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The Development and Promotion of Interactive Energy Management Tool for Industrial Energy Users Abstract

Despite the opportunity for increased energy efficiency, many industrial companies still face significant obstacles in that regard. To benefit small and medium industries located in Arkansas (and nationally), the Engineering Technology Department at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UALR) developed an Interactive Energy Management Tool (IEMT) for Arkansas Companies, with funding from the Arkansas Energy Office (AEO). This tool is a web- based software resource, which can be accessed from any remote web-browser. The IEMT is capable of providing users (industries) with customized recommendations with regard to energy conservation based on their specific inputs (data) to the software. The energy topics available for consideration are: lighting, motors, motor drives, fans and blowers, pumps, heaters and ovens, boilers, furnaces, steam and steam leaks, and compressed air. However, the utility of the IEMT is directly linked to the number of industries that utilize it. The overall success of IEMT depends upon the promotion and evaluation of the tool among a variety of companies. The promotion of the IEMT involved visiting and making presentations to nine industrial companies. It also involved a one-day workshop involving in-depth training with tutorials, using examples from actual industrial systems. The goal of this paper is to provide an overview of the IEMT, and to present the details of how the IEMT was promoted by means of onsite visits to various industrial companies. The structure and educational philosophy of the one-day workshops will also be presented. In this regard the methodology applied should have general applicability to other educational endeavors.

Introduction

The Department of Energy and other analysts of energy have projected a continued increase in energy use, especially in manufacturing and industrial sectors to maintain the current life styles of Americans. The article on Annual Energy Outlook 20041 with Projections to 2025, presents a critical review of the energy use of USA in the residential, commercial, industrial, and transportation sectors for the period of 1970 through 2025. The trends clearly indicate the increase in energy consumption by the industrial sector. A similar pattern for energy consumption is observed in the state of Arkansas. According to the report2 released by the Arkansas Energy Office in 2000, the industrial sector is responsible for 43% of Arkansas’ total energy consumption. The state’s industrial sector consumed 465.6 trillion Btu and ranks at 24th among the 50 states. This large energy consumption makes manufacturing an attractive sector to focus on, because a small reduction in energy consumption through utilization of energy efficient equipment and practices could result in significant savings. The report (2001) of the National Energy Policy Development group (NEPD) led by Vice-president Cheney named six industries that consume three-quarters of all industrial energy3. They are lumber and paper; chemicals; petroleum refining; primary metals; food processing; and stone, clay, and glass. Improved energy efficiency in these energy-intensive industries yields even larger improvements in overall productivity, product quality, safety, and pollution prevention. Manufacturing companies generally obtain their largest savings from improved efficiency of motors (motors account for 54 percent of electricity use in manufacturing) and from improved steam and hot-water systems.

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Pidugu, S., & Menhart, S., & Midturi, S. (2007, June), The Development And Promotion Of Interactive Energy Management Tools For Industrial Energy Users Paper presented at 2007 Annual Conference & Exposition, Honolulu, Hawaii. 10.18260/1-2--2719