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Manufacturing facilities are among the largest consumers of energy, and efforts to improve energy efficiency are an increasing concern for many facility owners. An energy appraisal on insulation can be a valuable tool for addressing energy concerns. An appraisal can identify under-insulated and uninsulated surfaces and provide economic justification to correct these costly deficiencies.
A certified energy appraiser thoroughly evaluates a facility’s insulated and uninsulated systems (or the specific scope that has been identified) through visual inspection, interviews, calculations, and analysis. Utilizing infrared cameras to identify sources of heat loss, the thermal performance of insulated piping and equipment can be compared to any uninsulated or under-insulated piping and equipment in the facility. Based on the analysis, the appraiser can document the BTUs/dollars/emissions that users are saving or losing with the current system, as well as the potential savings and reduced emissions an insulation upgrade, replacement, and/or maintenance program could provide.
For example, an appraisal performed at a water treatment facility in Canada uncovered substantial savings from just replacing, and in some cases merely tightening, the removable covers (blankets) that were improperly installed or weathered to the point of providing little to no value. There was a total of 80 items identified as energy appraisal items. For these items, the BTU losses “as-is” and the BTU losses “after repair” were both calculated and compared, and the subsequent delta valve provided estimated BTU savings. The savings amounted to just over $67,000 per year. This equates to an overall payback period of just under two years.
An energy appraisal can also help facility owners justify insulation design changes. For example, an appraisal was performed on the insulated lines in the steam distribution system for the tire presses at a large tire manufacturing facility. Appraisers used infrared and visual light imagery to estimate the cost for insulation installations and savings in BTUs and dollars per year after insulation repairs. The customer proceeded with the recommended repairs to 16 presses and installed steam flow meters on each press to better measure the success of the insulation design change. Steam flow was measured before and after the installation, which uncovered nearly $4,000 of annual savings and an ROI of less than 10 months. To date, a total of 52 tire presses have undergone the insulation design changes, resulting in energy savings of nearly $600,000 per year. The tire manufacturer has approximately 400 more tire presses that will be insulated, which could result in potential savings of an additional $1.5 million.
A customized final report should identify recommendations for insulation optimization and calculate the potential return on investment (ROI). The detailed report should be well written, containing neatly labeled pictures of problem areas (with thermal images, if available). Beyond a written report, customers get more value out of digital, interactive access to appraisal findings and data, as shown in Figure 1. Access to this type of personalized dashboard, using business intelligence software, provides customers with the ability to analyze the data and apply calculations to determine project costs and projected ROI on the fly.
Ultimately, an energy appraisal is a powerful tool to help facilities evaluate their current systems or plans for expansion while increasing their bottom line and decreasing their environmental impact.
For more information, visit www.brockgroup.com or call (281) 807-8200.
