Dairy Energy Efficiency Services

Got milk? Make it for less with a holistic energy project geared towards reducing expenses, improving efficiency, and increasing profits

How much energy does your dairy use?

On average, dairies use between 400 and 1,700 kilowatt-hours (kWh) per cow annually, or $0.035 to $0.045 per hundredweight (cwt) of milk produced. In the Midwest, electric utility costs alone account for around 5% of milk production costs. Understanding this is the critical first step in lowering energy costs.

Water heating

Ventilation

Milk cooling

Lighting

Vacuum Pumps

Other

How to make dairy production more efficient

The process of extracting milk from cows, placing it into receiving jars, running it through a well-water plate cooler, placing it into a bulk tank, consequently cooling it, and finally rinsing it with hot water to process milk for distribution is an intensive process that uses a lot of vacuums, pumps, conveyer belts, and other heavy machinery.

Operating those machines can be costly if energy efficiency is not taken into account. Installing Variable Frequency Drives (VFDs) for example, can save 50-65% of the electric costs for running vacuum pumps in a dairy. Replacing old lighting fixtures with LED lights can cut overall energy costs by up to 30% as well. Further optimization of waste heat produced in operations using natural gas fired chillers or other similar heating and cooling products can also lower operating costs.

Integrating renewable energy

Dairies use a lot of energy, which in turn means energy demand charges are often very high. Those charges can be offset by integrating solar panels and a building automation system to generate on-site power off the electric grid and intelligently use that energy to power the facility at the times when it’s needed most.

With the latest technological advancements, dairy energy efficiency is easier than ever before, from both an economic and sustainability standpoint. The industry is shifting to focus on integrating energy efficiency and renewable energy, but it’s not always easy. That’s where EnergyLink can help as a design-build-fund contractor. From conducting an energy audit to engineering, design, construction, and financing, our team will help you navigate each step of the process.