The Danish iron foundry, BIRN, aims to reduce its natural gas consumption by around 25 per cent by 2024. The reason is the recirculation from two new heat recovery plants that utilize the excess heat from parts of BIRN's production to heat the rest of the company.
The Danish iron foundry, BIRN, has invested in two new heat recovery systems that retain heat in parts of the iron foundry's production facilities.
The two new heat recovery units take the excess heat from BIRN's fettling shop and recycle it back into the factory. The two plants cover 10,000 square meters of production space and are expected to reduce the iron foundry's natural gas consumption by up to 25 per cent by 2024, says Emil Brodersen, Energy Specialist at BIRN Group:
- We are constantly looking for ways to streamline our energy processes and optimize resource consumption and heat recovery has proven to have enormous potential for our company. The two plants have been in operation for just over two months and in that time have already saved us around 55,000 cubic meters of natural gas, so it's a very interesting case for us - both from a sustainability and economic perspective, he explains.
BIRN expects to invest in a third heat recovery system in the spring, which will be connected to the foundry's furnace filter, and a fourth recovery system in the summer of 2024. Through ongoing investments in recovery systems, among other things, BIRN hopes to eventually phase out the use of natural gas completely.
Redundant Chimneys
The new heat recovery systems not only have a positive impact on BIRN's natural gas consumption. It also has a positive impact on the surroundings of BIRN's factory. Combined with the modernization of production facilities, two chimneys have already been shut down this summer, and BIRN expects to be able to shut down more chimneys in the future through increased investment in heat recovery.
- We are continuously working to improve the environment around our factory wherever possible. So, when the two chimneys from our old oil center and painting plant became redundant, it was decided that they should be removed, Emil Brodersen concludes.
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