Siemens Offers Waste Water Treatment Plants Proven Energy and Operational Cost-Saving Solutions with ESCO Performance Contracts
Orlando, Florida, USA, Oct 12, 2009 -- Siemens announces ESCO (energy service company) performance contracts are now available to municipal wastewater treatment customers in North America. An ESCO performance-based contract allows for an alternative funding method for a capital improvement in the wastewater plant that reduces energy use, operation costs, and labor. This is paid for from the guaranteed savings generated from implementing process improvements for the facility.
ESCO (energy service company) performance contracts combine proven energy and operational cost-saving solutions.
Siemens has combined the expertise of its various divisions and business units with key engineering firms to offer municipalities a broad portfolio of products and services that address different aspects of the wastewater treatment process. By applying the ESCO contract model, Siemens now extends its proven sustainable, energy-efficient, and operational cost-saving solutions to customers' wastewater treatment systems. Siemens Building Technologies Division is one of the four founding Clinton Climate Initiative ESCOs. The original Initiative focused on energy conservation and emissions reduction in 40 of the world's largest cities. ESCOs now audit municipal and industrial facilities of all sizes and identify where various cost-cutting measures can be implemented to reduce energy consumption and reduce operational costs. From that analysis, the ESCO audit team develops facility improvement methods that help justify the contract. On the wastewater treatment side, Siemens has identified numerous measures, innovative solutions, and services that hold potential for cost savings and emissions reductions. Samples of energy services and improvement measures include biosolids reduction, methane gas creation and usage, water conservation and reuse, high-efficiency dryer installation, SCADA system improvements, and aeration system upgrades, to name a few. In addition, measurement and verification services should be implemented to gauge benefits of the program and of staff operations and therefore track and attain the customers' sustainability and conservation goals. Glens Falls, N.Y., and Conroe, Texas, are just two wastewater treatment plants to have used successfully the ESCO model to improve facility processes and to reduce costs. Wastewater treatment facility ESCO contracts are performance-based, meaning the ESCO guarantees a certain level of energy saving and thus, protects the performance risks. With wastewater energy savings performance contracts, the ESCO usually includes the design, equipment, installation, and guaranteed savings. The average municipal wastewater treatment plant usually realizes payback in operational savings within 10 to 12 years of entering the contract. A partnership approach in the process helps identify and deliver energy savings; document success in delivering similar wastewater energy savings performance; and the financial, engineering, and construction capability to rapidly deploy projects without significant operational and financial impacts. Further information about solutions for ESCOs and wastewater treatment is available at www.usa.siemens.com/buildingtechnologies and www.water.siemens.com , respectively.
The Siemens Industry Sector (Erlangen, Germany) is the world's leading supplier of production, transportation, building and lighting technologies. With integrated automation technologies as well as comprehensive industry-specific solutions, Siemens increases the productivity, efficiency and flexibility of its customers in the fields of industry and infrastructure. The Sector consists of six Divisions: Building Technologies, Drive Technologies, Industry Automation, Industry Solutions, Mobility and Osram. With around 222,000 employees worldwide Siemens Industry posted in fiscal year 2008 a profit of EUR3.86 billion with revenues totaling EUR38 billion. http://www.siemens.com/industry
Contacts USA:
Steven E. Kuehn
Media and Community Relations Manager
Siemens Building Technologies
887 Deerfield Parkway Buffalo Grove, IL 60089
847-941-6047 phone
847-215-1093 fax
847-922-9384 cell
E-mail address steve.kuehn@siemens.com
Karole Colangelo
Corporate Public Relations Manager
Siemens Water Technologies Corp.
2501 N. Barrington Road Hoffman Estates, IL 60192
847-713-8458 phone
847-713-8469 fax
847-687-9630 cell
E-mail address karole.colangelo@siemens.com
