Compliance with the EU Ecodesign Directive is driving pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities’ energy consumption up, not down as intended. With a review of the regulations currently underway, Jim Heemer and Hugh Reynolds of Jacobs explain the background to this anomaly, its impact on energy optimisation – and what can be done about it.
Energy Consumption
About the regulations
The EU Ecodesign Directive was introduced in 2009 with the objective of reducing carbon emissions by 20% by 2020, compared to 2005 levels. Although not prescriptive, the Directive is the basis for a raft of EU regulations which affect equipment accounting for more than 40% of energy use across the EU. The regulations seek to optimise energy consumption in everything from lightbulbs to pumps and boilers, including heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems.
In the pharmaceutical context, HVAC systems are critical to maintaining the required temperature and humidity in manufacturing areas. With HVAC systems representing one of the major energy consumers in a pharmaceutical plant, understanding barriers and enablers to maximize the operational efficiency of these systems is a key route to reducing both operating costs and environmental impacts.