Issue link: http://www.insightdigital.biz/i/125252
in foc us green Business Fine-tuning the foundry Waupaca Foundry's energy enhancements earn DOE commendation By Rich Redman W hen a foundry melts more than 8,500 tons of scrap iron each day, it uses a huge amount of energy. Need a visual? That's more than the metal in the Eiffel Tower, which weighs 7,300 tons. That's why Waupaca Foundry has long realized the importance of saving energy. It not only helps the environment, it has a direct impact on the bottom line. Waupaca Foundry, which has three plants in Waupaca and one in Marinette – in addition to facilities in Indiana and Tennessee – recently received a letter of commendation from the U.S. Department of Energy 42 | Insight • M ay 2 013 C o u r t e s y o f Wa u pa c a F o u n d r y Waupaca Foundry has been recognized by the Department of Energy for its efforts to save energy at its facilities in Waupaca, Marinette, Indiana and Tennessee. The DOE's Better Buildings, Better Plants program is a nationwide initiative to encourage companies to pledge to reduce corporate-wide energy use by 25 percent within 10 years. for its energy-saving progress as part of the Better Buildings, Better Plants program. Better Buildings, Better Plants is a national initiative in which companies pledge to reduce the corporate-wide energy intensity of their manufacturing operations by 25 percent within 10 years. Started in 2009, it now includes 118 firms, 14 of which are headquartered in Wisconsin. Six of those are based in the New North: BPM, Inc. (Peshtigo), Eck Industries and Manitowoc Grey Iron Foundry (Manitowoc), Neenah Foundry (Neenah), Thilmany Papers (Kaukauna) and Waupaca Foundry, Inc. (Waupaca). "Waupaca Foundry's efforts are helping the nation benefit from energy efficiency," writes Kathleen Hogan, acting program manager in the Advanced Manufacturing Office of the Energy Department. "Together with the other partners in the Better Buildings, Better Plants Program, Waupaca Foundry's actions will save billions in energy costs, create new manufacturing jobs, strengthen the nation's economic competitiveness, and help protect the environment." Foundries are classic recyclers. "Approximately 94 percent of all the stuff that we're using to make new stuff is recycled content," says Bryant Esch, the foundry's environmental coordinator. "If you looked at our charge yard, where all the scrap comes in, it's stuff you'd recognize – old car parts, golf clubs, bicycles – that get made into new parts." While the company joined the Department of Energy program at its start, it had been aggressively addressing its energy use since the early 2000s. "Just look at the sheer physics of taking all that scrap iron that's been pulled out of the public space, and making it into something that is new and functional again," says Esch. "We have to get it up to 2,500w w w. i n s i g h t o n b u s i n e s s . c o m