Compressed air efficiency could save business £110m say Carbon Trust

According to the work, released today (January 25), accounts for around 10% of UK industry’s electricity consumption, which is equivalent to the annual output of nearly 1.5 power stations and more than 5m tonnes of CO2 emitted to the atmosphere.

The Carbon Trust’s new guide aims to provide practical advice on choosing an air compressor, maintenance, leak prevention and using compressed air appropriately.

Carbon Trust Programmes director, Richard Rugg, said: “There is a misconception that compressed air is a free or low cost resource, when – in fact – the opposite is true.

“Just a single 3mm hole in a compressed air system creates a leak, which can cost a business an additional £1,000 a year in electricity costs.

“This is not a niche problem. Compressed air is being used across industries as diverse as aircraft manufacturing, water treatment, electronics and engineering.

“Our new guide provides practical and easy to implement advice that will enable businesses to cut electricity spend on compressed air by up to a third.”

The Carbon Trust is also running a free webinar on how to reduce running costs and improve the efficiency of your compressed air systems at noon January 30.

Luke Walsh