Energy purchasing in the industry
Electricity and gas purchasing using the example of mechanical engineering
Today we are focussing on an industry that consumes a lot of energy: Mechanical engineering. Mechanical engineering companies are particularly focussed on energy costs, as they account for a significant proportion of ongoing production costs. Due to the high energy requirements, which are often caused by the operation of energy-intensive machines and systems, it is crucial to develop efficient procurement strategies and utilise intelligent energy data management systems. We show the challenges our customers from the mechanical engineering sector face when procuring electricity and gas, what they take into account and which points are still relevant. In doing so, we take a topic-specific approach to the respective digital opportunities that arise today and can be utilised.
Utilising challenges and digital opportunities in energy procurement - benefits for mechanical engineering companies
When it comes to energy procurement, mechanical engineering companies face a variety of challenges resulting from industry-specific requirements and framework conditions. In the first part of the text, we highlight these challenges and then explain the digital opportunities and possibilities that purchasers can utilise through digital energy platforms such as enPORTAL connect.
High and fluctuating energy requirements:
Mechanical engineering companies have high energy consumption, which is heavily dependent on production processes. Mechanical engineering is therefore one of the most energy-intensive industries. This results in an irregular load profile. However, the load profile is a decisive indicator for energy suppliers when pricing electricity or gas. This is because the better the load profile fits into the energy supplier's portfolio, the more favourable the price. It is therefore always worth contacting as many energy suppliers as possible in order to benefit from the competition and find the most favourable supplier.
Digital opportunitiesDigital energy marketplaces such as enPORTAL connect allow machine manufacturers to contact up to 700 energy suppliers quickly and at the click of a mouse, synchronise their energy consumption data and take advantage of the fierce competition in a tender. The result is the most favourable energy price for electricity or gas at the time of the tender.
Volatility of energy prices:
Energy prices are subject to strong fluctuations that are influenced by market conditions, geopolitical events and changes in legislation. Mechanical engineering companies must therefore continuously monitor the market and be able to react flexibly to price changes in order to take advantage of favourable purchasing moments.
Digital opportunities: Today, data-based target price settings help you to constantly monitor exchange prices and be immediately informed about favourable purchasing times. What's more, the enPORTAL connect energy platform even links the target prices with your own energy consumption data, so that you are automatically informed if your desired target prices are exceeded or fallen short of, depending on the location, point of purchase or tranche target prices. This eliminates the need to regularly monitor the energy exchange. This allows you to react immediately to favourable market changes and reduce your energy costs.
Long-term contracts vs. flexibility:
Long-term supply contracts often offer stable prices, but limit the flexibility to react to short-term price advantages. Companies must weigh up whether they favour long-term stability or short-term savings.
Digital opportunities: Whether fixed-price, tranche or spot market procurement - all three procurement models and portfolio management can be easily handled via the enPORTAL connect energy platform. Buyers can discuss and determine which model is currently best suited to the respective load profile or mechanical engineering customer (depending on the current market situation) with a personal energy expert on enPORTAL.
Sustainability and corporate image:
The pressure to operate more sustainably is constantly increasing. Mechanical engineering companies are faced with the challenge of making their energy supply not only efficient but also environmentally friendly. This can include the integration of renewable energies and the reduction of the CO2 footprint.
Digital opportunities: Using enPORTAL connect, mechanical engineering companies can specifically advertise only green electricity and find the right energy supplier from a wide range of certificates. With over 700 energy suppliers on the energy marketplace, competition on the market is guaranteed. ((You can find more information on purchasing green electricity in our latest article: https://www.enportal.de/connect/presse/energieeinkauf-oekostrom-energieportal-energieplattform/)
Cost management:
In view of the high cost of energy, efficient cost management is essential. Companies must ensure that they purchase energy at competitive prices in order to keep their production costs low and secure their competitiveness.
Digital opportunities: As over 700 energy suppliers are registered on the enPORTAL connect energy marketplace, most German energy suppliers are informed of a mechanical engineering customer's tender. This offers maximum competition and the best energy prices at the time of purchase.
Internal coordination and decision-making processes:
Energy purchasing requires close coordination between different departments, such as purchasing, production, finance and sustainability. The complexity of internal decision-making processes can slow down energy purchasing and lead to sub-optimal purchasing decisions.
Digital opportunities: The enPORTAL connect energy platform allows you to quickly create and edit business reports and plans. All relevant data relating to costs and energy price forecasts can be downloaded at the click of a mouse and presented to the individual decision-makers in the company. The big advantage of this is that the report can be created at any time using the latest prices traded on the energy exchanges. Manual data updating is no longer necessary and reporting is no longer time-consuming and labour-intensive.
Conclusion: Digital networking makes everyday work easier
These individual challenges for mechanical engineering companies show that the industry needs to consider many points in order to optimise energy costs. In this blog post, we have shown how beneficial digital platforms that offer digital networking of energy data and energy stakeholders can be. Energy platforms such as enPORTAL connect provide mechanical engineering companies with the best tools for implementing energy purchasing and energy data management in an efficient, transparent and optimised manner. Mechanical engineering companies that utilise these digital opportunities are better positioned and can secure their long-term competitiveness.
