Process Heat: Integrating Energy Audits and Energy Management

Process heat has great potential to improve energy efficiency across several industries. However, although energy consultancy services are provided and audit reports are available, these potentials are all too rarely exploited. This can be explained by the laborious efforts required to prepare the extensive reports needed by management in order to make investment decisions. In addition, energy management processes are simply inadequate in many companies.

So that measures which make true business sense can actually be implemented, adelphi – alongside ten leading engineering and energy agencies from all across Europe – has set up the Steam-Up Project. To begin with, energy audits are being carried in around 100 industrial companies, with a view to enabling more energy efficient stream production and utilisation. For this purpose, the consortium has developed a special methodology for these steam audits, based on the energy audit standard EN 16247. In order to make it simpler for the companies we advise to make decisions on their investment opportunities and to plan out which measure they will actually take, Steam-Up places special emphasis on integrating audit reporting with corporate energy management. For this reason, reporting takes place on an online system which automatically translates recommendations into broad action plans for the company’s energy management.

The various parties to be found in companies thus always receive exactly the information that they need. Management is provided with a clear business case that succinctly describes the information and data needed to make investment decisions. Energy managers in companies receive a precise list with tasks which need to be done and are able to assign responsibilities and deadlines for individual sub-tasks. Other components of the project include monitoring the success of savings measures, benchmarking and maintaining a help desk.

adelphi’s task lies in the design, programming and maintenance of the web-based services (audit reporting mechanisms, energy management solutions, monitoring and benchmarking) whilst the project partners will be responsible for carrying out on-site audits and providing support to the companies involved. The project is being implemented in the framework of the European Commission’s Horizon 2020 programme.