DESY is one of the world’s leading scientific organisations. Its accelerator facilities are among its most important research tools. They are also the reason why DESY’s energy requirements are quite substantial. The task of the Energy Management Department is to record and evaluate the flow of energy. The aim is to develop concrete measures and thus improve energy efficiency. Since 2018, DESY has been operating an automated energy monitoring system on its campus in Hamburg which displays the key energy and media flows. The system is not confined to electrical energy; it also monitors thermal energy for heating, as well as cooling energy and water. Hundreds of new meters are being installed, replaced and connected to the metering system. The readings are automatically stored in a database using special software.

Once consumption levels are known, potential savings can be identified and, where possible, energy consumption can be optimised. In addition to analysing potential savings, the data is also relevant and used for billing and reporting (internally, externally and to fulfil statutory reporting requirements). These too belong to the tasks of DESY’s Energy Management Department. DESY has provided a budget to cover the necessary measures, including the meters and a team for retrofitting and upgrading the system.