The Hidden Benefits of an LED Lighting Upgrade in an Automotive Paint Shop

Abstract

Retrospective energy optimization in a continuous manufacturing environment, such as an automotive paint shop, is limited in scope. This is due to the difficulty in not having a negative impact on production speeds.Typically, energy projects target one of three types of improvement: business process change (for example, optimizing start-up times or reducing idle times); technical interventions (for example installing variable speed drives); or capital replacement (for example, installing more efficient motors).Out of the four main process activities in an automotive plant, up to 75% of the total plant's energy bill can be attributed to the paint shop.The quality of output in a paint shop, in terms of color matching and paint quality, needs to remain at a constant 100% - this means that there is an inspection process at each major activity.Besides the need for facility level ambient lighting, the need for high quality task lighting is critical to keep the quality of the painting process at the required standard.With the higher quality of LED lighting now available, there is an opportunity for industrial scale retrofits to make relatively large energy savings. This has been successfully demonstrated in a large European automotive paint shop involving the retrofit of 12,600 T8 LED tubes and replacement of 200 high bays and area lights to LED versions. This has reduced the electricity usage by 1.2 MW per hour in the paint shop.This article will outline the project from concept to delivery, show the financial benefits derived from retrofitting lamps rather than installing new fittings, and will describe the other hidden benefits, such as the increase in downstream defect rate detection, that have arisen as a result of the project.