Conveyor Energy Monitoring: Important Step in Energy Management Plan
June 11, 2013
Information monitoring is the key to an effective energy management plan. Cliff Whitehead, Manager of Strategic Applications at Rockwell Automation, says, “Corporate accountants are starting to listen to the energy cost conversation for production lines, so production equipment energy planning is definitely in order.”
He offers a four-level strategy for production equipment energy management:
1. Monitor and report energy usage at the device and equipment level.
2. Allocate energy cost based on actual usage.
3. Optimize machines and devices (reduce electricity, air, water, etc.)
4. Aggregate the results and review production alternatives to reduce energy usage without compromising product quality and delivery.
Having the knowledge of where the energy is being consumed is as important as when energy is not necessary. A minimum recommended action to optimize energy on conveyor lines is to monitor energy usage. Knowing your energy usage will help drive awareness and ultimately drive savings.
For more information, visit Nercon’s white paper, “Best Practices for Improving Energy Efficiency on Packaging Conveyor Lines."
