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A major railroad company spends over $50 million annually on energy-related expenditures across more than 25,000 accounts. With such a large energy portfolio to consider, railroad leadership established an in-house energy management program to ensure continuous savings.

THE PROBLEM

The primary goal of the energy management program was to enable the railroad to more effectively manage energy costs and identify opportunities for better rates when procuring energy for its largest facilities. To this end, the organization had worked with an outside firm to create a database of historical energy costs and usage.

The database had significant gaps, though. Many accounts were not captured in the database, and many others had incomplete or inaccurate data. In addition, the reports available failed to summarize energy consumption in such a way that facilitated easy analysis.

The railroad’s leadership recognized that the organization did not have the resources or specialized skill sets needed to perform these historical reviews or rate analyses. The organization also had no direct experience procuring alternate electricity suppliers, and it turned to PK for help.

THE SOLUTION

PK’s Expense and Data Management team worked closely with the vendor in charge of maintaining the railroad’s energy database to perform a thorough, accurate historical review of accounts. The team identified critical errors and shortcomings in the existing database and developed meaningful analytical reports. PK also filled in gaps in the database using bill histories provided by utility companies. The team captured each line item, maintaining the highest quality standards while identifying opportunities for better rates.

Due to the size of the railroad company and the scope of the project, the review was conducted state by state in a three-phase process.

The project, which saved more than $868,000, positioned the railroad company to handle ongoing rate analyses in-house, for continuous cost savings.