Nine Vermont companies join partnership for energy savings

Burlington, VT

Nine Vermont companies have joined a Continuous Energy Improvement partnership with Efficiency Vermont. The first of its kind in the Northeast, the partnership provides participating companies with technical assistance and support to develop a comprehensive approach in energy management to reduce waste and improve energy performance over time.

“These companies have some of the largest energy needs in the state,” says Greg Baker, Senior Account Manager with Efficiency Vermont. “They’ve made a commitment to prioritize energy considerations in every aspect of their operations. As a result, they’re getting significantly greater return on their efficiency investments than by viewing energy savings as a series of unrelated upgrades. In other words, they’re not only installing efficient equipment, they’re also using it in the most efficient way for their specific needs.”

One participating company, Husky Injection Molding Systems of Milton, is not new to working with Efficiency Vermont to take a comprehensive view of energy use. They’ve used the approach, over a series of years, to cut energy use by 38%.

“We’ve done a complete review of the processes and equipment in our entire facility,” says DeWayne Howell, Manufacturing Technology Manager at Husky. “In many cases, we invested in new equipment, lighting and the other kinds of upgrades that are viewed as typical energy efficiency projects. But those projects alone are not what enabled us to lower our energy usage by 38%.”

For example, with no capital investment, Husky is saving $10,000 per month in energy costs by reducing the pressure of its system providing fluids to milling and metalwork processes. By working with Efficiency Vermont to test and assess the system, Husky discovered and remedied significant energy waste while maintaining production standards.

Participating companies also include Ben & Jerry’s, Central Vermont Medical Center, Energizer Battery Manufacturing Company, Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Mack Molding, Middlebury College, Weidmann, and Stratton Mountain Resort.

“It’s a privilege to help these Vermont employers to strengthen their bottom lines by significantly reducing overhead,“ says Baker. “All Vermonters benefit from the commitment of these large energy users to reduce demand on the state’s electrical grid. Their actions prevent the need for more power generation, more power lines, and associated rate increases for us all.”

About Efficiency Vermont

As the nation’s first Energy Efficiency Utility, Efficiency Vermont has helped Vermont avoid over 13.2 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions and has received the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s ENERGY STAR program Partner of the Year – Sustained Excellence award for the last eight consecutive years. Efficiency Vermont works with partners to help our state transition to more affordable, low carbon energy use through education, incentives, and support for our clean energy workforce. Learn more at www.efficiencyvermont.com.

Efficiency Vermont Press Contact
Matthew Smith
Phone: (802) 540-7662
[email protected]