Decreasing Your Energy Use Footprint Through Industrial Energy Auditing

By gaining a better understanding of energy efficiency not only will it improve energy performance but it is also financially beneficial.  To this end, energy audits have been performed for years in home and office building settings in order to reduce energy use and operating costs.  These audits have included performing an analysis of existing systems, providing feedback for options on efficiency upgrades, and performing an energy cost evaluation.  Rarely though have these same principals been applied to an industrial setting where perhaps a much larger impact could be achieved.  In such industrial settings the production equipment in use is often many years if not decades old.  For these processes, newer technology could provide simple upgrades or reconfiguration which will directly result in lowering the energy usage of each operation.  In addition to such modifications for existing systems, it is often beneficial to review the possible use of green energy alternatives and feed stock material substitutes.  These options and modifications can significantly lower the energy footprint of each company.  Therefore, with rising energy costs, environmental policy changes, mandatory emission reductions, and existing energy inefficiencies, there may be no better time than now to develop an active energy audit program for your industrial facilities.  This paper presents the basics of developing, implementing and benefitting from such an audit plan for an industrial facility.  Also provided are some helpful tips and guidance on where the most beneficial areas to review for most general industrial complexes.