Pump Your Way to Savings

The Hydraulic Institute’s (HI) board of directors on Sept. 14 approved a national pump systems educational initiative titled “Pump Systems Matter.” The program will place a primary focus on pump systems education and outreach, addressing energy savings and total cost of pump ownership.

Optimizing pumping systems is an opportunity for U.S. companies and municipalities to save money and energy while reducing maintenance costs and increasing productivity. U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) studies indicate that pumping systems account for nearly 20% of the world's electrical energy demand and range from 25% to 50% of the energy usage in certain industrial plant operations. DOE case studies have shown that better system design and more effective application of pumps can save 20% or more in energy costs and represent a large, frequently overlooked savings opportunity.

HI has begun a national educational initiative to support the development and deployment of pump system educational materials and tools to administer related training programs and to address outreach and educational efforts to various audiences. The primary goal of the education initiative will be to transform the market for pump systems and services to one based on system life-cycle costs rather than equipment first costs. As anticipated by the HI Market Transformation Committee and board of directors, an effective pump systems educational initiative will serve to transform the market for pumps and pumping systems by:

Changing owner/operator and contractor focus on lowest first cost to a total life-cycle cost in purchasing pumps, pump systems and services.
Create opportunities for expanded demand among owner/operators and contractors for value-added services from the pump industry and expand the capacity within the pump industry to meet this need.
Develop new educational materials and tools to train and educate pump and supplier OEMs, owner/operators, contractors and others.
Develop appropriate outreach efforts to get the message out that "Pump Systems Matter,” and begin to transform the market for energy-efficient pump systems and services.

For the past few years, HI has been involved with developing new educational materials related to pump systems, especially the “Pump Life-Cycle Cost (LCC) Guide.” The e-learning site, www.pumplearning.org with its first course on "Centrifugal Pumps: Fundamentals, Application and Design," and the new “Variable-Speed Pumping Guide” are other valuable resources for pump users.

As a DOE Allied Partner, HI has partnered with DOE to provide technical input for the development of the Pump System Assessment Tool and to offer training for qualified pump system specialists. The "pumps" section of the HI Web site provides energy savings guidance, tips, U.S. DOE case studies and tools, including downloadable versions of PSAT software for the benefit of users and non-government organizations. Free downloadable copies of the “Executive Summary of the Pump LCC” and “Variable-Speed Pumping Guides” are also available from www.pumps.org.

To learn about the "Pump Systems Matter" program and how to become a charter partner, contact HI Executive Director Robert Asdal at (973) 267-9700 x 13 or e-mail [email protected]. Membership in "Pump Systems Matter" is open to utilities, market transformation organizations, government agencies, pump users, contractors, consultants, engineering companies, trade and professional associations, as well as North American pump manufacturers and suppliers of motors and drives, seals, couplings, bearings, housings, instrumentation and control systems, and pump-specific software.