Vending Machine Energy Efficiency
Laura Schaffer, Taylor McEldowney, Lindsey Hoyem, Nathan Lawlor Introduction
Boston College (BC) possesses 146 operational
vending machines located across its Main Campus,
Brighton Campus, and Newton Campus. Of these 146
machines, 101 are beverage machines provided by Coca-­
Cola and 45 are snack machines provided by Next
Generation. Vending machines are extremely energy
intensive appliances that often function throughout the
day, generating large electric bills for their users. %&¶V
146 vending machines cost $15,529.52 and emit 119.41
tons of carbon dioxide annually.
Vending machine energy usage at BC represents a
significant portion of the 8QLYHUVLW\¶V energy expenses,
thus identifying strategies to reduce energy output
provides valuable insight. In order to determine all
possible methods to reduce energy usage, our team
documented all of the vending machines across campus,
measured the energy use of multiple models, researched
the available alternatives and results of implementing
these changes, and created a cost-­benefit analysis to
quantify our findings. We examined retrofitting options
including adding compressor controllers, de-­lamping the
machines, and utilizing energy conservation devices.
Results and Calculations
Analysis
Table 1: Pros and Cons of Retrofitting Options
Pros
Cons
140.00
120.00
119.41
119.10
100.00
87.95
77.42
80.00
88.59
Next
Generation
Coke
60.00
40.00
Free to BC
Brighter lights 2nd best cost and C02 savings Lengthens life of machine3
x May increase sales3
‡
x
x
x
x
20.00
0.00
Base Case
NextGen/LED Vending Miser
Delamping
Compressor
Control
Figure 3: Total carbon dioxide emissions (in tons) annually for the base case and each retrofitting option.
A
$18,000
$16,000
Figure 1: (A) Map of the distribution of Coca-­Cola vending PDFKLQHVRQ%&¶V0DLQ&DPSXV(B) Map showing the locations of the Next Generation snack vending machines.
$15,529
$15,490
$14,000
$11,526
$11,420
$12,000
Next
Generation
$10,069
$10,000
Coke
$8,000
$6,000
Methods
Research
‡ Researched external documents which described
studies involving vending machine energy efficiency
Data collection
‡ Personally measured the energy output of drink and snack vending machines
‡ Collected information regarding vending machine models and best practices from BC, Next Generation and Coca Cola representatives
‡ Documented the model number, location, ENERGY STAR certification, and lighting in all machines
Analysis
‡ Created a cost benefit analysis of the data to find the best economic and environmental solutions
‡ Graphically represented data to more clearly understand the findings
‡ Contacted BC, Next Generation, and Coca Cola representatives to understand the feasibility of solutions
LED Lights x
x
Vending/
x
Snack Miser
x
$4,000
$2,000
$0
Base Case
NextGen/LED
Vending Miser
Delamping Compressor Control
B
$150.00
$132.12
$132.12
$95.87
$100.00
$85.88
$92.49
Coke
Next Generation
$50.00
$47.50
$47.50
$46.65
$37.76
$30.32
De-­lamping x Best annual cost and x
C02 savings x
x Reduces maintenance costs3 x
x No extra equipment
Compressor x 3rd best cost and x
Control C02 savings
x Extend machine life2 x
x Reduces maintenance costs2
Takes time and labor
Costly ± 5.64 year payback period Hard to install
Extra labor costs1
Cannot use with current card readers
May reduce profits3
May incur additional labor costs Management may not support it
Costly ± 3.15 year payback period Sometimes hard to install and can incur extra labor costs2
Recommendations
We recommend installing LED lights into the Next Generation
machines and compressor controls into the Coke machines.
Installing LED lights has almost no downsides. Although it
provides modest savings of just $39, there are minimal
downsides. In addition, we recommend installing compressor
controls. Though the payback period for this option is three
years, it is the best option in terms of cost savings and
feasibility. The two options combined provide cost savings of
$4,043 and carbon dioxide savings of 31 tons annually. The
BC Administration should also look into shutting down some
machines in high volume vending areas to even further reduce
energy costs.
References
1 ³9HQGLQJ0LVHUV´Office of Sustainability. Tufts University, 2001. $0.00
Figure 2: Images of the Next Generation snack vending machine (left) and Coca-­Cola beverage vending machine (right).
2 Morton-HQQLH³:D\VWR*UHHQ<RXU9HQGLQJ0DFKLQHV´Buildings Smarter
Base Case
NextGen/LED
Vending Miser
Delamping
Compressor
Control
Figure 4: (A) The total energy costs of the vending machines in the base case and retrofitting options. (B) Total energy costs per vending machine in the base case and retrofitting options.
Facility Management. Stamats Communications, Inc., 18 Oct. 2012.
3 ³9HQGLQJMiser Frequently Asked Questions´Energy Misers. Sanders and
Associates, LLC.
4³&RFD-­&ROD/RJR´[Online Image] The Coca-­Cola Company Web. 27 Apr. 2014.
5³1H[WGeneration Vending, LLC. Logo" [Online Image] Next Generation Vending,
LLC.Web. 27 Apr. 2014.