DRIVES & MOTORS
ULD INDUSTRY INVEST R-EFFICIENT’ MOTORS?
reaching 30% or more over time. These improvements are rarely thanks to a single technology. Instead, they come from treating energy efficiency as a management discipline – starting with smarter equipment choices. Hyper-efficient motors like ABB’s IE6 SynRM
motors do not require radical process changes or unproven technologies. They can be integrated into existing systems and start reducing usage immediately. They make it easier for energy managers to hit decarbonisation targets, stay ahead of tightening regulations, and show concrete progress to stakeholders. IE6 SynRM motors are part of ABB’s EcoSolutions
portfolio, which includes third-party-verified Environmental Product Declarations to support transparent lifecycle assessments and ESG reporting. ABB is also using low-carbon and
recycled copper in motor production, reducing
embedded emissions by up to 200 kg of CO2 per 75kW motor. As a result, true high efficiency is no longer
confined to a few flagship projects, but can now be applied as standard across entire motor fleets.
MAKING HYPER-EFFICIENCY THE NEW
NORMAL Industrial companies today must do more with every unit of energy they use, and simply keeping equipment running is no longer enough. It has to run leaner and cleaner than ever before. With IE6 SynRM motors, upgrading outdated
fleets becomes one of the simplest ways to navigate rising energy costs and carbon constraints – and to turn energy efficiency into a guiding principle that defines the next
generation of industry. At ABB, we call this ‘Engineered to Outrun’: the
belief that there is always another step to take in efficiency and sustainability. By making hyper- efficiency available as a standard solution across a range of industrial applications, ABB is allowing manufacturers to treat motor upgrades as a central pillar of their decarbonisation strategies. In doing so, industry can align growth with sustainability, instead of trading one for the other.
ABB
www.abb.com/global/en
INTRODUCING ABB’S LV TITANIUM VARIABLE SPEED MOTOR PLATFORM
While there are significant efficiency gains to be reaped from upgrading a motor, still greater energy savings are achievable when a high-efficiency motor is used in combination with a variable speed drive (VSD). Adding a VSD to a pump, fan or compressor
motor enables its speed to be matched precisely to the required output. This will typically reduce power consumption by 25%, and in some applications even more. ABB estimates that around 50% of industrial motors would benefit from being paired with a drive. Despite this, only around 26% of the world’s industrial motors are currently equipped with one. In collaboration with customers, ABB therefore
investigated how it could improve this situation and a clear message emerged. To boost the industrial uptake of speed-controlled technology, the company had to make it as easy to install and operate as possible, especially in cases where using a separate drive can be challenging. This resulted in the LV Titanium Variable Speed
Motor (VSM) platform, designed to provide a simple, straightforward method to achieve IE5 Ultra-Premium efficiency in a wide range of industrial applications.
COMPACT, LIGHT AND EFFICIENT The VSM was engineered as a streamlined
concept, with an advanced drive module purpose- designed for optimal performance with a permanent magnet (PM) motor. PM technology is ideal for a VSM as it delivers high power density and high efficiency over the entire speed range. It also ensures a competitive route to an optimised total cost of ownership (TCO).
products that are in common use. Therefore, investing in IE5 rather than IE3 motors can have a very short payback time due to the energy savings. The highest system efficiency of IES5 is achieved according to IEC 61800-9-2 for the combined motor and drive package. The savings on energy costs and carbon
The result is a sleek, compact design, housed in
a robust cast-iron frame, with the axial drive mounted on the end of the motor. This saves space and makes the VSM platform ideal for applications like both vertical and horizontal pumps, compressors and fans. This is compact in size and light in weight,
making it easier to handle and install the motor. In addition, plug-and-play functionality means that the VSM significantly reduces the need for commissioning, as its motor and drive are commissioned and optimised to work together before leaving the factory. Furthermore, there is no requirement for the special cabling associated with separate drives, as the VSM is connected in the same way as a standalone DOL motor. This makes installation fast and easy, with no need for cabinets or electrical rooms.
IE5 ULTRA-PREMIUM EFFICIENCY The VSM already goes beyond current legislation
by offering IE5 Ultra-Premium efficiency, a significant improvement over the IE4 required currently by the EU’s Ecodesign Directive. An IE5 motor has 40% lower energy losses than the IE3
intensity that customers can achieve by switching to a VSM is illustrated by a typical 15 kW centrifugal pumping application. Compared with a conventional, standalone fixed-speed IE3 DOL motor, the savings on the electricity bill over a 15-year lifetime, running 6000 hours a year at 80% power, will be over Euro 121,000, with an anticipated ROI of a few months. This is based on a typical energy cost for Europe of Euro 0.21/kWh. At the same time, there is a lifetime avoidance of
174,000 kg in CO2 emissions – that is equivalent to the emissions produced when driving 40 typical gasoline powered passenger vehicles for a year - based on the average European carbon
intensity factor of 0.3 kg CO2/kWh. The savings quoted here are for just one
motor. Yet typical industrial facilities will have tens or even hundreds of this size of motor, and a large plant such as a paper mill can have thousands. So the global potential to cut costs and reduce emissions is enormous. The first LV Titanium models were delivered in
smaller sizes up to 7.5 kW, but the scope has now expanded to cover frame sizes from 71 to 160, and power ratings from 1.1 up to 30 kW, with rated speeds up to 4500 rpm. This enables VSM technology to cover industrial sectors such as data centres, water treatment, food and beverage, HVAC and general machinery.
www.essmag.co.uk
ENERGY & SUSTAINABILITY SOLUTIONS - Autumn 2026
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