NOR-AM – Refrigeration Expansion

NOR-AM is a full-service, public refrigerated warehouse located in St. Joseph. With freezers that can run as cold as 20 degrees below Fahrenheit, you can imagine that the energy input required to maintain a constant temperature-controlled setting is critical to their business. NOR-AM, however, strives to operate in the most energy efficient way possible. The company recently completed several large upgrades designed to reduce the amount of energy required to maintain temperature. The projects, part of KCP&L’s energy rebate program, included LED lighting and installation of a demand management control system to control energy usage based on a set kilowatt-hour point.

The project achieved a savings of 1.375M kilowatt-hour. The new demand management control system allows them to do things like defrost refrigeration units as needed versus on a set schedule and cycle fans in a room when the temperature rises versus starting a cooling cycle that might not be needed. The system will also automatically start or stop refrigeration compressors as the load requires. This change could previously only be made if an operator was on site.

 

NOR-AM received the Gold Award for HVAC Refrigeration at the 2015 Kansas City Industrial Council’s Sustainability Awards Breakfast.