Sustainable Silo Manufacturing

Fernando Luengo, Symaga, ASM South East Asia, explains how to improve the sustainability of silos, from producing and consuming renewable energy on-site, to storing renewable fuel feedstocks.

Last year, Symaga installed a photovoltaic solar energy generation plant to power its factory in Villarta de San Juan, Spain, taking one more step in the company's commitment to sustainability and respect for the environment which was consolidated in 2018, with the Environmental Management System ISO 14001.

Within the ‘Symaga Continuous Improvement for Manufacturing Plan’, the company launched a global vision for sustainability. Among the key goals of the plan, the reduction of both energy and natural resources used in production, as well as waste management improvements, took centre stage. The objectives of reducing energy consumption and waste are aligned with the corporate social responsibility plan on environmental protection and pollution prevention, since they contribute to the energy transition and the decarbonisation of the activity, which ultimately reduces global warming of the planet.

Two parallel projects were launched to ensure that the Symaga factory had a more sustainable production. The fi rst project was the optimisation of the resources and waste management to attain the UNE-EN ISO 14001 certifi cation for the company’s environmental management system. A series of measures were implemented to reduce the negative environmental impact and the risks associated with accidental situations, which also boosted productivity.

One of the measures implemented was the acquisition of gas aspiration machines with fi ltering in the welding process – which brings a reduction in gases for welders

and, of course, a reduction in gases to the atmosphere. Also, the wood that comes with Symaga’s MMPP began to be reused and instead of making it waste, the company began reselling it to its suppliers for treatment according to the NIMF-15 standard that allows reuse. Another initiative was to hire a specialised recycling manager who removes the waste from the company’s facilities. Since 2018, its suppliers have been required to comply with 14001 or have an environmental policy implemented in their companies. The implementation of these measures allowed Symaga to obtain the 14001 certifi cation, rewarding the effort that the production and quality departments had made for months.

Using renewable energies

The second sustainability project was a photovoltaic solar plant to power Symaga’s factory. The roof of one of the company’s latest buildings hosts a system of solar panels that generate green energy. As a result of this, 25% of the total energy consumed by Symaga Group in 2020 came from direct renewable sources, and in the second phase that will begin in 2021 the company will look at a fi gure of 50%, with an ultimate goal to achieve 100%.

In this regard, Symaga’s experience is very positive. While the launching of these projects required remarkable planning and implementation efforts, it has turned into an investment with returns. With the Environmental Management System 14001, the company has increased competitiveness, due to the reutilisation of materials and the reduction of gases for its employees, boosting worker’s well-being and productivity. From the new photovoltaic solar power plant, in terms of maximisation of resources, the roof not only protects from rain but also generates energy. Photovoltaic energy reduces production costs, achieving a more competitive product.

Essentially, it is all green: there is a direct positive economic impact and this is also benefi cial for the environment, since CO2 emissions are reduced. Another benefi t is from a social perspective, because a sustainable company that is committed to the environment and its workers projects a positive image to its target audiences.

Industry in general, and silo manufacturing in particular, should do its utmost to produce using renewable energies in order to preserve the environment and increase competitiveness. With Symaga, bringing electricity consumption down at a time when electricity prices were on the continuous rise (reaching record highs in Spain), has a direct impact on the results. As solar panels are more accessible and the technology matures, the installation of solar panels is economically viable, thus it soon pays for itself.

For energy-intensive industries, self-production, consumption, and independence bring about growth in competitiveness by reducing energy costs. Depending on the consumption profi le of each company, up to 60 - 70% can be saved. Spain, blessed with the highest solar radiation rates in Europe, presents a profi table opportunity for self-consumption photovoltaic panels.

Self-consumption, by eliminating energy production with fossil fuels, contributes directly to reducing CO2 emissions, slowing down climate change, and making this world a more sustainable place for future generations, achieving social and economic benefi ts, and complying with the corporate environmental social responsibility policy.

Industrial self-consumption is a natural path towards distributed generation, where each one will be able to consume energy instead of demanding it from the electricity grid. Self-consumption with photovoltaic solar energy consists of the installation of a generating plant to make the most of solar energy without the need to store energy in batteries or store excess energy. Therefore, all the power produced by the self-consumption solar kit ends up being used; nothing is injected into the grid.

The environmental management of resources and waste also achieves economic and environmental-social benefi ts, because it is produced more effi ciently, minimising costs, and reducing waste to a minimum.

Figure 1. United Feed, Yanbu, Saudi Arabia.

Figure 2. Østfoldkorn, Sarpsborg, Norway.

Staying focused on sustainability

Symaga’s continuous investment plan has improved the production and commercialisation of the company’s silos, achieving exponential and continuous growth over time. State-of-the-art production has always been pursued for Symaga’s factory, with excellence in manufacturing quality being one of the main added values of the company’s silo. The main objective has been factory automation and total

traceability control. With the implementation of the waste management 14001 standard and the photovoltaic plant, the concept of sustainability is added to achieve a clean production that minimises emissions, reduces risks to human and environmental health, and simultaneously increases competitiveness.

The contribution to sustainability extends to the storage solutions that Symaga provides. Agriculture and its value chain have a direct impact on the environment, climate, and food safety, and improper storage makes the problem much worse – after-crop grain losses and contamination of food are common where the grains are stored with traditional methods. A modern silo installation comes as a steady solution to help mitigate these risks and maximise value for yields. A silo helps reduce the losses that occur during storage, keeping the grain quality and properties for longer. Additionally, it is a fi rst barrier against the damage caused by bad weather or pests, maintaining the grain in proper conditions and preventing the spoilage due to mycotoxins.

On top of that, silos have also emerged as a key solution to boost the development of new, cleaner energy alternatives. Over the last decade, silos have proven to be a reliable storage solution for organic materials such as biomass, which are then transformed into fuel for energy generation. The transition of fossil fuels towards cleaner alternatives has been boosted by the use of biofuels, minimising the carbon footprint as these capture carbon during its development. Key among Symaga’s record, the company notes partners such as Abengoa (A Coruña, Spain), Agroetanol (Noorkoping, Sweden), Prumyslovy (Trmice, Czech Republic), Sunoservices, and LLC Frist Ukraininan (Ukraine), which herald the boon for these new alternatives.

Symaga Group maintains its philosophy of continuous improvement. The reduction of energy costs and environmental management improvement increase the effi ciency and competitiveness of the company and its silos, and reinforce the commitment to reducing the environmental footprint. Symaga encourages the entire industry in general, along with the manufacturers of silos, to preserve the environment, as a commitment to society and nature.

Figure 3. Photovoltaic solar energy generation plant at Symaga facilities, Villarta de San Juan, Spain.

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