ABB has achieved annual energy savings of 530MWh and a reduction of 160 tons in CO₂e emissions¹ at its Belo manufacturing facility in Contagem, southeast Brazil. Accordingly, the savings follow the implementation of sustainability initiatives. These include the installation of solar panels, solar water heaters, LED lamps and skylights, and frequency inverters.

The facility has also deployed ABB Ability^TM Energy Manager for metering, control, and optimization of energy consumption.

Supports Reduction of GHG

ABB’s Belo plant started operations in 1975 and produces 42,000 poles a day for the manufacturing of NEMA residential circuit breakers. Moreover, these miniature circuit breakers protect homes from the potential risks caused by overcurrent or short circuit events. The site is part of the ABB Mission to Zero™ program which supports the company’s commitment to reduce Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions by 100% by 2050². Driven by local teams, sites focus on improving efficiencies through energy generation, management, and storage. Specifically, using ABB’s innovative technologies and third-party integration.

The new initiatives build on a CO₂e emissions reduction of over 128 tons in 2023 due to green energy purchases. It also achieved a further reduction of 34 tons. This as the facility employed solar panels, upgrading heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) equipment. Moreover, it has installed enhanced frequency inverters on equipment in the molding and stamping areas.

For that reason, energy consumption reduced by approximately 420MWh a year by adding energy frequency inverters in two main production areas with high energy use. The installation of solar panels will contribute approximately 220MWh of on-site generated renewable energy a year.

ABB Ability^TM Energy Manager provides insight data to identify new opportunities to further reduce energy consumption and optimize energy. Meanwhile, the ongoing implementation of an energy management system according to ISO 50001 will further drive energy-efficiency actions at the site.

Solidifies Energy Saving Targets

“The ABB Mission to Zero approach at Belo is another example of our aim to enable a lower-carbon society. (In addition), our commitment to accelerate the transition to more sustainable manufacturing while empowering our customers to optimize, electrify and decarbonize their operations,” said Mike Mustapha, President of ABB Electrification’s Smart Buildings division.

In addition, Mustapha said, “Significant reductions in energy consumption and CO₂e emissions have been achieved within a year of implementing changes. Thus, the highly motivated team at the facility went beyond efficient energy management. (Therefore,) the site delivers zero production waste to landfill by the end of the year.”

The Belo team is targeting further energy savings in 2024 by adding more solar panels to meet 30 percent of the site’s energy demand. Moreover, it will install inverters for compressor and pump machines and replacing existing forklift vehicles with electric ones.

26 July 2024