Case Studies
A MULTIPRONGED ENVIRONMENTAL INITIATIVE
The team at the Oerlikon site in Suzhou, China, examined their systems and processes in search of opportunities to engage in more sustainable practices. The results of their efforts demonstrate how much impact can be achieved by individual sites. The team identified energy reduction, water cleaning and reuse of packaging as areas in which they could make an impact.
Steps taken to reduce energy consumption included replacing outmoded, inefficient compressors. High-efficiency air conditioners were installed in the workplace, as were upgraded fans that delivered multiple benefits: they used less energy in operation but at the same time made the site safer and more comfortable. And the site’s new oven now has thicker insulation and forced air exchange instead of naturally circulating air exchange. These efficiency improvements reduce electricity consumption by 430 000 kWh, which translates to around 302 metric tons of reduced CO2 emissions annually.
A shift in the SPI rotor cleaning process from ultrasound to plasma cleaning reduced wastewater volume from 30 metric tons to zero, a step toward achieving the goals of the Zero Wastewater Project.
Finally, a packaging redesign is reducing the use of wood materials by up to 500 m3 annually on initial use – and because the packaging material can be reused up to five times, an additional annual saving of up to 3 500 m3 in wood and an additional 38 000 kg in metal can be achieved. The team has taken additional steps to further their sustainability progress, including engaging in ISO 50001 training and SGS-China Beijing Green Exchange training on reporting and verification of CO2 emissions calculations, to validate the results of their efforts.
REDUCING WASTEWATER BY RECYCLING
Although our water consumption is low, we have implemented at many sites systems to recycle water. In India, we are using the Antech Gutling filtration system to recycle water for effluent treatment plants (ETP) and a local system for sewage treatment plants (STP). The recycled water is then used for gardening. In China, we use evaporator systems to reduce disposal water, thus reducing disposal treatment services and costs.
In the US and Mexico, wastewater in coating centers goes into an evaporator and evaporates into the atmosphere. Presently, we are working on designing a system to reclaim the discharged wastewater, reclean and reuse it for non-critical operations. In Europe, we adopt a mix of all the different treatments from vaporization to wastewater management.
EMPLOYEE INITIATIVES RESULTED IN >USD 2.7 MILLION IN COST SAVINGS
Launched in April 2020, the “Metco Bucks” program encourages employees to submit cost saving, sustainability and cultural improvement proposals and rewards them for their impact. In 2021, the program saw 75 submissions of initiatives that cover safety, yield and process improvements, which resulted in ~USD 1.5 million1 in cost savings and avoidance. Total cost savings and avoidance since the launch of the program was ~USD 2.7 million1.
Among its successes: A Process Operator, Marlon Bourne, was credited with saving the company USD 63 8311 in 2020 alone as a result of ideas that he submitted. Another employee, Warren Rose, Process Operator Lead, saved Oerlikon > USD 168 0001 with a number of ideas, including blending powders differently to get better yield, correcting screen size to reduce scrapping of nonconforming products and adding a second tank to allow two different materials to be batched simultaneously, resulting in less cleaning downtime during changeovers.
1 USD 1 = CHF 0.9151 per December, 31 2021.
REPLACING CHEMICAL CLEANING AGENT TO REDUCE HAZARDOUS WASTE
In 2021, the team at the Oerlikon Textile Machinery facility in Wuxi, China, chose steam as a safer and more environmentally sound alternative to replace the 205 chemical agent, which had been used to clean oil from machine parts – including the middle strip, cam and inner pipe – prior to welding. The 205 chemical cleaner was a strong candidate for replacement because of its volatility and toxicity, which presents health risks and environmental harm. In addition, the local government has strict requirements for the discharge of chemical agents, and all hazardous waste must be recycled and treated by special environmental protection companies. The steam alternative eliminates both the environmental impact of the cleaning process and the need to dispose of hazardous waste. The project officially started in December 2020. For 2021, the process upgrade resulted in a cleaning agent cost saving of RMB 66 500 and savings in work hours equivalent to RMB 14 800, which brought the total savings achieved over the course of the year to CHF ~12 000 (RMB 82 300). The team plans to follow this initial success with further projects to reduce environmental harm, decrease hazardous waste and protect employees’ safety and wellbeing.
Environmentalism and efficiency, hand in hand
An Oerlikon Metco warehouse in Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta, Canada, upgraded their lighting in 2021 that simultaneously addressed productivity and sustainability targets.
The original fluorescent lighting was no longer fit for purpose. Fittings were burning out, the low-hanging lighting presented a potential workplace hazard and fluorescent tube disposal is incompatible with our evolving standards of waste disposal. Moreover, the tubes provided inadequate light and were not energy efficient.
Thus, we launched a project in January to replace these outmoded fixtures with LED lighting. Projections revealed the potential to realize significant cost savings: the budget for maintenance and fixture replacement was expected to fall from CAD 906.091 a month to zero, and monthly electricity costs were expected to fall from CAD 3 849.331 to CAD 1 316.411.
Based on these projections, the project would pay for itself in 1.6 years. In a decade, projected savings would be a total of CAD 412 6801 – for an initiative that improved workplace safety, efficiency and productivity. At the same time, the site would be reducing around 440 728 pounds of CO2 emissions per year.
1 CAD 1 = CHF 0.716 per December, 31 2021.
CONVERTING POWDER FROM SCRAP BITS
At our site in Montana, US, we take drill bits from customers in the oil & gas sector, strip out the binder material and reclaim the tungsten carbide for use in powders and then resell the powders. Every year, we process 500 000 to 600 000 pounds of bits in Montana.
From 2018 to 2021, we sold 689 000 pounds of powder that contained some portion of reclaim material from Montana. Revenue generated from this is approximately USD 12.63 million (CHF 11.6 million). The drill bits that are not bought from the customer remain their property.
COST AND ENERGY SAVINGS BY SWITCHING TO RENEWABLES
The Oerlikon Balzers coating site in Thailand sought to realize cost savings by transitioning to solar power for its parking lot and waste storage area, which for safety reasons requires lighting overnight. In total, there are 39 lamps in use in the waste storage and parking areas along with the fence in front of the facility. The initiative was launched in June 2021. Prior to the project start, lighting these areas overnight consumed 3 032.64 kWh/year. Following installation of the solar panels, that number was reduced to zero. The result: CHF ~300 savings in electricity costs and a reduction in CO2 emissions of 1 501 kg annually.
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