Reducing the Energy Consumption within the Retail Industry : A Case Study of Scania, Prestons

The importance of reducing the energy consumption and commit towards sustainability efforts has become increasingly important for organizations to consider. Often, managers rely on technology to reduce the energy consumption within facilities. The importance of the behaviour of people within the facility is often overlooked. This thesis focus on investigating how the retail industry in Australia can reduce its energy consumption by changing the behaviours of employees within the facilities. In order to answer how the retail industry can reduce its consumption the following research questions was established: - What processes contributes to the energy consumption at a retail facility? - How does occupant behaviour affect the energy consumption at a retail facility? - How does internal influence barriers for an organization affect the energy consumption within a retail facility? The following master thesis of 30 ECTS is a qualitative, explorative case study conducted at one of Scanias facilities in Prestons, Sydney. With roughly 80 employees and 12 workshop bays. Primary data have been collected from semi-structured interviews, observations and survey questions. The results showed that behaviour are influenced by many drivers and personal values are often not a good predictor of behaviour. Internal barriers occurring in the facility are lack of vision, people, communication, resource and management. Furthermore, norms and behavioural practices change along with the change of environment. Conversations about energy and sharing of energy-efficient experiences and knowledge are not occurring in the facility. However, there is a strong willingness and desire to change and to develop more efficient behaviours at the facility in Sydney. Lastly, occupant behaviour such as lack of communication, turning off the lights or AC and not turning off their computers are the biggest contributors to the energy being consumed in a retail facility