Campus Energy Consumption

Most buildings on campus are controlled by a Building Energy Management System (BEMS), which operates a flexible heating and ventilation regime across campus and helps reduce RGU’s energy consumption and associated carbon emissions.

Like other public sector bodies, Robert Gordon University has a duty to contribute to the Scottish Government’s climate change targets. RGU must report on their annual greenhouse gases and efforts to tackle climate change. There are accepted standards used to understand, quantify and report Green House Gas (GHG) emissions.

• Scope 1 emissions refer to the GHGs that RGU creates directly, for example, while running boilers.
• Scope 2 emissions are made by RGU indirectly, so when the University buys electricity or energy for heating buildings.
• Scope 3 emissions usually account for the highest proportion of total emissions and are comprised of all other indirect emissions.

The University publishes a Climate Change report every year:

Energy Consumption

Our interactive table shows each building’s monthly electricity and gas consumption since our 2015/16 baseline year.

To switch between electricity and gas, and non-residential and residential buildings, use the boxes at the top of the screen.
To view specific years, select the relevant year in the “Academic Year” menu on the top left of the screen. To view multiple years at once, hold Ctrl as you select the years required.
To view specific buildings, use the Building menu on the top right or select the building from the table .
To undo selections, press the eraser image that appears next to each table title.

Paper Consumption

The consumption of paper is a substantial emitter of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions. Paper-based products require trees for production, which is unfortunate as trees absorb GHG emissions. To avert rising global temperature, we must greatly reduce our consumption of paper to maintain our planet’s existing tree population. We can do this by utilising our existing digital technology, for example viewing documents on screens, sending emails, and taking digital notes.

For the year 1 August 2024 to 1 July 2025, RGU has printed 7,347kg of paper , which is the equivalent of 147 trees. It is estimated that a standard pine tree, with 45ft of the usable trunk and a diameter of 8 inches, will produce around 10,000 sheets of paper.

The table presents each building's paper consumption from 1 August 2024 to 1 July 2025. Red cells highlight buildings which have consumed more this academic year compared to the previous academic year: