CHICAGO — According to data analysis by Statista, a global data and business intelligence platform, U.S. energy costs—including electricity, natural gas and fuel oil—have been on an upward trend over the past several years.
The increase in prices has been felt by individuals and businesses, including laundry and linen services. One method to help operators keep energy costs as low as possible is to conduct an energy audit.
This audit is a systematic assessment of a facility’s energy consumption and expenditures. It is an examination, evaluation and ultimately recommendations from an exercise or series of inspections of industrial and commercial properties.
“We use an energy audit to find opportunities for improving energy efficiency and reducing costs,” says David Bernstein, president and “chief propellerhead” of Propeller Solutions Group, a provider of laundry engineering, training and consulting services based in Livingston, Texas.
This can involve analyzing utility bills, evaluating equipment performance, examining preventive maintenance practices, metering and measuring energy usage (where possible), and identifying areas for process improvement throughout the facility, particularly in production areas.
Gerard O’Neill is president and CEO of American Laundry Systems (A Division of E&O Mechanical Inc.), a laundry consulting company based in Derry, New Hampshire. He says the emphasis during these types of inspections in the laundry world is to uncover any and all energy losses.
Pertl & Alexander, based in Manilus, New York, specializes in the design and management of laundry, housekeeping, textile, and valet operations. President Matthew Alexander says an energy audit typically “focuses on MEP (mechanical, electrical and plumbing) process systems, production equipment and operating practices.”
SELF-AUDITS
A self-conducted energy audit starts with daily meter readings and monthly utility-bill analysis, according to Bernstein.
“Assign someone responsible for taking gas, electrical and water meter readings at the exact same time each day,” he advises. “Subtract yesterday’s readings from today’s to determine usage over the past 24 hours, then divide those numbers by the total poundage processed during that same period.
“Tracking basic metrics like gallons of water per pound, Btu of gas per pound, and kilowatt-hour (kWh) of electricity per pound on a simple spreadsheet with graphs is easy to do, reveals trends, and oftentimes exposes problem areas.”
Examine these spreadsheets and charts on a regular basis, Bernstein continues.
“Not only will they establish a baseline from which to begin making improvements, but they will also help you to start seeing unexplained increases in utility usage, at which point you can perform simple root-cause analysis to help you investigate where waste is occurring.
“Increased electricity usage could come from air leaks, compressor inefficiencies, or motor and drive issues. A jump in water consumption could indicate water leak in pipes or washer drains or a malfunctioning water-reuse system. And when gas usage begins to climb, it’s time to check boilers, ironers, dryers, hot water systems, steam traps, heat reclaimers and exhaust gas-recovery devices.”
Bernstein also suggests laundries engage their maintenance and engineering departments in the effort to reduce utility usage and costs by implementing a structured preventive-maintenance program, particularly by using a computerized maintenance management system (CMMS), which should also include regular checks on critical systems.
“This includes, among many other things, monitoring boiler exhaust and approach temperatures, ensuring washer-extractors and presses deliver textiles to the finishing department at optimal moisture retention, and verifying that dryer lint screens and exhaust ducts are cleaned regularly to prevent energy waste,” he shares. “You should also engage your accounting department to compare your daily meter readings to the monthly gas bill to make sure you aren’t being overcharged.”
“Measure, measure, measure,” recommends O’Neill. “Install meters to measure gas usage, water usage, electrical, and steam and do as much or as many as you can afford—preferably on individual machines.”
Alexander agrees that a laundry operation can conduct its own energy audit by recording the water, electric, and gas meter readings each day and tracking pounds of clean laundry processed; the pounds processed per Btu, kWh and CCF (water) can be tracked, providing a benchmark to measure the effect of making changes to laundry operations and machine programming.
“Inspect the MEP system, especially steam traps, condensate return systems, and leaks in steam, water, and pneumatic systems,” he suggests.
“Optimize equipment loading, including loading washers and dryers to capacity, and ‘covering’ flatwork ironers to achieve reduced utility consumption. Covering the flatwork ironers refers to feeding both small and large pieces so that the maximum amount of the ironer chest is covered by linen.”
Alexander adds that operators must evaluate the “peak demand” cost of electricity and the feasibility of modifying production schedules to reduce consumption during those periods.
Finally, he recommends physically inspecting equipment and confirming dump valves close tightly, dryer seals are in good condition, and that there are no water, steam, or air leaks.
“You must measure and establish a baseline to compare yourself against,” O’Neill reminds operators. “Be more concerned about improving internally. Try to achieve this improvement by following the basics and dealing with the low-lying fruit that are common in the world of laundry. Don’t be afraid or concerned that you don’t measure up to other operations.”
Click HERE to read part 1 about the audit process and findings. And click HERE to read part 2 about using outside audit firms.
Have a question or comment? E-mail our editor Matt Poe at [email protected].
