An energy audit may seem to be an expensive affair. However, it is worth its price because it offers documentation on the projects, which may save you money. If you haven’t contracted for any energy audit, you may get shocked when you get proposals.
To help you guard against such surprises and determine reasonableness of the estimate, here we have discussed about some factors that affect the price of an audit. They are going to help you precisely estimate what the study can cost. The cost can be fine-tuned in price negotiations or via competitive bidding.
Table of Contents
1- Type of audit
There are several types of audits, depending on the purpose, the auditor, and the area being reviewed. Below are the main types of audits:
Financial Audit
Purpose: To verify the accuracy and fairness of an organization’s financial statements.
Conducted by: External or internal auditors.
Example: Annual audit of a company’s income statement and balance sheet
Internal Audit
Purpose: To evaluate and improve the effectiveness of risk management, control, and governance processes.
Conducted by: In-house internal auditors or a hired internal audit team.
Example: Checking compliance with internal policies and procedures.
External Audit
Purpose: To provide an independent opinion on financial statements.
Conducted by: Independent audit firms.
Example: A public company being audited by a certified public accounting (CPA) firm.
Compliance Audit
Purpose: To ensure an organization is following laws, regulations, and internal policies.
Conducted by: Internal or external auditors.
Example: Auditing a hospital’s compliance with health and safety regulations.
Operational Audit
Purpose: To assess the efficiency and effectiveness of operations.
Conducted by: Internal auditors or consultants.
Example: Auditing the production process to identify ways to reduce waste.
Information Systems (IT) Audit
Purpose: To evaluate the integrity and security of an organization’s information systems.
Conducted by: IT auditors or cybersecurity professionals.
Example: Reviewing data security protocols and system access controls.
Tax Audit
Purpose: To verify the accuracy of tax returns filed.
Conducted by: Government tax authorities (like the IRS or local tax agency).
Example: Checking whether a business has correctly reported income and paid taxes.
Forensic Audit
Purpose: To detect and investigate fraud or financial misconduct.
Conducted by: Specialized forensic auditors.
Example: Investigating embezzlement or corruption in an organization.
Environmental Audit
Purpose: To assess the environmental impact and compliance with environmental laws.
Conducted by: Environmental specialists or certified auditors.
Example: Auditing waste management practices in a manufacturing plant.
Each audit type serves a specific goal and is crucial for maintaining transparency, accountability, and performance improvement in organizations. Let me know if you want a table summary or a detailed example of any type.
2- Type of the facility
This can even affect the cost of the energy audit. For example, the health care facilities are generally more complicated than the other buildings because of the different kinds of equipments, mechanical systems and controls, and the requirement to meet strict health and safety standards.
On the other hand, the elementary schools have less complicated energy equipment and are less expensive to analyse.
3- Size of the facility
Mostly, the unit cost of audit decreases as size of facility increases. This is mainly because a few costs like quality control charges and others are fixed and do not change proportionally with the size of the facility. The result is the cost is more per square foot for the small facilities than the larger ones.
4- Availability of mechanical and electrical drawings
A facility’s age can have an impact on its audit cost. If detailed, ‘as built’ electrical and mechanical drawings are unavailable, the professional energy efficiency consultant will have to reconstruct a schematic for the equipment operations.
This may be time consuming as well as complex, particularly if there are a number of air handlers and various kinds of mechanical systems. It even adds up to the cost of the audit.
5- Reputation and experience of the energy efficiency consultant
Often, the energy efficiency consultants in Melbourne with experience in preparing energy audits are able to do the work less expensively.
These professionals have computerised building models, flue gas analysers, technological references, light meters and other kinds of analytical tools that are available to help them perform the audit and evaluate data.
The experienced professionals can analyse as well as evaluate the energy projects in less time and determine whether the projects are economically and technically feasible. The engineer you choose must have a successful track record in designing as well as installing the energy projects recommended in the audit.
Charges for energy audit vary a lot based on the differences in the professional’ overhead and the experience, operating costs and profit margins of the personnel.
6- Including project design or performance specifications
Performance specifications basically inform the installers and the equipment contractors about the project that is to be implemented as well as the type of equipment and quantity to be installed. They delineate the objectives of the project.
They set the least equipment needs, construction documents and installation parameters needed to make sure that the project will meet the predictions of the audit successfully.
Performance specifications even explain how a project can be implemented. They aren’t a substitute for any engineering design. But if the engineering design isn’t needed, they usually offer sufficient information for the organisation to go out to bid directly.
Preparing specifications, which are clear create a level playing field for the equipment bidders and make it easy for you to evaluate the various proposals.
Final Thoughts
Having the energy efficiency consultant prepare the specifications is however important for many reasons, but when a consultant prepares the specifications, it adds up to the cost of the audit. However, there are many consultants who include preparing the specifications as part of their energy audit.
