Compressed Air Applications Reduce Environmental Footprint With Ingersoll Rand Energy Recovery Units

BRUSSELS, May 14, 2019 /3BL Media/— Manufacturing plants using oil-free compressed air solutions like pharmaceutical, food and beverage, chemical and automotive industries can lower their environmental footprint and reach their ISO 50001 goals in energy management with the new Energy Recovery Units (ERU) from Ingersoll Rand^®. The new sustainability oriented solutions work with oil-free compressors transferring the heat generated throughout the compression process to warm water, which customers can use in industrial processes or to heat spaces in the plant.

The new Energy Recovery Solutions from Ingersoll Rand, a global leader in compressed air and gas systems and services, can recover and reuse over 80 percent of the energy used by the compressor without affecting the reliability or the performance of the compressed air supply. This translates to significant energy savings for the manufacturing plant and lower CO₂ emissions in the facility by reusing the heat recovered from the compressors instead of fossil-fuel based heating.

In a food and beverage plant, in the Netherlands, using a compressed air system equipped with the Ingersoll Rand Energy Recovery Unit, the customer was able to recover 70 percent of the 320 kilowatts (kW) used by the compressors. This equals an annual saving of approximately 89,000 Euros[1].  In case the facility would switch from a fossil-fueled solution and use heating energy recovered from the compressors, this would mean approximately 208 tons of CO₂ less emitted to the atmosphere.

“The new Energy Recovery Units respond to our customers’ needs for new ways to increase the energy efficiency and lower the environmental impact of their operations while keeping performance and reliability of their systems at the same highest levels,” said Boris Takov, marketing leader, Ingersoll Rand Compression Technologies and Services in Europe. ”With this new product we raise the bar in energy efficiency and reliability, not sacrificing one to obtain the other. The energy saving potential of this solution goes hand in hand with the impact it can have on decarburization and reducing the use of fossil fuels in the heating purposes.”

Some key features of the new Ingersoll Rand Energy Recovery Units:

• Plug-and-play solution that can be installed onsite into an existing Ingersoll Rand compressor or purchased as an entire unit
• A single Energy Recovery Unit is capable of working with up to four compressors
• Air Blast cooler enabling customers with no back-up water to have a virtually air cooled installation
• Continuous, real time monitoring of energy savings and total recovered energy contributing to customers’ ISO 50001 goals in energy management

For more information on the Energy Recovery Units, visit www.ingersollrandproducts.com or contact your local service representative.
 

Delivering on the Ingersoll Rand Climate Commitment

In 2014, as part of its 2020 sustainability targets, Ingersoll Rand made a Climate Commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from its products and operations by 2020. The Ingersoll Rand Climate Commitment pledged to:

• Cut the refrigerant GHG footprint of its products by 50 percent by 2020 and incorporate lower GWP alternatives across its portfolio by 2030;
• Invest $500 million in product-related research and development over the next five years to fund the long-term reduction of GHG emissions; and
• Reduce company operations-related GHG emissions by 35 percent by 2020, a goal which the company has achieved two years ahead of schedule.

Since then, the company has:

• Avoided 21 million metric tons of our customers’ CO2e, which is the equivalent of decommissioning 3.7 coal-fired power plants.
• Reduced its own operational emissions by 45 percent, achieving its Climate Commitment for operations two years early.
• Reduced energy intensity by 22 percent.

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About Ingersoll Rand

Ingersoll Rand (NYSE:IR) advances the quality of life by creating comfortable, sustainable and efficient environments. Our people and our family of brands — including Club Car^®, Ingersoll Rand^®, Thermo King^® and Trane^® — work together to enhance the quality and comfort of air in homes and buildings; transport and protect food and perishables; and increase industrial productivity and efficiency. We are a global business committed to a world of sustainable progress and enduring results. Ingersoll Rand products range from complete compressed air and gas systems and services, to power tools, material handling and fluid management systems. The diverse and innovative products, services and solutions enhance our customers' energy efficiency, productivity and operations. For more information, visit www.ingersollrand.com or www.ingersollrandproducts.com.

[1] Estimation for savings achieved by a 320 kW oil-free compressed air application in a food and beverage plant. Savings calculated with 70% of energy recovered, energy price of 0.1 EUR/kWh and 4000 running hours a year.