U.S. Department of Energy - Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy

Industrial Technologies Program – BestPractices

Industrial Energy Systems

Industrial energy systems account for roughly 80% of all energy used by industry. On average, 35% of that energy is lost—nearly 6 quads of energy every year. As much as 1.6 to 3.2 quadrillion Btu could be saved by improving the efficiency and reducing energy losses in these systems (10-20% reduction in energy use).

Energy systems include motors, pumps and fans, process heatingsteam, and compressed air systems that are used throughout industry.

 
Photo of a Man Checking Motor Performance
Photo of Coils Being Melted to Illustrate Process Heating

 

Industrial systems are found in all industries and are used in a wide variety of applications. These systems are highly energy-intensive, so improving their efficiency and performance can yield large energy and cost savings for U.S. manufacturing.