Industrial Utility Efficiency

Compressor Controls

A large chemical plant in Celje, Slovenia, planned to retrofit a kiln used to produce titanium dioxide. To make space for the new equipment related to the retrofit, the plant needed to relocate its high-pressure compressed air system feeding an adjacent pressing process used to dry the material before firing it in the kiln. However, a comprehensive compressed air audit using cloud-based software showed the plant did not need to relocate the system.

Mattei Dresses Up a Textile Compressed Air System

This textile plant uses compressed air in their knitting, sewing, and dye house operations and needed a system designed for the significant fluctuations in demand. Compressed air demand profiles were placed into four segments; 1st shift peak demand and minimum demand, and 2nd shift peak demand and minimum demand.

Grimmway Farms Implements System Automation

This article presents a case study of Grimmway Farms; a carrot growing and packing firm located in California’s Central Valley that was able to improve its compressed air system efficiency after implementing system automation and making relatively small equipment and piping changes.

Evaluating Central Compressed Air Management Systems

Productivity and profits are very directly linked to the compressed air system, as is waste elimination. High performance central compressed air management systems can respond quickly to even extreme system fluctuations, improving productivity and minimizing energy waste.  This is accomplished with modern software systems analyzing and processing appropriate data and triggering proactive actions - before the dynamics effect the compressed air production system.

Control Systems for Small and Medium-Sized Air Compressors

In today’s world, where “green” is “gold”, the efficient operation of multiple air compressors has taken on a new sense of urgency. In an era where giant manufacturing campuses with huge compressed air systems are fast disappearing, the emphasis shifts now to improving the efficiency of the higher numbers of installed small and medium size air compressors.

Bottling System Air Recovery at NPE 2009

The NPE2009 international plastics showcase was held June 22-26 in Chicago’s McCormick Place. While attendance was down from NPE2006, the preliminary total of visitor registrations numbered 44,000. Sustainability and energy efficiency was a prominent topic in the booths of exhibitors. Manufacturers of compressed air and injection molding equipment had many developments with Sustainability to show the visitors to NPE2009.

Green Printer Reduces Energy Costs by 50%

The primary objective of this case study is to illustrate the process in which industrial facilities can qualify for energy incentives on projects that reduce the energy usage of their compressed air system.

Seven Sustainability Projects: Air Compressors

Reducing energy costs and pollution emissions involves many areas within an industrial facility.  My studies have found seven (7) key (or common) areas where low cost practical projects can be implemented.  Combined, these projects provide savings exceeding 10% of the annual energy spend with an average payback of less than one year.