Casinos are all about flashy lights, but with so much power consumed daily, many of them are looking to optimise their electricity consumption.
There is a reason why electricity is a significant variable in running casino operations. We all know that the key success factor for gambling houses is product differentiation. The combination of illumination, air conditioning, and ventilation generates a feeling of comfort. And this is the primary reason why all casinos need a continuous supply of electricity, as even a five-minute blackout can cost a business a fortune.
Way Casinos Can Optimise Electricity Consumption
There are several ways that casinos can optimise their electricity consumption:
1. Solar Power
Solar panels are one of the most environmentally friendly methods to save electricity. The Rincon Casino is a textbook example of casinos that embraced the eco-friendly wave of change to protect the environment. The casino is located on the Harrah Native American reservation near San Diego. The facility is reliant on the power derived from a solar farm, which is a US$8 million project partly funded by a private company and the California Solar Initiative.
However, you don’t have to have a solar farm to work with panels. Casinos often have plenty of free space on their rooftops. So, even in the absence of an adjacent solar farm, panels can still be set up to successfully produce five to ten per cent of the required electricity.
2. Lighting
Lighting is the primary electricity consumer in any casino, accounting for approximately 30 per cent of the total power used, significantly contributing to the overall bill. To manage this expense, many casinos have employed natural lighting whenever possible. The use of LED lights is also widespread in place of bulbs or inside slot machines.
Interestingly, the gaming machines consume between 30 and 35 per cent of all electricity, and the larger the casino, the bigger the rate of consumption will be. Las Vegas has 209,000 gaming machines that operate 24 hours each day. Some casinos in Sin City use occupancy sensors to reduce usage or employ lighting retrofits. Through these simple modifications, a casino can cut operational costs by 30 per cent within two years and enjoy the subsequent return on investment.
3. Equipment Modernisation
Casinos should use power systems that integrate new technologies in larger quantities. It’s no secret that the electricity production industry is facing challenges with replacing its ageing infrastructure and modernising systems to mitigate disruptive events. What goes on in this industry shouldn’t affect the end users’ electric consumption in any way. A responsible business will invest in backup systems like generators to keep the business running whenever the power goes off.
4. Recycling Techniques
Virtually every business has a data centre in this technological age, which can sometimes be turned into energy generators. Imagine a turbine. It draws electricity on one side, spins the electrons around, and then emits what’s known as the “useful work.” By the time you’re done with this process, you’d have wasted 98 per cent of the electricity in the form of heat energy by-product.
But what if you could use this heat to power a different project? Wouldn’t you be saving a lot of electricity in the process? For example, instead of using extra electricity to heat the temperature inside a casino during winter, you could explore ways of directing this by-product heat energy to the floor. You could even use this energy to warm up the swimming pool water so your guests can enjoy all the comforts of your venue during the cold season.
People previously believed that the inevitable part of running a business was energy usage. Fortunately, this isn’t the case anymore. Today, if you plan to stay afloat in the casino industry, you must have complete control of your electricity consumption. The electricity demand has drastically increased over the years, and so has the cost. Ultimately, savvy investors know that the biggest mistake a business owner can make is to let efficiency come at the expense of productivity.
