Case study
More than $150,000 a year, taken out on the dashboard data
Compressed airWaterFood & Beverage ProcessingBulk Handling & Rail Logistics
Metering PDI Bulk's water and compressed air showed where both were going, and within weeks the general manager had taken more than $150,000 a year out of operating costs on process adjustments alone.
We monitored PDI Bulk’s water use and compressed air, showing overnight flow and excessive compressor cycling. General manager Jeff Inkes reported reducing annualized operating costs by more than $150,000 within weeks through process adjustments based on the dashboard data.
Client: PDI Bulk
What the data showed
Hover or arrow-key across the trace to read any interval. The flagged point is the one that started the conversation.
| Interval | Incoming service (L/min) |
|---|---|
| 00:00 | 9 |
| 00:30 | 8 |
| 01:00 | 9 |
| 01:30 | 10 |
| 02:00 | 10 |
| 02:30 | 8 |
| 03:00 | 9 |
| 03:30 | 10 |
| 04:00 | 10 |
| 04:30 | 9 |
| 05:00 | 10 |
| 05:30 | 9 |
| 06:00 | 44 |
| 06:30 | 46 |
| 07:00 | 48 |
| 07:30 | 51 |
| 08:00 | 53 |
| 08:30 | 52 |
| 09:00 | 53 |
| 09:30 | 53 |
| 10:00 | 51 |
| 10:30 | 51 |
| 11:00 | 48 |
| 11:30 | 48 |
| 12:00 | 45 |
| 12:30 | 43 |
| 13:00 | 41 |
| 13:30 | 40 |
| 14:00 | 38 |
| 14:30 | 36 |
| 15:00 | 35 |
| 15:30 | 36 |
| 16:00 | 35 |
| 16:30 | 37 |
| 17:00 | 37 |
| 17:30 | 40 |
| 18:00 | 9 |
| 18:30 | 9 |
| 19:00 | 10 |
| 19:30 | 8 |
| 20:00 | 8 |
| 20:30 | 9 |
| 21:00 | 9 |
| 21:30 | 10 |
| 22:00 | 9 |
| 22:30 | 10 |
| 23:00 | 9 |
| 23:30 | 10 |
| Before | Overnight flow running unseen; the compressor cycling constantly to maintain pressure |
|---|---|
| After | Overnight flow stopped; compressor runtime down and header pressure stable |
The published totals are the figures in the proof register, with their sources. The interval shape is drawn from the same period and is flagged as such in the dataset.
Background
Two problems, one facility. Water was leaving the building overnight, and the air compressor was working far harder than the demand justified.
The problem
“At PDI, the compressor was running harder than it should have been, cycling constantly to maintain pressure in a system that was losing significant volume to undetected leaks…”
Pressure and runtime readings gave us a way to follow that extra work.
How we found it
Metering on the incoming water service and the major consumers, header pressure and runtime monitoring on the compressed-air system, and railcar temperature monitoring for in-transit QA/QC.
The first night of metering answered the water question on its own. Water was running out of the building while nobody was in it, which is a thing a monthly invoice can never show and a thing an overnight baseline shows immediately. The leaks were found and the process was changed.
What changed
“We identified the losses, worked with the team to address them, and then watched what happened. The compressor runtime dropped. The pressure stabilized.”
More than $150,000 a year, on process adjustments alone. Jeff Inkes, PDI Bulk’s general manager, published that figure himself in a Google review of our work: “Within weeks of having the dashboard, I’ve been able to reduce annualized operating costs more than $150,000 by simply making process adjustments based on the data collected.”
The lesson
The work became a national rollout across facilities in Ontario, Alberta and Quebec.
Source: Jeff Inkes, General Manager, PDI Bulk, in a Google review of Quantify Environmental.
What changed
Before
Overnight flow running unseen; the compressor cycling constantly to maintain pressure
After
Overnight flow stopped; compressor runtime down and header pressure stable
$150,000per year
Reduced by the client, on process adjustments made from the dashboard data, within weeks of it going live.
Source: Jeff Inkes, General Manager, PDI Bulk, in a Google review of Quantify Environmental
In their words
Within weeks of having the dashboard, I've been able to reduce annualized operating costs more than $150,000 by simply making process adjustments based on the data collected.
Jeff Inkes, General Manager, PDI Bulk
Where to go next
The sector, the sibling studies, and the calculator that runs this same arithmetic on your own numbers.
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