Energy savings in bakery

Bakeries all over world have many ways in manufacturing process to reduce energy bills which includes thermal and electrical energy. Apart from the basic production line there are utilities such as Air compressors , Air conditioning ,Refrigeration , Hot water generators , Boilers ,Chillers , Effluent treatment plant , Conveyors ,Generators ,Air washers , Cold Rooms and Lightening .Not only can a bakery reduce energy costs and greenhouse gas emissions, but it can impact its bottom line

Here are few tips and Ideas for energy savings in bakery plant .


Motors

• Eliminate improper cabling
• Check alignment
• Use synchronous motor to improve power factor .
• Provide proper ventilation .

• Maintain high power factor as lower power factor reduce s the motor efficiency and
  also reduces the efficiency of electrical distribution .Lower power factor results
  when motors of plant runs below the full load ratings.

Lighting

• Low wattage lighting s ( CFL )are now available in ratings of 18/20 watts with good lux ratings with retrofit could replace conventional tube lights and bulbs .
• Occupancy sensor

Air compressor

• We can save energy by having VFD installed for motor .

• Screw compressors have far superior performance then other type of compressors

• Select compressors which have ' motor stop arrangement ' in which motors stops
  on longer unload period.

• Have cooling arrangement for incoming air .

Air conditioning/Refrigeration

• Proper insulation of pipes of chilled water ,cu piping for refrigerant can
  results in energy savings.
• Temperature can be set as per requirement & not going for extremes can
  help in reducing energy consumptions
• Avoid over sizing select the refrigeration cap as per the load .
• Consider gas powered refrigeration equipment to minimize the electrical
  load .
• Connect refrigerated water load in series .

Oven

• Waste heat generated can be utilized for heating water and pre heat in
  take air . recuperates and heat exchangers can be installed to use
  waste heat from flue gases .
• Insulation are required for various industrial application such as Ovens.
  Furnaces,heaters,boilers,storage tanks,piping's,steam.chilled water pipelines
  etc .These insulations are made up of mineral wool,silica , alumina and mulite .
  Insulation can save heat losses considerably .While selecting insulation material
  check thermal properties,physical and chemical specifications
  Repair damaged insulation

Pumps

• Schedule pumps to turn off whenever possible .Putting up level sensors , float
  valves or pressure switches

• Avoid recirculation through bypass lines

• Minimize throttling

Cooling Towers

• Use two speed or variable speed drives for cooling tower fan control if the fans are
  few .Stage the cooling tower fans with on -off control .

• Turn off unnecessary cooling tower fan s when the load s are reduced.

• Control cooling tower fans based on leaving water temperatures

• Periodically clean plugged cooling tower water distribution nozzles

Electrical

• Provide separate lighting transformer for control of lighting systems.

• Locate substation near the load centers to minimize energy losses in cables and also improve
  voltage levels.

• Install capacitors with automatic power factor control panel to maintain a power factor of not less
  than 0.9. Install capacitors near the load points wherever possible or at the sub distribution board.
  The best practical method would be to install capacitors at larger capacity motors and at the
  substation for all other loads.

• Identify under loaded motors and examine the possibility of replacing them with the appropriate
  capacity motor or alternatively fix retrofitting devices that are available to save energy.

Fuels

Fuel consumption can be reduced by installation of fuel efficient burners .With advent of new technologies one can get fuel efficient burners . For example dual stage high pressure weishaupt burners . Its a monoblock burner with inbuilt blower s in the burner.
Other important factors of combustion is air -fuel ratio . All manufacturers of burner provides exact ration of air fuel .
Regular maintenance of burners also helps in reducing  fuel consumption .





These are few ideas to reduce energy cost in bakery plants . You can suggest other ways to save cost in bakeries .do write to us about your energy saving ideas.

More ideas on http://www.shumaonline.com/costreduction_energy.html