMAS. Companies that had already exceeded this threshold before the regulation took effect were required to have the system in place by July 18, 2025.

Starting at 2.5 gigawatt-hours, a second requirement applies: Companies must publish an implementation plan within three years that includes economically feasible energy-saving measures identified through energy audits or management systems. Although there is no legal obligation to actually implement these measures, in practice it is virtually impossible to avoid doing so, because without implementation, both eligibility for many programs and the very purpose of the entire exercise would be lost. Both thresholds are expected to change in 2026; a cabinet draft proposes 23.6 gigawatt-hours, though the amendment has not yet been announced.

From Transparency to Action

This is exactly where the simple calculation ends, according to which Production Energy Monitoring does not automatically mean savings. A dashboard does not reduce kilowatt-hours. It shows a deviation, a peak, or a base load that is higher than expected. Savings only occur when someone reviews this information, identifies the cause, and makes a change—whether technical or organizational. International comparative data supports this view: According to analyses by the International Energy Agency An average savings of 11 percent in the first three years after implementation, with outliers of 30 percent or more if the system is actually used to make decisions.

That is why production energy monitoring is particularly worthwhile in organizations that are willing to act on the data they collect. Those who collect data but then fail to make any changes end up with nothing but additional costs for sensors and software, without saving a single euro. Those who are already collecting machine data for other purposes—for example, because the EU Data Act: New Access Rights creates, or because NIS2: A Complete Asset Inventory If required, the same data link can be used for energy monitoring as well, rather than setting up yet another standalone solution.

Frequently Asked Questions

How quickly does energy monitoring pay for itself in production?

That depends heavily on the initial situation. Pure software solutions based on existing meters often pay for themselves within a few months, as soon as the first leak or faulty connection is fixed. If additional measurement technology is required, the payback period is extended, but in the documented compressed air examples, it usually remains in the range of two to four years. Those who tackle the most cost-effective areas first—such as compressed air and nighttime base load—generally see results more quickly than when investing in completely new plant equipment.

At what size does energy monitoring become worthwhile?

There is no fixed lower limit. Under the Energy Efficiency Act, an energy management system is only required by law for annual consumption of 7.5 gigawatt-hours or more. From an economic standpoint, simple monitoring is often worthwhile well below that threshold because the costs of measurement technology and software have fallen, while energy prices have risen. More important than the size of the facility is usually whether anyone at the facility actually has the time to review the data regularly and take appropriate action based on it.

Is energy monitoring sufficient to meet the requirements of the Energy Efficiency Act?

No, not on its own. Monitoring provides the data foundation for energy audits and for a certified energy management system under ISO 50001, but it does not replace either the certification or the required economic feasibility assessment of the identified measures. It is a prerequisite for robust implementation, not the fulfillment of the obligation itself. Anyone seeking certification also needs an auditor or environmental verifier to independently confirm the results before they are submitted to the Federal Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control.

torck builds data pathways from individual machines all the way to the dashboard, integrating both existing counters and new sensor technology into a unified analysis. Because our development teams in Maxhütte-Haidhof, Vienna, and Rabat operate in virtually the same time zone, and a single contract with the German company torck GmbH—governed by German law—covers the entire scope of services, load profile data and order allocation result in concrete analyses rather than yet another project site. The best way to discuss how energy monitoring can be specifically implemented for your production is through a direct conversation about Plant Monitoring.

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