Prioritizing Energy Efficiency:

How do I prioritize energy efficiency for my clients? What do I look at within a facility to determine where capital should be spent to get the biggest bang for the buck?

There is no one answer that fits all cases. However, based on my experience and the current state of electricity consumption, electricity availability and future costs of electricity these priorities get easier to justify.

1. Compressed Air: There are many issues with compressed air lines, piping, drains dryers, filters, regulators, and tools within a plant using compressed air. Any of these can cost you money in lost production, excess electrical costs and excessive maintenance costs.
2. Power demand analysis: Understanding where your usage comes from, what your future use will be and how to provide for that usage in shrinking availability is a key issue in driving energy efficiency.
3. Peak demand control: Most utility companies charge a premium rate for your company using excessive energy whether it be in “prime” usage hours or “more” electricity than normal during a given time period. You pay this penalty for many months even if not using the electricity. Understanding your usage over time is a huge driver of energy efficiency. Monitoring and controlling usage to shave demand as you approach peak usage levels are what needs to be done.
4. Chillers: Chillers are one of those pieces of equipment that is sized for maximum load and, in most cases, rarely sees peak load. Much like air compressor issues such as piping, drains and leaks can cost you a lot of money. Temperature controls, variable speed drives, and load controls are some measures to provide energy efficiency.
5. HVAC: Especially, roof top HVAC units are susceptible to an out-of-sight out-of-mind attitude in many businesses. Many owners only think of their units when the cooling or heating does work. Once again, most are oversized for peak loads, but rarely operate at peak loads. Filters, drains, and belts require maintenance which often isn’t done frequently. Likewise, economizers and condensers require inspection to keep the unit running properly. Variable frequency drives, CRM motors provide energy efficiency and huge savings in energy costs.
6. Process controls: Controlling production whether it be a beverage line, paper printing line or machining facility. Controlling the processes that utilize electricity costs you money if not operating properly. Temperature, speed, water, time, air, heat and other sensors determine how much electricity is consumed. Process controls can be as simple as a switch or very complex involving a completely automated control system with many sensors being controlled by a PLC or computer.
7. Solar area lighting: Most people look at solar as those panels sitting on your house top or those panels sitting on a structure in a field somewhere or on that covered parking lot. The one area that is a prime candidate for solar is area lighting whether it be a parking lot, a dock, a pathway or bus stops. Solar costs very little to run (an occasional battery changeout) while saving many kilowatts of electricity. This is especially true of parking lots which are populated with 250 and 400-watt fixtures.
8. Motors and Drives: Motors operate the machinery in your facility. Today motors are considered energy efficient by manufacturers and by law. Such things as soft starters, stepped starting and variable frequency drives go a long way in helping these motors do their job efficiently. There are many opportunities to change inefficient motors to more efficient motors, such as evaporator motors and HVAC motors to CRM motors, installing variable frequency drives on your centrifugal pumps or HVAC units.
9. Setbacks: The simple act of setting temperatures lower/higher when a building is not in use saves considerable energy without compromising temperature when the building is in use. This can also include putting timers on equipment to ensure it is shut down when not in use. Load control monitors on computers, etc. “Ghost” users are all over the place and usually simple to reduce consumption.
10. Recapture: Third tier recover of heat from boilers or furnaces to heat spaces, heat water or processes cost very little but save you money. Using outside air with monitors can reduce heating and cooling costs by activating/deactivating HVAC.
11. Humans: While listing humans last, they are essentially the most important aspect of any energy efficiency project. They must believe and buy into any measure that is undertaken. This often requires education or a financial incentive on the owner’s part to get things started. After the owner’s/manager’s involvement it is up to the employees to turn the lights off, turn down the thermostat, ensure that the air leaks are fixed and all the other measures work properly or are installed not just left on the receiving dock.