Case study Boosting Energy and Cost Efficiency in Production

Boosting Energy and Cost Efficiency in Production

TÜV SÜD Industrie Service succeeded in cutting annual energy costs by 15 per cent at ENKA, producer of filament yarn.

_{(December 2003)}

Increasingly fierce competition and rising energy costs call for enhanced efficiency in production processes, particularly in the textile industry. ENKA GmbH & Co. KG, Wuppertal, recognised the signs at an early stage and commissioned TÜV SÜD Industrie Service to provide Complex Energy Consulting services.

ENKA is one of the leading producers of premium viscose filament yarn for high-quality textile applications. At the ENKA plant in Oberbruch near Aachen, TÜV SÜD Industrie Service increased energy and cost efficiency through measures including improved workflows. Savings achieved added up to € 500,000 per year.

Complex Energy Consulting – the process

In a first step, experts analyse the commercial and technical status quo in a complex energy audit. An interdisciplinary team of experts from TÜV SÜD Industrie Service assesses plants, systems and production processes but also energy and utility supply contracts and infrastructure. Opportunities for optimisation are categorised according to the investment they involve. In the majority of cases, significant savings are possible without any additional investments.

In the Oberbruch plant, the purchasing and use of utilities such as electricity, heating or refrigeration was accurately quantified and summarised in a cost-effectiveness analysis. This approach provided a breakdown of the distributed power and heat for each ventilation system and individual process step. Based on the identified data plus supplementary measurements on energy and ventilation systems, the team co-operated closely with ENKA and developed a customised power and resource saving programme.

Complex Energy Consulting – the benefits

TÜV SÜD experts recommended more efficient control of HVAC systems in line with changed requirements and to adjust supply air temperatures. Additionally, low voltage systems were bundled and electrical consumers individually optimised. The experts also succeeded in significantly reducing the amount of steam needed for heating the dye vessel/drier by improving exhaust heat recovery.

Complex Energy Consulting provided ENKA with a detailed analysis of its energy processes and tailored practical programmes aimed at a more efficient use of power, gas and other energy carriers. Power input for the production process was reduced by 15 per cent. Including reduced operating costs, opportunities for optimisation add up to over € 500,000 annually.