Independent Research Company Confirms Significant Savings After IVEC^® Installation

Alliant Energy and Michael's Engineering team up to confirm savings claims made about IVEC^®’s Intelligent Ventilation Energy Control System.

Michael’s Engineering, Inc., an independent research firm, in cooperation with Alliant Energy of Madison, Wisconsin, embarked on a study to evaluate the impact of Ivec’s process control system on energy savings.

Analyst’s Project Description:

The Manufacturer modified their dust collector to install an IVEC^® system, which includes gates at each terminal device and a controls package. This governs the blower's speed to provide enough suction to remove the dust from the open gates, down to a minimum engineered flow, preventing the settling of dust in the ductwork. The system utilizes intelligent controls on the motor to adjust the blower's speed. It is noted that due to the economics at the time of this study the manufacturer was not currently working on Fridays. This changed between the pre and post installation period. The calculation accounts for this by averaging the remaining weekday's savings and uses that data for the entire work week.

Independent Study Results

Under careful monitoring the research firm recorded energy use both prior to and following installation. The chart illustrates the impact the Ivec process controller installation had on kilowatt energy savings for the plant reflecting a 76% savings in energy costs over the entire year. Furthermore, under Alliant’s Energy Savings Program, the manufacturer qualified further for significant energy saving incentives.

Test Parameters:

Project:	Dust Collection Controls
Benchmark Test Period:	Pre-installation (15 days)
Comparison Period:	Post Ivec Installation (22 days)
Hours of Operation:	6AM-4PM Mon thru Fri
Blowers:	100 HP, 100 HP, 150 HP
Data Points:	Power, Average Kilowatt Reading