In This Issue

 
Featured Article
Partners in the Spotlight
AMO and Industry News

Welcome from the Director

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I enjoyed telling the ASME conference audience about what's going on in AMO's focus areas, especially our Technical Assistance programs and cutting-edge facilities like our Manufacturing Demonstration Facility and Critical Materials Institute. It was also delightful to meet a young Ph.D. candidate at the University of Buffalo who spoke highly of his time working with one of our Assessment Centers as a student at the University of Missouri, which gave me the chance to tell this student about the recent board meeting I attended for the Assessment Centers at Rutgers University.Buffalo, New York is lovely—this time of year. That was the nature of the jokes residents of Western New York were telling at this year's Advanced Design and Manufacturing Impact Forum, a new gathering sponsored by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). ASME launched this Forum with an emphasis on additive manufacturing and I was especially pleased to present an overview of all the activities going on in AMO. I met with representatives from Siemens, Proctor and Gamble, and Praxair and followed up with calls to others from Honeywell and Capstone. Conversation topics ran from advanced sensors to the new manufacturing opportunities growing in western New York.

You can't have a meeting about advanced manufacturing without highlighting the additive manufacturing work at America Makes and our cutting edge Manufacturing Demonstration Facility at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. My overview was complemented the next day by presentations by Ed Morris of America Makes and Lonnie Love from ORNL. Both are excellent representatives for these crucial federal resources and shared the innovative projects and successes we are already seeing in the growing additive marketplace.

I was also thrilled to visit Chicago this month where a new milestone in 3D printing was prominently displayed. AMO and ORNL partnered with Local Motors and Cincinnati Inc. to print a car—that's right a car! After months of trial and some tribulation the concept car was printed at the International Manufacturing Technology Show. This first of its kind project has already generated international media attention for what a successful demonstration could mean for the future of additive manufacturing, automotive design and transportation and AMO is proud to stand behind the world class teams from Oak Ridge, Local Motors, and Cincinnati, Inc.

Please feel free to share with us where you will be in September and I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Thanks for reading,

Mark Johnson, Director – Advanced Manufacturing Office

Featured Article

Veterans Receive Valuable Advanced Manufacturing Training under AMO-Sponsored Internship

This summer, the Manufacturing Demonstration Facility (MDF) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) expanded its workforce development activities to include training for active or former U.S. military service members. MDF has a long record of collaborating with high schools, colleges, and economic-development organizations to train and mentor next-generation engineers in advanced manufacturing. MDF built on this record by helping administer a six-week pilot internship program which focused on providing career training in additive manufacturing for veterans. The Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Advanced Manufacturing Internship, as it is officially known, is a partnership between AMO, Oak Ridge Associated Universities, Pellissippi State Community College, and ORNL.

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Fourteen Army, Navy, and Marine veterans, three active duty personnel, two reservists, three student participants of FIRST Robotics (an international high school robotics competition), and two undergraduate engineering students were selected for the inaugural intern class. Starting in July, the interns participated in a combination of classroom courses at Pellissippi State and hands-on laboratory work at MDF. As noted in Oak Ridge Today, "participants learn[ed] to design for advanced manufacturing needs and [were] educated on 3D printers, fabrication techniques, and materials including titanium, carbon fiber, ABS plastics, and other composites." The internship ended with a job fair on August 14 with more than a dozen recruiters from advanced manufacturing companies. "To meet the evolving needs of the advanced manufacturing industry and keep us on the path towards a thriving 21st century economy, we have to get people trained and into the workforce," Deputy Secretary of Energy Daniel Poneman said at a graduation ceremony held at Pellissippi State on August 15. "The Advanced Manufacturing Internship shows how industry, government and academia can join together to tackle critical national challenges and create the workforce we need for the future."

The internship's success led to a new program beginning on August 25. Twenty participants will take classes at Pellissippi State over three semesters. At the same time, they will supplement their education with a 25-hour per week advanced manufacturing internship at ORNL or a local company. Program partners will help cover tuition, fees, stipends, housing, and transportation. For more information, contact Blake Marshall.

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Partners in the Spotlight

Iowa Water and Wastewater Operators Seek SEP Certification in New Pilot Program

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The Des Moines Metropolitan Wastewater Reclamation Authority (WRA) and Des Moines Water Works have committed to participate in the Superior Energy Performance (SEP) program as the first members of a new program pilot. SEP recognizes facilities that meet the ISO 50001 global energy management standard and demonstrate improved energy performance. A third-party verifies the achievements. AMO's objective is to have the pilot eventually involve a cohort of municipalities involved in training and SEP certification. When successful, the two Iowa organizations, which serve approximately 500,000 people, will be the first in the water and wastewater sector to achieve SEP certification.

Water and wastewater operations are very energy-intensive, so improving energy efficiency is an opportunity for operators to reduce expenses. "There are in excess of 75,000 water and wastewater systems in the United States, estimated to consume well over 150 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) a year, approximately 5% of the total electricity consumed. It is simply no longer an option to address water/wastewater energy efficiency, it is a mandate," observed William Stowe, Des Moines Water Works CEO and General Manager. "The SEP program will provide independent verification of energy savings attained that many water and wastewater operations and financial executives value in pursuing continuing energy and process improvements," added Des Moines WRA Risk & Reliability Manager Bill Miller. The Iowa Economic Development Authority is already working with both organizations to replicate water and wastewater energy efficiency best practices throughout the state. For more information, contact Paul Scheihing.

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Darigold Steps Up to the Better Plants Challenge

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Darigold has signed on with the Better Plants Challenge, bringing the total number of industrial partners to 19. The company moved up from the Better Plants Program, which it joined in 2012. Under the Challenge, Darigold will continue to reduce energy intensity but take on added commitments to publicly share energy performance data and conduct showcase projects, which are near-term demonstrations of significant energy savings at an individual plant or building. Challenge Partners also develop implementation models, which document successful approaches to overcoming energy efficiency barriers within their organizations.

Darigold is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Northwest Dairy Association, the fifth largest dairy cooperative in the United States. Along with its own branded products, Darigold produces a wide array of dairy products for customers in the wholesale, retail, grocery, foodservice, and ingredients sectors. Darigold's product line includes milk, butter, cheese, sour cream, whey products, and a variety of dairy-based ingredient products. For more information, contact Andre de Fontaine.

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Velocys Advances Smaller-Scale Natural Gas-to-Liquid Technology with AMO Support

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With AMO research and development support, Velocys developed a microchannel Fischer-Tropsch reactor core with 20 times the yield of conventional alternatives in natural gas-to-liquids (GTL) conversion. AMO started supporting the development of microchannel reaction technologies in early 2004 when it provided a $3.2 million research grant to Velocys, Dow Chemical Company, and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. Velocys' reactor technology subsequently received an R&D 100 Award in 2008. This year, the company announced plans to work with Waste Management, NRG Energy, and Ventech Engineers International on a joint venture to use the technology in smaller-scale GTL plants to convert a combination of natural gas and biogas / landfill gas to fuels and chemicals.

Microchannel reactor technology has the potential to unlock gas reserves that have traditionally been economically infeasible. The majority of gas resources worldwide are too small to support conventional GTL facilities. Velocys enables the rapid construction of smaller, lower-cost, modular GTL plants to tap otherwise stranded gas pockets. Smaller-scale GTL plants can be deployed on smaller fields, at more locations, by a wider range of developers, alleviating the challenge of securing massive quantities of gas on long term contracts. For more information, contact Dickson Ozokwelu.

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HARBEC's $52,000 Annual Energy Savings under SEP Described in New Case Study

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A new case study details how HARBEC, Inc. improved the energy performance of its specialty plastics manufacturing plant in upstate New York by 16.5% over three years under the Superior Energy Performance (SEP) program. The plant's verified conformance to ISO 50001, the global energy management system (EnMS) standard, and sustained improvements in energy performance earned HARBEC Platinum certification from SEP. The $127,000 invested to implement the EnMS and certify to SEP was paid back within less than two-and-a-half years. Each year, the EnMS saves the plant 6 billion Btu and lowers energy costs by $52,000.

"Superior Energy Performance has provided us with a legitimate management system and a set of tools to identify energy opportunities and track their level of success," said Jeff Eisenhauer, energy manager at HARBEC.

The case studies are a part of a growing suite of products that highlight the business value of energy management released by the Global Superior Energy Performance (GSEP) Energy Management Working Group (EMWG). The EMWG's 11 member governments share best practices and leverage their collective knowledge to create high-impact national programs to accelerate the use of energy management systems in industry and commercial buildings. For more information, contact Paul Scheihing.

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Media Highlights SEP Implementation at General Dynamics and Nissan Plants

ClimateWire, a daily online newsletter focused on national and global climate issues, described the benefits of Superior Energy Performance (SEP) participation at a General Dynamics plant and a Nissan plant. Over three years in the program, the General Dynamics plant improved energy performance by 11.9% and the Nissan plant improved energy performance by 7.2%. To save energy at its Smyrna, Tennessee plant, Nissan used tactics like rescheduling work shifts, reducing motor speeds in industrial hardware, and improving startup and shutdown procedures. The changes cost $331,000, but had a payback period of just four months. General Dynamics implemented similar process changes at one of its plants, including making sure hardware is not running full tilt when no one is around, coordinating production schedules, and better anticipating demand variation. The changes cost the company $255,000 but yielded savings of $536,000 in one year. For more information, contact Paul Scheihing.

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AMO and Industry News

AMO's Dr. David Forrest Elected a Fellow of Prestigious Materials Science Society

Dr. David Forrest, an AMO Technology Manager, has been elected a 2014 Fellow of the Society by the ASM International Board of Trustees. ASM International is a materials science and engineering society that established the ASM Fellowship in 1969 to recognize members for their distinguished contributions to the field. Dr. Forrest's Fellow citation reads, "For outstanding technical leadership in emerging materials technologies such as nanomaterials and molecular manufacturing, with demonstrated technical expertise in material processing, computational modeling, and nondestructive testing." The honor will be formally conferred upon him at the Convocation of Fellows during the October 2014 ASM Awards Dinner. "I'm honored and delighted to be recognized as an ASM Fellow, on this 101st anniversary of a society with a rich legacy of collaboration, sharing, and networking among materials scientists and engineers," Dr. Forrest commented. Dr. Forrest was also featured in DOE's "Five Questions for a Scientist" series. For more information, contact Dr. David Forrest.

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Novelis Hosts Process Heating In-Plant Training at its Oswego Works Plant in New York

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On August 26, 2014, Novelis kicked off a four-day In-Plant Training (INPLT) event at its Oswego Works Plant in New York. The company has committed to the Better Building, Better Plants program, which includes a company goal of reducing energy intensity by 25 percent over 10 years within US facilities.

The aim of the INPLT event was to support Novelis in their energy reduction efforts by training Novelis individuals on how to perform energy assessments and then identify and quantify energy efficiency improvement opportunities. The Novelis event consisted of a three-day process heating assessment/training followed by a day-long training on energy management Best Practices.

Approximately 22 individuals participated in the INPLT training, including attendees from Novelis' Berea and Oswego facilities. There were 3 participants from Logan Aluminum's Russellville plant, 3 participants from Novelis' Ulsan plant in South Korea, and one participant from Novelis' Pinda plant in Brazil. Participants first spent time in the classroom learning about process heating fundamentals, best practices, monitoring equipment, and the Process Heating Assessment Software Tool (PHAST 3.0). After covering the theoretical aspects of process heating assessment, the attendees went on the factory floor to learn about taking measurements, collecting relevant data, and analyzing opportunities for several furnace designs. Participants evaluated five types of furnaces at the Novelis facility (melting furnace, recycle furnace, soaking pits, pusher furnace, and batch annealing furnace). As a result, the participants identified over 200,000 MMBtu or 60,000 MWh in potential energy consumption reduction opportunities at the Oswego Works facility.

In preparation for the Oswego plant INPLT, DOE organized the Process Heating pre-training webinar on July 23, 2014 which provided a presentation from world class Energy Management programs and DOE process heating specialist Dr. Arvind Thekdi. A total of 31 participants from different industries attended this webinar. For more information about INPLTs, contact Bill Orthwein.

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Application Period for Next Round of In-Plant Trainings Now Open

The application period for the next round of In-Plant Trainings (INPLTs) for DOE's Better Plants program is now open! INPLTs are an effective approach for developing energy efficiency expertise within Better Plants Companies. INPLTS provide companies a combination of in-class and hands-on training in identifying and analyzing energy efficiency opportunities. Events are typically open to multiple companies and can range from 2 – 4 days depending on the system type, plant size, and complexity. INPLTs are led by DOE energy experts who train participants on how to conduct assessments, use DOE tools, develop energy management systems, and implement and replicate energy projects.

INPLTs are open only to Better Plants partners; applications will be e-mailed separately to Partners soon. Companies should work with their Technical Account Manager to submit an application. For more information on INPLTs or becoming a Better Plants partner, contact Andre de Fontaine.

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<h4>Partners Featured in This Issue</h4><p>Darigold, Des Moines Metropolitan Wastewater Reclamation Authority, Des Moines Water Works, General Dynamics, HARBEC, Nissan, Novelis,&nbsp; Velocys</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h4>Events</h4><p><span><strong>World Energy Engineering Congress</strong><br />October 1-3 | Washington, DC</span><br />Annual conference focused on the latest energy technologies and market developments. DOE will recognize Better Plants Partners for their energy efficiency achievements during a lunch plenary session.<br /><a href="http://www.energycongress.com/">More</a></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><span><stro… Trainings</strong></span><br />INPLTs are three-day training sessions focused on cross-cutting energy systems. Trainings are hosted by Better Plants Partners and are open to other companies unless noted otherwise. Contact <a href="mailto:William.Orthwein@ee.doe.gov">Bill Orthwein</a> for information on how to participate. Space is limited.</p><p>September 24-26 | Legrand North America (Compressed Air) | West Hartford, CT</p><p>October 27-30 | Alcoa (Multi-System) | Bettendorf, IA</p><p>November 4-6 | Expera Specialty Solutions (Paper Machine Systems) | Kaukauna, WI</p><p>November 4-6 | Darigold (Compressed Air) | Portland, OR</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h4>About AMO Programs</h4><p>AMO partners with industry, small business, universities, and other stakeholders to identify and invest in emerging technologies with the potential to create high-quality domestic manufacturing jobs and enhance the global competitiveness of the United States. There are three main areas:</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><span><strong>Facilities</strong></span><br />AMO Facilities are collaborative communities that provide participants with affordable access to physical and virtual tools and enable demonstration in targeted technical areas of manufacturing.<br /><a href="node/727391">More</a></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><span><strong>Research &amp; Development Projects</strong></span><br />R&amp;D projects at AMO explore novel energy-efficient, next-generation materials and innovative process technologies for both specific industry sectors and a wider range of manufacturing industries.<br /><a href="node/727731">More</a></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><span><strong>Technical Assistance</strong></span><br />Industrial Technical Assistance supports the deployment of manufacturing technologies and practices, including strategic energy management and combined heat and power, across American industry to increase productivity and reduce water and energy use.<br /><a href="node/728011">More</a></p>