Case study · CUES
CUES delivers a three-month payback at Safeway
Refrigeration is one of a grocer's biggest energy costs. A two-week trial showed how much of it was avoidable.
- Safeway
- Grocery retail
- Canada
12%
less compressor energy, with a three-month payback
- 12%
- reduction in compressor energy consumption
- 5,063 kWh
- saved over the two-week trial period
- 3 months
- payback on the CUES installation
- 1,775+
- Safeway stores across North America
Brief overview
A commitment to cutting waste, tested on a frozen warehouse
Safeway are one of the largest grocery retailers in North America, with over 1,775 stores. They have a strong commitment to environmental protection, which includes adopting proactive measures to minimise waste. In harmony with this policy, a prominent division of Safeway agreed to trial CUES on one of their frozen warehouses. The result was a payback of just three months.
Following several consultations, they agreed a before-and-after trial with CUES on one of Safeway's largest energy consumers. Refrigeration represents a huge proportion of Safeway's energy bill, and they were understandably eager to lower their costs and follow through on their commitment to reduce waste and minimise their carbon footprint.
The project
Two weeks without, two weeks with
During a two-week monitoring period without CUES, the compressor for the warehouse consumed 43,174 kWh of energy. CUES, the Chilled Unit Energy Saver, was then installed and the compressor was monitored over the same period again.
During the second test, with CUES, the compressor used 38,111 kWh of energy. That is an energy reduction of 5,063 kWh, or 12%.
The numbers
12% less energy for the same cold
The two monitoring periods were identical in length, so the compressor's consumption can be compared directly. The difference, 5,063 kWh in two weeks, is what paid the installation back in three months.
- Without CUES
- With CUES
Further savings
The freezer ran two degrees colder than it needed to
Although 12% represented an excellent result, it was noted during the second test that the air temperature inside the freezer was consistently two degrees colder than it was during the first test. That reveals the potential to increase the savings further by raising the set-points on the internal thermostats by two degrees.
This would likely bring the average freezer temperature back to its original operating condition, while further reducing the energy consumed.
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