Saving energy in plants enables companies to increase their competitiveness and free up new room for maneuver. Energy optimization represents a major challenge for the competitiveness and long-term viability of industrial companies. Potential savings are often poorly exploited, even though the gains to be made are fast and substantial. In the current energy crisis, the need to reduce energy costs is even more pressing. This trend is also part of a regulatory and political framework that is encouraging industries to optimize their energy consumption.
Follow our practical tips for reducing energy consumption in this article.
Auditing, measuring and analyzing the energy consumption of utilities (steam, fuel, electricity, cooling and air) is an essential step towards optimizing costs.
The industrial sector accounts for 9% of the cost of energy consumption in France. The final consumption of industry represents a significant share of total energy consumption in France. In this country, industry is the 3ᵉ most energy-intensive sector, particularly as regards natural gas and electricity, which alone account for 2/3 of the energy bill. Industrial companies whose sales exceed a certain threshold are subject to energy audit obligations. Industrial companies are also faced with a 5% annual rise in electricity prices. Electricity consumption is a major issue, and it is essential to control electricity consumption in plants in order to optimize costs and improve energy performance.
In this context and faced with these challenges, it is in the interest of every company director to optimize his or her processes and installations in order to save energy and minimize financial losses.
What are the main energy-consuming items in industrial companies?
Inadequate use of utilities leads to overconsumption, reduced equipment availability and production capacity, excessive heat build-up, repeated breakdowns and more curative maintenance.
Energy efficiency concerns all industrial activities and their environmental impact, in particular the reduction of carbon footprints and the optimization of processes linked to these activities.
The same is true of networks: poorly managed networks lead to higher production costs, inadequate energy supply, high losses in the form of heat, inappropriate power distribution and, consequently, lower energy yields. Every industrial activity needs to be analyzed to optimize its energy consumption and meet sustainable development requirements.
If this is not the case, energies are neither valorized nor redirected in an optimal way within the company to reduce industrialenergy consumption . All this translates in part into a reduction in the lifespan of production equipment, longer working hours and lower product quality and efficiency.
It is essential to draw up a precise audit report on the level of energy consumption to identify sources of waste and evaluate the possible return on investment (ROI). The aim of anenergy audit in industry is to identify energy efficiency levers, proposing appropriate measures, technologies and devices to improve the site's energy performance. It is also important to tailor solutions to the specific needs of each industrial site, in order to optimize energy management and overall performance.
A large proportion of industrial energy losses relate to utilities (steam, fuel, electricity, industrial refrigeration and compressed air): inaccurate or non-existent measurement of process or building consumption, failure to detect anomalies, inadequate or non-existent energy recovery, and so on. Automation, heat recovery, intelligent equipment management and local energy production are among the main energy optimization levers available to manufacturers. To reduce utility costs, it is essential to be able to measure, visualize and monitor consumption, and to set up control systems.
For a rapid impact, it's important to take steps to reduce these costs. By following practical advice and adopting simple gestures, such as optimizing lighting and regular equipment maintenance, it is possible to improve theenergy efficiency of a building or machine. Improving energy efficiency is at the heart of our approach, enabling us to optimize the overall performance of our facilities. This contributes to savings and lower energy bills. Companies' commitment to the energy transition is essential if we are to meet today's environmental challenges. What's more, the commitments made by companies to meet decarbonization targets reinforce their social responsibility. Last but not least, adopting these best practices can generate significant energy savings over the long term.
In concrete terms, a precise analysis of energy consumption, combined with appropriate action, enables utilities to be optimized and energy to be saved, as follows:
An audit with a detailed report on the sources of energy savings makes it possible to assess the return on investment (ROI) and identify sources of waste, which is essential for improving theenergy efficiency of industrial plants.
The measurement of saturated or superheated steam, and of pressure and temperature-corrected flow, is essential in industrial sectors such as food processing and the chemical and petrochemical industries for process heating.
Steam flow metering enables :
In the majority of industrial companies, gas, fuel oil and coal are used to produce heat for plant installations and industrial processes. Industries remain highly dependent on fossil fuels as raw materials.
Measuring fuel consumption enables :
Whatever your sector of activity, electricity is probably the most essential utility for the operation of your production equipment.
Electrical energy metering and optimization enable :
Although the food industry is the main consumer of energy in the form of industrial refrigeration to maintain the cold chain, other sectors such as pharmaceuticals and chemicals also make use of it (cooling circuits in processes, datacenters, industrial buildings, etc.).
Industrial refrigeration metering enables :
11% of industrial electricity production is dedicated to the manufacture of compressed air. For these industries, mastery of air network management is essential.
Collecting, analyzing and exploiting precise data on air consumption, selecting and installing compressed air meters and relevant energy performance indicators can generate between 15 and 30% savings in :
In many industries, a significant proportion of the energy consumed is dissipated in the form of waste heat from production equipment and processes. Yet all too often, this valuable resource remains untapped. Waste heat recovery involves capturing this wasted energy and reusing it within the company, for example to heat premises, produce steam or power cooling systems.
Setting up a waste heat recovery system requires an in-depth analysis of industrial processes and equipment to identify heat production points and recovery opportunities. By reinjecting this energy into the production cycle, companies can significantly reduce their energy consumption, make substantial savings on their bills and improve their overall energy efficiency. This optimization lever not only cuts costs, but also boosts industrial competitiveness, while meeting the challenges of the energy transition.
The success of an energy efficiency policy depends to a large extent on team involvement. Raising awareness and training employees in the challenges of energy sobriety is a powerful lever for reducing energy consumption in industry. By informing employees about the actions to adopt, the best practices to implement and the optimal use of equipment, companies can establish a genuine culture of energy sobriety.
Targeted training courses provide the necessary reflexes to optimize day-to-day energy management, detect waste and adopt eco-responsible behavior. This collective approach helps reduce energy consumption, cuts costs and strengthens team commitment to a common goal. The benefits are many: energy savings, reduced expenses, improved corporate image and an active contribution to the industrial sector's energy transition.
Renewable energies represent a promising solution for reducing energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions in factories and industrial sites. Thanks to innovation, new technologies are emerging that enable green energy to be produced more efficiently and at lower cost, thereby reducing the price tag on their bills. Industrial companies can take advantage of these advances to reduce their energy costs while improving their brand image.
The use of renewable energies, such as solar, wind and hydro power, can power not only industrial processes, but also buildings and vehicles. By integrating these energy sources into their operations, companies can not only reduce their energy consumption, but also contribute to a more sustainable future. Innovations in this field offer solutions tailored to the specific needs of manufacturers, making the transition to cleaner energy both viable and advantageous.
The advent of Industry 4.0 and digital transformation are opening up new prospects for energy efficiency in industry. Thanks to the integration of innovative technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI) and Big Data analysis, companies can monitor the energy consumption of their equipment in real time, anticipate drifts and optimize performance.
Energy management systems (EMS) connected to production tools make it possible to automatically adjust consumption to actual needs, identify sources of waste and plan preventive maintenance. This digitalization of processes helps to reduce energy consumption, improve plant efficiency and control costs. By adopting these digital solutions, industries boost their competitiveness and adopt a sustainable innovation approach to energy performance.
Industry has a significant environmental impact, mainly due to its energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. To improve their sustainability, industrial companies need to adopt measures to reduce this impact. Reducing energy consumption andadopting renewable energies are key solutions for minimizing industry's ecological footprint while improving profitability.
In addition, companies can adopt more efficient production practices to reduce energy losses. For example, optimizing production processes, regular equipment maintenance and the use of state-of-the-art technologies can all contribute to greater energy efficiency. By taking these steps, companies not only reduce their environmental impact, but can also achieve substantial energy savings, boosting their competitiveness in the marketplace.
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