Taking a long-term view of energy efficiency

For the past decade the laundry industry has been talking about the importance of saving water and energy both to help the environment and to save costs.

More recently ”sustainability” has become the buzzword. The laundry industry is resource-intensive. Both suppliers and launderers are recognising that natural resources need to be managed efficiently, following best practice working methods to ensure the long-term future of both individual businesses and of the industry.

Sustainability is a wide reaching concept and some of the factors that will help laundries go beyond the industry’s immediate control.

Pellerin Milnor Corporation says that governments’ willingness to understand present and future technological capabilities will ensure that the highest quality products are being manufactured using as low a level of resources as possible. But the company adds that the laundries’ ability to adopt stronger eco policies depends heavily on how long it takes for alternative energies such as geothermal, solar and wind power to become more readily available and economically viable.

Looking directly at the laundry operation, Marc Caralt, product manager at Girbau’s industrial division, cites manufacturers’ continued efforts to improve machine controls and following best practice in machine use as factors that will help energy-use stay sustainable in the long-term. He explains that efficient energy use depends not only on the equipment but also on the way that laundries use chemicals and the ability to adapt programs and program time to avoid wastage.

So the company has introduced Girbau Laundry Tips, an interactive online laundry training service that answers customers’ questions on topics such as equipment use. It also offers advice on machine layouts that will allow more productive and hygienic work-flows and on how to adapt programs to suit a specific wash process.

But Girbau thinks of efficient energy use not only in terms of its own machines but as an integral part of the global laundry industry and believes this approach is necessarily long-term.

Resource management is a specialist area for Christeyns. Philip Poeth, corporate applications manager, energy, says that given the energy-intensive nature of the laundry process, suppliers must work on developments that achieve high energy efficiency with low energy loss.

Recycling is also important. Both smart heat-recovery and water-treatment systems will help to achieve substantial energy savings. Poeth also says that attitudes will have to change. Sustainability might be a “nice to have” concept now but increasingly strict legislation will turn it into a “must”.

Laundries will have to find more sustainable ways of working both to comply with regulation and as a requirement from customers that are keen to build a green image.

Horst-Hendrik Hansmann at Kannegiesser says that the company sees the energy-optimised machine as the first step to sustainability. Each stage in the laundry process needs to be analysed and optimised.

The first step is to use less energy in each process. For example, Kannegiesser’s XMT tunnel finisher is now in its fifth generation and design improvements have reduced energy use by around 30% compared with the previous model.

Then after looking at individual machines, managers should consider the laundry as a whole and see where surplus energy from one process can be re-used in another.

For example, by using a combination of condensation heat-exchanger, insulated warm water tank and intelligent process controls, the laundry can recover energy from the exhaust air of its ironers and finishers and re-use it to heat fresh water for the washers.

Kannegiesser has devised a total energy management system based on maximising the way that the relationship between the different machines can be used to the laundry’s advantage.

At Jensen, head of marketing Gerda Jank points out that laundries have always faced the challenge of adjusting production to the peaks and troughs of customer requirements, particularly those serving the hotel sector where businesses have seasonal highs and lows. The same principle applies to energy supply and so the company suggests a first step could be replacing a large central boiler with smaller units that can be shut down individually when not required.

Jensen also suggests other ways of reducing steam use and saving energy. These include replacing steam-heated tunnel washers with gas-heated models with a fully-integrated heating system. This should be combined with low-temperature washing. Using gas dryers and also machines to break-up laundry cakes to reduce dryer time can improve both efficiency and productivity as can using gas ironers.

Saving water

Jensen also points out that modern tunnel washers have been designed to save water. In the hospitality sector, Senking tunnel washers are achieving just 2.5 – 3.5litre/kg, which also reduces energy use.

Pellerin-Milnor says that significant improvements in energy use can be made by examining the wash process, by recirculating heat during drying and by recovering heat from ironers.

But the company points out that efficiency can also be improved by designing the work-flow to reduce the number of machines used and the labour needed. This shortens the whole laundry cycle and also the time that linen spends in a washer or dryer.

Caralt at Girbau says that while energy efficiency must be a goal for all sections of the laundry, drying and ironing both rely greatly on heat and so these machines must be designed to save energy.

To underline his point, Caralt says that the auto-speed system on Girbau’s ironers minimises energy use by adjusting the speed as the linen’s residual moisture gradually reduces.

Wim Demeyer, sales network manager at Lapauw, says the company centres its energy strategy on two areas: water consumption and the use of primary resources such as gas.

All its washer-extractors are designed to minimise water use, both mechanically and through the machines’ software. It also has an extended range of recovery systems and is working with Christeyns to reduce water consumption in washer-extractors. The use of gas ironers is already established as a strategy for sustainability. Lapauw has developed this further with its TurboFan technology which optimises the transfer of thermal energy, keeping ironing temperatures stable. This results in a sharp decline in gas consumption, says Demeyer.

Poeth at Christeyns also highlights the finishing area as one of the laundry’s most energy-intensive sections. It accounts for around 85% of the energy used in professional laundries.

But energy-saving equipment must produce a return on investment in no more than two years. Laundries could save money by recovering heat from ironers or tunnel finishers through the use of heat-exchangers, such as Christeyns H-X-Air, which transfer excess energy from the exhaust air to the fresh water in an insulated circulation line.

While laundries will need to look at producing immediate savings they also need to be confident of maintaining maximum efficiency in the long-term.

Girbau’s Caralt says that to manage resources efficiently every machine parameter should be adjustable so the programs can be matched to production requirements. But laundries must look at sustainability not just in terms of individual machines but of the whole operation. The management team needs to aim for continuous improvement in all areas and at all stages of the process.

Jensen too stresses the importance of considering the laundry as a whole. The Jensen Cockpit gives a detailed picture of what is happening throughout the plant, by providing data, visuals and written reports on production and consumption of water, energy and detergents.

Hansmann at Kannegiesser believes sustainability should always be borne in mind when purchasing decisions are made. This should always include a full examination of lifetime running costs and also ways of achieving further savings through optional add-ons.

Technology has a distinct role in ensuring long-term sustainability. Pellerin Milnor urges laundries to take advantage of advances in washing technology and chemistry. Managers need to focus on achieving the shortest wash times and the lowest possible temperatures without sacrificing quality. Regular preventative maintenance routines, such as checking that seals and valves work correctly, are very important in ensuring that equipment is always as efficient as possible.

The company believes that increasingly laundries will have their wash processes as well as their buildings certified as eco-friendly by specialist organisations such as LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design).

Manufacturers too will have a role to play in a building a sustainable industry for the future.

Jensen believes that they should concentrate on two areas. Machines must be designed so that a minimum of heat is wasted by being exhausted to the atmosphere. Controls need to become ever smarter so that they automatically adjust parameters to changes in production and automatically distribute surplus energy from one machine to another.

Pellerin Milnor makes the point that the long-term view should start with R&D. Manufacturers need to design their equipment so that it not only lasts more than 25 years but also so that it remains efficient and retains its value for the laundry throughout its lifetime. Energy saving should not be complicated. Designs should be simple and equipment should achieve its published levels of consumption without relying on other machines or on outside contractors.

Ecolab stresses that laundries will require individual solutions to ensuring their long-term energy sustainability but standard equipment can be used in a tailor-made set-up. The first step must be a water and energy audit. Then the results can generate a solution. Good results in the long-term require efficient data collection and evaluation. Data management systems, such as those provided by Ecolab, ensure the right level of transparency on input and production.

The company believes that investment in technology to monitor textile flow, employee and machine productivity and energy use will pay-off as the right people will have the information they need to show the areas that need improvement.

Ecolab has several solutions to assist in managing energy consumption including PERformance 40, a low temperature wash process; PERformance Ultimate, the steam-free laundry concept that avoids the need for a boiler house and generates heat only where it is needed, thus decreasing energy losses and PERformancePlus, which combines water filtration, heat-recovery units and low temperature wash processes.

Long-term sustainability will also be influenced by the legislators. Jensen points out that as the cost of CO2 emissions rises, laundries will have to seek more energy efficient equipment and move aware from oil and coal-fired boilers to cleaner energy sources such as gas or even electricity.

Caralt at Girbau says while the exact effect of legislation is unknown, energy resources are certainly finite and laws will have to become more stringent. Changes are inevitable but the lack of resources should make both manufacturers and launderers alert to the need to become more efficient.

Poeth at Christeyns says the European Commission’s Low Carbon Roadmap 2050 shows how different sectors can make the transition to a low carbon economy over the coming decades. Local carbon footprint regulations are being developed in France and Germany. The company expects environmental legislation to set stringent limitations on energy consumption and on carbon emissions for each sector. The biggest polluter will have to pay extra taxes.

But governments too need to change, says Pellerin Milnor. Around the world they are helping to encourage sustainable practices by offering grants but energy optimisation is being held back by the current requirements for time and temperature during the wash. These regulations were based on old technology and do not take account of advances made by manufacturers and most importantly in chemistry. Continued enforcement is limiting both for the laundries and for the quality of service.