Going Green With Motion Control

With keeping a “green” mindset in energy usage no longer a simply a PR move or a long-term investment for manufacturers, automation and motion control systems remain among the best ways for facilities to reduce their energy consumption quickly and efficiently. As energy and fuel costs remain high, the energy savings and cost savings realized an investment in motion control machinery to a plant are tangible and immediate. Servo control and increased automation can in some cases reduce energy expenditures by 20 – 30%.

Servo control. Servo motors draw, on average, 20% less energy than their induction counterparts to produce the same amount of power. This much greater efficiency adds to the overall efficiency of the system and provides a major contribution to energy reduction.

Increased automation. Automated, feedback-driven production creates additional efficiencies in the manufacturing process by placing greater emphasis on each action of a machine being the correct one – using no more nor less energy than is absolutely necessary. Servomechanisms aid in this, as do other meters and monitors that can be installed in a system.

The availability and relatively easy installation of these systems has made them more and more prevalent in manufacturing facilities around the world. Cost savings combined with more stringent standards from OEMs and other suppliers in terms of carbon footprint and energy consumption simply add to the factors in support of automation.