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Moulding plant services Minimise & optimise


Services such as compressed air, chilled water and dryers are vital in any injection moulding plant and account for an estimated 30-35% of energy used. But despite presenting some of the easiest opportunities for energy saving, they are rarely given much thought.


1 There are two basic steps to effective energy management of any service:


Ensure target demand is appropriate for the requirement of the plant. It makes little sense to attempt to optimise supply of any plant service if the assumed demand is unrealistic or unnecessarily large from the outset.


2 Compressed air


Compressed air is a convenient but expensive utility that accounts for up to 10% of total energy cost in an injection moulding plant. An effective compressed air management programme can result in energy savings of up to 50%.


Reduce leakage Leaks can account for as much as 50% of the compressed air


generated in a badly maintained system and 20- 40% in most typical injection moulding plant.


Reduce use Compressed air costs around €1.00/kwh at the point of use, more than ten times the equivalent quantity of electrical power. Use it only when essential.


Reduce generation costs Reduce system pressure to the minimum. Halving system


pressure decreases cost by three quarters.


Reduce treatment costs Treat the bulk of your compressed air to the minimum level necessary. Replace manual condensate traps with electronic types.


Improve distribution If the distribution pipework is too small, flow will be restricted and higher pressures required.


Optimise equipment to supply the required demand at the minimum energy usage and cost. This requires a holistic approach in which the entire system is examined in detail to determine areas of potential improvement.


An energy saving guide for injection moulders 11


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