Aldi takes energy management to the cloud

Discount grocer Aldi has deployed an energy management solution that gives it control and visibility across its nearly 1,500 U.S. stores.



The chain has implemented Siemens’ Site Controls energy management system, with the majority of the installations involving retrofits at existing stores where thermostats or third-party energy management systems were replaced. But the system has been deployed in newly constructed stores as well. Aldi will also install the Site Controls system in new stores as it continues to expand across the nation.



With the EMS system installed, Aldi anticipates reducing carbon emissions by an additional 29,000 metric tons per year — the annual equivalent of removing 6,100 cars from the road or of providing electricity for 4,000 homes. The energy cost savings associated with the project also exceeded ALDI’s capital investment criteria, providing a favorable return on investment.



This energy management program leverages advanced cloud-based technology to build upon the grocer’s previous initiatives to reduce carbon emissions, such as the installation of solar panels, at dozens of retail stores and four distribution centers.



The Site Controls EMS reduces energy usage at stores by monitoring and/or controlling key energy-consuming devices such as HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) units, indoor lighting, store signage, indoor and outdoor temperature sensors, and refrigeration units. It also monitors energy output and performance of on-site solar panels.



Complementing store-level optimization is the Site Controls Enterprise Portal, a cloud-based data analytics platform that provides the grocer enterprise-level dashboards, KPIs and outlier reporting to pinpoint and resolve issues that would otherwise drive excessive consumption or negatively impact customer comfort. The system can also help Aldi lower maintenance costs by streamlining identification of problems, intelligently dispatching, and remotely validating work performed by HVAC service technicians.



Aldi selected Siemens after an initial 16-site pilot in 2012 validated the system’s ability to reduce consumption at its stores, and a 180-site rollout in 2013 demonstrated that results could be replicated across an entire region.