BekaertDeslee monitors Energy consumption

WHY WE CARE

As a textile manufacturing company, BekaertDeslee needs quite a lot of energy. We use electricity to power our production facilities and to use specific utilities like lights and air compressors. Natural gas is used to heat our buildings and our furnaces and steam boilers.

Our energy consumption is not only expensive, it also affects the environment (air, water, soil) and the climate. We aim to use our energy more efficiently to reduce both our costs and our carbon emissions. Our indirect energy consumption, for example from commuting, will not be considered here because it is negligible compared to our direct energy needs.

HOW WE LOWER OUR ENERGY CONSUMPTION

We take various measures to improve our energy efficiency and to purchase less energy from non-renewable sources.

Firstly, we improve the energy performance of our existing facilities and develop new, more energy-efficient manufacturing processes and machines. Our purchase policy is strongly driven by energy performance and durability.

Secondly, we monitor how much gas and electricity our various production units use and closely scrutinize the biggest consumers. They receive energy targets that match their real-life needs. In this way, we manage and prevent unnecessary energy use. We also build models that map out how much energy a production unit requires to manufacture a specific product quantity. These models then become benchmarks for all our units. We use them to discover best practices and to make maximum use of our knowledge.

Thirdly and lastly, we have investigated solar panel projects and are planning more renewable energy projects in future. We aim to reduce our costs and our carbon footprint and to become less dependent on the volatile energy market.

OUR ACHIEVEMENTS iN 2020-2021

Each month we check our energy consumption and discuss our options with EVP Manufacturing & Engineering and our manufacturing units. This results in clear goals and targets, which are monitored on an monthly basis. Our 2021 achievements include the installation of Variable Speed Drive (VSD) air compressors in our manufacturing facilities in Argentina, Turkey and Indonesia, and the use of ultrasonic leak detectors for compressed air and gases. We also replaced the traditional HID and fluorescent lights with more energy efficient high bay LED lights in our manufacturing facilities in Indonesia, Romania and the US.

To further reduce our energy consumption, we launched heat recovery projects for compressors and furniture exhausts. In 2021, we have centralized fuel consumption figures from the different plants, to allow close follow-up. To reduce our water consumption, we adapt our manufacturing processes to avoid or reduce the need for steaming.

BekaertDeslee HQ in Waregem (Belgium), where research drives innovation

Although BekaertDeslee has grown significantly in 2021, our power consumption has increased much less. In absolute terms, we have used a little more energy, but at the same time we have become much more energy efficient. In 2021 we consumed 0.243 kWh electricity per €1 revenue generated. This is a slight decrease in comparison to last year. This is mainly due to our various energy saving projects. We have also used our most energy efficient machinery to manufacture the required products. In future, we will maintain that choice to the maximum, as long as external factors allow.

OUTLOOK 2022 AND BEYOND

In coming years, we want to build further upon the progress we’ve made. The management of fuels and pressurized air still offers various opportunities, as there are still some inefficiencies to be improved. We are also researching if we can digitally monitor the power consumption of individual machines. All in all, our energy story is one to be continued!