'Smart' water pumps cut energy consumption

INTELLIGENT or smart water pumps can reduce the energy consumption of commercial buildings, especially hotels, by at least 30 to 35 percent. This decrease in power use can then translate to another reduction, this time of the structure's carbon footprint. Savings in operational costs are another advantage.

The Grundfos team presenting before Hilton Hua Hin. PHOTO FROM GRUNDFOS

That is the core of the conversations currently being conducted in the Philippine hospitality industry and the teams of Kenth Hvid Nielsen, Grundfos regional managing director, APAC, Commercial Buildings. Grundfos, a global pump manufacturer with an annual production of more than 17 million pump units, has been tapping into the Internet of Things and moving building operations toward digitalization to introduce cleaner, more energy-efficient technologies.

«About 30 to 35 percent of energy use in buildings comes from air-conditioning,» Nielsen says. «All commercial buildings have high energy use because of [its] demands. Energy costs money.» Grundfos Philippines, which was established in 2004, is now setting its sights on having dialogues with building owners on how they can «impact climate change by reducing energy consumption and their carbon footprint.»

The Grundfos team makes a comprehensive service audit with the concerned building, and then comes up with the necessary recommendations. They integrate the operations of their smart pumps with the systems of the buildings, circulating the water flow and delivery, and balancing the use of the air-conditioning in accordance to the current capacity or need of the structure.

The approach has worked for the 5-star Le Meridien Chiang Rai Resort located in Thailand. Grundfos' update of its chiller pumps, which had been aging and losing operational efficiency, led to 35-percent energy reduction, which is equivalent to a reduction in electrical energy consumption of approximately 110,000 kilowatt-hours annually.

Hilton Hua Hin, also based in Thailand, experienced 36 percent in energy savings or 120,000 kilograms of carbon dioxide reduction after its water pumps had been upgraded.

Recently, Grundfos enhanced the efficiency of the existing pumping