Lehigh Southwest Cement Company: Compressed Air System Improvement Saves Energy at a Lehigh Southwest Cement Plant

In 2001, Lehigh Southwest Cement Company improved the compressed air system at its cement plant in Tehachapi, California. Consequently, the system was able to operate more efficiently with less compressor capacity and at a lower system pressure. The project yielded total annual savings of 895,000 kWh and $199,000. The initial project cost was $417,000, but Southern California Edison provided a$90,000 incentive payment to reduce the cost to $327,000. Simple payback was about 20 months.