Green Automation by IAI
IAI defined the efficient use of energy as one of its corporate goals as early as 2008. All measures are summarised under the term "Green Automation".
The efficient use of energy is viewed holistically. IAI actuators are to be manufactured with as little energy input as possible. At the same time, the pneumatic-free drive solutions help to minimise energy consumption on the customer's side.
Objective: Reduce energy consumption sustainably
In view of the scarcity of all resources and rising costs, manufacturing companies must make their production processes more environmentally friendly and switch to resource-saving automation solutions. An important goal for sustainable development is to use energy in drive technology more efficiently than in the past, thereby countering the growing cost pressure.
The key to reducing production costs lies in eliminating power losses in the energy-intensive overall processes of factory automation. That is why more and more companies are opting for pneumatic-free automation and replacing their pneumatic cylinders with electric drives.
Comparison: Energy consumption IAI electric actuator and pneumatic cylinder
The generation and distribution of the compressed air required for the operation of pneumatic cylinders is associated with very high losses that can only be optimised to a limited extent. In addition, the energy requirement of a pneumatic cylinder increases sharply compared to electric cylinders when the utilisation of the production plant and thus the cycle frequency increases. The difference in energy consumption increases with the number of work cycles per minute.
Power consumption at different utilisation rates
In the practical test, the power consumption of an electric cylinder is compared with a pneumatic one at a load of 10, 20 and 30 %. Both actuators operate for one hour each under the same production conditions:
Reduction: Annual energy costs and CO2 emissions
The difference in energy consumption between EleCylinder and pneumatic cylinders depends on their frequency of use. The more often pneumatic cylinders are replaced by electric cylinders, the higher the energy savings.
The example shows the energy costs and CO2 emissions of a production line with 300 actuator each.
Sustainability: Long operation life
Instead of shock-loaded mechanics, RoboCylinder and EleCylinder have recirculating ball screws and linear guides for a long service life.
Based on various calculations, the service life of an electric actuator is many times longer than that of a pneumatic cylinder.