Building performance technology company arbnco is calling on UK SMEs to participate in an energy efficiency research project, which aims to boost SME access to energy efficiency measures and help the UK meet its carbon reduction targets.

The research, initially taking the form of an online survey, will be pivotal in arbnco’s development of a Digital Energy Efficiency Platform (DEEP) to improve the energy efficiency of the UK’s small businesses.

This follows arbnco winning funding for the first phase of the Government’s innovation competition, Boosting Access for SMEs to Energy Efficiency (BASEE) – the only Scottish company to do so.

Energy Systems Catapult is providing expertise to the BASEE project in the form of Business Model Innovation support.

The survey is designed to give arbnco a broader knowledge of energy efficiency across a range of SMEs, including a better understanding of how SMEs are managing their energy requirements, discovering what efficiency measures are presently being used and how they have been financed, and getting SMEs’ reactions to business propositions. After the survey closes on the 28^th, the data collected will be collated, and will then form a substantial pillar in arbnco’s DEEP development.

Simon West, director and co-founder of arbnco, said: “The only way for our team to properly understand the landscape of SME energy management is to hear directly from the businesses themselves. There is never a ‘one size fits all’ approach to software solutions for SMEs, but we hope that by inviting all small businesses, regardless of their sector of operation, to take part in our survey, we can develop a platform with the necessary broad scope and flexibility to address the needs of as many businesses as possible.”

He added: “We’d like to urge any small business owner, regardless of size, sector, or energy usage to take our survey. SMEs make up 99% of UK businesses, and 50% of the UK’s total energy use. This means that removal of the common barriers to energy efficiency measures, such as high upfront costs and economies of scale, is vital to ensuring that the future of UK business is a sustainable, forward-looking one.”

SMEs can complete the five-minute survey here.