UK businesses are walking away from a £1.6bn (US$ 2.5bn) annual saving potential from energy investments ecause finance directors are undervaluing the financial returns from investments in energy efficiency by more than half, according to The Business of Energy Efficiency from the Carbon Trust Advisory.

The research spanning three years of energy-efficiency investments found that projects such as upgrades to heating and lighting, implementation of energy-saving policies and staff training delivered on average a 48% return on investment. This is four times the minimum level demanded by most UK senior finance officers.

Meanwhile, most finance directors estimate the average return to be less than 20%.

“The business case for energy efficiency is clear and compelling. Few other investments get anywhere near that rate of return,’ said Hugh Jones, managing director of the Carbon Trust Advisory.

“Yet our data suggests big businesses are leaving around half the investment opportunities on the table and continuing to waste billions of pounds on unnecessary energy use every year.”

The report identified three core reasons: Energy efficiency as an investment opportunity needs to be presented more convincingly within some businesses, to improve access to capital, resources and expertise; energy efficiency is given a low priority within organizations, and changes to company culture is seen as too difficult; incentives are not targeted effectively enough to inspire energy-efficiency investments.

A 2010 study from Johnson Controls found that energy management was a higher priority in regions such as China and India than in Europe and North America. As well, cost saving as an impetus for investment ranked lower in Europe and North America.

Also worth noting, a 2009 study from Verdantix found that including projects with a short-term investment return were beneficial in clearing roadblocks to energy efficiency investments.

In 2008, Walmart set an ambitious goal: making the company's top 200 Chinese factories 20% more energy-efficient by 2012. That's a daunting task in any country, but even more so in China, where some factories don't even have electric meters.

Walmart had no idea how it would make the plan work, but the company told suppliers that it would teach them how to increase energy efficiency--and nix them if they failed to meet the new standards.

The Environmental Defense Fund, a group that often works with Walmart, stepped in to teach Chinese suppliers how to clean up their act. Over the past year and a half, the EDF has visited hundreds of Walmart's factories, advising each of them on how to become more efficient.

"Our expectation was that this was going to be a bit of a battle. The first few minutes of a visit are that way," concedes Andrew Hutson, the project manager for corporate partnerships at the EDF. "They let us in the door because we're with Walmart, they learn that we're independent of Walmart--then they understand that these things we're suggesting are quite good for business. These are things that are going to save you money, improve productivity. The conversation quickly changes to how we can get this done."

Walmart's factories produce a variety of goods, of course, so energy-saving tactics are different at each location. For a toy manufacturer, the biggest energy hog might be plastic injection molding machines. So the EDF could dramatically slash energy use by tweaking those machines. "With factories that truly understand the opportunity, progress has been pretty rapid," Hutson says.

There are barriers--energy saving can cost a lot of money, and some factory-owners are reluctant to invest (factories sometimes change industries, and investing in energy-saving equipment for, say, toy manufacturing might not be worthwhile in the long term).

Hutson also believes that Walmart could ramp up its efforts. The company will likely reach its 20% goal, but "the goal needs to be more aggressive," he says."We've been uncovering opportunities of 40% to 60% energy savings in factories."

And if Walmart expanded its efforts to include the top 500 or top 100 factories? "The reduction opportunities are huge," Hutson says.

Ariel Schwartz can be reached on Twitter or by email.

Electric automobile manufacturer Better Place has scored its latest coup: A deal with Renault to deliver 100,000+ electric cars to Danish and Israeli consumers.

On October 1, 2011, the largest electric car rollout in history--complete with charging stations and battery exchanges--will take place in the Middle East and Europe. Better Place and Renault, who have a long working relationship, will make 115,000 automobiles available to the public in Denmark and Israel. According to a presentation given to Deutsche Bank, the release will also include a joint partnership with General Electric. 

Bringing automobiles to market has always been the weak point for all vendors of electric cars. Better Place announced earlier this month that their deal with Renault for the Israeli and Danish markets was finalized. Under the conditions of the agreement, Better Place has agreed to purchase 115,000 Renault Fluence Z.E. Electric sedans. The automobiles are manufactured in Bursa, Turkey and 660 preproduction units have already been unveiled. A separate electric compact model may also be placed on the Israeli and Danish markets. While traveling at or below the speed limit, the Renault Fluence is able to travel for approximately 110 miles before needing a charge.

This will be a challenge for Better Place. While the capabilities of the Renault Fluence are far and away better than those of earlier electric cars, the industry is still in its infancy. Skeptics will note that going over the speed limit and simply being stuck in traffic both put a major dent in battery life. Additional car batteries are unwieldy and impractical to keep in automobiles, especially in Denmark and Israel where car models have traditionally been on the small side.

Another challenge for Better Place will be the performance of the Renault Fluence. The automobile takes quite some time to recharge if one of Better Place's battery-exchange centers are not easily available: recharging a car using a home electric supply takes between six and eight hours, while the recharging centers Agassi has unveiled still require a solid half-hour to recharge a car to maximum capacity.

But this plan is no less audacious than any of the others dreamt up by Shai Agassi. The founder of the Israeli-American company Better Place is already unveiling a nationwide network of electric car battery swap stations and repowering centers in his native Israel. By 2020, the small Middle Eastern country will have an electric car infrastructure so extensive that power docks will be available at most gas stations, train stations and mall parking lots. A smaller-scale project is already underway in Denmark.

Better Place's mechanism for gas stations to switch out car batteries is rather ingenious: The extremely heavy batteries--which weigh approximately 550 pounds each--are swapped out via a robotic mechanism that slides under the car, extracts the old battery and inserts a new one. According to Better Place, the mechanism was adapted from the Israeli Air Forces' procedure for lifting missiles in and out and fighter planes.

Fast Company has written extensively about Agassi in the past. After all, Better Place's plan hits most of the sweet spots when it comes to technology coverage: Agassi is offering an ingenious, ecologically friendly product at a price point that, if done correctly, has the potential to create a massive new market.

Over the past few years, Better Place has recently unveiled large scale networks in Denmark and Japan. Dong Energy, Denmark's largest utility company, signed a massive deal with Better Place enhanced by a separate Danish government agreement to offer a $40,000 tax break on each new electric car purchased and a refueling network based around train station parking lots (Dansk). In Tokyo, Better Place has embarked on another project to create switchable-battery electric taxis.

In Israel, Better Place opened a visitors' center where guests make reservations online (עברית) and get a 90 minute introduction (and, let's be frank, sales pitch) for their electric car. If guests have a drivers license, they can even take one of the cars for a spin. But the one thing they cannot do at the visitors' center is to purchase a car--or even find out where that can be done. Customers are allegedly simply told, "next year."

Within Israel, Better Place has officially registered with the influential Motor Vehicles Importers Association lobby and secured import licenses from the Ministry of Transport. Israeli consumers seeking to purchase electric cars will buy them directly through Better Place and not from Renault.

An unidentified source gave a quote to Israeli business newspaper Globes that implies local car dealers may attempt to sabotage the nascent electric car industry in Israel:

“Better Place's joining the association is like a Trojan Horse. Membership in the association will allow Better Place to obtain early information and prevent measures by regular car importers to foil or delay the deployment of electric cars in Israel, as well as facilitate the venture with the regulators.”

But for Better Place, the biggest challenges right now are price point and expansion into larger-size countries. Price point is a problem: Despite deals with multiple nations, the consumer price for an electric car compatible with Better Place's product system is still unknown. An even larger problem is what will be done for countries where longer car rides are the norm. Denmark and Israel are both extremely small states; if Better Place hopes to make inroads in France and Great Britain--let alone the United States, their infrastructure will have to be proven in these pilot areas first.

Voim (seeing in Korean) is a smartphone concept for the blind that includes functions to make communication easier. It features route navigation, word recognition and object identification, which are displayed as braille on a silicon screen or transmitted as audio cues via the detachable bluetooth headset. Although smartphone applications & braille cell phones do exists, a full-fledged concept like this is a ways away.

Designers: Youngseong Kim & Eunsol Yeom

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Dutch shoe designer Marloes ten Bhömer has created a pair of 3D-printed shoes that can be individually made to fit perfectly. (more…)

On a light-by-light basis, changing from incandescent to LED only makes a tiny difference in energy consumption and cost, but when you're talking about retrofitting a large building like the Empire State Building or replacing bulbs in thousands of Starbucks stores, the energy savings can be huge.

That's just what Starbucks has found now that the replacing of incandescent and halogen lights in 7,000 stores in the U.S. and Canada has been completed.  The company's Director of Environmental Impact said that the program is on target to cut lighting energy consumption by 80 percent.

The good folks at Greenbiz did the math and figured that each 1,000 square foot store was saving $600 a year and reducing CO2 emissions equivalent to 10 barrels of oil.  The lights also cut total store energy consumption by 7 percent.

LEDs were installed in the sitting and beverage areas where the color of the light was most important and CFL bulbs were installed in the rest of the store.  The energy and cost savings calculated were for the LED lights alone.

via Greenbiz

Algae has been the darling of the biofuel industry for the past few years, but it hasn't gained much traction recently--until now. OriginOil, a startup that hopes to turn "algae oil" into a petroleum competitor, announced this week that a pilot project to harvest algae from coal plant pollution was successful.

The project, which began earlier this year in conjunction with Australian energy company MBD Energy, uses micro-algae to capture CO2 (a byproduct of coal-fired plants) from one of MBD Energy's plants. The micro-algae use the CO2 to quickly reproduce, creating algae biomass that OriginOil can use for fuel.

Now that the technique has been proven to work, MBD will add algae production capabilities to three of its plants. The company estimates that each of its power plants could potentially grow to produce 11 million liters of algae oil for OriginOil. We would rather not see coal-fired power plants grow at all, of course, but at least companies like OriginOil can reap useful byproducts.

OriginOil also recently announced that produced hydrogen from the sun at a level comparable to photovoltaics. The company's Hydrogen Harvester captures hydrogen as a byproduct of algae production.

Ariel Schwartz can be reached on Twitter or by email.

Riding a bike in rain or chilly weather conditions is no less than an adventure, taking the breath out of the rider. Making your ride a bit easier and safer, the “Floow” is an innovative bike that comes with an optional roof to protect the rider from harsh weather conditions. Running on four wheels, the recumbent bike integrates a full seat with a large back rest to seat and move the rider in utmost comfort. Featuring a body finished in carbon fiber, the Floow also includes an extended handle to steer and stop the bike without putting extra pressure on the rider’s body, while the full suspension system ensures a smooth and comfortable ride in all weather conditions.

Via: Designboom

BBQs may add fun and flavor to your meals but they usually tarnish the natural splendor of beaches and other beauty spots with their deposits. Providing a solution, Espergaerde design studio has created a BBQ concept that employs combustible components, other than the cooking plate, which once placed on the fire breaks down gradually to merge in the surroundings. Supported by slots, grooves and a string with flammable membrane that doubles up as a fire lighter, the disposable BBQ is finished in chemical-free ceramic to preserve the taste and nutrients of your food and that too without contaminating the environment.

Via: Espergaerde