Industrial pumps are responsible for more than 20% of the world’s electrical energy use. Making even small improvements in their efficiency is highly impactful. Yet many operators overlook their efficiency potential in favor of addressing ‘big ticket’ items such as boilers.

Smooth-running pumps are often assumed to be efficient – but that’s not always true. Inefficient operation can quietly waste significant amounts of energy, A recent study using data from BLUE BOX, Sulzer’s  proprietary machine learning technology which turns pump performance data into actionable insights, revealed that 68% of pumps were running outside of their preferred operating region for more than half the time, wasting significant energy.

Taking the profitable path

Manish Talwar, Head of Retrofits Americas at Sulzer, has pioneered the Energy Optimization Service to address these challenges. Talwar says: “Pumps often lose efficiency due to factors like wear and tear, changes in plant conditions, or adjustments such as throttling. While these issues might seem minor, they compound over time, increasing energy consumption and emissions, as well as risking downtime.”  

Improving pump efficiency could unlock significant savings. For example, a 25% efficiency increase on a 2.5mW BB3 pump could save up to $360,000 per year in energy costs. However, traditional efficiency programs tend to focus on large equipment like turbines and boilers, missing the opportunity to improve pumps. A more comprehensive strategy, combining digital insights with retrofitting and continuous monitoring, can achieve much greater energy savings and operational reliability.