HVAC Control in the New Millennium.pdf - HVAC.Amickracing

Energy and Power Management, Distributed Control TrendsAsheville, NC, installed a power management system in early 1997.Energy bills were running close to $45,000 a month. After 6 months ofinstallation, the plant energy saving amounted to $40,000.The system allowed plant engineers to identify wasteful procedures,shift loads to level demand and perform preventive maintenance.There was better control of area lights at off hours and large electricovens were used only during the late shifts when total energy demandwas lighter.Maintenance technicians were able to pinpoint abnormal conditionswith monitoring screens and then service the equipment before itbroke down. Total return on investment was predicted to be less thantwo years.Control and Power ManagementLinking power management systems to control systems allows thepower information to flow from both systems. Load profiles can bedeveloped to discover any energy inefficiencies. Energy scheduling canbe done to find the optimum energy schedule for new products or processes.Real-time utility pricing means that production schedule energyrequirements need to be compared with energy rate schedules for optimumenergy benefits.The new energy supply market requires more companies to giveback energy capacity during peak energy use times by schedulinglower-energy production. This often results in significant savings.Power QualityPower quality may have significant effects on product quality.Voltage sags or swells may result in product defects. A power managementsystem can be linked with a quality management system to helpidentify power-quality-caused problems. This can reduce reject rates andimprove productivity.Monitoring power consumption can also reduce maintenancecosts. Monitoring the energy a motor is drawing can show you when atool begins to get dull and produce bad parts or when a motor is overheating.Replacements can be made as preventive actions without costly©2001 by The Fairmont Press, Inc. All rights reserved.