Energy Project Pays Off for Niemann Foods

MICHAEL GARRY

QUINCY, Ill. — This month marks the one-year anniversary of a major energy-saving project conducted by Niemann Foods here in 35 of its 36 supermarkets and nine franchised Sav-A-Lot stores that it operates.

By October, if not sooner, the chain, which also runs convenience stores and pet and hardware stores, expects to recoup the roughly $1 million it paid for the technology and equipment that went into the project, which was aimed at cooler and freezer cases.

“We originally projected a nine-month [return on investment] but then energy prices dropped,” said Jeremy Dyer, director of operations for Niemann's convenience store division, who oversaw the project. “So it looks more like a 12- to 13-month ROI. But we're still happy. Our executive team was satisfied enough with this ROI to allow it to proceed without board approval.”

Based on guidance from energy experts, Niemann decided to invest in three specific pieces of equipment to cut energy usage in its freezers and coolers: anti-sweat heater controllers for freezer doors, which save energy by turning off the heating elements when they are not needed to prevent fog (condensation) from forming on the doors; high-efficiency electronically commutated (ECM) evaporator fan motors, used to save energy in the hundreds of fans used to circulate cold air through coolers and freezers; and night shields, used to enclose open cases in stores not open 24 hours, thereby reducing compressor usage.

Dyer estimated that the 12-month energy savings achieved with this technology is 6.6 million kilowatt-hours. Assuming that energy prices averaged 10 cents per kilowatt-hour, that would amount to an annual savings of $660,000.

But there were other elements factored into the overall savings. One is an annual savings of more than $200,000 from lower maintenance costs, although Dyer acknowledged those are partly projected savings. The other is the more than $260,000 in energy incentive grants the retailer received from two Illinois utilities, Ameren and Commonwealth Edison (ComEd).

Niemann tapped incentives available from Ameren's Act on Energy program. According to Dyer, Niemann was awarded $260,489 from Ameren and ComEd for installing the fan motors and the anti-sweat heater controllers.

Even without the rebates, Dyer said, “we were pleasantly surprised in hitting the number for kilowatt and maintenance savings. We told our share group members the investment was a no-brainer.”

In addition to the investment in freezer and cooler systems, Niemann separately upgraded the fluorescent lighting in its stores in late 2007, replacing T12 lights with high-efficiency T8 or T5 lights. The chain is currently evaluating whether to install LED lights in its cases.

SEEKING ADVICE

Assigned the task of addressing Niemann's energy costs, Dyer originally consulted with the Smart Energy Design Assistance Center (SEDAC), a state-funded group based at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. SEDAC conducted an audit of about six Niemann stores and recommended the technologies that were ultimately deployed by the chain for cases and coolers. “We wanted to make sure this was the right way to go,” he said. “We didn't have any in-house efficiency experts.”

“Where Niemann excelled was applying the technologies not just to the stores we looked at, but chainwide,” said Ben Sliwinski, technical director for SEDAC.

As its technology provider, Niemann selected S4i, Grand Rapids, Mich., which also surveyed the stores' energy needs and was able to provide all of the desired systems. After an initial pilot in June 2008, the equipment was installed in all 44 stores in August and September of that year.

Niemann replaced existing motors with small ECM motors in 6,620 fans used to circulate air in multi-deck dairy and meat cases, freezers, coolers and bunkers, and larger ECM motors in another 1,606 fans for walk-in coolers. At 8 cents per kilowatt hour, each smaller ECM motor saves about $50 per year on average, said Bob Savage, partner with S4i. The motors are beginning to be offered in new cases, but need to be installed in older cases, Dyer noted.

The chain installed 310 anti-sweat heater controllers — called “DoorMisers” — in its freezer doors. “The DoorMisers only allow the heating elements to turn on when there's condensation, so 70% of the time the heating elements are off,” said Dyer. “They used to run constantly.” At 8 cents per kilowatt hour, each DoorMiser saves about $800 per year, said Savage.

Dyer acknowledged that Niemann ended up retrofitting about half the freezers with DoorMisers in the project stores. “If the cases were going to be replaced or the doors had bad seals or gaskets, it didn't make sense,” he said. In some instances, DoorMisers were installed after seals and gaskets were repaired.

Niemann also uses 4,000 linear feet of night shields to cover open cases when stores are closed, thereby easing the load on refrigeration compressors.