Energy saving for manufacturing businesses

Manufacturing motors

• Install variable-speed drives in your fans and pumps
• Invest in high-efficiency motors, as identified on the government's ETL (or Energy Technology Product List, ETPL)
• Maintain motor systems by lubricating them and checking the belt’s tightness and alignment

Utilising variable speed drives to reduce motor speed by 20% can lead to energy savings of 50%

Compressed air

• Consider reducing the operating pressure of your compressed air
• A 1-bar reduction could save about 7% of the energy
• Switch compressors off when not in use

A compressor that’s left on but not used consumes up to 70% of its full load power

Factory heating and insulation

• Recirculate the heat created by production lines to warm your premises
• Ensure your boiler is regularly serviced and tuned
• Check the insulation on hot and cold pipework and valve flanges
• Use lids on process tanks, especially out of hours, to prevent evaporation loss

Energy consumption in UK industry increased by 4.2% in 2021

Factory lighting

• Encourage staff to switch lights off when they’re not needed
• Use movement detectors, time switches and daylight sensors
• Label switches so it’s easy to see which one controls which light
• Make the best use of natural light by opening blinds in the day
• Replace traditional light bulbs with LED ones

Installing energy-efficient lights could reduce energy wastage through heat from 95% to just 5%

Refrigeration

• Regularly defrost and clean fridges
• Check that the seals on cold rooms and fridges are intact
• Keep the condensers and evaporators on your fridges and cooling equipment clean
• Only use the appliance size you need – smaller appliances are likely to be cheaper to run

When buying new refrigerators, A+++ is the most efficient rating