The Industrial Assessment Center (IAC) is a federally sponsored industrial energy efficiency program operating within the Center for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (CEERE) at the University of Massachusetts. The Office of Industrial Technology under the US DOE Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy funds the IAC program. Assistance is offered to small- and medium-sized companies in the New York and New England area with gross annual sales of less then $100 million, not more than 500 employees, no in-house energy expert and energy costs totaling at least $100,000 per year, but no more than $1.75 million. IAC clients must be manufacturing plants in Standard Industrial Codes 20-39. Information received and recommendations made as a result of the assessment remain strictly confidential. Assessments are performed entirely at the expense of the US Department of Energy. This program has been in existence for over eighteen years and is nationally recognized for its economic assistance to small and medium-sized industrial manufacturers. The IAC have been instrumental in assisting companies in conserving energy, reducing pollution, increasing productivity, and lowering operating costs. Over 500 plants having annual gross sales totaling $9.1 billion, with 65,000 employees, and 36 million square feet of building space have been visited since 1984. Annual energy use at these plants exceeds the equivalent of 3.9 million barrelsof oil at a cost of over $155 million. Over 2200 Assessment Recommendation measures (ARs) have been identified with an average annual recommended cost savings of $56,000 per year and an average simple payback of 1 year. In 2001 average annual savings from recommendations was $150,000.

The goal of the assessments is to help companies reduce their energy and waste costs while at the same time putting companies in the position of helping to promote a cleaner environment. Before a plant visit IAC requires copies of energy and water bills for the last 18 months in order to understand current energy and water use patterns and to determine unit energy costs. A team including at least one faculty member and three graduate students spend most of a workday at the plant, gathering data and taking measurements necessary to prepare a detailed written report, which includes energy and waste conservation opportunities, as well as productivity opportunities. Assessments are typically sought in the following areas: demand control, boiler and furnace efficiency, air conditioning, building heating loads, air compressors, refrigeration, process heat loads, heat recovery, lighting, motors and motor drives, and waste management and minimization. Emphasis is on opportunities that have the simple payback period of two years or less.

For more information, contact Beka Kosanovic at 413-545-0684 or kosanovi@ceere.org