Respondents to the Plant Engineering 2016 Energy Management Study identified six high-level findings impacting the manufacturing industries today:

1. Energy audits: Fifty-four percent of facilities conduct regular energy audits. Of those facilities, 35% perform them annually, 11.5% twice a year, and 7% quarterly. Aside from audits, 80% of plants monitor energy usage regularly—up from 76% in 2015.
2. Energy sources: Electricity, fossil fuels, and natural gas are most commonly monitored monthly by respondents’ facilities, while compressed air is monitored continually.
3. Energy reduction: On average, manufacturing facilities are trying to reduce their energy usage by 9.08%. Forty-two percent of respondents are convinced that they’re goals are achievable, while 50% are less confident but still optimistic.
4. Implementation: Thirty-four percent of respondents reported success with implementing an energy management program in their facilities, while 21% are just starting to employ such a program.
5. Local utilities: Sixty-two percent of facilities work with their local utility companies to develop energy strategies, 88% of which reported a cooperative partnership. Thirty-five percent of manufacturing plants have a peak load sharing program with their utilities, and 97% said it has been an overall success—more than half of which experienced no problems along the way.
6. Alternative energy: Of the 50% of facilities that use alternative energy sources, 46% use solar energy, 41% use co-generation, 25% use wind energy, and 18% use nuclear energy.

Access the full 2016 Energy Management report to view additional key findings.

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