Energy conservation is often the most economical solution to shortages and rising costs. Most economists expect continued energy price increases over the next few years. Therefore, conservation not only helps preserve the planet's limited resources, it also makes economic business sense at a very fundamental business level.
“Progressive energy management is part of our company’s DNA.” says M. Razeem, Project Engineer of Sustainability at OCTAL. “That means not only uncompromised attentiveness to the benefits of conservation today, but also a dedication to future success based on an unwavering, fundamental conviction that only through environmental sustainability can a company expect to prosper in tomorrow’s world.”
Razeem points to a pertinent example, Oman is among the countries that will face serious water deficit by 2050. So, when the production process for OCTAL's DPET™ (PET sheet) was designed, it included the use of recycled water. That water is used and delivered by a specifically built pipeline bringing wastewater from the local municipal waterworks. By recycling the water using a reverse osmosis technology and sand filtration system, 80 percent of said water can then be used in OCTAL’s manufacturing process. After processing, the wastewater is then used to irrigate the greenbelt around the factory.
“OCTAL also has adopted a five-step process to determine the best options for additional energy-use reductions: audit … monitor … analyze … make changes if necessary … determine results. According to Tarun Joshi, OCTAL's Construction Manager: “Recent energy audits indicate that upgrades to our lighting, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning resulted in improved energy management.”
Lighting has proven to be one of prime areas for proper energy management because the return-on-investment can be quickly realized. When creating a better industrial lighting system, OCTAL took into consideration various sets of criteria such as: cooperation with the utility company, tax incentives, and soft cost factors, such as increased productivity and employee retention.
As a result, OCTAL recently installed light pipes used for transporting and distributing natural or artificial light throughout and between buildings. The benefit correlated to having nine 75-watts lamp switched off for 12 hours per day equaling an impressive 8100 watts per day in savings.
In addition, OCTAL’s unique direct-to-sheet technology dramatically decreases the energy required to produce DPET™ sheet while significantly increasing resource efficiency. Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions are decreased by 69 percent and 48 percent respectively and require 67 percent less grid electricity per KG of sheet when compared to traditional APET sheet manufacturing.* OCTAL reduced the energy requirements by 6% percent per ton of production from 2009-2010.
* Scope 1 - Emissions from sources that are owned or controlled by the company. Scope 2 - Emissions from the generation of purchased electricity by the company. Scope 3 - Indirect emissions generated by the supply chain.
Using these experiences as a springboard for energy saving projects elsewhere within the company, OCTAL has developed a formalized Future Energy Management Plan. This includes: additional use of natural day light by installing light pipes for all of the companies buildings; optimizing refrigeration and air conditioning systems; reducing output voltage of transformers; rearranging and re-adjusting air-conditioning units; and replacing electrical copper ballast with electronic ballast, proven to save additional energy consumption.
“All companies must prepare for future energy-related risks,” states Razeem. “Acting now is the only acceptable best-business practice and should be part of the strategic imperatives of every company truly concerned with the health of its future.”
For more information, please visit www.octal.com.
References:
http://www.timesofoman.com/echoice.asp?detail=42430
