How to save on electricity costs in your industry
There is no doubt that electricity costs result in a significant expense for all industries. Your processes require immense amounts of energy to keep the production moving. Optimising the Power factor within your plant can improve your bottom line and lead to increased profitability.
A low power factor in your plant is not only inefficient; it is also expensive, as your municipality charges you for the excessive reactive power consumed. Productivity suffers and costs increase because a low power factor has a direct impact on the capacity of your electrical system.
Steps to save on costs and energy consumption
Let us have a look at four steps you can take to not only reduce your energy costs but also boost your bottom line:
- Energy Audit
- PFC Installations
- Service Contracts
- Repairs to damaged PFC Equipment
Taking these four factors into account, you can optimise for profitability.
Energy Audit
Starting the process with an energy audit is a crucial step for companies looking into saving on electrical expenses. Alpha Power Solutions provides an extensive energy usage analysis with systematic approaches leading to efficient energy savings.
Our auditor must work closely with you throughout the audit journey to achieve sustainable improvements for your organisation. Through this process, you can expect to reduce your energy wastage by 25 to 50% in four years.
After the audit, we supply you with the following:
- A concrete recommendation with expert estimations by using state of the art test equipment for your energy audit, aimed at yielding an attractive ROI by improving the power factor of your installations. And;
- A combination of findings from both the visual inspection and data gathered through recording key parameters, with our sophisticated test equipment, for a detailed analysis and electrical energy audit report.
This ensures you receive expert advice enabling your operation to maximise the demand reduction.
This is the first step to answering “how to save on your electricity costs.”
PFC Installation
Once the energy audit is complete and you have decided that your plant will benefit from the use of Power Factor Correction, we will send a team of qualified installers to install Power Factor correction capacitors.
These capacitors increase the power factor of your electrical system, which in turn decreases excessive reactive power drawn from the grid. This, in turn, lowers the demand charge leading to a reduction on your utility bill.
Once installed, we can guarantee immediate power factor improvement and associated savings, reducing your power demand by 20 to 50%.
The return on investment depends on a number of factors but is typically between 6 months and 2 years after installation. Our equipment has a life expectancy of at least 10 years provided essential maintenance takes place at regular intervals.
This brings us to the next point on how to save electricity in your industry effectively.
Service Contracts
As with all equipment, Power Factor Correction equipment is no different when it comes to maintenance.
We offer service contracts for maintenance on power factor equipment that has either been installed by ourselves or by a third party, ensuring PFC equipment remains operational at all times.
If your equipment is faulty, it doesn’t mean production must or will stop; however, it does mean that your energy savings are not optimal and you may be paying more on your utility bill.
Our service contracts include identification and repair of potential deficiencies and issues such as:
- Hot connections
- Failed capacitors
- Faulty contactors
- Dust and water ingress
- Blown Fuses
- Faulty digital controller
Once we identify the issue, we carry out the necessary repairs needed making sure your equipment is performing optimally and saving you money.
Repairs to damaged PFC Equipment
Have you noticed a steady increase in your utility bill even though you have installed PFC equipment?
The equipment may be damaged and not performing the way it should. Alpha Power Solutions can repair any brand of Power Factor Correction Equipment, even if we haven’t installed it.
In some instances, the damage present is more expensive to fix than to replace the existing unit with a new one. We complete a thorough assessment of the damage and provide options and cost comparisons as well as pros and cons to repairing vs replacing your PFC panel.
If you are interested in our solution and would like to calculate your potential savings, you can use our Power Factor Calculator Savings Estimator.
As a certified corporate member of the Southern African Energy Efficiency Confederation (SAEEC), the South African National Energy Association (SANEA) as well as an associate member of the Electrical Contractors Association of South Africa (ECASA), we trust that we are in the best position to give you and your business the energy efficiency knowledge and savings you need. Contact us for any other questions we haven’t covered.