CEC Consultants, Inc.

Our "Tricks of the Trade" are a "Big Dummies" approach to energy cost savings. They offer an easy low cost/no cost approach to energy, utilities cost savings with quick paybacks. CEC's owner, John R. Puskar, P.E., has presented these "Tricks of the Trade" to energy conferences sponsored by Ford Motor Company, Johnson & Johnson, and AEE's World Energy Congress.

1. Reduce No Load Load
If you're not making parts, or if your building is not occupied, you shouldn't consume anything. At least it's a noble goal. No load load is that stuff that everyone shakes their heads about. It's the 15-25% of boiler, air, compressor or water system consumption that's just there to support leaks/inefficiencies.
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2. Negotiate Your Rates (& find rate loopholes)
Electric and gas utilities have hidden loop holes and ways to apply their rates that are to your advantage. They will not tell you about these. Some of the concepts that may apply to you are natural gas pipeline bypasses to distribution lines around your local utility, electric curtailment or time of use rates, combining metered locations, and with water utilities sometimes you can separately meter sewer discharges and eliminate the water used for irrigation or cooling towers that never gets the waste treatment plant. Some electric utilities have special deals these days. Knowledge is power. Know your plant or building's options, create leverages, and make sure you understand all available rate schedules (even the experimental ones).
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3. Minimize Steam Pressure
Why generate at 150 only to reduce to 30 or 10? Many facilities don't need nearly the pressures they generate at. Reducing pressures can save in at least the following ways: Better boiler efficiencies; Lower piping radiation/convection losses; Lower trap losses; Lower feed water pump energy.
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4. Minimize Air Pressure
Compressed air systems are like a black art to most people. To forever avoid even the smell of a problem, they get cranked up in pressure. Dropping even 4 psig from a typical industrial plant system can have an enormous impact. Look for things like installing more/bigger receivers, piping changes, and nozzles to reduce open blow-offs to help yourself.
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5. Lighting Opportunities
Do a lighting audit. Compare to IEEE standards. Then minimize with reflectors or lamp changes. Consider occupancy and daylight sensors also.
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6. Re-evaluate and Optimize Your Compressed Air Distribution/ Intake Systems
Do a compressed air audit. Look to minimize severe drops. Update your piping/equipment drawings. A few pounds of operating pressure shaved off pays for a lot of piping change. It's also generally a good idea to get your compressed air intakes outside where you can get cooler, denser air courtesy of God and nature. In some cases, this alone can save 1-3% of operating costs.
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7. Zone Out Your Compressed Air
Not all parts of your facility may need compressed air at the same times at the same pressures. Installing solenoid valves to segregate the systems makes it possible to minimize losses and no load loads for off areas.
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8. Install Power Factor Correction Capacitors
If your utility bill's on kva's and has the right rate structure, this is a simple "no brainer" with a payback of usually 6-12 months. Call you utility and ask.
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9. Fix Up Your Building Envelope
Most of a building's heating load (about 75%) is unwanted air moving through. Sealing dock doors and retrofitting windows is a good start. Also try to minimize the operation of exhausts, if possible.
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10. Get Energy Tax Credits, (EPACT for HVAC and HB 179 for process equipment)
There are great energy tax credits available today. The Energy Policy Act allows for an income tax credit of up to $.60 per square foot for qualifying HVAC related modifications. House Bill 179 allows for process equipment tax credits including a 50% bonus depreciation of qualifying equipment placed in service in 2009. Our firm is certified for qualifying these kinds of investments for IRS purposes.
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11. Optimize Your Fluid Movement Systems
Make sure pumps/fans are operating with the right motors, sheaves, and impellers. This is a simple, easy and lucrative fix. Check design conditions versus actual needs.
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12. Install Energy Efficient Motors
Energy efficient motors can save 5-10%, depending on how bad you are now. This is usually a 1-3 year payback on older, heavily loaded motors. A motor audit is the ticket for this.
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13. Insulate All Steam Piping, Valves, and Flanges
Most facilities end up with 20% of their steam piping systems not insulated. It gets worse if you consider valves, flanges and pieces of equipment. Insulation is a "no-brainer", easy, lucrative item that often gets overlooked.
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14. Convert Wet Sprinklers to Dry and Do Not Heat
Many folks keep things at 45°-50°F, so as not to freeze sprinklers. Dry sprinklers, by definition, have no water to freeze. Conversions from wet to dry aren't rocket science.
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15. Zone Out Your Steam Systems
Just like compressed air, you probably don't need steam everywhere all the time. At the same time, automatic shutdown/start-up controllers that ride on PRV station pilot lines are not expensive.
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16. Convert Electric Space Heat/Process Systems to Gas
So-called cheap, "special rate" electrical power is usually $.04-$.05 per kwh. This is still $11-$12 per million BTU's. Gas at $5/mcf and 75% efficiency gives you the same BTU's for about half the cost. Go figure!
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17. Eliminate Boilers and Steam Systems
Boilers and steam systems were a great way to do heating years ago when no other equivalent technologies existed. Today, it makes no sense to burn fuel at 70% efficiency, and then lose more energy in the distribution system. Point of use gas technologies like direct-fired ventilation units and 95% efficient water heaters make more sense.
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18. Evaluate, Minimize and Upgrade Exhaust and Ventilation Systems
Don't just throw out air because it smells or has dust in it. That's too expensive in today's world. Consider absorbent media scrubbers for smells and specialty bag houses or socks for particulates.
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19. Recover Waste Heat for Space Heating
Got air compressors? The waste heat from a 100 hp air compressor can displace about $10,000 in natural gas space heat over a year. Consider unheated make up air tubes for areas high in heat instead of heated make up air.
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20. Optimize Cooling Water Systems
Process cooling water or millwater systems are often an overlooked opportunity. You can easily take advantage of colder winter conditions and save energy. How about variable speed drives on pumps with segmented and controlled distribution systems with cooling tower based "free cooling systems?"
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