The 2.5 million refrigerated beverage vending machines in place in the United States consume approximately 7.5 billion kWh per year. This equipment costs American businesses nearly $600 million annually to power. The two major energy-consuming systems in beverage vending machines are lighting and refrigeration. Lighting accounts for roughly a third of machine energy use. Typically lighting consists of two T-12 fluorescent lamps and a magnetic ballast, and hence does not make use of widely available, more efficient technology such as T-8 lamps and electronic ballasts. Cooling the vending machine accounts for the remaining two-thirds of the energy use of the machine.

Substantial energy savings could be garnered through the adoption of more efficient, low-cost lighting and refrigeration technologies, most of which have already proven successful in other applications. Additionally, the machines are generally left on continuously, even during off-peak periods such as nights and weekends. Using control devices would result in additional savings.

• Current Activities to Promote Efficient Vending Machines
• Retrofit Device for Energy Savings
• What Can You Do

Current Activities to Promote Efficient Vending Machines

Until recently, efforts to capture the energy savings available from vending machines have been limited, due in part to the fact that the vending machine purchaser (i.e., the bottler or distributor) does not typically pay the electric bills, and that the end-user (e.g., hotel, office building, gas station, or university) who does pay the bill is often unaware of the cost to power the machine (roughly $250 per year per machine) and has not demanded more efficient models.

In 1997, the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) published a test method for measuring daily energy consumption of vending machines [American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-conditioning Engineers. 1997. Methods of Testing for Rating Bottled and Canned Beverage Vending Machines. ASHRAE 32.1-1997. Atlanta, Ga.: American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-conditioning Engineers].  This standard is based on a Canadian Standards Association (CSA) test method. The ASHRAE test procedure has been widely accepted and is currently being used by vending machine manufacturers. This test procedure provides a mechanism for interested parties to reliably compare the energy performance of the various vending machines; however, no organization publishes the results of manufacturer tests in one place. 

EPA worked with beverage companies and refrigerated vending machine manufacturers to develop an ENERGY STAR Vending Machine program.  The ENERGY STAR Tier 1 specification captures those machines that perform 45 percent better than the current CSA standard.  ENERGY STAR plans to release a Tier 2 minimum-efficiency requirement that requires a 55 percent energy saving over the CSA standard by 2007.  In anticipation of the ENERGY STAR specification, all three major U.S. vending machine manufacturers have introduced new units that meet the draft specification.  These machines are now available, and should be selected when purchasing new equipment.  Relative to a typical machine sold in recent years, such a machine will use 25 to 30 percent less electricity.  

Retrofit Devices for Energy Savings

In addition to the use of ENERGY STAR-labeled products, substantial energy can be saved through the application of controls. For example, the "Vending Miser," developed by Bayview Technologies, powers down the machine (including lights and refrigeration) whenever there is no foot traffic in front of the machine for a period of time.  The Vending Miser does this through the use of a motion sensor.  Other controls in the Vending Miser periodically power up the refrigeration system to maintain product temperature and to sense machine operation so that the vendor is only powered down when the compressor is not operating (in order to prevent adverse impacts on compressor life).  The Vending Miser sells for $179 per unit in quantities less than 500 units and costs about $30-55 to install (Nadel 2002).

Bayview estimates that savings range from 24 to 76 percent, with an average savings of about 46 percent, although savings vary depending on site use. The company estimates that the average vending machine uses 3,557 kWh per year, so 46 percent savings works out to 1,636 kWh per year. Tufts University has installed about 90 Vending Misers, saving about 1,700 kWh per machine annually. In the process, the university learned some lessons that it has published in a paper Vending Misers: Facts and Issues, to help other institutions develop Vending Miser projects successfully. The Northwest Power Planning Commission (NWPPC) estimated the savings for these controls as 1,292 kWh per year for illuminated machines and 861 kWh per year for non-illuminated ones.

Many utilities promote the Vending Miser through incentives or direct installation programs.  Some examples of program operators that give rebates for Vending Misers are NYSERDA -- $80 rebate; Northeast Utilities -- $75 rebate; Puget Sound Energy -- $40 rebate;  Efficiency Vermont -- $45 rebate; and California’s Express Efficiency program (operated by the three large investor-owned utilities)  -- $30 rebate normally, but $60 during special promotions.  Program operators that operate direct installation programs hire Bayview or another contractor to market the Vending Miser and install it free of charge. The Bonneville Power Administration, Sacramento Municipal Utility District, and Wisconsin Focus on Energy Program have taken this route (Wisconsin for schools only), negotiating prices per installed unit, including marketing, with Bayview (Bayview. 2002). 

What Can You Do

• Discuss with your beverage distributor whether you can retrofit your present vending machines with energy-saving controls. The company may have programmable controls to reduce electricity use. 
• Request information from the distributor or vending machine manufacturers on the energy performance of their products.
• Let your distributor know that you are interested in obtaining a more energy-efficient vending machine or a retrofit device that can help reduce your machines' energy usage. 
• Check with your local utility to see if it offers any promotion on vending machine controls. 
• Once the ENERGY STAR-labeling program for vending machines begins, specify that any vending machine installed shall meet the ENERGY STAR specification for energy efficiency.