From Feasibility Studies to Final Design: Navigating the Stages of an Energy Efficiency Project

The Value of Early Project Investment

Many manufacturing companies are understandably eager to move swiftly to implementation. When someone has identified an inefficient system that needs upgrading, the natural instinct is to fix it quickly. A question that can arise is, “Why invest time and resources in feasibility studies when the solution seems obvious?”

Experience has shown us that rushing past these early stages often creates significant problems later.

Consider a recent example from one of our projects. A client planned a facility expansion and assumed that their heating load would roughly double – a logical assumption given they were substantially expanding their floor space. However, when we conducted detailed analysis during the Concept Design phase, the actual load increase was closer to just 20%. Had they proceeded directly to implementation based on their initial assumption, they would have invested in significantly oversized equipment, potentially wasting hundreds of thousands in capital expenditure.

These early stages aren’t bureaucratic obstacles. They’re strategic investments that can prevent costly mistakes and build confidence in your approach – both operationally and financially.

Understanding the Project Journey

While every organisation may have its own terminology, most energy efficiency projects follow a similar progression. Understanding what happens at each stage can help you navigate your own process more effectively.

Feasibility Studies: Evaluating Multiple Pathways

The feasibility stage involves exploring various approaches to solving an energy challenge without committing to any single option. For a heating system upgrade, we might evaluate air-source heat pumps, water-source heat pumps, electric boilers, upgraded gas systems or combined heat and power (CHP) solutions.

At this stage, analysis remains high-level. We are providing you with rough capital cost estimates, projected energy savings and approximate payback periods. The goal is to identify which directions merit the deeper investigation.

Feasibility Studies typically last around a month (although this is very dependent on the size of facility and complexity of project). The investment is relatively modest, but the value can be substantial – you’re ensuring that you pursue the most promising solution rather than plumping for an option that happened to be the first one suggested.

Concept Design: Building Business Case Confidence

Once the Feasibility Study identifies a preferred direction, Concept Design validates whether the preliminary numbers hold up under closer scrutiny. This stage might be called FEED, here at EM3 it’s BOD A, or you may know it under various other terms depending on your organisation’s standards. Some clients will also want to know which ASHRAE audit level this Concept Design equates to – if it is similar to a Level 2 or Level 3 Audit.

Here we are still working with approximate figures – typically +/-30% accuracy – but developing sufficient detail for you to make informed decisions. The question which we are helping you to answer is, “Does this solution make financial and operational sense to pursue?”

Concept Design generally takes four to six weeks, again depending on a number of factors. The quality of your metering infrastructure can significantly impact this stage. In facilities with comprehensive, accurate metering data, we can often develop Concept Designs quite quickly.

Basic Design

Basic Design (sometimes termed BOD B or Basic Design adds value in lots of different circumstances. Perhaps we are suggesting that the best solution involves specialist equipment and requires firmer pricing. Maybe your initial metering data is insufficient. Sometimes more information is needed in order to achieve adequate confidence from the owners or the CFO. And some facilities may require a strategy where we will be implementing particularly complex or unusual solutions.

Basic Design typically spans six to ten weeks.

Moving Closer to Implementation: Basis of Design C / Issue for Tender (IFT)

Following Concept Design and Basic Design, you’re ready to Issue For Tender (IFT). At this point, we are working with you to provide detailed specifications to contractors and solicit competitive bids for implementation.

Looking at the complete timeline, a company might invest something like this: two weeks in Feasibility Studies, four to six weeks in Concept Design, potentially six to ten weeks in Basic Design and twelve to twenty weeks in Detailed Design for tendering.

When the complete project timeline could potentially be spanning two to three years from inception to commissioning, these early investments don’t extend your schedule – they prevent far longer delays caused by having to revisit decisions later.

Adaptability as a Core Competency at EM3

One principle that has proven itself repeatedly is that adaptability matters more than rigid process adherence.

We recently partnered with a major food manufacturer who had developed their own comprehensive engineering standards. When we compared their requirements to our typical process, we discovered we only needed to make two minor adjustments to our approach. As a result, the project moved forward smoothly and very successfully.

With a pharmaceutical client, our ‘Basis of Design A/B/C’ terminology initially caused confusion – they had simply never encountered the term. Once we understood that their internal process used different labels, we adjusted our communication accordingly and the relationship developed productively.

This flexibility extends beyond terminology. Some clients prefer to structure Feasibility and Concept Designs as a single phase with a decision checkpoint in the middle. That approach works well – you’re still completing both pieces of work, simply organising them differently.

What matters isn’t conforming to any ‘ideal’ process diagram. What matters is ensuring that you’re doing the analytical work that builds confidence, validates assumptions and reduces project risk.

Common Implementation Challenges

The most frequent challenge we observe is the impulse to bypass early stages in favour of rapid implementation.

The pattern tends to unfold in a predictable way. An engineering manager identifies an appealing solution (or a vendor pushes a particular product) and the team begins moving toward implementation. When the project team reaches out to the finance team for capital approval, questions arise. What is your confidence level in these cost projections? Have you evaluated alternative approaches? How will performance vary under different operating conditions?

Without thorough feasibility and concept work, these questions become difficult to answer convincingly. The project then circles back to complete the analysis that should have been done initially – except now momentum has been lost, stakeholders have grown frustrated and budget windows may have closed.

The other significant challenge usually involves inadequate metering. When facilities lack comprehensive data on actual energy consumption and seasonal patterns or fluctuations, business cases must be built on assumptions rather than evidence. We’ve even begun to incorporate metering equipment rental in some of our proposals because the foundation of reliable data is so critical. Renting a handful of quality meters for twelve months does not cost a huge amount and is a modest investment that significantly improves the accuracy of all subsequent analysis.

Strategic Time Investment

These early project stages represent strategic investments rather than obstacles to overcome.

A few weeks invested in proper feasibility analysis can prevent months spent pursuing an unsuitable solution. Thorough concept design work can actually accelerate your overall timeline.

Whatever kind of terminology your organisation uses, the fundamental principle remains consistent. Invest time in the early stages to validate assumptions, evaluate alternatives and build organisational confidence in the chosen approach.

Your CFO and finance team will value the thoroughness, your engineering team will appreciate the clarity and – when the implemented project delivers the promised savings and performance – the entire organisation will reap the benefits from that early investment.

Ready to bring clarity and momentum to your next energy efficiency project? Whether you’re defining your feasibility scope, validating a business case or preparing for tender, our energy efficiency consultants are here to guide you through each stage with the right level of detail and confidence.

Reach out to us through our Contact Form or reach out to one of our offices in Ireland, the UK, Spain or the USA. Strong, strategic beginnings lead to the most successful project outcomes.