Have you ever seen an access control system that can calculate an ROI?
In workers accommodation, there are predictable periods where rooms sit empty. And in extreme climates, we all know what usually happens: guests leave the AC running so their room feels perfect when they get back. They’re not paying the bill, so they don’t think twice. Blyx handles all this automatically, without asking guests or staff to change a thing.
Blyx reads reservation data (and shift data when available) and at a set time — often 8am — it checks every room. If a room is vacant, it adjusts the AC based on the outside temperature:
• Mild day → AC off
• Cold → Heating lowered
• Blistering hot → Temperature setpoint increased
The goal is simple: reduce wasted energy without creating such a big temperature swing that it costs you more to reset the room later.Then, in the afternoon (usually 2–3pm), Blyx brings the room gradually back to the guest’s preferred temperature so it’s comfortable the moment they walk in.
So what does this mean in simple numbers?
Let’s paint a basic picture:
• Room temperature set by guest: 20°C
• Outside temperature: 40°C
• Average AC consumption: 0.75 kW per hour
• Energy price: $0.30 per kWh
If the unit runs 24/7, that’s:
0.75 kW × 24 hrs = 18 kWh per day
18 kWh × $0.30 = $5.40 per day
Now let’s say Blyx adjusts the AC from 20°C up to 26°C between 8am–2pm before cooling it back down.
This typically reduces daily usage by 40–60%.
To stay conservative, let’s use 40%, which means:
40% of $5.40 = $2.16 saved per day.
Now assume the room is occupied 75% of the year — that’s 274 days.
274 days × $2.16 = $591.84 saved per room, per year just from daytime AC optimisation.
If you’re retrofitting at roughly $2,200 installed per room, that’s an ROI of 3.71 years.
If it’s a new build closer to $1,500 installed, the ROI improves to 2.53 years.
And remember — this is from one feature of the Blyx platform.
But what about the days rooms aren’t occupied — the other 91 days of the year?
Most facilities assume housekeeping turns the AC off on departure… but let’s be realistic. It doesn’t happen every time. Let’s say even 30% of the departures get missed. That means 27 days where an AC might run nonstop in an empty room — and with no reservation, a normal system wouldn’t do a thing to stop it.
Without Blyx, that’s:
27 days × $5.40 = $145.80 in pure waste.
With Blyx, this simply doesn’t happen.
If there’s no reservation, Blyx doesn’t just adjust the temperature — it turns the unit off completely, stopping that waste before it starts.
When you start adding numbers like this together, it really does stack up. And sure, on a mine site, a few hundred dollars here and there might not feel huge — but across hundreds of rooms, over a full year, and across multiple villages, it turns into serious savings without anyone lifting a finger. And that’s assuming power is only $0.30 per kWh, which is actually conservative if you’re running on diesel generators. I’m sure the person paying the fuel bill would be more than happy to know there are real savings sitting right there.
If you’d like to know what this looks like for your facility, we’d be happy to run tailored numbers. We can show you exactly what Blyx can save and what it would cost to get started.
Disclaimer: The numbers in this article are based on general averages and approximate pricing. Actual calculations depend on your site, climate, occupancy patterns, and installation requirements.
