Bakery saves thousands in energy costs thanks to CompAir products

CompAir compressed-air equipment led to major energy savings for a British bakery.

CompAir is a worldwide force in compressed-air equipment, and that goes for its Canadian division, CompAir Canada Inc. The company has earned its reputation not only for the quality of every compressor and solution, but also for the savings that they provide for workplaces.

A perfect example occurred five years ago, when a leading bakery in the United Kingdom needed to upgrade its equipment and processes. CompAir was on hand to solve the issue.

Needing more efficient air

This supplier of bread products embarked on a period of investment in 2013, to ensure consistent production levels with improved systems. This included an audit of the compressed-air system, as the bakery used compressed air throughout its production process, 24-7, to make more than two million bread products per week.

The bakery’s four fixed-speed compressors were more than 20 years old and no longer worked efficiently at providing air. Three of these were CompAir machines. The audit found that their age and continuous use had made them expensive to maintain. It also became clear through leak testing and other auditing methods that installation of new compressors could save a lot of energy.

The company turned to CompAir for a solution. CompAir recommended three new compressors, including a regulated-speed unit, a heat recovery system, and SmartAir Master controller. The bakery settled on a regulated-speed L132RS compressor and two fixed-speed L110 units, which produced the correct level of air to match production requirements – always operating at optimal efficiency – while the second L110 compressor could serve as a standby during maintenance.

Another benefit of this new system was that the SmartAir Master controller operated all the compressors to the narrowest pressure band, which helped to lower energy consumption. The units’ oil-to-water plate heat exchangers enabled recovery of up to 72 per cent of consumed power, and a CompAir desiccant dryer with steam regeneration helped to generate clean, dry air.

Five years later, the bakery has seen energy savings of around £188,000 per year (about CAD$323,000), thanks to CompAir. The system paid back on its investment in less than two years.

To learn more, contact CompAir.

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