How energy monitoring improves the energy label of your buildings
In an era where sustainability and energy efficiency take center stage, optimizing the energy use of buildings is more important than ever. Energy monitoring plays a key role in this. Not only does it help reduce costs, but it also directly contributes to improving energy labels. In this blog, we explain how that works, what the benefits are, and how energy monitoring software can structurally improve your property management.
What is energy monitoring?
Energy monitoring is the continuous measurement, recording, and analysis of energy consumption within a building or organization. This includes the use of electricity, gas, and heat, but also water consumption or data on CO₂ emissions. Modern energy monitoring software offers real-time insights at the level of location, installation, or individual devices.
With this information, you can:
- Make energy consumption visible and comparable
- Detect losses and peak consumption
- Implement targeted savings measures
- Identify trends across multiple buildings
The link between energy monitoring and energy labels
An energy label indicates how energy efficient a building is, ranging from label G (very inefficient) to A++++ (very efficient). The label is based on the building’s primary fossil energy use, determined by factors like insulation, technical installations, and actual consumption.
This is where energy monitoring proves its value:
- Insight into actual performance: Where labels are often based on theoretical calculations, monitoring shows how a building really performs
- Support for efficiency improvements: If you can demonstrate structural savings, you can show a lower energy usage during recertification, which may lead to a better label
- Identifying improvement potential: Monitoring reveals exactly where losses occur, helping you improve building performance and sustainability
Why energy labels are becoming more important
Energy labels are not only helpful for tenants or buyers, but increasingly a legal requirement:
- Offices must have at least energy label C since January 2023. Read more RVO.
- A valid energy label is required when selling, renting, or delivering a building. View the regulations.
- Sustainability is increasingly tied to financing or subsidy schemes where labels are a critical criterion.
A current and strong label is good for both the environment and the financial value and rentability of your property.
The role of energy monitoring software
Smart software helps property owners, facility managers, and real estate managers quickly and accurately gather and analyze data.
Key benefits:
- Real-time dashboards with clear insights
- Automatic reporting for EED audits, CSRD, or internal KPIs
- Alerts for abnormal consumption
- Integration with building management systems, sensors, or smart meters
Software for energy monitoring must be scalable, reliable, and user friendly. It allows you to manage multiple buildings from a single platform and provides ready-to-use reports for audits, subsidies, or label updates.
At Aurum, we offer EnergyGrip, our own energy monitoring platform that provides insight and control across locations and networks. EnergyGrip supports sustainability, cost savings, and compliance in one centralized system.
Case study: Veiligheidsregio Zeeland
A concrete example is Veiligheidsregio Zeeland. This organization manages around 68 sites, many of which are unstaffed. They needed better insight into gas and electricity use and the ability to control heating remotely.
Together with Aurum, EnergyGrip was implemented at 45 sites, combined with smart thermostats. The result:
- Real-time monitoring of gas and electricity per site
- Remote temperature management and monitoring of measured and set temperatures
- Heating schedules adjustable per site or in groups
- Tracking manual adjustments to detect and correct unwanted changes
- Flexible reporting through data exports
This data-driven approach gave Veiligheidsregio Zeeland full control, allowing them to address issues proactively and further improve their energy performance.
What does this mean for your organization?
Energy monitoring is more than just measurement. It is a strategic tool to make buildings more energy efficient, improve labels, and comply with tightening regulations. With the right software, you take a step toward a more sustainable future. This results in structural energy savings and label improvements that are visible in both cost and performance.
Want to learn more about energy monitoring?
Discover how energy monitoring can help your organization improve energy labels, reduce costs, and meet legal requirements. Check out:
Frequently asked questions about energy monitoring and energy labels
How does energy monitoring help improve a building's energy label?
Energy monitoring provides insight into actual energy use and highlights potential savings. By using this data for targeted optimizations, you can demonstrably reduce energy consumption. This supports recertification and can lead to a better energy label.
Is energy monitoring mandatory for buildings with an energy label?
Energy monitoring is not legally required, but it is strongly recommended for organizations that must comply with regulations such as the EED audit obligation or CSRD reporting. It also supports achieving label targets, such as the label C requirement for office buildings.
What is the difference between energy monitoring software and an energy audit?
An energy audit is a snapshot in time, often mandatory to meet regulatory obligations. Energy monitoring software, on the other hand, continuously measures and provides real time insights. It enables organizations to actively manage their energy use and achieve long term sustainability improvements.