CompAir puts energy savings on the menu at Marie 02 May 2012

Since installing fixed and regulated speed compressors, from CompAir, at its plant in Sablé sur Sarthe, France, food processor Société Marie says it has been experiencing annual electricity savings of €10,500.

Stéphane Lemiale, maintenance manager at the company, which manufactures over 10,000 tonnes of fresh and frozen ready meals per annum, says payback on this investment will be less than two years.

Compressed air at this plant is used throughout manufacturing, from controlling hot water valves through to packaging the finished product – but its previous compressors were 20 years old.

An air audit carried out by CompAir identified that, by installing two new compressors, including a regulated speed unit, as well as a heat recovery system, Société Marie could benefit from considerable energy savings.

"Based on the results of the air audit, we opted to install a fixed speed CompAir L50 and regulated speed L55RS compressor, in addition to heat exchangers," explains Lemiale.

"The regulated speed technology in the L55RS means that the correct volume of air is produced to match our requirements at all times. This reduces offload running and its associated costs," he continues.

"In addition, the L50 provides a reliable supply of high-quality air."

And Lemiale also remarks on the plant's heat recovery successes, achieved by working with local CompAir distributor R-Hydrau.

"Using heat exchangers, we can recover and transfer the heat generated during compression to our water supply. This hot water can then be used for a variety of factory processes, such as sanitation, in order to meet our strict hygiene requirements," says Lemiale.

And he adds that since installing the new compressors, Société Marie has reduced its annual electricity consumption for compressed air by 25%, from 600,000kWh to 450,000kWh – hence the saving of approximately €10,500 per year.

In addition, the new heat recovery system has reduced the company's annual natural gas consumption by 15%, saving a further €8,000 per year.

Brian Tinham

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