environment Archives - Unitherm Insulation Systems

May 21, 2015 by UniAdmin

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-2 maintenance 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.

Provides 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:

April 22, 2015 by UniAdmin

Earth Day 2015: Insulation Facts Infographic

earthday-infographic

January 21, 2015 by UniAdmin

4 Common Misconceptions About Industrial Insulation

We come across many people who have the wrong idea about industrial insulation and think what we offer is not right for them. We ask them a few questions, and usually they are left wondering why they haven’t insulated their equipment sooner. We throw them a UniVest and they rush out the door to install it (cause it’s really that simple).

So we don’t have to go through the same spiel every time, we’ve compiled the most common misconceptions people have when it comes to industrial insulation.

1. Insulation is for my home, not my machines

This is the most common one we come across and it’s pretty obvious why. The first thing people think about when you say insulation is their home and what’s inside their walls. That’s a perfect analogy because UniVests work the same way. Properly insulating your home saves you hundreds of dollars a year on home heating and cooling costs. It protects outside temperatures from affecting the temperatures you want inside. The easier it is for your home to maintain its temperature, the less you spend at the end of the month. UniVests are no different, except we deal with higher inside temperatures. Take a second and think, if you save hundreds by properly insulating your home, imagine how much could be saved when insulating your machine. We’ll give you a hint…its much greater!

2. No Budget for Insulation

We all have budgets. Yeah, and we know they can be small and hard to deal with. Trust us, Windows 98 is getting really old at the office. Making new purchases on things that you are already operating without can seem like a luxury purchase. Little known fact is that with proper insulation, a company can see ROI (Return on Investment) in under 12 months. In the right conditions, a single set of UniVests or ISOCOVERS can last 5+ years after installed. That’s 5+ years of return. In 12 months or less, most companies make back the purchase price of a UniVest from energy savings alone.

3. My machines are working fine now without insulation

We’re sure they do, but wouldn’t you like for them to work better? Insulation minimizes the downtime of the machines they are on and relieves stresses from a hard working machine. This even increases the lifespan of the equipment. Wouldn’t we all like to work a little easier? Your machines would too.

4. Who Needs Protection Anyway

The biggest thing that people don’t realize is that insulation also improves workplace safety. As seen in a few of our videos on Youtube, a heated barrel with a UniVest on it can be touched and worked around without any special protective gear. More Safety = Less downtime and less liability. Insulation can also decrease surrounding ambient air temperature. Decreasing work fatigue due to high temperature and more comfortable work areas.

Here’s typically the point where some people are kicking themselves for not already having insulation installed. If you didn’t make it this far, we completely understand. Our insulation systems are much more than the sum of their parts and offer a lot more usability than most people realize. If you’ve finally come to the conclusion that insulation could benefit you, take a look around our online shopping cart at www.shop.unitherm.com. For some help finding the product, measuring, or just want some more insulation entertainment like this blog, visit our youtube page: www.Youtube.com/UniThermInsulations

April 29, 2013 by Kendal White

[Infographic] Reasons To Go Green

Top 10 Cleanest Countries

Iceland
Switzerland
Costa Rica
Sweden
Norway
Mauritius
France
Austria
Cuba
Columbia

Types ofMost Recyclable Plastics

PET or PETE (polyethylene terephthalate)
HDPE (high-density polyethylene)
PVC (polyvinyl chloride)
LDPE (low-density polyethylene)
PP (polypropylene)
PS (polystyrene)
Others

How to Recycle Plastic

Curbside Collection: some communities offer curbside collection of plastics for recycling
Bottle Banks: you can exchange plastic bottles for money in some states
Recycling Centers: take plastic items to be recycled

Recycling reduces the amount of plastic that ends up in landfills, decreases the amount of natural resources used to make plastic, and saves energy.

4 Reasons to Go Green

Endangered Animals: as many as 247 animals are on the critically endangered list as of 2008.
Deforestation: 8% drop in the amount of earth covered by rain forests. Many experts suggest the rain forest will be entirely eliminated by 2050.
Global Warming: an increase in carbon dioxide that has led to global warming.
Growing Landfills: filled with trash that could take millions of years to decompose

Top 10 Polluting Countries

China
United States
Russia
India
Japan
Germany
Canada
United Kingdom
South Korea
Iran

April 25, 2013 by Kendal White

Earth Day 2013 & 5 Native Wonders

Earth Day is an environmental movement celebrated each year on April 22. Earth day was founded in 1970, when hippies and the Beatles ruled the land. At the time, the environment was not a chief concern, and pollution was an accepted piece of economic growth. Environmental efforts began to take popularity after a New York Times bestseller capitalized on our endangered environmental state. Earth Day met the concerns in a society growing in environmental and public health anxieties.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency was birthed after the first Earth Day, as well as the Clean Air, Clean Water and Endangered Species Acts. Throughout the years, Earth Day has tackled challenging environmental issues. Despite these challenges, Earth Day 2013 was bursting with countries eager to do their part.

Here is our list of noteworthy, unfamiliar Earth Day countries:

Copenhagen, Denmark: Carbon emissions are a serious problem, and this city spelled ‘CO2’ via satellite navigation devices.
Tokyo, Japan: 100,000 people gathered in Yoyogi Park for a two-day music and art festival to commemorate Earth Day.
Pakistan: An initiative to plant 50,000 trees is being led to combat deforestation.
Philippines: The Solar Revolution Pavilion is a solar-powered building constructed with plastic bottles. 1,600 plastic vegetable crates were used to build this 200 square, 6-meter high structure.
Indonesia: A parade to honor Earth Day was held; environmental issues include dwindling marine life and deforestation.
Taipei, Taiwan: Canon Marketing (Taiwan) Co. sponsored “Plant for the Planet: The Bill Tree Campaign” where participants plant trees. The company promotes “kyosei” – working and living together for the good of the community.
Seoul, South Korea: Gangnam Style was revamped for an Earth Day flash mob. Seoul also hosted an Earth Day exhibition and a walkathon.

Most of us take for granted the beautiful creation of Earth and we would like to give you five stunning places protected by Earth-lovers in the United States.

San Francisco Bay, CA: The San Francisco Bay Association or Save the Bay, paved the way for the Conservation and Development Commission. Windsurfers, birders, and boaters enjoy this clean bay today.
Storm King Mountain, NY: The Scenic Hudson Preservation Conference was formed in the 1960s to combat a hydroelectric power facility. The court ruling established conservation groups could challenge developments threatening the environment.
Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, TX: Lady Bird Johnson co-founded the Wildflower Center in 1982, which today runs a seed bank and aids in green community concepts. Native Texas plants provide a beautiful backdrop to its landscape.
Pelican Island, Florida: President Theodore Roosevelt declared Pelican Island a Federal Bird Reservation in 1903. Pelican Island is a nesting site for egrets, herons, spoonbills, and an array of tropical birds.
Dinosaur National Monument, Utah and Colorado: Thousands of dinosaur fossils were discovered here in 1915. In the 1950s the Bureau of Reclamation attempted to build a dam here, which would flood the Yampa and Green River canyons. Congress blocked the dam in 1956, and today white-water rafters flock to this mecca.

UniTherm International is a manufacturer of green-friendly insulation blankets for all applications, specializing in the plastics and oil and gas industries. UniTherm strives for energy efficiency with all of our new and existing innovations.

April 23, 2013 by Kendal White

Renewable Energy And The Crusade Towards Innovation

Renewable energy is continually replenished and non-polluting: geothermal, sun, water, and wind. The popularity of renewable energy is growing due to high oil prices, change, government legislation, and mounting government support paired with incentives. Greenhouse gases are detrimental to the Earth’s atmosphere; these gases allow sunlight to enter the atmosphere, thus trapping heat in the atmosphere. These rising temperatures may trigger climate change. Greenhouse gases in North America are primarily from energy consumption due to economic growth

Solar power technologies utilize the sun’s energy to provide electricity. Solar power supplies less than 1% of U.S energy requirements; nevertheless, solar technologies are quickly advancing. Solar technologies used for harnessing solar energy include photovoltaic cells, passive solar designs, and flat-plate collectors. The applications used to adapt solar power into electricity are costly, yet, the substantial potential of solar energy remains.

Hydropower is the most conventional renewable energy source, and uses flowing water to produce electricity. Major dam sites in the United States include the Tennessee Valley, the Colorado River, and the Northwest. Hydropower is suitable for supplying large electricity requirements and is the least expensive renewable energy source.

Wind energy applies wind turbines to generate electricity; this sector of renewable energy is the fastest growing. Ideal placement for turbines is in an area of strong winds: Alaska, the Appalachians, and the western United States.

Geothermal energy utilizes natural sources of heat trapped beneath the Earth. Underground hot water or steam is the conventional form of generating power. Geothermal technologies embrace geothermal heat pumps, direct-use systems, and reservoirs.

Innovative technologies continuously attempt to improve the employment of renewable energy.

Livestock methane gas emission is a severe threat to the global climate. In British Columbia, the Cowpower Program encourages residents to pay a slight percentage on their utility bill. This premium will help pay for an anaerobic digester- bacteria is converted into organic material, creating energy.

Groundbreaking transportation could ease the reliance on fossil fuels for energy. The invention of a speed vacuum train could be reality in the near future. A speed-vac train is based upon the idea of removing the air from a sealed tub, and pressing a train through. Conventional trains use a great deal of energy; the vacuum theory would be matched with magnetic levitation devices, allowing trains to reach 4,000 mph.

The latest in solar technology has spawned the idea of a device to trap light, which progresses the proficiency of organic solar shells by 175%. This “black hole for light” could possibly allow for an economical, marketable solar shell.

April 24, 2012 by Kendal White

International Standards for Energy Management: How ISO 50001 Can Help Companies of All Kinds

“Individual organizations cannot control energy prices, government policies, or the global economy. But they can improve the way they manage energy.” –ISO Secretary-General Rob Steele

Energy is one of the largest controllable expenses of your plant, or of any building for that matter. And luckily, as more and more building owners realize remarkable ROI in energy-saving strategies, the amount of related information continues to grow.

In fact, a quick Google search for energy management returns about 54,800,000 results, which gives us about 78 pages to wade through. Of course, no one has time for that, so we usually just collect tidbits of advice we hear about going green and put them to use as best we can.

For example, at home I know to keep the thermostat under 68° in the winter and over 72° in the summer for better energy savings. I know to run the dishwasher only when it’s full to maximize water use. I know to open the shades during the day to let in natural light. I’m sure you’ve heard similar rules of thumb.

So we’ve got the basics down, but managing energy in an entire plant requires a bit more forethought than simply turning off the lights when we leave the house.

download avaiable at iso.org

Fortunately, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) launched an energy management standard last summer. According to ISO, the energy standard—ISO 50001—will provide industrial plants, commercial, businesses, government facilities, and entire organizations with “access to a single, harmonized standard for implementation across the organization with a logical and consistent methodology for identifying and implementing improvements.”

Twenty-six US facilities, including 3M, Cook Composites, Dow Chemical, Nissan, and Volvo, participated in ISO 50001 pilot programs. In addition, the Department of Energy endorses ISO 50001 as a “proven approach for US industrial commercial facilities to plan, manage, measure, and continually improve energy performance.”

Companies implement these energy standards to reduce their energy consumption and environmental footprint, but they can become ISO 50001 certified as well. On March 8^th of this year, Volvo’s Dublin plant was the first US facility to achieve certification. This third-party verification can afford companies a competitive edge and greater confidence in their supply chain.

For those that utilize it, the energy standard will be hugely helpful as it takes the guesswork out of energy management. Instead of the trial and error strategy I use at home, haphazardly turning the thermostat up or down, ISO 50001 provides an explicit framework applicable in any company—public or private, large or small. Companies worldwide can now adopt best practices in energy management.

Have you begun working towards your ISO 50001 certification? What other energy management tools—software, audits, etc.—do you use at your facility? If you’re kicking off a new energy management program or you’re working to keep your energy output in check, get a customized energy report today.

March 15, 2012 by Kendal White

Solutions for Secondary Containment

In response government regulations and eco friendly incentives, more and more facilities are finding new ways to go green. It’s always a good idea to stay in line with Uncle Sam, but facility owners and operators often discover that protecting the environment also delivers worthwhile ROI. Win win.

Back in 2007, the EPA introduced the Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure (SPCC) Regulations that require facilities with large amount of oil storage (1,320+ gallons aboveground, 42,000+ gallons underground) to have a written plan addressing how it will prevent and/or respond to oil spills.

This makes sense. Oil products pose a threat to the environment and our safety if accidentally spilled or leaked into soil, ground water, or surface water.

SPCC regulations apply to facilities that handle “petroleum, fuel oil, sludge, oil refuse, oil mixed with wastes, fats, greases, and vegetable oils,” and I’m sure these preventative measures come as no surprise to those involved in oil-related industries.

The good news—the EPA doesn’t specify the means by which facilities must control spills. Rather, the regulations afford facility owners and operators the autonomy to decide how they will comply and to determine the best methods for their facility.

The bad news—the EPA doesn’t specify the means by which facilities must control spills, which means owners and operators are on their own in devising a plan. All the EPA asks is that the methods align with accepted “good engineering practices,” and in some cases be certified by a Professional Engineer (PE). Pretty vague.

The SPCC report does suggest using containers suitable for flammable liquids, installing overflow alarms or vents, and constructing secondary containment areas.

Secondary containment areas are common solutions in the oil industry as they connect to bulk storage and can handle any accidental overflow. They are not infallible, however. The EPA recommends that pipes and containers be periodically inspected.

For additional spill protection, facilities should reinforce containment walls. SolarShell fiberglass laminate does just that—soft SolarShell sheets conform to the shape of the containment area, bonds with steel or concrete walls, and cures into an impenetrable shell that will prevent potential leaks and spills.

If secondary containment is a part of your facility’s spill prevention plan, consider reinforcing the area with laminate. In the oil industry, owners and operators can never be too careful. According to the EPA, a single gallon of oil can contaminate a million gallons of water, damaging both the environment and a company’s pocketbook.

What else can your facility do to enhance existing preventative measures?

February 14, 2012 by Kendal White

More Energy Rebates for More States

We recently wrote about energy rebates and incentive programs offered in Michigan to manufacturers who take action to save energy. Well, we have more good news. Duke Energy’s Smart $aver Incentive Program now offers businesses in Kentucky, Ohio, and North and South Carolina energy rebates for installing equipment such as high-efficiency lighting and HVAC pumps.

Energy rebates in Kentucky, Ohio, North and South Carolina
Duke Energy’s Super $aver program is designed to help businesses offset up-front costs, shorten payback periods, and improve their bottom line by reducing energy output. Companies can qualify for different Super $aver incentives based on their type of equipment—Duke Energy offers incentives for lighting, thermal storage, premium motors, process equipment, and many more.

In addition to providing a list of prescriptive incentives, Duke Energy also offers a Smart $aver Custom Incentive Program to its commercial and industrial energy customers.

Ask your account manager about how to enroll in a Smart $aver Program. And remember, UniTherm offers insulation jackets to keep your equipment insulated and efficient. Be sure to explore all avenues of energy efficiency.

Live in one of the other 46 states?
EnergySavvy.com is a great resource that lets you search for energy rebates and incentive programs in your area.

Check back soon for more energy incentive updates.

September 16, 2011 by Kendal White

The Secrets to Keeping the Workplace Safe

Thanks to James Yount of Spill 911 for his contribution to the UniTherm blog. Spill 911 offers a complete line of industrial absorbents and spill response kits as well as spill containment, material handling, janitorial, stormwater control, facility protection and safety products. Our line is diverse, encompassing the top manufacturers and the highest quality products.

What are your workplace safety policies? How do you determine what those policies are? Do you understand where the common hazards are in the workplace? [Read more…]