How can carbon reduction targets improve your bottom line?

Reducing your carbon footprint is like taking care of your body. You do it to feel better, look better, and live longer. Like eating healthy: When you use less energy and drive less, you pollute less. This means cleaner air, healthier people, and a cooler planet. Like exercising: Creating greener energy sources is like giving the planet a workout. It strengthens our defenses and makes us less reliant on fossil fuels in the long run. Like saving money: Reducing your energy bills is like finding extra cash in your pocket. It's good for your wallet and good for the environment. In short, reducing your carbon footprint is good for you, good for the planet, and good for your wallet.

Being committed to sustainability helps a company attract and keep top talent. When a company shows it's dedicated to making a positive impact on the environment and society, it draws in people who share those values. Once they're part of the team, employees feel more satisfied and loyal, knowing they're contributing to a company that aligns with their personal beliefs.

The plant will experience a pre-industrial climate by reaching “Net Zero 2050” which means a Better climate, Better crops, and Better Health, while still enjoying the latest technologies!!!. However, I believe current plans are not sufficient to reach targets and we are seriously falling short of achieving the target of -45% by 2030. The energy sector is the largest contributor of greenhouse gases, AHJs shall call for more stringent regulations and enforce laws to achieve decarbonization.

By using energy more wisely, changing to renewable energy, and improving your processes and supply chain, you can cut down on your energy costs. You can also dodge extra charges or penalties for your carbon footprint and deal with unstable fuel prices. You can also boost your machine performance and maintenance, stop things from breaking down and wasting time, and prolong the life of your equipment.

You can really cut down on your carbon footprint in very simple ways. Anything from motion sensing switches in rarely or less-used spaces, or even balancing your heating, reducing the need for multiple small ceramic heaters in offices. Another really great tip is to walk around the outside of your facility, paying attention to any lights both on your building or in your yard that are on during the day. If they're not already LED's, then change them. Some of those lights can be between 400 and 100 watts! Additionally, if they're not on a timer or photo sensor, it's a very inexpensive addition that could save your business THOUSANDS each and every year.

Carbon Reduction follows a simple PDCA cycle. The plan is executed and reviewed at regular intervals. Adjustments to the plan is made to make the plan more current and progress is tracked and quantified.

Plan, Do, Check, act. Applying this process in any level of monitoring of energy in your businesses will help provide actionable insight to how you can eliminate waste. Dedication of an energy manager or continuous improvement manager help ensure whatever initiatives are implemented are tracked and effectively monitored and reported to business leaders so that success can be celebrated.

The plan step is a very complex and necessary step, and is the foundation to a successful carbon reduction plan. By adopting the "Energy as a Profit Center" approach ensures that carbon targets that flow axiomatically from the analysis are profitable for the business to implement. And that science-based targets will be identified. Creating profitable science-based targets requires the implementation of a structured analysis and multi-layered design process and an understanding of the energy regulations that the site operates in. Following the structured least-cost energy design 7-Step design process ensures that all profitable energy supply and use interventions are identified. This will form the basis of the carbon reduction plan.

It's important to remember that a "Reporting Framework" is only as good as the data input. Most companies are using excel spreadsheets to aggregate, extrapolate and calculate carbon emissions reporting. This requires manpower and is prone to error. A company's dynamic ability to manage their energy in real-time is critical for improving energy density, effectively making them active market participants. Companies can only accomplish this with an energy management platform that aggregates auditable data from disparate systems as well as feeds the critical data seamlessly into a carbon reporting initiative. The difference is like flying a plane to travel across country vs driving a car for that same distance. Do your homework!

Promote more mass timber constructions. Use lake water to cool high-rise buildings in the major cities. Increase energy efficiency of glazing systems for buildings with innovations.

You can't manage what you can't see. If your business does not have a system to automatically track energy use then start with bills creating even a very simple log of usage over time will help you identify when usage pattern changes. These changes should always be investigated so that lessons can be learned good practice reinforced and poor practice trained out. Implementation of a more sophisticated EnMS including production figures, energy submerging and potentially integrated controls will help automate the effort and work required to engage with the systems but either type of system will always need dedicated input from staff to effectively action change.

Educate yourself on your business. Look at your bills for the 12 months on consumable purchases, was any new machinery installed in that period, and look at your change in consumable costs. Water, energy, gas, staff, diesel, fuel and & sales etc. If you have specific CR software good, if you don't, don't complicate it. Pick one and start eg: gas, look at all the machinery you have using gas, their usage, and what percentage of your business it generates. Is, your plant equipment is the best you can afford, do a cost analysis. It uses X amount of gas, A new more efficient unit will cost X amount installed, the saving will take X amount of time to recoup the expense, and then a saving X amount of time. Efficient equipment equals better ROI.

ISO50001 provides a robust framework for reducing energy consumption. It provides the structure of a traditional PDCA cycle in which one could utilise in order to pursue a continual reduction of energy usage. The standards acknowledges the challenges to achieve year on year reduction in energy usage but beleives in the long term reduction of usage following its management systems.

The largest challenge of carbon reduction is scalability as well as stakeholder engagement. More often than not, carbon reduction projects are not core business activities. Hence, it is difficult to get the buy-in of stakeholders to support these activities. Another critica challenge would be scalability. There are many pathways for decarbonisation but one should strategise and choose the pathway which is not only impactful enough but also most likely to succeed.

Additionally, navigating regulatory complexities and staying abreast of evolving sustainability standards can present hurdles in your carbon reduction journey. Staying compliant with regional and global environmental regulations requires continuous monitoring and adaptation to changing legal landscapes. Moreover, staying informed about emerging best practices and standards in the field of carbon reduction is crucial. Regularly engaging with industry associations, participating in relevant conferences, and fostering partnerships with organizations at the forefront of sustainability can help your business stay ahead of evolving expectations and ensure ongoing success in your carbon reduction initiatives.

A matrix-like set of strategies is required to be implemented to secure a successful carbon reduction program. (i) From a stakeholder engagement perspective, the program must secure both top-down and bottom-up support. The program mandate must empower the Program Director, provide adequate funding, and set clear goals. (ii) From a technical perspective, the program needs to have an overarching proven design methodology. The teams involved need to be trained in the application of the method. (iii) From a business perspective, the program needs to assign clear business and financial goals to the Line Executives; including carbon reduction goals, and required financial savings. (iv) Establish showcase carbon-saving projects in each department.

There a two core issues to consider when considering low carbon technologies. (1) Practically - Simply put will the technology get the job done? Will it physically fit? Is it reliable, does it need specialized skills and knowledge to use. (2) Commercial viability - Given the large price gap between power and gas fuel transition and certain decarbonization technologies simply cost more to operate than conventionally fueled systems meaning they do not meet simple ROI requirements. Unless these issues can be navigated by a business the projects will not go further than feasibility studies for most businesses. It is vital that mind sets change and policies are addressed in order to welcome the next phase of industrial decarbonization.

Bank balance and resources. Carbon reduction for large companies, businesses, etc can make great savings and employ consultants. SME's, can perform the same without the additional expense. A cost analysis can be performed by existing staff with some guidance, it is simple and hard, a whiteboard, excel and a reason to perform it are all you need to start. Think of it as an audit for a loan, you are presenting all the facts similar to P&L, except it is an internal report for your business. Every identification of a cost in your business to expenses in machinery and consumables cost to operate those machines will ultimately reduce carbon without that being the driving force.

You have to start with the data, without effective monitoring and verification you cannot demonstrate the implementation of technology, behavioral change programs or other initiatives have made the desired impact. Introducing M&V early so that you can demonstrate the success and encourage more investment late.

Enhancing the effectiveness of the carbon reduction journey involves incorporating sustainability measures within the supply chain. This can be achieved by selecting environmentally conscious suppliers, prioritizing transparency, and optimizing transportation to reduce emissions. Encourage energy-efficient production, minimize waste, and foster collaboration with suppliers to share best practices. Recognize and reward sustainability efforts, and educate teams on the significance of eco-friendly practices.

Start small and scale up, focus on the easy-to-do items, switch off lights, stager start times, replace lamps, replace washers. Look at installing KEGS, solar or wind energy generators to reduce the grid connection.

Additionally, Engaging employees is crucial for building a corporate culture that cares about reducing carbon footprints. It's more than just symbolic actions; it encourages employees to come up with smart and cost-effective ways. Having open channels for sharing ideas is key, giving everyone a platform to contribute their thoughts and create practical, sustainable strategies for cutting down on carbon emissions.

I call it the 1% (one) percent rule. There are major things that can be performed that you can see the immediate results, however, it is the little things, checking for air leaks, the compressor runs less, lights, changing to LEDs, if there is water or spray around a production line, place guards to reduce waste. If you have motors that sound noisy replace the motor because old bearings etc can cause resistance, do not through the motor away, send it to a rewinder and keep it as a spare. If you can standardize with the same size motor through the plant it helps balance and emergency breakdowns. Stagger start times on all the machinery if possible so there is no peak draw on starting up the plant.