Energising teamwork

Businesses have an obligation to consider the impact their activities are having on the environment, and to implement processes to mitigate their carbon footprint.

One way Elquip Solutions, a provider of capital equipment and consumable products in the electrical, automation and mechanical industries, does this is by aligning itself with like-minded suppliers. “At the end of 2011, Elquip Solutions was appointed as a third party channel for ABB South Africa,” says Mike Cronin, MD of Elquip Solutions.

He points out that ABB – which promises “Power and productivity for a better world” – is a global leader in terms of both its products and its energy-efficiency mindset.

This was reflected in the careful consideration of the energy requirements, rainwater, waste recycling, and “clean” manufacturing that went into ABB’s local headquarters in Longmeadow, Gauteng.

Situated on a 96 000 m2 site, the ABB building incorporates a head office for administration and engineering. Elquip Solutions distributes a range of low voltage products sourced by ABB from feeder factories located around the world and stocked at the Longmeadow site.

“Energy is an extremely valuable resource and one that all businesses require in one form or another,” says Cronin. “The ABB facility scores high as an example of energy usage reduction in practice.” He mentions that the north-facing solar heating system on the roof of the building heats all water delivered to the building.

Further energy reductions are achieved with a heat reclaim pump system that captures hot air from the air-conditioning system and diverts it as a supplementary source to the building’s boilers.

Cronin says Elquip Solutions clients can be confident that ABB’s products aren’t only manufactured to the highest international standards, but that the manufacturing environment stands as testament to best practice in energy efficiency for building applications.