How an advanced energy management system uncovered hidden inefficiencies at our Fradley factory

Discover how our world-leading energy management system (EMS) helped us identify waste-reducing processes and facilities optimisations in our factory.

The inspiration

Small tweaks on the factory floor that add up to a major reduction in our carbon footprint.

The beginning: Tracking down the energy hotspots

Some paths to cutting carbon emissions are obvious. Driving less. Recycling more. Using cleaner fuel, or exploring more sustainable energy sources. But some of the biggest contributors aren’t as easy to identify.

Take, for example, the small inefficiencies in a factory’s operations. Like small amounts of wasted fuel, wasted time, or wasted energy.

We knew that those inefficiencies were hiding on our factory floors. And that, if we could just uncover them and target them, it would have a major impact on our emissions. And help us take a huge stride towards reaching our biggest goal: reducing our carbon footprint by 50% before 2025.

There was one problem: At Norgren, we don’t do anything unless it’s backed by plenty of data – and guaranteed to have an impact.

Which meant that we needed some incredibly granular data on our factories’ energy consumption. So we could address those energy consumption hotspots with pinpoint precision – without slowing down production or disrupting service for our customers.

The plan: Think big, but start small

Adopting solar power at Rockford meant more than installing a few solar panels. Norgren wanted to commit all of the time and investment needed to make solar energy a significant energy source on site – and significantly reduce the company’s carbon footprint.

But careful implementation is crucial for these kinds of large projects. So the decision was made to begin with a small test project, and then scale rapidly.

The plan: Build an EMS that shows granular, near-live energy data

Getting that kind of granularity wouldn’t be possible without some powerful technology.

So we developed a plan: Build a first-of-its-kind energy management system for our Fradley factory. One that could give us the visibility, understanding, and control we needed. Zeroing in on the areas of our factory that used the most energy, and finding every opportunity to make them leaner, greener, and more efficient.

A project like this doesn’t happen overnight. So we split it into three phases – each one more advanced than the last, so we could implement the plan fast and start seeing results right away.

Phase one: Identifying high energy consumption

It all started with visibility. Installing equipment that would give us an overview of energy consumption at Fradley.

At this stage, the prototype EMS was made up of two important components:

• Monitoring of the Fradley facility

• Sensing equipment on our machines – sensors measuring everything from temperature and vibration to energy consumption at a sector level.

With the sensors installed, we now have a “heatmap” of our energy consumption. A crystal-clear picture of which areas of the factory consume the most energy.

The machines in these areas made up over 70% of the energy consumption on the site. Places where relatively small changes to our equipment, our processes, or our materials could have a disproportionate impact on our carbon footprint.

Phase one is now complete, and this new level of insight is already delivering results – we’ll cover those in more detail later.

It’s an impressive start. But it’s only the beginning.

Next? Figuring out exactly how much energy each individual machine uses, every moment of the day.

Phase two: Monitoring individual machines

Phase two is where the insight gets truly granular.

We’re already talking to suppliers about how we can dive deeper. Install more sensors. Implement more advanced monitoring equipment. And build out our understanding.

Instead of looking at which areas of the factory use the most energy, we’ll be able to dive into the footprint of each piece of equipment.

With a little investigation from our engineers, we’ll be able to pinpoint what’s driving up each machine’s energy use – and start working with our sustainability partners to make fixes.

Example readings for one of the most process-critical machines on our site, showing vibration patterns to identify potential quality issues and improve customer product quality and reliability

Phase three: Energy consumption under control worldwide

The final stage is where the EMS really comes into its own.

At this stage, managing energy consumption won’t just mean monitoring and interpreting data. We’ll use automation and remote diagnostics to make our machines more energy efficient in real time.

What does that mean in practice?

By combining constant monitoring with AI-powered analytics, we’ll have complete control over all of our machinery on site.

We’ll be able to see the exact outputs of our machines. And use this detailed performance data to detect issues as soon as they arise. Is a machine vibrating irregularly, applying excessive pressure, consuming more energy than usual? We’ll be there right away to investigate the issue, uncover the cause, and fix the problem before it escalates.

We’ll be able to use predictive and real-time inputs to:

• Monitor access to restricted zones and pieces of machinery

• Track five-minute energy rates, and use external data sources to control lighting, ventilation, air quality, and exhaust control

• Create predictive maintenance schedules that save time and reduce the cost of replacing machinery components

And the global reach of this project should mean the efficiencies only multiply. An engineer in the UK should be able to look at the performance of a factory in China, then adjust the profiles of the machines there in real time through the EMS.

At this stage, the EMS won’t just be helping us keep our carbon footprint under control. It’ll also deliver huge benefits for our employees. We’ll be able to track everything from air quality to noise levels and create a safer, more comfortable environment for our people.

Not to mention that the ability to remotely start up our machines will cut out lots of wasted time too. If a machine takes a long time to boot up, we can turn it on remotely so that it’s ready for the working day.

The power of thinking differently

At Norgren, we’re going all in on reducing the energy consumption on our factory floors. Even if that means building a more effective, more advanced EMS than the industry has ever seen.

So far, the first phase of the project has saved us approximately 50 tones of carbon.

And it’s just the beginning.

The first step on our journey to cutting our impact on the environment – and making sure we’re the kind of sustainable, efficient, and reliable partner that our customers need.

For more information about how Norgren is reducing its carbon footprint – and unlocking new benefits for its customers and people in the process – click here.