Managing your plastics processing costs goes beyond labor and equipment to utilities, specifically energy consumption and cost.  And, as auxiliary equipment evolves, Conair continues to pursue energy-saving improvements throughout its product lines. Energy–saving potential may be realized in everything from simple design choices, such as improved insulation, to the selection and use of more efficient components, to next-generation advances like controls that use artificial intelligence.  But, no matter how energy savings are achieved, every one of them accrues to your bottom line in the form of energy savings, cost reductions, and greater sustainability.  

Energy Savings in Drying

Drying requires a significant use of energy, so there are many opportunities for energy savings. First, there’s the need to heat air—often by electric resistance elements or on a larger scale by a central gas drying air source, as well as the need to fine-tune air temperatures to each bin of material. Then there’s the need to properly dry the air, using a desiccant, to maximize moisture absorption as the air passes over and through moist material.  Then, there’s the need to circulate the air – to drive it through the drying system from beginning to end. Finally, there’s the opportunity to recondition/recycle the air by cleaning, desiccating, and re-using the air supply over and over again. 

  • Recirculating drying air: Alone among major resin drying equipment manufacturers, Conair’s desiccant wheel drying technology employs a closed-loop drying system that continually reconditions and recirculates heated drying air.  This “recirculation loop” collects warm moist air from the dryer outlet, passes it through a desiccant wheel that removes moisture and contaminants, then recirculates it – with minimal reheating — through the resin. Compared to “open loop” drying systems that simply exhaust moist, heated air after a single pass through the resin, Conair’s “closed loop” systems conserve heat energy and offer substantial savings. Together with other energy-saving drying technology—setpoints, temperature setback, temperature probes, and Moisture Monitor – Conair puts you in position to realize maximum energy savings. 
  • Adjusting airflow with Optimizer:  Our latest drying innovation – the Optimizer™ package for ResinWorks multi-hopper drying systems, uses an AI-driven control to dry resin while cutting energy consumption up to 40 percent! How?  The Optimizer package not only monitors resin and drying temperatures to save heat energy, but also adjusts airflow to precisely match resin loading and throughputs.  So, if you run partial loads or varied resin throughputs, the Optimizer system will intelligently adjust energy, heat, and airflows to match your changing needs— all while saving energy!  
  • Improving hopper insulation:  Conair dryers not only save heat energy and airflow, but superior insulation in our new EH Series drying hoppers – nearly twice as much as before, even on the doors – ensure that dry, heated air stays where it belongs—in the hopper!  Better insulation not only saves energy but makes for a cooler and safer working environment. 

Energy Savings in Conveying

Key to energy savings in conveying is managing the electrical draw of the vacuum pumps that move material. This can be done by reducing the frequency of their on/off cycles, by using variable speed drives, or with other features that enable the pump to adjust its speed to match conveying demand or other performance needs. 

  • Select the proper type of pump: Conair offers four types of vacuum pumps to suit different conveying needs and facility requirements. Many of the latest pumps are equipped with advanced drive features that can help manage power consumption. For example, variable frequency drives enable large vacuum pumps to start and run at variable levels to match varying loads, while pump “idle” modes eliminate repeated on/off cycles in favor of running continuously at a low power “idle” mode.  Using this mode to reduce the number of high-amperage pump starts not only helps reduce electrical demand, but can also reduce stress on pump components, generally leading to longer pump life. Consult a Conair expert to see which type of pump, and what energy-management features are best for your operations:   
    • PD (Positive Displacement) Pump: Most common type, suited to a range of systems. 
    • RG (Regenerative) Pump: An economical pump designed for shorter runs than a PD pump. 
    • LDP (Long-Distance Positive Displacement) Pump: A deep-vacuum, claw-style pump used for conveying long distances and realizing the benefits of adjustable material conveying speeds using Conair’s patented Wave Conveying technology.  
    • HRG (Hybrid Regenerative) Pump: Combines the benefits of each of the above pumps into a hybrid solution. The result is an energy-saving, quiet pump that can handle a range of systems, large or small.  While it isn’t quite as powerful as a LDP pump, it can be used for Wave Conveying in “stream phase” or “dilute phase” speeds. It is much quieter than a LDP pump and realizes significant energy savings due to its ability to utilize multiple, sequential regenerative pumps to increase pump vacuum as necessary to meet conveying requirements. 
  • Put Artificial Intelligence to work in conveying controls: Conair’s Conveying with Optimizer™ package leverages your pump’s energy saving features and does much more. Conveying with Optimizer employs an AI-driven control that automatically detects source-to-destination conditions (vacuum/pressure changes, receiver distance, material bulk density and other factors) then autonomously adjusts the pump speed and conveying system in real-time to move material under optimal conditions.  This innovation eliminates the need for manual adjustments while automatically compensating for changes in conveying distance, material bulk density/regrind ratio, relocated equipment, or even minor vacuum leaks caused by a hose or coupling. 

 The Optimizer package combines novel software, hardware, sensors, and intelligence with the high-speed computing power of Conair’s SmartFLX control. Together, these elements sense, calculate, and compensate for changing conditions far faster than a human could, while saving energy by calibrating vacuum pump demand to precisely meet current conveying needs.  The result: better conveying, lower labor costs, more precise conveying system performance, and lower electricity demand and usage charges.   

 Energy Savings in Heat Transfer

Sometimes, significant energy savings are possible by taking advantage of improved equipment efficiencies, for example, more efficient pumps in our Thermolator™ temperature control units. Today, the improved design, seals, motors and other components used in our latest TCUs mean that a smaller pump may deliver the same pressure and flow performance using less electricity than before. 

Ready to start saving on energy costs and improving your operations?

Talk with our experts and connect with your local representative to learn more about how Conair’s cutting-edge technologies can benefit your business.