Overview: EPRI's Program for Process Industry Energy Efficiency and Environmental Improvement

Faced with increased energy and labor costs and the expense of complying with stricter environmental regulations, many U.S industries have been unable to compete effectively with lower-cost foreign imports. As these industries lose market shares and produce fewer goods, they also use less electricity. And, as the industrial load erodes, the industrial customers are then faced with higher electricity costs and become even less competitive than before. The overall result is an insidious downward spiral --one that is now recognized seriously. Electrotechnologies offer a means of breaking this spiral. Electricity is unique in the flexibility and efficiency of its use, and when applied to industrial processes it can improve productivity, quality, and value in ways that are not possible with other energy forms. This overview presents electrotechnologies selected by EPRI to impact energy efficiency and environment relating to process industry