Monitoring Energy Costs Through Audits (Part 1)

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.

“It typically involves 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.

“The goal is to recommend improvements, such as optimizing equipment operation, improving maintenance practices, upgrading equipment or technology, or adjusting workflows and scheduling, all of which lead to energy savings and cost reductions.”

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.

About energy audits, he says, “In the laundry world, the emphasis during these types of inspections is to uncover any and all energy losses from leaks, inefficient equipment, lack of insulating factors. Any energy drains, heat losses, etc., that come from the common energy sources such as electricity, steam, compressed air, water systems (process and potable) and, less common but still important, solar and geothermal.”

Pertl & Alexander, based in Manlius, New York, specializes in the design and management of laundry, housekeeping, textile, and valet operations. President Matthew Alexander says an energy audit typically involves the structural elements making up the building envelope, insulation levels, HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) systems, lighting, doors and windows, and may involve measuring air tightness, air leaks, and thermal imaging.

“An energy audit of laundry operation focuses on MEP (mechanical, electrical and plumbing) process systems, production equipment and operating practices,” he points out.

THE AUDIT PROCESS

As noted by Alexander, a building energy audit process includes analyzing structural elements of the building envelope, windows, doors, lighting and HVAC systems. Thermal dynamic imaging aids in identifying heat loss, insulation is inspected, boiler efficiency is evaluated, and strategies are developed to reduce overall energy consumption and to mitigate peak demand usage.

The first step of an audit process, according to O’Neill, is to gather information, specifically monthly electrical bills, gas bills and water bills.

“Analyze and compare to industry accepted and/or the consulting company’s own internal database with standards for the various sizes of facilities and the various mixes or the type of work,” he shares. “There is no point in comparing an industrial plant with a healthcare plant database or vice versa.

“The consultant should be able to convert the information into Btu per pound of clean linen/product produced for both electrical and gas as standalone units of comparison and then combined to get the full picture, so to speak.

“This exercise, along with a walk-through and initial inspection, will immediately show the consultant whether this operation is above or below or equal to the comparison plants/facilities, which in turn tells him/her if the various areas can be improved or what to focus on first, second, third, etc.”

The next stage is a physical and detailed inspection of every piece of equipment in the facility, according to O’Neill. Most laundry equipment uses electricity, gas, steam and/or compressed air.

“The consultant should first address all air leaks, steam leaks, water leaks and/or lack of pipe insulation,” he points out. “This is considered the low-lying fruit, so to speak.”

Then O’Neill says the auditor should address or investigate the standard energy savings ideas and systems that all laundry operations should employ, such as:

Heat reclamation from wastewater and boiler exhaust, dryer exhaust, or even thermal ironer exhaust.
Stack economizers, vent condensers and cool-down heat exchangers are all pieces of equipment that should be standard in all laundry facilities.
Coaxial ducts (on dryers and boilers).
Water reuse and/or water recycling.
Excessive dry times (a sign to fix seals).
Moisture retention after extraction.
Electrical connections at panels and breaker boxes (if aluminum, tighten quarterly).
Use of VFDs, or variable frequency drives.
LED lighting.
Steam trap inspections.
Electrical connection inspection.
Negative air pressure.

AUDIT FINDINGS

Energy audits in industrial laundries frequently reveal inefficiencies in a variety of systems or plant departments, shares Bernstein, including steam, water, and electrical systems; wash aisle and finishing processes; and preventive maintenance.

“Examples include steam leaks, air leaks, water leaks, poor steam system insulation, improperly maintained steam traps, untuned burners, and improperly sized or designed exhaust duct systems, all of which lead to excessive consumption and unnecessary costs,” he says.

“Air compressors, for example, are one of the most wasteful users of electricity in most plants. In our experience, only about 60% of the electricity used actually goes to production, while 25% is wasted due to air leaks, and 15% is wasted due to artificial consumption (due to operating the compressor at a higher pressure than is necessary).”

Another example of wasting resources Bernstein shares is excessive water use because of poor preventive maintenance on washers, particularly clogged washer drains.

In the finishing department, excessive dry times, overdrying of linens, dryer baskets clogged with plastic, and improperly designed exhaust ducts all result in gas waste.

“Additionally, laundries frequently face higher than necessary charges from their utility companies through unnecessary demand charges (i.e., starting up lots of motors at the same time), peak usage charges, and the failure to obtain evaporation credits for water that gets evaporated rather than going down the drain of the publicly owned treatment works (POTW),” Bernstein says.

O’Neill shares the following “Top 10” findings that can be uncovered during an audit but cautions that a “true audit by a professional may uncover two to three times the number of issues.”

Clean the wastewater heat reclaimer/exchanger.
Boiler stack heat recovery.
Flash steam due to lack of steam trap maintenance.
Plant air negative pressure situation (causes dryers and boiler combustion efficiency losses).
Fix all air leaks.
Insulate all steam piping and hot-water piping correctly.
Repair/replace seals on dryers.
Clean dryer exhaust duct and internal baskets.
Fix all steam leaks.
Overdrying of goods.

Alexander shares six common audit findings and energy reduction methods for laundries:

Installing water and energy recovery systems reduces operating costs and often produces an attractive return on investment.
Servicing MEP systems, including steam traps and condensate return systems, improves operating efficiency and creates improved throughput.
Correcting leaking washer dump valves reduces energy and water consumption.
Replacing worn or missing dryer seals reduces drying times and utility usage
Adjustment to tunnel washing systems and use of ultraviolet (UV) treatment of wash liquor often reduces utility consumption.
Optimizing machine loading increases throughput and reduces utility consumption.

Check back Tuesday to read about using outside audit firms.