Energy Efficiency

The Small Business Guide To Energy Efficiency was produced in partnership with the U.S. Small Business Administration, Business Gateway, and Energy Star. This website contains valuable information to help small businesses become more energy efficient. Sections include energy saving tips, energy efficient upgrades, calculating energy savings, greening your business, and available resources. It also contains specific information for a number of business sectors.

Taking steps to cut energy waste can produce immediate savings for businesses. Some steps can be taken with virtually no financial investment, and other steps can have a short pay back period. The Energy Star Program has an excellent publication, "Putting Energy into Profits" (pdf) that can guide businesses in saving money from lighting, heating, air conditioning and office equipment purchase, use and maintenance. Energy Star also operates a toll-free hotline at 1-888-STAR YES for answering questions, providing engineering support and product information.

The Missouri Industrial Assessment Center provides small and medium-sized manufacturers with free comprehensive energy audits through funding from the U.S. Department of Energy. Businesses that have benefited from these audits have saved an average of $65,000 annually in energy costs. Companies eligible for free energy assessments must:

• Be manufacturers within SIC Code 2000-3999
• Have $100,000 to $2.0 million per year in total energy costs
• Have a maximum of 500 employees
• Have a maximum of $100 million/year gross annual sales
• Lack in-house professional expertise in energy use and conservation.

If your company meets these qualifications and you're interested in an assessment, please contact Missouri IAC Director, Dr. Bin Wu.

Here are some general recommendations for improving energy efficiency from the Department of Energy website:

All Combustion Systems

• Operate furnaces and boilers at or close to design capacity
• Reduce excess air used for combustion
• Clean heat transfer surfaces
• Reduce radiation losses from openings
• Use proper furnace or boiler insulation to reduce wall heat losses
• Adequately insulate air or water-cooled surfaces exposed to the furnace environment and steam lines leaving the boiler
• Install air preheat or other heat recovery equipment

Steam Generation Systems

• Improve water treatment to minimize boiler blowdown
• Optimize deaerator vent rate
• Repair steam leaks
• Minimize vented steam
• Implement effective steam trap maintenance program
• Use high-pressure condensate to make low-pressure steam
• Utilize backpressure turbine instead of pressure-reducing or release valves
• Optimize condensate recovery

Process Heating Systems

• Minimize air leakage into the furnace by sealing openings
• Maintain proper, slightly positive furnace pressure
• Reduce weight of or eliminate material handling fixtures
• Modify the furnace system or use a separate heating system to recover furnace exhaust gas heat
• Recover part of the furnace exhaust heat for use in lower-temperature processes

The Department of Energy website also contains the Quick Plant Energy Profiler, an online software tool that helps industrial plant personnel quickly understand how energy is being used at their plant and how they might save energy and money.

The Alliance to Save Energy has compiled the Industrial Energy Efficiency Clearinghouse, an introduction to the technologies, management strategies, training, and financing opportunities that are available to industrial energy users. Included are:

• Energy Accounting: A Key Tool in Managing Energy Costs – explains energy accounting how to get started with a program for your business.
• What You Should Know: Buying Electricity and Natural Gas in Today's Restructured Market– provides information for negotiating the best price for energy.
• How to Hire a Construction Manager For Your Energy Efficiency Projects – helps determine whether you need a construction manager and how to budget for one.
• How to Hire An Energy Services Company - helps you decide whether you need an ESCO, how to select the best one for your facility and how to stay on track with a project.
• How to Hire An Energy Auditor to Identify Energy Efficiency Projects – for businesses planning to hire an energy consultant or energy auditor to identify technically viable and cost effective ways to reduce energy use and operating costs.
• Corporate Energy Management – provides information and resources regarding successful corporate-led energy management efforts.