The hidden cost of inefficiency
Powering a plant means balancing three factors: cost, emissions, and security. Get it wrong across hundreds of assets and inefficiencies multiply. They can cost millions each year.
In fact, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has conducted analytical bandwidth studies of major process heating-intensive industries. These studies found that plants could achieve energy savings of 15–30% if they adopted best-practice efficient process technologies.1
That means substantial opportunities exist. But what are the quickest wins for your plant? Two paths forward: smart energy management and digital maintenance.
Path one: Smart energy management
Target your biggest energy users
Large compressors and motors often consume disproportionate energy. A 100-horsepower air compressor can consume around $50,000 in electricity annually.2
For quick wins, target these assets first with smart energy management. The software shows where equipment runs unnecessarily or at wrong times. It reveals when machines operate at excessive pressure or load.
You can start the process with just one asset, then scale the savings to similar equipment.
Go green without going broke
You need to cut emissions with renewable energy. But will your power be reliable? And what will it cost?
Process simulation removes the guesswork. It tests renewable integration before you commit. Installation takes one day – and all you need is a line diagram of your proposed set-up. The tool shows exact CO2 savings and cost impact.
Pair simulation with smart management to automatically use the cheapest, greenest power available.
Path two: Support your maintenance teams
When you already have strong process controls
Maintenance work is demanding. In fact, workers in maintenance jobs have one of the highest rates of absences due to work-related injuries.3 They're asked to do complex work, often under pressure, with hundreds of procedures to remember.
Digital guidance makes their jobs easier and safer. Field workers get checklists on mobile devices. They can talk to experts from any manufacturer – and mark tasks complete to prevent duplication.
The numbers tell the story: 8% of maintenance time gets wasted due to incorrect field procedures.4 But when maintenance teams have the right support, that changes.
When your processes are less formal
Less formal maintenance approaches can still improve without disruption. The key is collaboration.
Technology partners can shadow workers without disrupting operations. Together, you’ll assess current practice and translate that into standard procedures.
After you’ve established standard procedures, turn those into digital checklists for workers.
The result? Workers spend more time fixing problems, less time searching for information. Plus, everyone is working in the same way – allowing you to iteratively improve processes.
The bigger picture
Both energy management and digital maintenance offer quick wins. Most solutions deploy in weeks or months with no downtime.
But these two approaches represent just one part of a larger opportunity.
We’ve identified ten quick wins that can transform plant operations. Together, they address the most common sources of waste that drain both budgets and resources.
Each quick win builds on the others. Start with one, prove the value, then expand. The best approach isn't a decade-long ‘transformation project’ – it's practical steps forward that fit your current situation.
Want to explore all ten quick wins? Our comprehensive white paper maps the complete landscape of opportunities, from reducing energy costs to cutting production losses. It provides the full framework for making your plant more sustainable and profitable. Download the white paper to find out which quick wins might deliver the fastest payback for your operation.
1https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/engineering/industrial-energy-efficiency
2https://www.fluke.com/en-us/learn/blog/energy-efficiency/identify-energy-savings
3In the U.S. (in this instance, manufacturing): See https://www.mscdirect.com/knowledge-center/articles/most-dangerous-job-manufacturing-maintenance%E2%80%94look-osha-top-10-safety-pointers
4Stat is from here: https://new.abb.com/industrial-software/connected-workforce/abb-ability-connected-worker NOTE - phrasing is ambiguous: “8% impact on maintenance schedules caused by incorrect field procedures.” Does this mean that 8% of all maintenance delays are due to incorrect field procedures? Or that 8% of maintenance time is wasted on incorrect field procedures?
