Efficiency services for manufacturing and industrial facilities
- Identify and address issues that impact efficiency.
- Find ways to reduce waste and save money.
- Understand how to avoid unnecessary regulatory overhead.
We have a technical assistance team made up of engineers and scientists. We use current state assessments and engineering analysis to improve the efficiency of your operations without sacrificing the quality of your products.
Our services are non-regulatory, confidential, and free, and our staff have no regulatory authority. We focus on small and medium-sized plants. Our consulting team goes by TREE (Technical Resources for Engineering Efficiency).
Our consulting services
Energy efficiency
- Compressed air leak audits
Assessing your compressed air system is one of the least expensive ways to prevent wasted energy. Our team has identified compressed air leak improvements that have saved companies $500 – $20,000 annually. - Infrared surveys
We use thermal imaging to find problems in your equipment and isolate weak spots in temperature-controlled areas of your facility to maintain equipment performance and avoid wasted energy.
Water use and wastewater quality
We use our equipment to measure how much water is flowing through different parts of your operations to create a water balance for your facility. We'll assess the amount of water used for processes and look for opportunities to reduce water use and wastewater strength.
Toxic chemical use and materials waste
Chemical hazard assessments and help choosing safer chemicals
- Using toxic chemicals in your products and processes puts your employees at risk, and it requires staff time and money to manage and dispose of chemicals properly. Our team can assess the safety of the chemicals you use and help you find potential alternatives.
Training to reduce material waste and use of toxic chemicals
- We partner with other organizations to provide subsidized training to help facilities reduce material waste and exposure to hazardous chemicals.
Solid waste reduction
Whether it’s cardboard recycling, food processing wastes, or other solid waste, we’ll research options to reuse or recycle waste materials.
Lean manufacturing assistance
Top companies turn to Lean manufacturing methods to improve value and increase efficiency. Ecology and partner organizations help your business improve both profitability and sustainability through:
- Improving operational processes
- Reducing wastes
- Reducing energy use
- Increasing efficiency
- Supporting business excellence practices
Aerospace manufacturers, cabinet-makers, hospitals, and shipbuilders have used Lean to lower costs, improve quality, and reduce lead times.
Other efficiency services
Our team also reviews your facility's processes to identify often invisible causes of environmental waste, such as lack of staff training or communication issues.
Criteria for selection
We work with manufacturing and industrial facilities with:
- Potential to improve process efficiency and reduce waste
- Willingness to implement system changes where economically feasible
- Minimal access to in-house engineering staff
- Potential to reduce the environmental impact
- Minimal experience with pollution prevention
If this doesn't sound like your business, learn about Ecology's other technical assistance programs.
Related links
Contact information
Dan Ferguson, P.E.
dan.ferguson@ecy.wa.gov
360-480-9543
Mike Lynch
mike.lynch@ecy.wa.gov
360-951-2787