Augustin
Lichtenau, Germany
APPLICATION: MUNICIPAL WATER SUPPLY
A critical eye on the efficiency of legacy pumps in fully operational plants can reap rewards in terms of cost and CO2 emissions, as demonstrated in the municipality of Lichtenau. By replacing an old pump with a variable speed version they have reduced energy consumption by around 40%.
Lichetenau is a small municipality with 3,600 inhabitants. The local water supply system delivers 170,000m³ of water to 1,300 homes every year.Advice on water supply solutions has been provided by Gunzenhausen-based company, Augustin, a sales and service partner of Lowara. Augustin has used the knowledge and support of Lowara to propose more economical and innovative pumping solutions.
Collaborations such as this ensure that even the smallest water boards can achieve considerable savings through Lowara technology. In the case of the Lichtenau water supply system, a pump for filling a raised tank had broken down and potentially required replacement.The original cast iron pump had provided 45 years of reliable service, with a capacity of 64 m³/h, head of 60 m and 21.73 kW power consumption.
Augustin recommended an SV series vertical multistage pump, SVH6602F110T, with an 11 kW motor offering a higher flow rate than the old pump (which had an 18.5 kW motor). Although the water board was sceptical, a test run proved that the pump indeed had a higher delivery with lower energy consumption. The frequency converter on the pump ensures that the flow rate can be easily adapted to that of the other pumps in the system.
The pump installed has been running perfectly for more than 2 years in Lichtenau, and a recent audit at the same flow rate has shown that the pump consumes only 13.39 kW per hour, providing a saving of 8.34 kW/h against the od cast iron pump. This equates to a saving of 39%. During its service of some 5,827 hours to date, it has consumed less than 48,597 kWh.
Based on a current energy cost of €0,18/kWh, the saving would be €8,748 – and in environmental terms they emit less than 7,500kg/year CO2, giving Lichtenau a production of CO2well below the federal average.