Reducing the fan speeds of your commercial HVAC units is easier than you think – and will immediately cut energy consumption
Every Energy Manager is regularly pitched products and systems that will allegedly reduce energy costs. When such claims are made with minimal supporting data and little to no knowledge about your facility or energy spend, it’s natural to be cautious of another “snake oil” solution…
But fact is, it’s an Energy Manger’s role to achieve corporate energy reduction goals – and they are constantly researching and evaluating new approaches.
Our white paper Facts Every Energy Manager Needs to Know is a good read for anyone interested in saving energy – and reducing an organization’s carbon footprint. We discuss why corporate energy managers have a tough job; how much can really be saved in an existing store or facility; and why lighting got the earliest attention. Short answer – because it’s the easiest to tackle.
Then we turn our attention to heating and cooling which, according to the US Environmental Protection Agency, accounts for 42% of the energy in a typical retail store compared to 18% attributed to lighting.
NexRev, DrivePak and reducing the energy consumption of commercial air conditioning units
At NexRev, one of our specialties is reducing the energy consumption of existing commercial air conditioning units, which are found in large numbers on the rooftops of nearly all retail, entertainment, and dining sites. Our blog Commercial Air Conditioners, Wasted Energy – and How NexRev Fits in gives an overview of what we do – and why it’s important.
Reducing fan speeds – and energy costs
One of DrivePak’s capabilities is the ability to reduce the speeds of blower fans.
Most retail stores have packaged DX rooftop HVAC units that heat or cool air at full or half capacity. However, the blower fan in these standard units typically has just one speed capacity – 100% – which means the fan’s motor always runs at full speed, which is overkill for most days.
But if you reduce the speed of a blower fan then you reduce the energy consumption. The math is too complicated for this quick read blog but here’s the basics…
If you change the speed from 100% to 80%, the amount of air delivered is reduced by 20%, but the amount of power needed is reduced by an even greater margin of 47%.
And, if you reduce the speed 35%, then 71% less power is used.
A customized retro-fit for every customer
To date, more than 65,000 DrivePak units have been installed in commercial buildings across the US providing an internal rate of return that CFOs love!
For a store with twelve rooftop units and a 5hp average blower motor size, installing DrivePak would provide a payback of 1.34 years and a 5-year IRR of 70%.
Every store is different, so part of our service is to examine your entire equipment inventory, how you operate that equipment, and other factors to determine that DrivePak is a good fit for you.
Finally, the trick is to tune each for the local environment. NexRev’s specialists make site visits and configure with proprietary optimization tools, so that each and every HVAC is individually optimized for the site, whether in Florida or Alaska.
How retailers are reducing their energy spend, thanks to DrivePak
Conn’s HomePlus
Since 2016 the NexRev team has saved Conn’s HomePlus more than $6 million in energy costs.
This was achieved by retrofitting DrivePak into the HVAC units of Conn’s HomePlus’ 150 stores across 14 states.
The DrivePak retrofit upgraded the aforementioned Conn’s HomePlus HVAC units and seamlessly integrated with legacy systems to reduce fan speed, energy consumption, and power. Benefits include humidity control and longer equipment life.
Payback on DrivePak installations average from 18-20 months, thereby adding to bottom line profit.
You can read more about Conn’s HomePlus and DrivePak in our case study 26% Energy Reduction with 47% ROI!
Retailer #2
A Fortune 500 discount retailer is also currently rolling out DrivePak in 384 of its stores across the US. The projected five-year saving is more than $11 million.
We will discuss in more detail how we are helping this retail partner reduce its energy consumption in a future blog.
Getting started towards lower energy consumption, a lower bill – and an energy waste conscious organization
To start the conversation about how you can reduce energy consumption, and do your bit to slow down energy waste, please send a message to:
If you’d like to read our white paper Facts Every Energy Manager Needs to Know or the case study about how DrivePak has helped one of our customers to achieve 26% Energy Reduction with 47% ROI, then please also send an email to