A registered charity, the organisation turned to iVolt as part of attempts to both reduce its impact on the environment and save money on increasing energy bills.

With a useable floor area of 4,323m2, the 80-year-old office block underwent a major refurbishment in 1999/2000 that saw offices converted from cellular to open plan, as well as the installation of lifts and air conditioning.

CFL Lighting, air handling units and computers also contribute to an annual power consumption of around 558,000kWh and electricity bills of around £70,000 per year.

The MCH brought in sustainable building experts Arcadis to devise a carbon-reduction strategy; the result was a recommendation to implement voltage optimisation. Working with iVolt distributor Powercor, the charity and their advisors weighed up the advantages of the iVolt system and decided to go ahead.

As David Radcliffe, a Director in charge of engineering and sustainability at Arcadis, explained: “Reducing their carbon footprint was a driving factor behind this investment but as a charity the MCH team was also very keen to see a quick return.”

Powercor installed two 300Amp units over a three-day period. The initial forecast had indicated energy savings of 10-11% and a drop in C02 emissions of 31.5 tonnes a year. However, measurements taken after the installation showed an actual reduction in electricity consumption of nearly 13% which equates to C02 savings of 38.04 tonnes.

Reg Everest, Buildings and Facilities officer at Methodist Church House, commented:

“We were initially briefed on wide range of green ideas and initiative and had to carefully consider three factors; the first was capital spend and how much we, as a charity could afford. We also had to think about the payback time of any investment and, longer term, how long we were likely to stay in the present building. Although installing the iVolt units wasn’t the cheapest of the recommendations, we all agreed it was the best. The payback period was relatively very short and the predicted savings looked good.

We were expecting savings of around 10% but in reality the figures are much higher, which is excellent. Our annual power bill is something in the region of £70,000 so if we can reduce it by 13% or even 10%, we will be very pleased. Ivolt has done exactly what it said on the tin.”

In addition to the impressive cost savings, running lights, computers and other electrical equipment at their optimum voltage means longer life spans – leading to further reductions in outgoings for the charity.