Sustainability positioned as key driver of Invensys Operations Management strategy
Frito-Lay's David Haft delivers OpsManage '09 opening day keynote, outlining how a focus on sustainability has transformed the company.
David Greenfield -- Control Engineering, 11/5/2009
With a tagline of "Empowering Sustainable Success," Invensys Operations Management (IOM) OpsManage '09 conference in Anaheim, CA (November 3-5), positioned environmental excellence as one of the key drivers behind the company's new go-to-market strategy.
When asked if the manufacturing sector's current focus on sustainability was more an issue of taking advantage of government incentives or represented a true shift in thinking for the industry, IOM president and CEO Sudipta Bhattacharya said that a key factor behind the industry's increasing focus on energy efficiency is that "manufacturers today have to compete globally by having a lower price point. In addition, they are seeking to reduce the variability they face in fluctuating energy prices that can so dramatically affect their costs."
Bhattacharya also pointed out that many manufacturers are finding that, if they want to do business with certain companies, they have to know what their carbon footprint is and demonstrate how they're managing it.
To support the event's theme and demonstrate the dramatic cost impacts of a sustainable strategy, the OpsManage '09 keynote address was delivered by David Haft, group vice president, sustainability and productivity for Frito-Lay North America.
 David Haft, group vice president, sustainability & productivity, Frito-Lay North America |
Haft said that Frito-Lay has been focused on sustainability for more than a decade now. In 2000, the company set for itself the seemingly outlandish goals (based on 1999 usage levels) of reducing: water use by 50%, natural gas use by 30%, electricity use by 25% and fleet fuel by 50%. According to Haft, the company has, to date, reduced water use by 43%, natural gas by 35%, and electricity by 25%--representing $70 million in annual savings to the company. He noted that Frito-Lay's fleet fuel has not decreased dramatically, but that the company is exploring myriad options to impact this significantly--including the purchase of new fuel-efficient trucks (with up to 20% better gas mileage) as well as the testing of electric-powered trucks.
Following are a few of the key sustainability initiatives Frito-Lay has undertaken in the past decade:
- Installed the largest solar concentrator in the U.S. at its Modesto, CA, plant. This solar concentrator produces enough steam to manufacture all the Sun Chips produced at that plant. Haft commented that this was great for the marketing team as it enabled them to say that Sun Chips are powered by the energy of the sun.
- Thermal mapping is conducted regularly at plants to identify energy leaks. When the company started this program, it operated at 85% energy efficiency. According to Haft, that number is currently near 100%. He also pointed out that each incremental 1% of efficiency gains nets a plant about $1 million in cost savings.
- Capturing heat from tortilla ovens to heat oil used in the tortilla frying process. The company also captures heat from potato chip manufacturing and uses it to heat the building.
- Recovering potato starch from the potato chip manufacturing process at 100% efficiency. This starch is dried out using waste heat from the facility and then sold to chemical companies to use in the manufacture of other products. "Not only has this been a case of zero potato starch wastewater, but it has resulted in an additional $7 million in income for the company," Haft noted.
- Killingly, CT, Frito-Lay plant now uses waste heat to power a boiler system that provides all steam power used in the plant. This project delivered a 60% reduction in NOx emissions.
Haft also highlighted that Frito-Lay is "rapidly becoming a zero landfill company, with a goal of having less than 1% of company waste being sent to landfills within five years." He noted that 10 of the company's 30 North American plants have already met that goal and that another 10 are expected to achieve the goal in 2010. He expects the company to fully meet the goal in 2011.
Moving forward, Haft says the company continues to set lofty goals for its sustainability programs. The new goals for 2020 (based on current usage levels) are to reduce: water use by 75%, natural gas by 50%, electricity by 45%, and fuel by 50%.
Access other Control Engineering content related to OpsManage '09:
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- Corporate energy management
- By David Greenfield, editorial director
Control Engineering Sustainable Engineering News Desk
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