Ingenieur Vol 71 ingenieur July 2017 | Page 10

INGENIEUR OPTIMISING ENERGY COST IN GOVERNMENT COMPLEXES By Ir. Waki’ Bin Mohamad Building Facility Maintenance Branch Public Works Department Buildings consume a very high percentage of energy compared with other economic sectors. Although the percentages vary among countries, buildings are responsible for between 30% and 45 % of global energy demand. The high rate of energy consumption and carbon dioxide emission in building environments have made energy efficiency and cost-saving strategies a priority objective for energy policies for most countries. E fficient use of electricity in Government buildings is one of the Malaysian Government’s efforts to manage the country’s energy resources efficiently and effectively. This is important because our country has seen rising energy consumption in line with its rate of economic development. The world is facing challenges due to decreasing fossil energy sources such as oil, gas and coal, while prices are rising. Therefore, the Government must lead the effort to use energy efficiently. The typical portion of energy in Malaysian office buildings is 50% for air-conditioning, 25% for electrical lighting and 25% for small power consumption i.e. electrical equipment. In addition, air-conditioning energy consumption is not only due to solar heat in the building, but also due to heat emission from electrical lighting, electrical 8 6 VOL - SEPTEMBER 2017 VOL 71 55 JULY JUNE 2013