Mar 22 2005
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has named California Portland Cement Company as an ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year for its outstanding contribution to reducing greenhouse gas emissions through leadership in energy management.
California Portland's accomplishments were recognized at an awards ceremony in Washington, D.C. on March 15, 2005. California Portland Cement Company, an ENERGY STAR partner since 1996, was honored for sustaining smart energy management practices and investments throughout its operations. California Portland Cement worked closely with ENERGY STAR to establish a formal energy management program in 2003. The company has significantly improved energy efficiency and reduced greenhouse gas emissions through initiatives such as: compressed air optimization; motor management; lighting improvements; plant operations and maintenance programs; process evaluations; purchasing and inventory policies among others.
Across the U.S., top companies and organizations are discovering the value of strategic energy management through participation in ENERGY STAR. Last year alone, Americans, with the help of ENERGY STAR, saved about $10 billion on their energy bills while reducing the greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those of 20 million cars.
"For California Portland Cement, protecting the environment through sound energy management is a major priority," said Jim Repman, CEO, California Portland Cement. "As an ENERGY STAR partner, we value superior energy performance in our organization -- it's good for our bottom line and good for the environment. We have found that participating in ENERGY STAR just makes good business sense."
The Partner of the Year Award is given to a variety of organizations to recognize their efforts to use energy efficiently in facility operations and to integrate energy efficiency into overall organizational strategy. These Award winners are selected from thousands of organizations that participate in the ENERGY STAR program. "As an ENERGY STAR partner, California Portland Cement Company has distinguished itself by demanding superior energy performance in their business and seeing real results," said Kathleen Hogan, director of EPA's Climate Protection Partnerships Division. "Through ENERGY STAR, these Partners of the Year are leading a nationwide effort to protect our environment through improved energy efficiency."
The U.S. Department of Energy recently announced that California Portland Cement Company was awarded a grant to perform a Plant-wide Assessment at its Arizona Portland Cement Plant in Rillito, Arizona. The Plant-wide assessment will help determine which plant systems offer the greatest energy savings potential and then identify actions to achieve those savings.
The Department of Energy will contribute $59,319 toward the implementation of the assessment to be performed at the Arizona Portland Cement Plant. The grants were awarded on a competitive basis and only six grants were awarded nationwide. This is the first time that this grant has been awarded to a cement manufacturing company.
Arizona Portland will investigate three primary areas of potential energy savings within the plant including: cement manufacturing process optimization and operational efficiencies; electrical power distribution and lighting opportunities; and compressed air operations.