Energy Analysis, Building Energy Index and Energy Management Strategies for Fast-Food Restaurants in Malaysia

Abstract

Commercial buildings in Malaysia contribute to 35% of the total electricity demand. During the recent COVID-19 pandemic, the global economy faced a challenging situation that forced many businesses to shut down. However, fast-food restaurants with drive-through features managed to get through this pandemic phase without much effect from the economic impact. Since COVID-19, the operational guidelines have changed for restaurants. However, from an energy perspective, fast–food restaurants are high energy consumers in the retail sector. This paper analyses the load profile of fast-food restaurants and the potential strategies that can be adopted in a free-standing fast-food restaurant. From analysis, it is calculated that a total of RM 97,365.9 of utility savings can be obtained in a year. A total of 91,392.1 kg CO2, 881.8 kg SO2 and 385.5 kg CO pollutant emissions can be reduced. The BEI for the restaurant was reduced to 856.4 kWh/m2/year. By converting to energy-saving strategies, the return on investment was 27.3% and 3.7 years, which is a very short period of time and is attractive for businesses of this nature.