Strauss Group’s Plant in Karmiel
How Strauss reduced costs and improved sustainability, with TIGI
Founded in
1939
Headquarters:
Petah Tikva, Israel
Employees:
17,400
Sites:
30 sites in over 20 countries worldwide
90℃+
Preheating
water for steam
*???%
3 months
based on waste heat and solar energy
Savings in Liquefied petroleum gas costs
Full installation
Strauss Group
The food industry is looking to reduce cost and environmental aspects of its production. With up to 75% of industrial emissions related to fossil-fuel-based heat, this is a great challenge. Strauss Group, one of Israel’s largest food manufacturers, operates a Karmiel factory for producing salads and spreads. Like many others in the food sector, this facility useds fossil fuel to
create steam, a costly process with a high environmental price of pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. Strauss’s commitment to sustainability and adherence to strict environmental regulations necessitated a rethink of its energy strategy. In 2019, Strauss’s management began to search for a more cost-effective and clean water heating solution based on renewable heat technology.
By the process’s conclusion, Strauss Group’s plant in Karmiel achieved reduced energy expenses and emissions by adopting a waste heat recovery system, solar thermal technologies, heat storage, and cloud-based management, firmly positioning itself as an environmentally conscious facility.
Low cost, clean, and reliable solar heat in industrial processes
Strauss’s factory was in a predicament common to many industrial operations: the need to cut down on polluting and expensive fossil fuels without compromising efficiency and productivity. One answer was to use renewable heat energy, but their energy-intensive steam production process posed several challenges:
- Financial requirements: Strauss demanded a cost-effective solution with a lucrative ROI.
- Space Restrictions: The factory had limited space, a significant consideration for most renewable energy technologies.
- High-temperature requirement: The need for pre-heating the system’s water at higher temperatures than most solar systems can provide.
- Large volume demand throughout the day: To operate at full capacity, the plant required a large, constant, and steady hot water supply – a thermal storage had to be implemented.
Finding a solution that could address all these issues was paramount.
Using waste heat and tapping the sun with TIGI’s unique honeycomb thermal solar collector
The Strauss Group’s quest for a sustainable and economical energy solution led them to TIGI Solar, a leader in the renewable heat energy sector with expertise in thermo-solar systems. TIGI’s solar thermal technologies perfectly aligned with the factory’s requirements:
- Utilization of waste heat: The system extracts waste heat from the factory’s water chillers, heating water to 43 ℃, thus saving energy and transforming waste into profit. At the same time, using this waste heat improves the chiller’s efficiency.
- Advanced Honeycomb solar collectors: TIGI installed its proprietary Honeycomb thermal solar collectors on the factory roof. Unlike similar technologies, TIGI’s collectors can heat water up to 100 ℃, even during winter’s coldest days. Using transparent insulation on the sun-facing side, the collectors dramatically reduce heat losses, making them significantly more efficient and less area-demanding.
- Thermal Storage: The system included TIGI’s advanced thermal storage subsystem. Stratified tanks store hot water layers in different temperatures, with valves controlled thermodynamically and by storage management algorithms. This allows an optimal water supply in varied temperatures between heat processes. TIGI’s thermal storage subsystem stores the water heated during sunlight hours and supplies it according to the plant’s needs.
- Smart Cloud-Based Control: This innovative control system ensures optimal dynamic source allocation and management, contributing significantly to energy efficiency. TIGI’s unique control is cloud-based, allowing real-time, online remote control anytime, anywhere, from any mobile device.
Renewable heat energy: Sustainability, financial savings, compliance, and subsidies
Installing TIGI’s solar thermal technology has had significant advantages for Strauss. The installation process took just three months, enabling the Karmiel factory to begin enjoying the benefits almost immediately.
First and foremost, TIGI’s expertise in thermo-solar systems greatly enhanced energy efficiency. By using free waste heat and solar energy for preheating water to 90 ℃, before entering the steam boiler, gas usage was reduced.
Less gas meant not only cost savings but also increased sustainability. As the plant burns less gas, emissions and pollution are reduced. This reduction not only advances Strauss’s environmental commitments and green future vision but also has economic benefits –
TIGI’s innovative system and emission reduction characteristics made Strauss eligible for an emission-saving grant from the Israeli government. The special grant amounted to 40% of the purchasing and Installation costs.
Main Takeaways:
TIGI’s solar project at Strauss Group’s factory in Karmiel is a prime example of how innovative renewable heat technology revolutionizes energy consumption in heat in industrial processes settings while providing substantial benefits:
Financial gains from energy transition: The factory burns less Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), leading to significant cost savings, backed by a government grant covering 40% of the project’s costs.
Environmental impact: Using waste heat and renewable heat energy lowered the factory’s carbon footprint, helping Strauss to meet its sustainability goals.
Operational efficiency and robustness: The integration of TIGI’s advanced collectors, thermal storage, and smart control systems resulted in an optimized, efficient, and reliable heating solution.
Take a step towards
sustainability with TIGI Solar
Contact TIGI Solar to explore innovative solutions for your heating needs.
