Inefficient motor-powered equipment costing industry £640m
Energy efficiency news – by GreenWise staff
21st November 2011
Hundreds of thousands of pounds could be wiped off energy bills of UK industry through the use of more efficient motor-powered equipment, according to the Carbon Trust.
New guidance published by the
energy efficiency expert reveals
electric motors account for two thirds of UK
industrial electricity use and inefficient ones are costing businesses £640 million a year.
The
Carbon Trust guides outline how sectors such as the UK
food and drink industry could save up to £70 million per year by installing variable speed drives (VSDs) and more efficient motors. Other sectors such as plastics, rubber and chemicals could collectively save up to £270 million annually.
And the Carbon Trust has calculated that a
medium-sized business operating in the industrial sector with an annual electricity spend of £50,000 could achieve energy savings of £5000 a year through fitting VSDs and using more efficient motors.
"There is a massive £640 million to be saved if businesses can get their approach to motors and drives right," Richard Rugg, director of Carbon Trust Programmes, said. "While it’s sometimes easy to overlook, simple steps can make a big difference to energy costs."
Findings and tipsThe annual running costs of a single motor can be 10 times its purchase cost, according to the Carbon Trust research. The new guides, 'Variable Speed Drives’ and 'Motors And Drives’, provide advice and tips on how to achieve savings through more efficient equipment and better maintenance. A VSD on a fan or pump motor, for example, can save as much as 50 per cent of the motor’s energy usage by slowing it down by just 20 per cent, the guides suggest.
Other tips include setting the motor-powered equipment on a timer, minimising the demand being placed on the system, and maximising its efficiency through regular servicing and other measures to evaluate overall performance of the system and that of its individual components.
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