VDI guideline 4801 for simple energy and resource management

Source: Energy Atlas Bavaria , 24 . October 2022

With the VDI guideline 4801, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can systematically improve resource and energy efficiency with reduced effort. The Bavarian State Office for the Environment (LfU) has developed an application guide for the introduction of the guideline.

An energy management system according to DIN EN ISO 50001 is generally also recommended for SMEs. If this is not possible, other systematic approaches help. One possibility describes the VDI Guideline 4801 "Resource efficiency in small and medium-sized enterprises" (2018) in the form of a continuous improvement process with low formal requirements. It contains practical strategies for the efficient use of resources and energy.

Guideline introduced at three pilot companies

The LfU has introduced and tested VDI Guideline 4801 in a pilot project at three SMEs - accompanied by an energy consultant. All three pilot companies benefited from the implementation, as they were able to identify procedures that systematically increased their operational resource efficiency. Difficulties and stumbling blocks in implementation were discussed in the project. Based on this, practicable and effective possible solutions were developed.

Application aid for VDI Guideline 4801

The central result of the project is an application aid in the form of a guide that simplifies the independent introduction of the guideline's methods. The application aid explains the individual steps and offers supplementary materials (work lists, fact sheets on useful methods, and documentation aids) as well as field reports from the pilot companies.

All details and aids for VDI Guideline 4801 can be found here.