Water management is more important than you may think.
Getting a glass of water from the sink is second nature. You’ll never tend to take stock of the value of doing so. The same can be said when the same action is done to scale. We don’t tend to think of how much water a coffee shop needs every day by the cupful, or how much water a car wash uses by the bucket.
And yet, water management is extremely important for any business to have a handle on. Understanding how to use, save, and manage water can help in the long-term to keep costs low and save on bills. But what should everyone, regardless of experience, know about water management?
With advice from Castle Water, a leading UK business water supplier, here are the most important factors every business should know about water management.
Know your business size
A water company won’t look at the physical size of a business and how many taps/outlets it has on the go to calculate tariffs. It is important that you know how much water your business uses annually, and then checking if you should be seen as a small or large business.
In the UK, most water suppliers use 6000m³ of water (per year) as the cut-off point. When usage is below that, you should be treated as a small business. When you’re above, you’re viewed as a big business.
Why does this even matter? Well, depending on the designation, your business will be placed with certain tariffs. And if your business doesn’t have a smart meter, every bill is calculated off an assumed figure, which could be completely inaccurate.
Get your business sized up like a new pair of shoes, so your bill fits in nicely.
Know what to do in an emergency
It’s surprising just how many people wouldn’t know what to do if water suddenly stopped. If you’re reading this and working in a factory or any business which uses water, ask around and see if staff know what to do. Would you even know what to do?
Ask your supplier if they will come and help map out a water emergency plan for your business. If it’s a business which needs water to operate, a plan would see the procurement of emergency water coming in with a few hours of disruption. It’s also important to know that such plans are really only reserved for emergencies, so if a burst main happened in your area and lasted a few hours, it shouldn’t be deemed an emergency.
Know what you’re paying for
Do you fear looking at your water bill because you can’t make heads nor tails of it? Again, it’s a simple aspect of water management which many business owners don’t seize upon. Water bills can be like a treasure map. If you dig deep enough and understand what the likes of supply point fixed charges and volumetric waste mean, you could spot incorrect charges or areas you’ll want to get checked out. I would say the most overlooked of these would be the amount you’re getting charged for wastewater, as it is usually much higher than what you actually send back into the local sewage system (this is down to many water companies assuming that a percentage of your water will automatically become waste).
Get practical advice on all aspects of running a business
Be sure to keep up to date with the business section of the site, where you’ll find articles covering a broad range of topics. Recent articles have looked at what to do when you’re moving into a new office & how to ensure your business stays productive if key members of the team are now working from home full time.
