Effective Energy Management Through Better Operator Training

Abstract

A majority of the energy conservation programs in the chemical process industry aims at gaining cooperation and motivation from the operators or technicians. These programs are useful but they seem to lack an important aspect: "Operator training in the energy conservation techniques." The purpose of this presentation is to outline general guidelines for this training. Out of the many energy-intensive operations, two are presented as an example - viz. distillation and furnaces. This type of training should be an integral part of an overall energy management program in a plant.

Efficient operation of the process equipment is a key to energy conservation. In a process plant, majority of energy consumption is taken up by operation of the plant. Although we all are involved in conservation efforts, it is the operators, who directly affect the energy savings. It is therefore reasonably obvious that these individuals should be adequately trained in "the techniques of energy conservation". By making operator training an integral part of a conservation program, the effectiveness (and efficiency too) of the program can be considerably improved.