Congratulations to our Small Packaging facility located in Oakville, Ontario on receiving the 2019 Oakville Hydro Conservation Leadership Award. The Oakville facility received this award after completing an upgrade to the facility’s compressed air system, which has resulted in a significant reduction in energy costs and environmental footprint.
Over the past several years, the Oakville facility has taken advantage of local energy savings programs to make the operation more efficient. In collaboration with Oakville Hydro, an electricity distribution company regulated by the Ontario Energy Board, a study was conducted to examine the facility’s energy usage. The study identified compressed air as a major user of electricity and showed a potential energy savings of close to 50 percent of the existing system.
In response to the study, the facility significantly upgraded the compressed air system in March 2018 with new compressors, air dryers, larger capacity air receivers, reconfigured supply piping and a plant wide instrumentation monitoring system. In the first year, the new system reduced electricity usage in the plant by 916 MWh (megawatt hours) and a demand reduction of 104 kW (Kilowatts) — enough to power over 100 homes for a year.
The improved air compression system not only reduces the facility’s impact on the environment but also contributes to a more efficient operation by lowering energy costs. Following the success upgrade in Oakville, the project has been replicated at the Small Packaging facility in Cidra, Puerto Rico.
Wojciech Tymczak, Corporate Automation Engineering Project Manager said, “Energy reduction projects are a major focus of the corporate engineering group. We work closely with plant teams, local companies and authorities to take advantage of incentives offered by governments. This cooperation ensures that implemented solutions deliver tangible, scale-able and long lasting results. Receiving this award is a culmination of years of commitment to sustainability and collaborating with local resources to improve the way we do business.”
Oakville Hydro is an electricity distribution company regulated by the Ontario Energy Board.
The Oakville Hydro Conservation Leadership Award is given annually as part of the Oakville Awards for Business Excellence presented by the Oakville Chamber of Commerce and Rotary Club of Oakville West.