Tridonic’s Dornbirn site obtained ISO 50001 certification in July. The international standard for energy management systems (EMS) has been audited in the site for the first time. This factory is therefore the first in the Zumtobel Group to be certified under this standard. ISO 50001 is firmly anchored in the sustainability objectives of all the brands in the Zumtobel Group.

Tridonic’s objective is to increase energy efficiency in the company and to minimise energy costs, energy consumption and CO2 emissions. All energy usage is analysed, evaluated and then optimised. Systematic monitoring with the aid of the new energy management system is an important part of this initiative. It clearly shows how efficiently energy is being used and highlights energy losses. “It therefore identifies areas where energy is not being used to optimum effect so that we can take appropriate measures. In some cases we achieve not only a reduction in consumption but also an increase in efficiency without increasing the use of energy”, says Markus Hollenstein, Director Business Excellence at Tridonic.

ISO 50001 is the logical extension to the ISO 14001 eco-management system which has already been introduced in all Tridonic’s electronics works and in which energy is only one aspect of the overall environmental audit. With EMS on the other hand, the focus is on the energy performance of the technical landscape of the company. It covers all energy usage, with production, building management and development being the largest energy consumers.

Examples for a systematic monitoring of energy consumption within manufacturing could be the denseness of compressed air systems or in a special plant at Tridonic energy consumption is being reduced by changing filters at an early stage. Thermal recovery is also being extended so in future less energy will be wasted. Instead, the waste heat from a machine, for example, will be used for space heating. Those measures will be taken even more systematically with EMS which will also generate relevant figures to ensure controlling of the measures.