The crisis in the pharmaceutical industry has no precedents. Manufacturers, who have historically made more than interesting margins, even in difficult periods, are now facing more challenges than ever to keep up with the changes in the market. During prosperous times, changes are usually avoided. However in times of crisis, there is the opportunity to introduce new ideas, strategies, and incorporate new processes. Those manufacturers that are reluctant to apply changes or don’t know how to will doubtlessly suffer a cutback on their profits, so updating and breaking old habits will be the best choice.
Pharmaceutical consultancy can help pharmaceutical and biochemical manufacturers save money and time by improving quality and efficiency in their plants. It is estimated, for instance, that in the US only, pharmaceutical manufacturing plants spend over a billion dollars every year in fuel and electricity to keep their facilities working properly. When oil prices rise, therefore, expenditure increases and this often exceeds specified budgets, with the negative consequences this has for business. That is why auditing plants and adopting new types of technologies to improve their usage of energy is imperative for proper control and to meet budgets.
A good strategy for energy use can result not only in reducing costs, but also in reducing the amount of gas emissions, helping the company achieve an environmentally responsible status that can benefit its image as well as help reduce environmental emissions globally.
The largest use of energy in pharmaceutical manufacturing plants derives from Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning, known as HVAC. A good use of drives, motors, pumps and other equipment can drastically improve the way in which this energy is used in plants. Each component can be examined individually, but this takes time and resources and is not the most efficient method. The recommended method is to take a systems approach and take a look at the whole motor system instead of revising each part at a time.
To get into action the best approach would be following some basic steps, as follows: identify all motor applications in the plant, such as pumps or fans; document their different conditions and technical specifications; compare the requirements in your plant to the use of the system to evaluate its consumption rate, which will help verify if the size of the motors is correct; gather all the data regarding different upgrades or maintenance updates that can be made to the systems; if an upgrade is required and implemented, it is advisable to monitor the equipment’s performance in time.
This type of planning can make your company save up to 30 per cent of total motor power, thus reducing energy use in the plant. Maintenance is therefore crucial to stay compliant and keep your company environmentally safe and up to date.
