MARKETING MANAGEMENT PROCESS

Marketing Management Process for an Energy Gymnasium

Introduction

This report evaluates the installation of 15 ReRev elliptical-training units within Body Matters, a gym in Sydney, Australia, whose construction is slated to begin in 2012. This proposal consists of evaluating the environmental impacts of manufacturing and disposing of this technology, its energy output, and the resulting financial and social benefits it incurs. This technology qualifies as a Micro Renewable Energy System (MRES). It harvests kinetic energy from the Precor EFX546i elliptical machine retrofitted by ReRev. Such green gyms have been installed in a multitude of universities with great success.

Environmental Impact

In this section, the environmental impacts of the ReRev system are discussed. In particular, the environmental repercussions of the construction and disposal of the ReRev system, its electrical energy output, and its potential for environmental education are considered.

Energy Output

When someone exercises on an elliptical machine, they are burning calories; converting the potential energy stored in their bodies into kinetic energy. This kinetic energy is dissipated as heat inside the machine by a power resistor. Essentially, this human generated energy is wasted--the heat dissipated increases the temperature in the room. Instead, using the ReRev system, elliptical machines can be retrofitted with generators that harvest the kinetic energy, converting it to DC power. The DC electricity can then be sent to an inverter that will convert it into the AC electricity suitable for powering the building (Kotler, 2003, pp 98).

An average 30 minute workout can create 50 watt hours (WH) of electricity: this is enough energy to charge 6 cell phones or run a laptop for 1 hour. One unit does not produce much energy; however, when put together, the energy output is more substantial. For example, if 10 machines are used for 8 hours per day, the energy production jumps to 12 kWh--enough to power 240 laptops for an hour. According to BCHydro, 25 tons of CO2 are released per GWh of power consumed. Using this figure, one ReRev machine would save 0.2 kg of CO2 per day. Over the entire lifetime of the machine, this translates to 730 kg of CO2.The ReRev machines can also have displays on them on which the user can see how much electricity they are generating during their workout. This aligns with the new SUB project's goal of "[providing] advanced building systems visibility and visible systems monitoring".

Manufacturing

It is not possible to avoid the fact that the manufacturing processes for elliptical machines have negative environmental impacts. The steel required to construct each machine requires on a large amount of energy to be processed from the ore, purified and formed. The Precor EFX546i elliptical machine has a mass of 144 kg, so assuming that it has 125 kg of steel in it, the production of that quantity of steel would release on average 312.5 kg of CO2.

Furthermore, plastic used in the machine's construction produces waste and hazardous materials during the manufacturing process. However, over the machine's entire lifetime, approximately 730 fewer kilograms of CO2 enter the ...