Windsor plant trimmed energy use by 5.4 per cent in two years
Carestream’s manufacturing plant in Windsor, Colo, earned a Colorado Industrial Energy Efficiency award from the Colorado Energy Office. In the past two years, Carestream Colorado has reduced energy consumption by 5.4 per cent at its Windsor manufacturing facility. The company’s goal is to achieve an additional 5 per cent reduction in energy use from 2015 to 2020.
Carestream joined the Colorado Industrial Energy Challenge (CIEC) in 2011 and has reduced energy consumption by 21 per cent during the last five years.
“We continuously examine our manufacturing processes and product components to identify areas where we can help preserve the environment,” said Cavan Kelsey, Carestream’s Corporate Environmental Health and Safety & Sustainability Director. “Our aim is to reduce energy use by increasing the efficiency of our operations even when we are adding additional equipment to achieve production goals.”
The Colorado plant achieved energy savings of 5119 megawatt hours over two years with several major renovation efforts:
- Plant engineers rebuilt a 40-year-old steam turbine chiller that significantly reduces electricity consumption; and
- Variable frequency drives were installed on four cooling tower fan motors, eight cooling tower supply pumps and three chilled water pumps to allow each system to use only the precise amount of energy required to obtain the desired flow of water for manufacturing operations.
Carestream Colorado maintains an ongoing list of projects designed to enhance production and reduce energy use. The facility has invested in training a certified energy manager (CEM) to more effectively analyse and prioritise opportunities for energy savings.
In addition, Carestream recycles a variety of materials and works to control hazardous waste from product manufacturing and maintenance activities.
Carestream is updating its Environmental Management System to meet the new ISO 14001:2015 standard. The latest standard includes goals for sustainable resource use and climate change mitigation, as well as the incorporation of lifecycle thinking into product design.