Modern Plastics Worldwide - March 2010 - dae uptlax

MODERN EXECUTIVE
rescent lighting. “Not only
are the fluorescent lights more
energy efficient, but they also
have a better color rendering
index and provide more
even light over time than HID
lamps,” Dirr comments.
The installation of the
lamps included motion sensors
for infrequently accessed
areas and ambient light detectors
to take advantage of
natural lighting during the
day. Xten received a Focus
on Energy grant of 34% of
the project cost and projects it
will save more than $14,000
annually in electrical costs—
paying off the project within
nine months. The company
financed the project through
U.S. Energy Capital Corp., using a lowfee
self-funding model that set the loan
payments at a lower amount than the
monthly cost savings. “The interest rates
Lead quality tech Jorge Escobar explains the new heater bands
to machine operators, demonstrating the cool-to-touch aspect.
Xten retrofitted some of its largest presses with the bands to save
power, reduce heat loss, and transmit heat more efficiently.
were a little higher, but the self-funding
option was very attractive to us,”
Davidson added.
The next project involved tackling the
energy lost in its compressed
air system. Focus offers a
variety of incentives for fixing
air leaks, including paying
for an outside audit. Using
an ultrasonic leak detector,
Focus and Xten performed
air leak audits on air lines
and compressors, and fixed
any leaks. Compressed air can
be an expensive source of
energy on the shop floor, and
leaks can be a major cause of
energy loss.
Heater bands: Simple,
low-cost, effective
Additionally, Xten used grant
money from Focus to retrofit
several of its older large injection
molding machines with
ServTek self-insulating radiant heater
bands, and will most likely continue retrofitting
the other presses as well, since
ServTek, Milacron’s aftermarket business
10 MARCH 2010 • MODERN PLASTICS WORLDWIDE plasticstoday.com/mpw