In the fast-paced and highly competitive consumer packaged goods (CPG) industry, the efficiency and reliability of manufacturing processes are crucial.
However, poor power quality can adversely affect plant operations, causing equipment damage, unnecessary electricity charges and safety risks such as increased fire hazards from overheating cables. It also negatively impacts power factor correction and other equipment, leading to serious damage and significant impacts on plant availability.
As industries move towards green energy and environmental efficiency, it’s crucial to balance the benefits of modern devices with the need to maintain power quality. Modern equipment like LED lighting and variable frequency drives (VFDs) contribute to power quality issues due to their non-linear loads. While these devices enhance energy efficiency and automation, they introduce problems such as harmonics and power quality disturbances.
Ensuring the advantages of energy efficiency
Increased digitisation and the proliferation of these devices in factories can lead to issues that need to be managed. Monitoring and conducting power quality audits are essential to uncover and address these problems, ultimately ensuring that the advantages of energy-efficient technologies are realised without compromising power quality.
A power quality audit is not just a box-ticking exercise; it’s a comprehensive evaluation that provides invaluable insights into the energy and power profile of a site. By conducting this audit, businesses can identify potential optimisation opportunities and uncover any lurking power quality issues that could undermine their efficiency efforts.
Success story: Mataura Valley Milk
A notable example of how technology can enhance efficiency and reliability is the success story of Mataura Valley Milk in New Zealand. This dairy company partnered with Schneider Electric to implement the EcoStruxure Plant solution, which delivers connectivity across all layers of operation, minimises energy usage, guarantees power quality, and provides real-time data for transparency and integrity across the supply chain.
Mataura Valley Milk’s state-of-the-art facility was designed with meticulous planning and strategy, employing the best people, partners and infrastructure. Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure solutions, powered by a quality audit, enabled the company to achieve its goal of building the world’s best nutritional business by providing real-time visibility into every process. This allowed for quick adaptation to customer requirements without sacrificing quality.
The deployment of Schneider Electric products, including variable speed drives and harmonic filters, ensured power quality and minimised power factor correction issues. The real-time data visibility and connectivity delivered by EcoStruxure enabled Mataura Valley Milk to track and trace every ingredient, providing complete transparency and trust for suppliers and customers.
Mitigating the impact of harmonics
Power quality audits are also crucial for mitigating the impact of harmonics, which is essential for compliance with regulations and addressing active issues such as unexplained production losses. Awareness is the first step to resolving these challenges, and this can be achieved through a power quality audit or by installing a monitoring system.
Schneider Electric offers hardware and software solutions that can monitor and quantify power quality on-site, providing valuable insights into the effectiveness of any mitigating initiatives. These tools ensure accurate and actionable insights, allowing businesses to make informed decisions and continuously improve their operations.
In conclusion, power quality audits are a vital tool for unlocking energy efficiency and reliability in the CPG industry. By leveraging success stories like Mataura Valley Milk and utilising advanced solutions from technology partners, businesses can ensure sustainable growth and operational excellence while maintaining compliance with environmental and regulatory standards.
- The author, Wesley Govender, is head of digital power services at Schneider Electric
- Read more articles by Schneider Electric on TechCentral
- This promoted content was paid for by the party concerned
