Mayer & Cie., a leading circular knitting machine manufacturer, has received an award from Baden-Württemberg for the energy-related renovation of its building services. Franz Untersteller, Minister for the Environment, Climate Protection and the Energy Sector, named Mayer & Cie. one of the state’s 100 Resource Efficient Companies. He presented the award at the Resource Efficiency and Recycling Congress held in Stuttgart on 18 and 19 October 2017.

“We are delighted that the state of Baden-Württemberg has chosen to honour our work in this area as exemplary,” said Marcus Mayer, Managing Director of Mayer & Cie.

“For us as an owner-managed family firm sustainability is a ‘must’ in every respect. That is why it is just as much a matter of course for us that our knitting machines work resource-efficiently as that we manufacture them efficiently. And optimised energy costs for cooling, heating and electricity make an important contribution to resource efficiency.”

Energy-related renovation

Since Mayer & Cie. moved to its corporate headquarters on the outskirts of Albstadt-Tailfingen in the 1950s, the buildings on the site have repeatedly been extended, including many local and separate energy centres. This led to a disproportionately high use of energy. That was why, in 2014, Mayer & Cie. began to renovate its cold-water network. As a result, a third of the existing cooling plant became superfluous to requirements.

Today’s cooling management now harnesses the Swabian Alb region’s bracing climate and switches off more cooling machinery during the five cold winter months. In 2015 Mayer & Cie. went on to upgrade its water pipes and renovate two heating plants. Last year, new compressors helped generate compressed air.

This year the company was able to connect all consumers and install load profile management. Plans for the combined heat, power and cooling concept were also completed and a cooperation agreement was concluded with the Neckar-Alb Virtual Power Station, a pilot project undertaken in collaboration with the University of Reutlingen.

“These measures have enabled us to reduce our ancillary costs considerably,” said Marcus Mayer. “That could especially be a competitive advantage if the economic situation were to become less favourable than it is today.”

Market developments

“We are also forearmed for further energy market developments. It could well be that we will as a result enjoy a major advantage with modes of energy supply that may be available in the future,” said Heiko Hämmerle, Mayer & Cie.’s head of plant technology, who has been in charge of the project for over four years.

Mr Hämmerle will take the project further forward in 2018. Implementation of the heat, power and cooling concept will then be on the agenda, including the installation of a combined heat and power unit and many other lines.

Examples of excellence

In 2013, the Ministry for the Environment, Climate Protection and the Energy Sector launched jointly with various industry associations in Baden-Württemberg the Alliance for Greater Resource Efficiency. The Alliance has since sought to identify 100 examples of excellence in Baden-Württemberg to demonstrate by means of specific projects the potential for savings in energy and material resources.

The organisers are interested in both the approach and the implementation of measures. The Alliance for Greater Resource Efficiency feels that imitators stand to benefit most from projects at the operational level. And copycats are welcome expressly and in large numbers – to ensure the sustainable development of Baden-Württemberg as an industrial location.

www.mayerandcie.com