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What Is Waste Heat — And Can Your Facility Get Some of It Back?

Every industrial heating process produces waste heat. It’s unavoidable. The question is not whether it exists, but whether any of it can be put back to work.

Waste heat management covers three distinct activities: waste heat reduction, waste heat recycling, and waste heat recovery. Understanding the difference between these three is important for setting realistic expectations about what’s achievable.

The Three Categories

Waste heat reduction means reducing the generation of waste heat in the first place — through better insulation, tighter seals, lower exhaust temperatures, and reduced air infiltration. This is the category that overlaps directly with heat containment, and it’s generally the first step before pursuing recovery.

Waste heat recycling means using waste heat within the same system it came from. The most common example the sourcebook gives is preheating combustion air using heat recovered from the exhaust gases of the same burner. The sourcebook notes that this type of heat recycling can reduce energy use or energy intensity by as much as 25%.

Waste heat recovery means capturing waste heat from one process and using it in a different system — for example, using hot flue gases from a high-temperature process to generate steam or heat water for a lower-temperature process elsewhere in the facility. Payback periods typically ranging from one-half year to five years, with heat recovery of 10% to 75% of the available waste heat depending on the technology.

Where Waste Heat Comes From

The sourcebook provides a useful table of industrial waste heat sources and their temperature ranges. Furnace or heating system exhaust gases run between 600°F and 2,000°F. Gas turbine exhaust runs 900°F to 1,100°F. Hot surfaces — including uninsulated pipe and equipment surfaces — run between 150°F and 600°F. Even steam leaks and condensate return systems represent waste heat streams worth evaluating.

The Right Order of Operations

The sourcebook is explicit about the sequence: reduce waste heat first, then recycle it within the same system, then consider recovery to other systems. This matters because the economics of a heat recovery project depend on how much waste heat is actually available. Improving insulation and reducing air infiltration first may reduce the magnitude of the recovery opportunity — but it also reduces what the system has to generate in the first place, which is the better outcome.

Reducing hot surface losses through insulation is the first step in any waste heat management program. UniTherm’s removable insulation jackets, blankets, and covers help address heat loss from equipment surfaces, piping, and exhaust components — the foundational step before more complex recovery technologies are evaluated.

For our standard removable insulation solutions, visit shop.unitherm.com.

To request a quote for a custom insulation solutions click here.

Source: U.S. DOE, Improving Process Heating System Performance: A Sourcebook for Industry (Third Edition), 2015.

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Air-to-Fuel Ratio: The Adjustment That Costs Nothing and Saves Real Money

Of all the improvements available for fuel-based process heating systems, controlling the air-to-fuel ratio may be the most accessible. It doesn’t require new equipment or significant capital. It requires understanding how combustion works and making sure your system is operating within the right parameters.

The core principle is straightforward: burning too much fuel relative to air wastes fuel. Burning too much air relative to fuel wastes energy by carrying it out of the system as hot exhaust.

How Combustion Efficiency Works

When a hydrocarbon fuel burns in air, the ideal condition — called stoichiometric combustion — consumes all the fuel with just enough oxygen to complete the reaction. In practice, stoichiometric operation isn’t achievable in most industrial burners because perfect mixing of fuel and oxidant would be required. Unburned hydrocarbons in the exhaust stream are both wasteful and potentially hazardous.

As a result, systems are designed to run with some excess air — typically around 3% according to the sourcebook — to ensure complete combustion. This small margin provides safety without significant energy penalty.

The Problem with Too Much Excess Air

Excess air beyond what’s needed for complete combustion must be heated along with the combustion products, and all of that heat ends up in the exhaust gases rather than in the product.

For systems that have drifted out of calibration, reducing excess air to the appropriate level can produce immediate, measurable fuel savings without any other changes.

What to Monitor

The sourcebook identifies practical indicators that suggest the air-to-fuel ratio needs attention: excess oxygen in furnace exhaust gases (indicating too much excess air), unstable flame behavior (indicating improper fuel/air control), and linkage conditions that cause poor control of the fuel/air mixture across the range of operating conditions.

Monitoring exhaust gas oxygen content — using an oxygen analyzer or portable combustion analyzer — is the standard method for verifying that the system is operating at the correct ratio.

While air-to-fuel optimization is a fuel-based system improvement, it works in combination with other measures including heat containment. A well-insulated system transfers more heat to the product per unit of fuel burned, which means the gains from proper burner calibration and proper insulation compound each other. UniTherm’s insulation solutions address the containment side of that equation.

For more on combustion optimization, see the DOE’s Process Heating Tip Sheet series, available at energy.gov/eere/amo.

For our standard removable insulation solutions, visit shop.unitherm.com.

To request a quote for a custom insulation solutions click here.

Source: U.S. DOE, Improving Process Heating System Performance: A Sourcebook for Industry (Third Edition), 2015.

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Removable Pipe and Valve Insulation: Solving the Access Problem in Industrial Facilities

Every industrial facility has piping systems that carry hot fluids, steam, or gases. And most of those systems have lengths of pipe, valves, and flanges that are uninsulated — not because facility managers don’t understand the energy loss, but because traditional insulation creates a maintenance problem.

When you need to access a valve for inspection or repair, you have to remove whatever insulation is covering it. With hard insulation, that means cutting and disposing of material. The replacement costs time and money. Do it a few times and the insulation often just stays off.

Pipe and Component Insulation

The Department of Energy’s identifies poor insulation on piping and ductwork as a recognized source of energy loss. Surfaces such as piping and ductwork that have poor or no insulation are sources of energy loss that are “often overlooked” in process heating assessments.

This is common precisely because the losses are diffuse and continuous rather than dramatic. A valve loses heat quietly, hour after hour, day after day. The impact is real but easy to ignore.

What Removable Insulation Covers Actually Do

Removable insulation covers for valves, flanges, and pipe components are engineered to be installed and removed without tools or specialized labor. They’re typically made from high-temperature-rated materials, stitched or sealed to fit specific component configurations, and secured with straps, lacing, or fasteners that allow for quick removal.

The key advantage over traditional insulation is that the covers are designed from the start to be removed and reinstalled. The insulation material doesn’t get damaged in the process, so the cover remains effective after repeated use.

UniTherm’s IsoCovers are removable insulation covers for valves and flanges. They’re available in standard sizes through the UniTherm shop and can be custom-manufactured for non-standard component configurations. Visit unitherm.com/pipe-and-components for the full range, or contact UniTherm to discuss a custom solution for your system.

Industries That Use Them

Removable pipe and valve insulation is used in oil and gas, power generation, chemical processing, food processing, marine applications, and anywhere else that high-temperature piping systems require regular maintenance access. The ROI case is generally straightforward: the energy cost of an uninsulated valve running continuously at operating temperature is often large enough to recover the cost of the cover within a single heating season.

For facilities in cold climates, there’s an additional benefit: reducing surface heat loss can help maintain consistent process temperatures in areas where ambient conditions vary seasonally.

For our standard removable insulation solutions, visit shop.unitherm.com.

To request a quote for a custom insulation solutions click here.

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Insulating Plastics Processing Equipment: How to Really Cut Your Facility’s Costs.

Plastics processing equipment, injection molding machines, extruders, blow molding equipment — operate at sustained high temperatures. The heating zones along a barrel or nozzle are running continuously, and a significant portion of that heat radiates outward into the surrounding work area rather than staying in the process where it belongs.

This is a straightforward heat containment problem of the kind identified in the DOE’s process heating sourcebook, and it has a straightforward solution: insulating plastic processing equipment keeps the heat in the barrel and out of the shop floor.

What’s Actually Happening Without Insulation

An uninsulated barrel on a plastics processing machine loses heat through radiation and convection from its surface. The control system compensates by running the heaters longer or more frequently to maintain the set temperature. More heater activity means more energy consumed, more wear on heating elements, and a warmer ambient environment around the machine.

The DOE sourcebook notes that improving insulation on process heating equipment reduces the amount of energy needed to perform a given heating task, reduces thermal stress on system components, and can improve consistency and product quality. All three of those benefits apply to plastics processing equipment.

The Case for Removable Insulation on Barrels and Nozzles

Permanent insulation on a plastics processing barrel is impractical. Operators need access to heating zones for inspection, thermocouple replacement, and maintenance. Fixed insulation that has to be cut away and replaced every time someone needs to check a heater band is not a workable solution.

Removable insulation jackets address this directly. They’re designed to fit specific equipment configurations, attach securely during production, and come off quickly when access is needed. The insulation itself is protected from damage during removal, so it can be reinstalled and reused.

UniTherm’s UniVest® insulation jackets are designed specifically for plastics processing equipment — barrels, nozzles, dies, and related components. They’re engineered for the temperature ranges and access requirements typical of injection molding, extrusion, and blow molding operations. Available through the UniTherm shop at shop.unitherm.com.

What to Expect in Terms of Results

While results vary by equipment type, temperature setpoint, and ambient conditions, published energy studies have documented meaningful reductions in heater band energy consumption when insulation jackets are added to plastics processing equipment. In addition to direct energy savings, facilities often report reduced ambient heat in work areas around the machines — a worker comfort and safety benefit that the DOE sourcebook also identifies as a legitimate benefit of insulation improvements.

UniTherm maintains an Energy Study Library on its website with documented results from insulation applications. Visit unitherm.com/media/energy-study-library for case data.

For our standard removable insulation solutions, visit shop.unitherm.com.

To request a quote for a custom insulation solutions click here.

Source: U.S. DOE, Improving Process Heating System Performance: A Sourcebook for Industry (Third Edition), 2015.

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Heat Containment: Why Insulation Is Usually the First Step in Any Efficiency Program

The Department of Energy’s process heating sourcebook divides efficiency improvements into five categories. Of those five, heat containment stands out as the one most facilities can act on quickly, without major capital investment and without interrupting production.

Heat containment means reducing energy losses to the surrounding environment. Every surface that runs hotter than ambient temperature is a source of those losses. The hotter the surface and the larger the area, the more energy is leaving the system and adding to your fuel bill.

What the DOE Sourcebook Says About Insulation

The sourcebook is direct about what poor insulation costs: “Poor insulation might reduce a process heating system’s efficiency, thereby increasing the amount of energy needed to perform a given process heating task. In addition to an increased cost for energy, the system is exposed to higher stress, which can accelerate wear and subsequently lead to more frequent breakdowns. Other side effects can be reduced product quality and increased maintenance.”

That last point is important. Insulation isn’t just about energy savings. When equipment runs hotter than it needs to because heat isn’t being retained properly, the surrounding components experience greater thermal stress. Over time, that means shorter service life and more downtime.

Where Insulation Applies

Insulation opportunities in a process heating system typically include: furnace and oven walls, doors, and ceilings; pipes, valves, and flanges carrying hot fluids, gases, or steam; ductwork connecting heating equipment to downstream processes; heating barrels, nozzles, and dies on plastics processing equipment; and exhaust components that carry high-temperature gases away from the process.

Each of these surfaces loses heat at a rate determined by the temperature difference between the surface and the surrounding air, the surface area, and the effectiveness of any existing insulation.

Removable vs. Permanent Insulation

For some surfaces — furnace walls, fixed ductwork — permanent insulation makes sense. But for components that require regular maintenance access, permanent insulation creates a practical problem: every time someone needs to access the valve, flange, or connection, they have to remove and replace insulation that wasn’t designed to come off.

Removable and reusable insulation covers solve that problem. They’re designed to go on and come off quickly, without damaging the insulation or the equipment underneath. This makes them practical for valves, flanges, fittings, and other components where access is part of the normal maintenance routine.

UniTherm’s insulation blankets and jackets are built specifically for this use case. UniVest® covers for plastics processing equipment, IsoCovers for pipes and valves, and custom insulation blankets for other industrial components — all removable, reusable, and engineered for high-temperature environments. Browse the full line at unitherm.com.

A Simple Place to Start

If you haven’t done a surface temperature audit recently, that’s a good first step. Walk the system with an infrared thermometer. Note which surfaces are running significantly above ambient temperature. Prioritize the largest, hottest surfaces — those represent the biggest ongoing losses. Then ask whether those surfaces are accessible for maintenance. If they are, removable insulation is worth a look.

For our standard removable insulation solutions, visit shop.unitherm.com.

To request a quote for a custom insulation solutions click here.

Source: U.S. DOE, Improving Process Heating System Performance: A Sourcebook for Industry (Third Edition), 2015.

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Why Fixing One Thing at a Time Isn’t Enough: The Systems Approach to Process Heating

When a facility decides to improve energy efficiency, the instinct is often to target the most obvious problem and fix it. That’s understandable — but according to the Department of Energy’s process heating sourcebook, fixing individual components in isolation often misses a larger opportunity and can even produce misleading results.

The DOE Sourcebook recommends what it calls a systems approach: a top-down review of how all the components of a process heating system perform and interact together. The goal is to understand the whole before optimizing the parts.

What a Systems Approach Actually Looks Like

The sourcebook describes the systems approach as a process that starts with creating process flow diagrams — visual maps of how materials and energy move through the system. This gives engineers and facility managers a “bird’s-eye view” of the entire process and allows them to rank components by their efficiency impact.

Importantly, it also reveals how changing one component affects others. Here’s an example. tuning burners reduce energy use, but it will also make the gains from flue gas heat recovery somewhat smaller than they would have been before the burners were tuned. Without the systems perspective, you might over-estimate the benefit of the second improvement.

Start with the Data You Have

A systems approach requires data. Mapping energy flows through a system highlights the confidence in existing data and identifies what additional measurements are needed. In other words, the process of analyzing the system reveals gaps that need to be filled before improvements can be properly evaluated.

Analysis doesn’t have to be complicated. In many cases, it starts with temperature measurements at key surfaces, monitoring of exhaust gas composition, and basic tracking of fuel use per unit of output.

Individual Components Still Matter

The systems approach doesn’t replace component-level analysis — it informs it. After the top-down review identifies which components have the highest efficiency impact, those components are then analyzed in detail. The US Department of Energy sourcebook describes this as an iterative process: the component’s improved performance is fed back into the system model to determine true gains when interactions between components are taken into account.

Insulation is a good example of where this matters. Adding insulation to a furnace wall reduces surface heat loss. But it also changes the thermal environment inside the furnace, which may affect heat transfer to the product, which may affect how the control system responds. A complete analysis accounts for all of those effects.

When you’re ready to take stock of heat losses across your facility, UniTherm’s team can help you think through where removable insulation solutions apply — from plastics processing equipment to piping systems to exhaust components. A systems view often reveals insulation opportunities that aren’t obvious from looking at individual pieces of equipment.

For our standard removable insulation solutions, visit shop.unitherm.com.

To request a quote for a custom insulation solutions click here.

Source: U.S. DOE, Improving Process Heating System Performance: A Sourcebook for Industry (Third Edition), 2015.

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The ROI of Removable Insulation: How Plastics Manufacturers Cut Energy Costs

Walk the floor of almost any injection molding or extrusion facility and you’ll find the same scene: bare barrel heater bands radiating heat into the air, cooling systems working overtime to compensate, and utility bills that never seem to come down.

It’s inefficiency hiding in plain sight, and it’s surprisingly simple to fix.


Removable insulation jackets for plastics equipment are not a new idea, but their return on investment is often dramatically underestimated. At UniTherm International, we’ve conducted energy studies across hundreds of facilities. The results are consistent: properly insulated barrel zones and hot runner systems typically reduce energy consumption by 35–50% in those areas, with payback periods measured in months, not years.

Where the Heat (and the Money) Is Going:

An exposed heater band on an injection molding barrel can radiate significant energy losses. Multiply that across a 10-machine shop running two shifts, and you’re looking at a meaningful annual waste. Beyond direct energy cost, there are secondary effects:

  • Ambient temperature rise forces HVAC systems to work harder, especially in summer.
  • Uneven thermal conditions stress components and contribute to faster wear.
  • Workers in close proximity to hot equipment face health and safety concerns.

Why Removable? Why Not Just Permanent Insulation?

This is the key question, and it’s where UniVest® insulation jackets shine. Unlike rigid or permanent insulation, removable jackets come off quickly for maintenance, inspection, or changeover and reattach in minutes. No cutting, no mess, no downtime penalty.

UniVest® jackets, constructed from high-temperature-rated materials, withstand heat, oils, and mechanical abuse typical on plastics shop floors. Custom-fit to your equipment using 3D AutoCAD modeling, they cover barrels, nozzles, hot runners, and other heated zones without interfering with normal operation.

What Does an Energy Study Show?

UniTherm offers complimentary energy studies that calculate the projected savings specific to your equipment, run schedule, and utility rates. Inputs include current surface temperatures, hours of operation, and local kWh cost. The output is a straightforward payback analysis — typically showing full cost recovery within 6 to 18 months.

One Texas-based molder with 22 machines reduced monthly energy spend by over $3,000 after insulating barrel zones on their larger presses. The jackets paid for themselves in under a year. More importantly, their process temperatures stabilized, reducing scrap rates as a secondary benefit.

Getting Started

The fastest way to assess the opportunity at your facility is to request a free sample jacket to test on your highest-heat machine. UniTherm International’s team will work with you to identify which zones offer the greatest return and quote custom-fit jackets from there.

Margins are tight and energy costs are one of the few controllable line items. Removable insulation is one of the highest-ROI investments available that doesn’t require a capital budget approval to get started.

Click Here to order your free UniVest® Sample today, or connect with our Sales Team to discuss a custom sample request.

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Proactive Maintenance : Insulation

The mindset of “if it isn’t broke don’t fix it” is a thing of the past. It is a mentality that even the best of us have been guilty of from time to time. While it may sound like a good idea, it can be damaging to a company in the long run. Staying the course down a single path can lead to a business owner getting blindsided by future problems. Just because something is working at the moment, doesn’t mean that future problems won’t arise. The new trend is to start protecting your investments and wellbeing by stopping the problem before it ever begins with proactive maintenance.

Preventative Maintenance: Insulation

Stop The Problem Before It Happens = Greater Savings

Whether you’re trying to make the most of an ever-dwindling staff and budget, or looking for even more ways to trim operations and maintenance costs, preventative maintenance on equipment and facilities can help save time and money in the long run.

The key point to preventative maintenance is stopping the issue before it ever begins. While there are some expenses related to running a good proactive maintenance program, it costs less to properly maintain equipment and facilities than it does to repair the damage from a premature breakdown or early deterioration of property.

Proactive maintenance of equipment and facilities is very similar to regular vehicle maintenance. The key to keeping your vehicle running well today and down the road is routine proactive maintenance. Many times significant and expensive repairs can be avoided if the vehicle is properly and regularly maintained.

Increases Life Cycle of Applications

Regular equipment Untitled-2maintenance leads to an improvement in the overall safety and reliability of the system. Planning and management of asset maintenance improve the life cycle of the assets and keeps them performing at peak productivity levels. As a result, costly unplanned downtime is minimized; workforce productivity increases; and asset lifecycle and return on asset (ROA) are improved.

Increases Performance

Regular improvements to the process for better machine efficiency and product quality increases maintenance productivity by detecting and identifying potential equipment problems before they grow. This reduces the frequency, severity, and cost of repairs while enabling your team to avoid unnecessary and unproductive tasks.

employee-burnProvides a Safe Work Environment

More efficient and frequently maintained work environments (including equipment and personnel) lead to a safer work atmosphere. When machines break down and errors occur, accidents are more likely to happen.

Where Does Insulation Fit In?

Insulation is built upon the idea of proactive maintenance practices. Insulation does all of the benefits listed above plus more. Once installed, your insulation needs no further maintenance. So you can feel good, knowing you are doing your bit for the planet while creating a more efficient and more collaborative work environment, to reduce costs and support your organization’s work processes.

What’s Next?

You can head over to our online shopping cart and check out all of our possible solutions for your facility. For as little as $16, you could be protecting yourself, your employees, and your business for the future.

For more information about our products and UniTherm, check out our website and social platforms:

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Dangers of Heat Illness

HEAT ILLNESS CAN BE DEADLY. When employees are exposed to hot temperatures, maintaining a safe work environment can be more challenging than you think. As summertime temperatures continue to rise, it becomes increasingly important for employers to focus on providing workplace conditions that are safe from the excessive heat.

OSHA Heat Illness Fatalities

Heat Fatalities 2008-2014

According to the Occupational Safety and Health Association (OSHA), thousands of workers become sick and even die as a result of exposure to heat each year. In the United States, an average of 400 deaths per year are directly related to heat, and an estimated 1,800 die from illnesses made worse by heat.

Many industries face challenges when it comes to providing a cool working environment, particularly in heat-susceptible areas such as industrial plants, warehouses, and manufacturing facilities. When surface temperatures on pipe and equipment routinely exceed 140° F (60° C), measures should be taken to improve the working environment. Without adequate cooling or precautions, workers are put in danger while equipment and manufactured products are at an increased risk of failure, which can impact worker safety and productivity, and certainly, a company’s bottom-line.

So how can you protect your employees from heat exposure while also ensuring that the work is accomplished on time?

According to OSHA, “The best way to prevent heat-related illness is to make the work environment cooler”. However, the dilemma now becomes how to efficiently and economically cool large, open areas where high ambient outdoor temperatures and heat-generating machinery are factors.

OSHA Touch Safe, Ambient Air temperature

The radiating heat of a running barrel affects the ambient temperature.

Fortunately, the use of industrial insulation on process equipment and piping not only saves money and energy, but also reduces the potential for heat- related illnesses. As insulation is added to systems, the surface temperature of these systems is dramatically reduced. This provides a cooler work environment that yields higher productivity, as workers do not require as many breaks and are less concerned with the potential for burns from hot surfaces. Furthermore, insulation helps reduce the amount of work your machine has to do by decreasing the amount of energy used without sacrificing quality or performance. Learn more about the energy saving benefits of insulation.

The use of UniTherm’s UniVest® and ISOCOVERS Insulation Systems product lines provide easy and efficient ways to save energy and money while creating a cooler and safer work environment. Additionally, these product lines can be purchased online because they now are available in standard “off-the-shelf” sizes, which drastically reduces the time and costs often associated with custom insulation jobs. For all of our heat prevention products, view our online shopping cart here.

UNI-ISO

For additional tips on how to keep your facility cooler and your workforce happy and motivated, click here for more information about preventing heat-related illness.

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UniTherm Insulation Systems

711 Jones St.
Lewisville, TX 75057
Toll Free: 800.657.9542
Phone: 972.436.1401
Fax: 972.436.0112
info@unitherm.com