Scilla Meccanica is an EN ISO 50001:2018 certified company.
With reference to the "Energy Management System Policy", the first of the commitments made by Scilla Meccanica is:
to assume and reinforce the awareness of the importance of efficient and correct use of the energy resource.
On the basis of this argument, the Energy Manager of Scilla Meccanica, Gabriella Albani, promoted a specific survey on the subject, which resulted, after a number of meetings for analysis, evaluation and in-depth study during the year 2021, in the mandate that Scilla Meccanica gave to the company Energia Europa Spa for the supply and installation of the E-Power system.
With the operational support of Elettrogamma Srl, the system was installed in the electrical transformation cabin of Scilla Meccanica on 08/10/2021 and tested on 21/10/2021.
The E-Power system: what does it consist of?
E-Power is an Energia Europa patented system for energy efficiency in production sites, producing energy and cost savings for the same amount of work performed.
The key principle is that electrical energy can also be filtered and therefore made more efficient.
The inspiration for the development of the E-Power system comes from audio and acoustic technology: distortions are unwanted background noise in the acoustic sector that can be attenuated with appropriate filter technologies.
Due to new types of stabilised power users now widely prevalent in modern electrical systems, there are more and more disturbances in the electrical transmission that impoverish the quality of the power, as happens in the world of high-fidelity audio. The filtering results obtained in the field of professional audio and the new conditions in the electricity grid were the basis for Energia Europa's research and development, with the aim of optimising energy transmission and reducing losses in the grid.
Until the 1980s, all industrial and commercial sites were dominated by linear loads, i.e. electrical loads that were not regulated or managed by electronic devices.
In the late 1980s, electronic components became smaller and more efficient. New, more efficient technologies are starting to come to the fore, linked to electronic frequency control, which have a positive impact on consumption but a negative impact on power quality.
Since the 2000s, world electricity consumption has grown exponentially and production from renewable sources has increased significantly, which has a negative impact on power quality. Non-linear loads, i.e. loads managed by power electronics, are prevalent at production sites.
It is essential to save energy by making installations more efficient and optimising power quality.
The innovative filtering technology of E-Power systems works by modifying the current waveform, reducing disturbances and losses on the line and improving power quality and efficiency.
These positive effects on power quality translate into significant energy savings of between 3% and 6% depending on the characteristics of the system. Improving power quality and reducing losses also has substantial benefits on the maintenance costs of loads and the entire electrical installation.
The monitoring period of the system installed in Scilla Meccanica, alternating short periods of operation in By-pass with short periods of active filtering of the E-Power, decreed an average efficiency of 4.4%.
The energy saved brings immediate benefits in terms of reducing waste, saving money and protecting the environment.
Glauco Pigoli
architetto - project manager
English