Running load factor analysis on a plastics manufacturer served by Duke Energy Carolinas. Their load factor is only 28% on Schedule TOU-MSD, but they could potentially shift some production to off-peak hours. Current demand charges are $7,200/month at peak periods. Has anyone worked with plastics plants on production scheduling optimization?
Load Factor Analysis Shows Demand Charge Opportunity
Greg, plastics plants can be surprisingly flexible if they have batch processing and adequate storage. Worked with an injection molding facility that moved 40% of their production to overnight shifts. Dropped their on-peak demand from 850 kW to 510 kW, saved about $2,380/month in time-of-use demand charges.
Patricia's right about flexibility. The key is understanding their production cycles and storage capacity. Some plastics operations can pre-manufacture components during off-peak hours. But watch out for increased labor costs with shift differentials - that can eat into the demand charge savings.