Volvo North America – Madhura Karnik – 2013

Goals

Madhura Karnik was hired as an EDF Climate Corps fellow to develop an energy map for the manufacturing facility at Volvo Construction Equipment in Shippensburg, PA. Additionally, she was asked to consolidate information on the existing energy monitoring systems, like Building Automation Systems, and help in identifying potential areas that could be included on these systems for better energy management. 

Solutions

Karnik focused on identifying projects to reduce energy consumption especially during non-operational or idle hours. Her projects included: power management, lighting projects, compressed air leak detection and employee engagement. Most of these recommended projects could be easily implemented through optimization of existing operational practices and minor investments.

Potential Impact

The proposed projects, if implemented, could help save approximately $49,000 in annual savings, more than 430,000 annual kilowatt hour savings and avoid approximately 320 metric tons of carbon emissions annually.