Tips for increasing energy efficiency in pneumatic systems

“Environmental consciousness, corporate responsibility and the balance sheet are all key drivers for increasing energy efficiency,” said Steve Sands, product manager at Festo in the UK. “In this guide we focus on advising plant managers on how they can implement measures to reduce energy wastage, with in-depth statistics and details about compressed air technology.”

The top five tips to saving the most energy are:

1. Using energy saving circuits, for example Festo’s OVEM closed loop vacuum generators monitor vacuum levels and only expend air when required, typical savings are 60%.

2. Correctly sizing drives and tubing – reducing to the next smaller piston diameter can decrease energy consumption by approximately 35%.

3. Reducing switching line tube lengths – savings up to 25% can be achieved.

4. Isolating circuits in standby or shutdown modes – eliminating flow of air in systems at a standstill can provide savings of 20%.

5. Reducing the weight and friction of moving elements has a major affect particularly on multi-axis systems where initial over-sizing becomes compounded – up to 18% energy saving can be realised.

Energy efficiency@Festo can be downloaded for free at from: www.festo.co.uk/energyefficiencyatfesto