Trends to achieve high energy savings in industrial plants

Today, in order to achieve large energy savings in industrial plants, new technologies based on the connection of smart devices are being implemented, allowing organisations to easily collect valuable information from machines.

Now, the energy consumption data can be securely collected, tracked and shared, as well as production data. Equipped with this information, plant operators and managers can make adjustments to machines and processes to support smarter and more efficient energy use.

However, purchasing more energy-efficient equipment is one thing, while understanding how to use it to achieve energy savings in industrial plants is another. Information-enabled operations can help operations and production managers optimise their energy consumption and reduce energy-related costs, using two key metrics:

• Energy consumption per unit of output, and
• Operational energy performance.

Energy consumption per unit of output can help industries understand energy intensity (Intensity=kW/unit of output) and the extent to which energy contributes to the cost of specific assets and processes. Operations can use this information to establish baselines to measure improvements and identify scenarios where more information is needed.

Operational energy performance can help operations managers understand energy efficiency (efficiency=productive energy/total energy) by comparing the energy consumed during manufacturing against the total energy consumed during a set period of time.

What is the best alternative to achieve energy savings in industrial plants?

The global industrial sector consumes approximately half of the world's total energy supply. Amidst these high usage rates and constantly fluctuating energy prices, it is no surprise that manufacturers are working to improve the energy efficiency of their facilities as a key action as they move forward in their efforts to reduce costs.

By now, however, many organisations have exhausted the industrial plant energy savings options available to them and are at a point where energy costs are considered an expense that can no longer be controlled. Fortunately, energy savings can be achieved in industrial plants through the shaft alignment on rotating machines.

It has long been known among production and maintenance managers that the energy consumption of a motor is lower when it is aligned than when it is misaligned. Several studies have been carried out on this subject and have shown varied results. Energy savings in industrial plants, specifically in aligned machines, range from 1% to as much as 10%.

Many companies are still ignorant of the energy savings in industrial plants mainly due to alignment. However, they do have an intuitive sense, which tells them that a machine with less stress to overcome, due to misalignment, will have lower energy consumption.

However, in the field, there are many variables at play that can affect energy consumption, such as engine efficiency, load, frequency variatorsThe following criteria should be taken into account: type of coupling, type of coupling, proper installation, proper lubrication, wear condition of components, appropriate design for the service, etc.

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