Batt–er Up! Insulation a Heavy Hitter for Industrial Efficiency

It’s well known that adding and properly maintaining insulation is a small and simple energy efficiency investment that can yield substantial, long-lasting energy – and cost– savings.In the industrial sector, this is particularly true for mechanical insulation – the materials and technologies used to insulate high and low temperature equipment and distribution infrastructure, HVAC applications, commercial refrigeration and other low-temperature piping and equipment. In practice, however, installing, improving and maintaining mechanical insulation has often been overlooked in industrial plants.

Domestic Developments on Mechanical Insulation

In the United States, a new campaign spearheaded by an alliance between the National Insulation Association (NIA) and the International Association of Heat and Frost Insulators and Allied Workers is collecting data to show how adding mechanical insulation is a worthwhile investment for industry. The campaign, known as the Mechanical Insulation Education and Awareness Campaign (MIC), is being implemented in cooperation with the Department of Energy’s Industrial Technologies Program (ITP).

The MIC is a program that educates industry professionals on the benefits of mechanical insulation by providing practical data, tools and resources such as case studies and online calculators to outline potential energy savings from mechanical insulation. Under the MIC, ITP and NIA recently added four new calculators to complement its four existing calculators in the National Institute of Buildings Sciences’ Mechanical Insulation Design Guide.

Tools for Success

The new calculators include two that calculate energy loss in un-insulated equipment or piping, a financial calculator estimating the financial returns from investments in mechanical insulation and a condensation control calculator to help designers determine the correct thickness of insulation to prevent condensation.

Adding and improving maintenance of mechanical insulation in industrial and large commercial facilities yields substantial results. One recent case study showcases the state of Montana’s assessment of state-owned buildings. It reveals a total potential annual energy savings of 6 billion Btu of natural gas, representing 8% of the total energy used by those facilities.

In addition, NIA recently confirmed an earlier study showing major energy efficiency gains ($3.7 billion in energy cost savings), emissions cuts (37.9 MMT/yr), 106% annual return and shovel ready job creation (40,000) possible with greater use and maintenance of mechanical insulation in U.S. industry.

Industrial Insulation at EE Global 2011

The fact that mechanical insulation is a low-cost way to save energy was underscored recently at the Alliance to Save Energy’s 2011 EE Global Forum in Brussels, Belgium. During the April 14 Executive Dialogue session focusing on industry, Andreas Gurtler, Foundation Manager for the European Industrial Insulation Foundation (EiiF), demonstrated how mechanical insulation investments can be sustainable and profitable.

Through his organization, Gurtler seeks a change in conventional thinking on insulation, transforming it from an often-overlooked investment into a profitable, multi-beneficial investment. Gurtler pointed to case studies of some of the EiiF’s concrete projects in Europe to demonstrate how, on average, the return on investment for industrial insulation projects were less than one year, and annual energy savings ranged from €24,000 to €525,000 (about $35,340 to $773,000).

Promoting Mechanical Insulation Worldwide

Established in 2009, EiiF is a non-profit organization advocating from both policy and economic standpoints. Its goal is to promote greater awareness within the European industrial sector of insulation’s potential to enhance profitability, but also reduce emissions and improve noise and fire control. Through its Technical Insulation Performance Programme (TIP-Programme), EiiF is also actively developing training, certification and appraisal methods for insulation experts who evaluate the performance of technical insulation systems.

These efforts by organizations in the United States, Europe and Canada to both develop tools to measure energy loss and raise awareness about the benefits of mechanical insulation may encourage greater implementation of mechanical insulation in industry worldwide. A growing number of case studies and real-world results, as presented during EE Global 2011, can help industrial stakeholders and plant managers understand that mechanical insulation is cost-effective, improves energy efficiency and can lead to reductions of greenhouse gas emissions.

With additional writing and editing by Julia Sendor.