Many businesses schedule a full or partial shutdown at the end of the year to perform equipment maintenance. The shutdown is an ideal time to upgrade lighting, HVAC units, controls and other systems to reduce your energy consumption without disrupting your business. The Con Edison green team is eager to help businesses that want to make energy-saving upgrades. Con Edison offers rebates, incentives and technical expertise through its Commercial and Industrial (C&I) Energy Efficiency Program to help cover equipment replacement costs. We'll even help you identify the upgrades and strategies that will help your business save energy. The result will be lower utility bills and a more comfortable space for customers and employees. For businesses planning a total shutdown, this checklist can help you maximize your energy savings and maintain a safe work environment during your closure. Consider these suggestions for offices, retail establishments, and other commercial facilities: * Lighting/Office Devices: 1. Be sure that all lighting that can be safely turned off is off - including desk and individual workstation lights. 2. When performing maintenance, use zoned lighting, if you can, rather than lighting the entire building. 3. Turn off office equipment such as computers, monitors, copiers, fax machines and printers. That's preferable to placing them in the "power save" mode. * HVAC Equipment and Settings: 1. Turn down the temperature in areas that will be unoccupied during the shutdown. 2. Make sure automated HVAC controls are set to "away" or "override" mode. 3. Close any doors or windows that allow air from cooler areas to enter. * Building Process Equipment: 1. Make sure compressed air systems are turned off where possible. 2. Be sure that all unnecessary process equipment is off or in "idle" mode. 3. Turn off or reduce the settings on process heating equipment. David Pospisil is a program manager of Con Edison's commercial & industrial energy efficiency program, New York, N.Y.