Food Processing - June 2008 - (Page 52)

P L A N T O P E R AT I O N S This past earth day (April 22), Frito-Lay dedicated a system of 192 parabolic-mirrored solar collectors covering five acres at the sunchips plant in modesto, calif. focus of upgrades to again capture exhaust gas and raise boiler feed-water temperature. Then there’s the electricity used throughout the site. Boilers present perhaps the biggest opportunity for indirect energy improvement, because “some of the old boilers aren’t efficient enough to improve,” says Praj Schneider’s Ware. Large systems are 75-85 percent efficient, while the newer are efficient into the 90s. “You can add economizers, extend exchange surfaces in existing boilers and generally capture heat that otherwise would be wasted out the stack,” he says. Reclaiming and reusing heat to raise feedwater temperature reduces gas consumption, can prolong feedwater temperature retention, reduce repairs and increase boiler capacity more than 5 percent. Reducing steam pressure from 125 psi to 100 psi alone can save thousands of dollars per year. Add current-generation controls and “you can reduce energy usage by 20 percent,” Ware adds. Compressors present a major electric-savings opportunity. Simply plugging air leaks can reduce consumption 10 percent – or any multiple of that. Likewise, proper staging, sizing and maintenance of “The main thing we emphasize is the business case for a highperformance building that does all the things you need it to do with a minimal amount of waste,” says Mike Opitz, director of LEED implementation at the Green Building Council. “The thing LEED drives home is that this is this is not just about the marketing buzz,” adds Darryl Wernimont, partner at the Haskell Co. (www.thehaskellco.com), Jacksonville, Fla. “And people also need to understand that registering a project is only an initial step in the LEED certification process. Running efficiently requires ongoing maintenance.” Whether or not you pursue a national certification for your plant, the best first step is usually a step through the doors of a local utility or energy company. “I would start at the state energy office,” says Paul Zoby, vice president with the energy management firm American Energy Assets (AEA) (www.americanenergyassets.com), Denver. Most states have a “very proactive, locally focused energy office with lists of providers they’ve worked with. They’re also an excellent source for locating funding and incentives, because they’re as motivated as the end-users to put to work the funds they have.” Local utilities serve an overlapping role, and increasing numbers of them offer free classes and preliminary walk-throughs, often free of charge, as a starting point. For example, DTE Energy, a Detroit gas and electric utility, performs such tours. “We won’t re-engineer your process line or boiler, but we are trained to recognize areas that might be improved upon and help you find some areas to pay special attention to. Then we can help you find the engineering consultants you might want to use,” says Bob Fegan, principal energy management consultant. Through DTE, Fegan also is active with the Energy Solutions Center, a consortium of more than 60 U.S. utilities, municipal energy authorities and a sub-group, the Food Processing Consortium, which is helping add more specificity to these efforts. Turning up (and down) the heat of all the reasons to go green, saving money apparently is the greenest for many companies. A survey across industry lines – taken last fall by ssoe, a Toledo, ohio, architectural, engineering and construction firm – found reduced energy use as companies’ no. 1 goal within their sustainability initiatives. of those surveyed, 64 percent of food and beverage companies had some sustainability goals in place. The survey found that size matters: While 58 percent of all publicly held firms and 64 percent of companies with more than 10,000 employees have sustainability goals, only 40 percent of private companies and 28 percent of food companies with fewer than 100 employees have sustainability goals. EnErgy savings is Top grEEn goal ToP 10 susTAinAbiLiTy goALs energy use reduction recycling Facility design use of energy-efficient products and equipment Hazardous waste reduction Waste reduction, eliminating scrap in production emissions reduction carbon footprint measurement minimize impact of end product Procurement of sustainable raw materials Source: SSOE 74% 58% 51% 50% 44% 39% 36% 28% 24% 23% Food plants generally consume three kinds of energy. Direct-fired gas, such as that used for fryers, offers chances to capture waste heat through upgrades for flue gas recovery, which can assist with indirect heating. Indirect-fired gas energy heats boilers, which is commonly the 52 • Food Processing June 2008 FoodProcessing.com http://www.americanenergyassets.com http://foodprocessing.com

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Food Processing - June 2008

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