During these difficult economic times, businesses are scrambling to save money. One way is to reduce their energy usage, and Boise State and the Idaho Small Business Development Center (a service arm of COBE) are teaming up to help them do so.

Boise State students from a variety of disciplines — business, engineering, construction management and environmental health and science — are being trained to analyze utility bills and complete on-site energy evaluations. The students will learn about various types of lamps and lighting technology and complete practice evaluations this month before beginning energy audits later this semester.

Following the evaluation, the businesses will receive a detailed report that explains current energy use, recommends ways to reduce energy use, provides calculations for return on investment and paybacks, and identifies utility incentive programs and other financing options.

“Small businesses can save as much as 20 percent on their utility bills through energy efficiency,” said Joan Meitl, Idaho SBDC’s environmental assistance coordinator. “Our evaluations will help businesses manage their energy costs.”

Adoption of energy efficiency measures by small businesses has been relatively limited, Meitl said, as they are busy running operations and do not have time to learn about energy saving options or available incentives. The no-cost service hopefully will be of value to businesses that typically would not hire a professional auditor or do an energy evaluation on their own.

The evaluations will be scheduled during Boise State’s fall and spring semesters. In 2010, the program is expected to expand to other regions of Idaho. Interested businesses can ext. 6-1511 or send an e-mail to energy@idahosbdc.org to sign up for the no-cost evaluations.