Ecolab Customer Success Stories

 
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We realize the greatest contribution we can make to the environment is through our customers using our cleaning, sanitizing and infection prevention solutions.

A more sustainable dairy

In 2009, a team of Ecolab experts conducted a Total Plant Assessment at 13 facilities for a North American food and beverage processing customer, identifying more than $5.7 million in potential operations savings.

The team evaluated each plant from influent to effluent, looking for the “complex connections” across each facility. They then prioritized more than 172 recommendations so those with the lowest investment and greatest return could be implemented first.

Working with the customer’s operations team, Ecolab has helped implement a total of 121 immediate process improvements across 101 facilities. By the end of 2010, the customer had achieved:

  • 122 million gallons in water savings
  • 87,000 DTH of energy saved
  • 4,094 metric tons of C02 avoided

These operational changes also realized a total savings of more than $1.9 million. Process improvements are continuing in 2011, helping the food and beverage chain create a cleaner, healthier, safer environment.

Improving the hotel experience

Fresh, clean laundry is a key part of an enjoyable hotel stay. Yet washing all those sheets and towels uses considerable energy and water.

A global hospitality chain, in partnership with Ecolab, piloted a new, integrated laundry system using a combination of low-temperature laundry products, audible dryer alarms and real-time data collection to try to wring out water and energy savings at four onsite laundry facilities across North America.

After the year-long pilot, the four participating hotels on average:

  • Used 830,000 gallons less water, a 34 percent reduction
  • Used 730,000 gallons less hot water; a 47 percent reduction
  • Saved 5,000 therms  of energy; a 47 percent reduction

In addition, employees and customers noticed improved quality. Linens are noticeably cleaner, softer and smell fresher for longer periods of time. In almost all instances, there was less staining and fewer towels and sheets had to be replaced.

Sustainable solutions in healthcare

One of the biggest hospitals in the Netherlands needed to improve the efficiency of the dishwasher in the kitchen where patient meals were prepared.  Ecolab installed the 360° XplorerTM control system with a web-based data capturing system, collecting information about process deficiencies and potential improvements. Using this information and working closely with the kitchen staff, the Ecolab representative developed a maintenance strategy to optimize performance. With the new system, the hospital was able to reduce water and energy use on the machine by 70 percent.

Annual savings were 180,000 kWh of energy, more than two million liters of water and a carbon footprint reduction of 112 tons of CO2.

In total, Ecolab has installed more than 250 360° Xplorer systems in Europe — each achieving an average 20 percent savings in energy and water consumption.