Energy Waste Watchdogs at GE’s Evendale Plant Find Ways to Save Millions

Business Courier of Cincinnati (10/16, Newberry) – Energy efficiency was not a top priority in the midst of World War II. But it is today. So [GE’s Evendale Plant has] been busy undoing a lot of the things that people at GE have been doing out of habit for more than 60 years. That takes more than just occasional energy audits. “We’re trying to change behavior,” Flege said. One of the first things they did was install meters on the plant’s large machining centers that make turbine housings, to measure just how much energy they were using. That’s part of the basic lean manufacturing methodology – define, measure and analyze – and then implement an improvement plan. According to the U.S. Energy Department’s Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy program, best results in a plant setting come by following six steps: track usage; evaluate operating practices; identify cost-saving projects; get management support; form an energy team; and develop a strategy for continuous improvement.

After a little more than a year, Evendale’s electric usage is down 6 percent compared to 2008. That translates into estimated annual savings of $776,000 and a reduction of nearly 8,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions. Natural gas usage dropped 4 percent for savings of $50,000 and 1,700 fewer tons of CO2. But all that’s only the beginning. Swigart and his army identified another $2 million in energy conservation projects, just waiting to start. “That’s the whole idea, to get the snowball rolling downhill,” he said.