Rising energy prices and ever stricter legislation require a holistic view of machines and systems with the aim of reducing energy consumption. With a comprehensive service and product portfolio, SMC Deutschland GmbH, the leading manufacturer of automation technology, supports its customers in significantly reducing the_{CO2 emissions} of their systems and achieving their own sustainability goals.

Building on its many years of experience in the development of energy-efficient solutions, SMC has established an "Energy Efficiency Team" specially tailored to the requirements of mechanical engineering. Its main tasks include increasing the energy efficiency of production facilities as part of energy assessments. The results are prepared in the form of audit reports with customer-specific adaptation recommendations and discussed and implemented together with the customer. "Depending on the application, we help to achieve energy and cost savings through the use of innovative technologies and products. Our team operates on site at our customers' premises throughout Germany. We offer the right services for both end users and machine manufacturers. In addition to the detection and elimination of leaks and the energy efficiency analysis of machines and systems, our range of services also includes energy monitoring as well as customized training and courses," explains Michael Ehinger, Team Leader Energy Efficiency at SMC Deutschland GmbH.

SMC already focuses on the_{CO2 emissions} of a product during the development phase. The aim of the development engineers is to realize the most efficient product design possible in a modern, compact and lightweight form in order to save resources and_CO2 during production on the one hand and to contribute to_reducing energy and_{CO2 emissions} during use on the other.

In order to determine the_{CO2 emissions} of a system during operation, it is important to know its basic energy consumption and to identify unnecessary energy consumption due to leaks. SMC offers a broad portfolio for this purpose - from simple sensors to complete, ready-to-install monitoring solutions such as the plug-and-use Energy Transparency@SMC module. The premier class is the Air Management System, which, in addition to data acquisition, also enables demand-optimized compressed air supply and evaluation of energy consumption. Thanks to its simple scalability, further systems can be easily integrated. Initial field tests at SMC customers confirm the enormous savings potential that can be realized by using the Air Management System.

An important component in reducing the_{CO2 emissions} of a system is the system operating pressure. In order to reduce the energy costs of compressed air generation, large production facilities are constantly striving to lower the operating pressure. For example, savings can be made by switching off or reducing the operating pressure at weekends, during shift changes or during non-productive times. Instead of keeping the operating pressure of the entire pneumatic system constantly high, it can be increased selectively at the points where it is needed thanks to the use of pressure boosters. With the help of energy-efficient components, SMC is also currently working on establishing a standard operating pressure of 4 bar instead of the 7 bar previously used by machine manufacturers - allowing users to reduce their energy costs by up to 29%.

The technology used also plays a role when considering energy efficiency: the decision to use electric or pneumatic drive technology depends on the application in question. SMC offers energy-efficient solutions for both technologies. Among other things, the new EQ electric actuator series with integrated controller has succeeded in reducing_{CO2 emissions} by optimizing the motor with reduced heat generation and power consumption. The EQ series is a simple and cost-effective solution with direct control via 24 V as an alternative to a pneumatic solution.

The road to a climate-neutral Europe by 2050 is a long one. Energy saving is a key indicator for significantly_{reducing CO2 emissions}. With innovative and intelligent products and the specially established Energy Efficiency Team, SMC Deutschland GmbH is already helping its customers to optimize their systems in an energy-efficient manner and secure their long-term competitiveness on the market.