SEEA Advances Energy Efficiency Among Southeastern Industrial Manufacturers

Kingsport, Tenn., May 2011 – A recent meeting with 80 attendees from 25 manufacturing companies in the Southeast promoted energy efficiency in manufacturing plants. At the meeting, energy managers exchanged best practices, touted their accomplishments and encouraged one another’s efforts.

Eastman Chemical Company partnered with the Southeast Energy Efficiency Alliance (SEEA) to host the day-long meeting on May 11, 2011, at its Tennessee operations facility.

“This was perhaps one of our most effective meetings to date,” said SEEA Industrial Program Manager Rick Marsh. “Dialogue between the companies was at an all-time high.”
Marsh added that the open format of the meeting and the quality of the Q-and-A segments led to thought-provoking and motivating discussions.

SEEA Industrial Coalition: Goals and Accomplishments

SEEA aims to help manufacturers learn to operate with a higher degree of energy efficiency through a program called the SEEA Industrial Coalition. This first of its kind initiative promotes technologies, programs and resources, and uses unique peer-to-peer meetings throughout the region to allow companies to share their best practices to become more energy efficient.

“Manufacturers value the platform that SEEA has created,” said Marsh. “With each meeting we see involvement from new companies and companies who have been involved for a while just continue to get more and more engaged.”

Eastman Chemical Company used the meeting as a chance to showcase their Kingsport facility and their approach to energy management.  As participants saw the scale of the facility, which is a massive plant at around 8 square miles, they were able to appreciate the challenges Eastman’s energy team faces.

“I believe we can all enhance our energy programs and be better stewards of our resources by sharing our practices with each other,” said Sharon Nolen, Eastman’s Corporate Energy Program manager.
 
Representatives from Toyota, Saint-Gobain, Buckeye Technologies, Nissan North America, Mohawk and Ingersoll Rand also shared information, specifically about project identification, funding and execution, as well as techniques on energy management and how their companies have benefitted from an increased focus on energy efficiency.

Moving Forward in the Southeast

SEEA will continue executing quarterly meetings of the SEEA Industrial Coalition around the region and welcomes the inclusion of energy managers from Southeast manufacturing firms.

Find additional information about the SEEA Industrial Coalition on their website and visit SEEA’s website to learn more about programs focused on energy efficiency in other sectors.