As loadshedding and other electricity interruptions become more frequent, and the costs of electricity and other energy sources continue to climb, the damage to an already challenged foundry sector is concern that the National Foundry Technology Network (NFTN) hopes to mitigate to some extent. To this end, the NFTN, together with colleagues at the Council for Scientific Industrial Research (CSIR), have announced the commencement of a Foundry Energy Efficiency Project.
Led by CSIR Principal Researcher, Dr Peter Mukoma on behalf of the NFTN, the project is currently in the first phase of a two-phase energy study. The initial focus will be on the review of the energy consumption and efficiency findings from work undertaken in the sector by the National Cleaner Production Centre, South Africa (NCPC-SA) and NFTN over the past few years, in order to determine energy consumption trends and performance of the foundry sector. The study will also review and consider relevant information from other local and international studies as input into the recommendations.