Green Spirit Actions

Green Spirit actions at the refrigerator and chest freezer factory in Jászberény, Hungary reduced energy consumption more than 30% in 2012.

Taking it to the team

A focus on continual improvement and teamwork are two hallmarks of the significant improvements in eco-efficiency at the factory in Jászberény.

In 2011 the facility was the first in Europe to receive gold standard in the Group’s internal Green Spirit site certification scheme. The Jászberény team didn’t slow the pace of energy savings. In 2012, it was the first plant to achieve platinum-level status. Jászberény is now on track to reduce energy consumption a further 3.75% in 2013.

Making efficiency improvements required employee engagement along with engineering smarts.

Thousands of Green Spirit reminder stickers and posters were placed around the plant, helping employees not to forget to switch off unused lights and equipment. In each month of 2012, a different area was targeted for energy savings, such as finding leaks in compressed air units one month, focusing on reduced water use the next month, and reducing all forms of solid waste the following month.

Because measurement was considered key to continual energy use reductions, detail-oriented checklists for employees to follow were implemented.

In addition, Jászberény made an important conversion, from a centralized heating system at site premises to a decentralized system that uses more-efficient gas boilers to provide heating. Due to reduced heating costs, the return on investment for more than 20 new boilers has an expected payback time of three years.

Jászberény aimed to save 9,400 MWh of energy by close of 2012, and that goal was met, reducing CO2 emissions by 2,500 tonnes.

Next step

The team in Jászberény aimed to save 9,400 MWh of energy by the close of 2012, and that goal was met, corresponding to a reduction in carbon dioxide emissions of 2,500 tonnes. All of the efficiencies earned Jászberény an accolade as Electrolux Sustainability Award winner for 2012.

The quest to keep cutting energy use will continue, as the factory plans to begin the process of getting ISO 50001 certification in the coming year, and hopes to earn LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) green building certification for its new office building under construction.