Lopping the Heat Curve in retail

Energy is one of the biggest costs for retailers today and one that is set to keep rising. Heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems are often at the heart of those costs. Whether you run a small local retail outlet or manage a major shopping centre, keeping your space comfortable for customers and staff comes at a price.

Fortunately, modern HVAC technologies allow for smarter approaches to applying and controlling them. This provides opportunities to cut energy use without sacrificing comfort. One of the most effective, though not always widely understood, strategies is known as ‘lopping the heat curve.’

Combined with techniques such as heat recovery and controls technology, this approach can help retailers reduce energy bills, improve comfort, and take meaningful steps towards net zero targets.

What is “lopping the heat curve”?

Think of your store’s heating demand as a curve that rises and falls depending on factors such as the outside weather, how busy the store is, and even how often the doors are opening.

Traditionally, HVAC systems have been set to maintain steady levels of heating regardless of these fluctuations, which often leads to wasted energy and overheated spaces.

Lopping the heat curve means trimming back unnecessary heating during periods when it isn’t needed. For example this could be during spells of warmer weather, quieter trading times or when internal gains from lighting and equipment are already providing warmth.

Instead of running the system continuously at the same level, heating is adjusted dynamically to meet actual demand. The result is a more efficient system that avoids waste, reduces operational costs, and maintains a comfortable environment for shoppers and staff.

Issues and benefits 

Retail environments are uniquely challenging when it comes to energy control. Open doors, varying occupancy levels, and longer operating hours all put pressure on HVAC systems. Lopping the heat curve helps tackle these issues directly and delivers several benefits:

• Energy savings and cost reduction: Cutting out unnecessary heating reduces wasted energy, easing the burden of high utility bills.
• Customer comfort and dwell time:  Overheated or underheated spaces drive customers away. A well-controlled indoor climate encourages people to stay longer, which can boost sales.
• Product protection: From food to fashion, many goods are sensitive to extremes of heat or cold. Smarter temperature control helps protect stock.

Fine-tuning performance 

So, how do retailers lop the heat curve in practice? Several technologies and techniques are now available that make it much easier to fine-tune HVAC performance.

Advanced controls allow retail FMs to monitor and adjust heating remotely, even across multiple sites. Cloud-based platforms such as the MELCloud system enable energy use to be tracked and optimised in real time.

Controls also allow for zoning and demand control. So, rather than heating the whole store equally, retailers can divide their space into zones. Busy areas get the heating or cooling they need, while HVAC operation is ramped down in unoccupied or less-used areas so they consume less energy.

Demand-controlled ventilation takes this further by automatically adjusting airflow and temperature in response to occupancy. This relies on built-in sensors within indoor units that can track indoor temperature and CO2 levels.

But however well-controlled HVAC systems are, they require regular maintenance and upgrades at their end-of-life. Even the best systems will waste energy if poorly maintained. Regular servicing ensures HVAC operates at peak efficiency, while replacing ageing equipment with newer, more efficient models can deliver major savings over the long term.

Recovering wasted heat 

Another powerful tool for reducing energy use is heat recovery. Rather than rejecting valuable heat from the building, modern systems capture and reuse it.

For example, our Lossnay Heat Recovery Ventilation systems recover heat (and cooling energy) from stale air extracted from a store and use it to pre-condition the incoming outdoor air. This reduces the energy required to heat or cool the space, while also improving air quality for staff and customers.

And the City Multi VRF and HVRF systems can transfer heat between different parts of a store. In practice, this means heat removed from one zone in cooling mode can be delivered to another zone to deliver heating. The result is simultaneous heating and cooling with far less wasted energy, making it an ideal solution for complex retail environments.

These technologies reduce energy use and support healthier indoor environments. Fresh, filtered air with balanced humidity makes for a more pleasant shopping and working environment.

Comprehensively reducing energy 

Individually, each of these techniques - lopping the heat curve, heat recovery, zoning, smart controls - can deliver meaningful improvements. Together, they offer a comprehensive strategy for reducing energy use in retail buildings.

For retailers, the benefits extend beyond the bottom line. Lowering energy use helps demonstrate progress towards sustainability goals, respond to tightening carbon regulations, and show customers that your business is serious about responsible operations.

Crucially, none of this requires sacrificing comfort. In fact, smarter HVAC management makes shops more inviting and keeps customers browsing for longer. The retail sector is under enormous pressure to control costs while also moving towards net zero. HVAC systems are one of the most effective levers retailers can use to achieve both.

James McKoen is Business Development Manager