Power to the people

iPower is a Scottish-based social enterprise, striving to deliver low-carbon energy systems for all. They work with social housing but also other residential enterprises.

iPower initiates and oversees the installation of BlueGEN fuel cell micro-CHP (combined heating and power). Using gas to provide CHP, customers can save on energy costs and carbon emissions with no upfront cost.  

The company's mission is to make clean energy affordable to all:  

Globechain is an online reuse platform in Europe, a so-called “free-cycle for corporates”. It allows companies and charities to claim unwanted items from the retail, commercial and construction sectors. Globechain can provide all the legislative information necessary for these transactions and, using a unique digital platform, creates a robust social impact waste audit trail. 

A wee scheme with big impacts

• Smart scheme diverts waste electrical and electronic equipment for re-use
• In this example, 5 tonnes of WEEE were diverted, saving € 15 500 and 109 tonnes of CO2 equivalents

Premier Sustain, a division of Premier Workspace Services, has developed a new service, called Renew IT, which aims to divert high-end electrical items from recycling back into re-use either through resale or donation.

Handy technology

• New hand dryers mean energy and cost savings while providing useful information
• A library expects to save € 22 640 on washroom facilities

The British Library had an annual spend on dry cleaning and replacing linen towels of about € 25 000 (£ 22 202). These included dryers with low-efficiency ratings. In response to this, it ran a two-month trial of new smart hand dryers.

Taming the steam

• Food-maker gets control of its steam production with simple measures
• Optimising boiler times and rationalising steam use in scalding and sterilisation saves 7 % and 3 % respectively

Steam is used in the food industry for a number of processes, both directly related to food production, such as blanching or steaming foods, and indirectly related activities like line cleaning. Producing large quantities of steam for heating and sterilisation can be very energy intensive.

Under pressure!

• Pharmaceutical plant focuses on making its steam and hot-water production more energy- and cost-efficient
• Controlled measures like optimising operational times on equipment and lowering pressure and temperature in stages generate savings

A global leader in generic medicines implemented different measures on hot water and steam systems in its plant in Schaftenau, Austria.

Steam is in heavy demand in industries requiring heating processes, and it is typically an energy-intensive process to generate it. The ratio of steam energy costs to total energy costs ranges between 20 and 60 %. Optimising the steam-generation system and rationalising demand for steam can, together, reduce energy costs significantly. 

Energy savings in processes can be achieved by reducing steam demand:

Efficient by design

Tala LED® manufactures and retails energy efficient filaments and light-emitting diode spotlights. With the company’s mantra of ‘conservation through beauty’, the products combine contemporary design with greater energy efficiency. Tala has created an app which allows customers to calculate their energy savings over time and is working to develop a smart internal board that controls and monitors devices in order to help customers reduce energy usage.

Each of the bulbs is expected to last at least 10 years.

Simple solutions can work a treat

• Metal-working company's manual spillage problem 
• Floating valves in the tanks prevent overflow and save some 3 % on lubricant use a year 

The German company Metalltechnik Menges GmbH specialises in the area of chipless deformation, a technique for working different metals such as steel and copper. The company uses several machines filled with lubricants, which help to keep friction down during the metal-working processes. 

Out with the old ...

• Old and outdate transformers can themselves be a burden on budgets
• Replacing them with modern units can boost efficiency

Large factories and businesses running heavy machinery sometimes employ outdated, ad-hoc solutions which can be a drain on budgets. Companies specialising in metal production, for example, can need up to 400V three-phase alternating current, instead of the standard level of 230V, to meet the heavy demands of the industrial machinery involved.