Legislation is just the driver — not the destination
With European Legislation affecting the energy efficiency of pumps having come into effect, Glynn Williams of Grundfos Pumps discusses the requirements and implications.
The first of January is the long-established date when many of us tend to look back at what we have achieved, spend a little time reflecting and then perhaps set new goals to get us to a place that we believe would offer improvements to various aspects of our lives. And 1 January 2013 was a significant date for the pumps industry.
It was back in 2005 that the European Union initially introduced the Energy Using Products (EuP) Directive. The objective at that time was to encourage the widest use of improved energy efficiency equipment as an important contributor to achieving EU emissions targets.
The directive has been under review more recently, and its scope was broadened in 2009 when some amendments were added that have particular relevance for the pump industry. The new Commission Regulation EC 640/2009 specified ecodesign requirements for electric motors that included glandless standalone circulators as well as glandless circulators that are integral within other products.
This change followed a preparatory study that looked at technical, environmental and economic analysis of motors and motor drives which concluded that it was necessary to make these changes for the following reasons.
• Technical solutions existed within the market, but market penetration was low.
• Life-cycle costs from motor operation are almost 100% attributable to the use phase.
• There was a great opportunity to make significant energy savings from motors.
• Years of no specific EU policy had not seen increased usage of energy-efficient motors.
As a result, 1 January 2013 saw this legislation become law. As the directive is focused on goods that use, generate or transfer energy, the objective is to encourage the widest use of improved energy efficiency equipment as an important contributor to reducing EU emissions targets. This legislation applies not only to circulator pumps, but also to boilers, water heaters, computers, televisions and industrial products such as transformers, fans etc. In fact the directive applies to all energy-using products that sell more than 200 000 units per year within the EU.
It is clear from this legislation that the overall willingness to embrace and adapt to changes without forcing people to accept them, is not as speedy as it might be. This is especially true within the more traditional industries such as the broader construction arena and meant that the take-up on, for example, variable-speed circulator pumps that only work as hard as they need to, was very slow — despite multiple awareness campaigns.
This EuP/ErP legislation is not the end of this story though. Additional legislation that will encompass more products and that products will need to meet increasingly stringent efficiency ratings.
The next round of these changes will take place in August 2015, and further restrictions will follow in January 2020 (many Grundfos products already meet the stricter demands).
The impact of these changes to the circulator market is very significant. In 2009 their annual consumption in the EU was 50 TWh. Without legislation it was estimated that their consumption would have increased by 10% by 2020. With legislation that 50 TWh is estimated to fall by 36% to 32 TWh. This projected saving of 23 TWh over the 55 TWh originally projected for 2020 is equivalent to the residential consumption of 14 million people.
However, there is still a huge opportunity for us as the experts within the building-services industry to look at the existing building stock and recommend to building owners, FM companies etc. that they should consider upgrading their pump solutions. We know most pumps that have been in situ for over five years are often oversized, as well as being inefficient. The potential savings from switching to more efficient pumps can achieve a payback period of less than two years, after which it is savings all the way. These pumps also qualify for ECAs (Enhanced Capital Allowances) which allows companies to claim 100% capital allowance in the first year.
Additionally Grundfos has developed a range of tools that can help to assess what these savings might be via a quick energy check, a more in-depth pump audit or a complete building energy audit.
The outcome from this year’s legislative changes can only have a favourable impact on energy bills and the environment. If we all choose to become a driver for change we can improve the migration speed to more energy efficient solutions, and together we can help to arrive at our energy destination much sooner.
Glynn Williams is director of commercial building services with Grundfos Pumps.
