Geopolitical instability and the oil crisis have accentuated the need for energy security and the role of renewable and low carbon energy. Yet according to the BSI, costs, capability gaps and a fragmented regulatory landscape are barriers. What can the built environment do to accelerate the adoption of energy management solutions to lower costs and meet sustainable goals?
ESG & NET ZERO SPECIALIST’S VIEW
ALAN STENSON,
CEO, NCZ
Energy management in the built environment has now become central to cost control, resilience and credible sustainability.
The combination of geopolitical instability, volatile energy markets and growing pressure to decarbonise has made one thing very clear. Inefficient buildings are now a commercial risk. They cost more to operate, are harder to future-proof and leave organisations exposed at a time when both clients and regulators expect better.
That’s why this conversation matters so much. Not because energy management is some sort of new idea, but because the cost of not getting it right is now far greater.
The challenge is that most organisations are not short of ambition. What they’re short of is clarity. They know energy performance matters, but many still lack a clear understanding of where energy is being consumed, where it’s being wasted and which actions will have the biggest impact. Without that visibility, decision making becomes reactive and fragmented.
So, the first priority has to be measurement. If organisations want to reduce energy costs and make genuine progress towards sustainability goals, they need a more accurate picture of building performance. That means establishing credible baselines, improving monitoring and using data in a way that supports practical decisions. Smart metering, BMS, controls optimisation and performance analytics can all help, but only when they’re used to drive action. Technology on its own isn’t a solution. What matters is how effectively it’s applied.
The second issue is ownership. Energy performance often sits across estates, FM, procurement, finance and sustainability teams, with no single point of accountability. That slows progress. When responsibility is diluted, energy management gets pushed down the priority list or treated as a standalone technical issue rather than a business-critical one.
This is where the built environment needs to shift its mindset. Energy management isn’t just an engineering issue. It’s operational, financial and strategic. It should be embedded into how buildings are run, maintained, procured and improved.
FM teams have a particularly important role to play here. They are close enough to day-to-day operations to see where waste occurs, where systems underperform and where small interventions can unlock meaningful savings. But they need the right data, authority and support to act on that insight.
Capability is another barrier that can’t be ignored. There’s still a gap between knowing energy performance needs to improve and having the in-house confidence to assess options, prioritise investment and manage change effectively. That capability needs to be built across the sector, not left to a handful of specialists.
Ultimately, the built environment doesn’t need to wait for a perfect regulatory landscape before moving forward. There are practical steps organisations can take now, reviewing controls, improving maintenance strategies, reducing avoidable waste, upgrading inefficient assets and making more informed retrofit decisions.
The organisations leading on this won’t be the ones waiting for certainty. They’ll be the ones taking practical action, using better data and recognising that energy performance is no longer a side issue. It’s now fundamental to cost control, resilience and sustainable progress.
ENERGY SOLUTIONS EXPERT’S VIEW
JAMES ROOKE,
MD OF CARBON SHIFT, EQUANS UK & IRELAND
The role of facilities managers has evolved dramatically over the past decade. The global push for decarbonisation, combined with the transformed working landscape post-COVID, has driven significant shifts within the built environment.
Today, FMs are at the frontline of delivering net zero strategies and climate adaptation efforts – overhauling energy consumption, space planning, and daily operations. Against this backdrop, organisations and their facilities teams face the complex challenge of balancing decarbonisation goals, climate resilience, operational efficiency, compliance, and cost control.
What we’re increasingly seeing is that many organisations don’t even know where to begin. They rightly look to their FMs for leadership in developing pragmatic sustainability roadmaps. No one understands a building and its operational needs better than those managing it daily. Yet, the journey is complex, with intertwined challenges spanning technology, finance, and estate development. There is no one-size-fits-all solution to decarbonisation; making it investable requires blending multiple technologies with diverse funding streams.
At Equans, we believe the built environment offers vast, untapped potential for progress through pragmatic and scalable actions. One common industry roadblock is short-term budgeting, which often obscures the true value of comprehensive energy management. By adopting whole-life cost principles in procurement and asset management, facilities teams can demonstrate ROI beyond immediate energy savings – incorporating risk reduction, compliance benefits, and future-proofing.
To address this, we developed Carbon Shift – an integrated decarbonisation and resilience solution designed to help organisations plan, fund, and implement their sustainability strategies. Carbon Shift supports identifying cost-saving opportunities, accessing third-party funding and government grants, exploring private financing partnerships, and crafting long-term investment plans aligned with operational and capital expenditure goals.
This strategic approach unlocks external funding sources and transforms sustainability from a regulatory burden into a competitive advantage. The key is aligning net zero commitments with cost-effective, scalable solutions that guarantee operational resilience for years to come.
By embedding decarbonisation and climate resilience into everyday decision-making and operations, FMs can create workplaces that meet today’s demands while preparing for tomorrow’s challenges.
Ultimately, energy management is not solely a technical challenge – it’s a necessity. By prioritising data-driven action, developing team capabilities, and navigating a fragmented regulatory landscape collaboratively, the built environment can accelerate the adoption of energy solutions that simultaneously reduce costs and meet sustainability objectives.
INDUSTRY STANDARD FOR BUILDING MAINTENANCE VIEW
PAUL BULLARD,
CHIEF PRODUCT OFFICER AT SFG20
Geopolitical instability and oil market volatility have reinforced the need for greater energy security. For the built environment, the challenge is not simply whether to adopt renewable or low carbon technologies, but how to make buildings more efficient, resilient and cost-effective to operate.
Technology has an important role to play. Building Management Systems, smart metering, IoT sensors and data analytics can help facilities teams understand how energy is being used, identify inefficiencies and make more informed decisions. However, digital solutions are only part of the answer. Energy management must also be rooted in good maintenance strategy, practical operational planning and a clear understanding of how buildings perform.
One of the most underappreciated opportunities is the effective use of energy data. Many organisations already have access to valuable information through meters, BMS platforms, asset records and maintenance histories, but the challenge is turning that data into meaningful action. Used well, it can help FM teams spot unusual patterns, prioritise interventions and understand where maintenance, controls, insulation or operational changes could deliver the greatest impact.
Asset condition is also central to energy performance. A well-maintained asset will almost always operate more efficiently than a neglected one. Poorly serviced plant, incorrect controls settings, worn components, blocked filters, damaged insulation or unresolved defects can all increase energy use long before an asset reaches the point of failure. This is why maintenance should be seen not only as a compliance or reliability function, but as a practical lever for reducing energy demand.
There is also value in taking a more coordinated approach to planning maintenance activity. Where appropriate, facilities teams can align planned maintenance, reactive works and energy-related checks so that tasks requiring the same skill sets, access arrangements, permits, plant shutdowns or specialist contractors are completed during the same visit. This can reduce unnecessary travel, labour duplication and disruption, while supporting better compliance, asset performance and cost control.
Skills remain a major barrier. SFG20’s State of Facilities Management Report 2026 found that 42 per cent of FM teams reported a lack of digital and IT skills, while 32 per cent identified sustainability and energy management as a significant skills gap. As buildings become more complex, FM professionals are expected to understand energy performance, asset data, carbon reduction, compliance and lifecycle planning. Upskilling the workforce is therefore essential, not only in digital tools, but also in the fundamentals of low carbon building operation and effective maintenance planning.
Regulatory fragmentation also needs to be addressed. Inconsistent policies and building legislation create uncertainty for building owners, operators and service providers. Clearer standards, simpler routes for retrofit projects and stronger incentives for energy efficiency would give organisations greater confidence to invest.
Ultimately, the built environment can accelerate energy management by focusing on the basics as well as innovation. Smart systems, renewables and low carbon technologies all have a role to play, but they will deliver the greatest value when supported by well-maintained assets, informed use of energy data, efficient scheduling, skilled people and a clear maintenance strategy. For facilities management professionals, this is an opportunity to move from reactive building management to a more strategic role in energy security, cost control and the transition to net zero.
ELECTRIFICATION & TECHNOLOGY EXPERT’S VIEW
ANDREA MENTI,
ENERGY DISTRIBUTION LEAD, ABB ELECTRIFICATION’S SMART BUILDINGS
Volatile global conditions, net zero targets and rising energy costs are creating a perfect storm for facilities management teams. Buildings account for around 30 per cent of global final energy consumption, making them one of the most important places to improve efficiency and reduce costs. Building owners, operators and facilities managers are being asked to improve how they manage, monitor and optimise energy. Poor energy visibility can lead to waste, compliance risk, missed efficiency gains and hidden operational costs.
At the same time, customers and residents increasingly expect energy to be used in the safest and most efficient way. There has never been a more urgent need to identify and adopt solutions that maximise energy and drive sustainability commitments. This is because the key priorities of safety, efficiency, and sustainability are deeply connected. Energy management should be treated as a broader operational priority, rather than an ESG initiative alone. It must protect people and assets, minimise waste and costs, and support electrification and renewables.
While addressing these competing priorities at pace can appear complex, it doesn’t have to be. Deploying effective, scalable digital energy management solutions offers facilities managers a way to address the energy challenges of today and tomorrow. Real-time monitoring and control through digitalisation and automation transforms building data into valuable insights, enabling teams to identify opportunities and optimise energy usage. This can reduce both energy waste and peak demand in a way that is easy to view and manage. You can’t optimise what you can’t see or monitor.
As energy efficiency becomes a growing priority for everyone involved with managing buildings and running operations today, modular, cloud-based energy management solutions have the potential to deliver measurable reductions in energy expenditure. They also allow facilities managers to respond quickly to changing energy needs within a single building or across an entire portfolio of properties.
These systems can be retrofitted into existing buildings without major disruption, making them especially valuable in older properties and in smaller, more complex spaces. They can also help address the current skills gap by making upgrades easier to install and manage. When integrated into new builds, they can support more efficient and future-ready operations.
Modern energy management systems can also strengthen reliability, safety and operational continuity by enabling earlier detection of potential equipment issues. This can help make buildings and critical infrastructure more resilient.
These advances are practical steps that can be taken now. Around the world, cloud-based energy management systems are accelerating how intelligently, safely and cost effectively buildings and infrastructure operate, while supporting more efficient operations. By deploying effective and scalable solutions, facilities management leaders can quickly and comprehensively address energy challenges, enhancing performance, reducing costs, maintaining compliance and enabling the integration of renewable energy.
As a result, energy is not only managed, but used to its full potential, making buildings and operations better prepared for future energy demands. The challenges associated with energy management are great, but the benefits of optimising energy – and the spaces in which we live and work – are even greater.
