Big energy savings thanks to UW-Milwaukee’s Industrial Assessment Center
Thanks to the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Industrial Assessment Center, the C.A. Lawton Company is saving money each year on its energy costs. Those savings are thousands of dollars each year and to this point, the changes have saved Lawton over $9,000.
2022 assessment of the C.A. Lawton Co. facility in De Pere
Back in 2022, the assessment center sent seven UW Milwaukee graduate students to tour and observe our foundry operations. The students installed data collection devices and reviewed a variety of energy usage-related information. When the students returned to campus, the team poured through the huge volume of data they collected and started evaluating ways to save on energy costs.
The final report provided a long list of recommendations to improve energy efficiency and increase manufacturing productivity. Lawton took a hard look at the recommendations and selected some of the projects that were deemed appropriate to our De Pere operations.
Turning to LED fixtures for energy cost savings
Fluorescent tubes were replaced with LED fixtures at C.A. Lawton and as of Spring of 2023, a majority of the remaining indoor light fixtures had been converted to LEDs. Based on the Industrial Assessment Center’s report, changing to LEDs saves Lawton around $700 a year in energy costs.
And it doesn’t stop there, Lawton also started replacing the outdoor lighting at the De Pere facility with LED fixtures. To this day, around 90% of the outdoor lighting fixtures have been replaced with LED fixtures. The estimated savings of doing that is $1,200 a year.
Recommendations that Lawton has implemented in De Pere
Here is a breakdown of the recommendations from the Industrial Assessment Center which The C.A. Lawton Company has implemented at its facility:
| Recommendation Implemented | Cost | Savings |
| Utilize higher efficiency lamps and/or ballasts | $3,192 | $2,270/year |
| Close holes and openings in buildings , such as broken windows | $350 | $2,096/year |
| Close holes and openings in buildings, such as broken windows (2) | $1,590 | $1,765/year |
| Utilize higher efficiency lamps and/or ballasts (2) | $3,320 | $1,335/year |
| Eliminate leaks in inert gas and compressed air lines/valves | $1,500 | $1,377/year |
| Utilize energy-efficient belts and other improved mechanisms | $850 | $865/year |
You can read the full report and recommendations on the UW-Milwaukee Industrial Assementer Center’s website.
A closer look at what the Industrial Assessment Center does
The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Industrial Assessment Center provides free energy, productivity and waste assessments. It is one of 36 colleges and universities across the country offering an industrial assessment center. These assessments are offered to small and medium-size industrial facilities. The UWM center also did several assessments in Minnesota, Illinois and Michigan too. The center is funded through grants provided by the US Department of Energy. Since it started at UWM, the center has done 212 assessments, made 1,743 recommendations and saved companies around $18 million dollars. 87 students have been trained through the industrial assessment program.
Resources and references
UW Milwaukee’s Industrial Assessment Center’s assessments
The assessment and recommendations for the C.A. Lawton Co. in De Pere