“The software helped us to utilize the horsepower as needed on our freshwater and return water pumps,” he adds. “Before, we used an across-the-line starter that used a lot of amps and horsepower we didn’t need. Now, we can control and maintain the flow rate of the pumps.”

Reaping benefits

There have been no maintenance issues since the drives were installed. “There is less strain mechanically on the pump because we are not turning it at maximum RPM,” Caldwell says.

“We have five pumps that now only come on as needed,” Allen adds. “As the demand for water increases, we are able to keep up with it. The system is more reliable since we are not running all pumps all the time, and that greatly reduces the stress on the motor controller. If you have only 20-percent demand, you only need one pump out of five. Obviously, the reliability of the other four has to be pretty high.”

Caldwell and Allen say the drive installation has been a success, and the energy savings have been significant.

“As every successful company must do in these times, we have a plan to not only reduce our carbon footprint, but to become more competitive,” Caldwell adds. “We’ve been able to achieve both.”

Article courtesy of Siemens Industry, Inc.