Success story: Pexco Aerospace

Pexco Aerospace recently completed a comprehensive energy efficiency project at its 145,000 square foot extrusion and fabrication facility in Yakima, Washington. The project included upgrades to interior and exterior lighting, industrial compressed air and process cooling systems, and other controls. The energy-saving measures will save more than 1.3 million kilowatt-hours per year which translates to over $75,000 annual savings for the polymer parts manufacturer. Pexco received over $150,000 in wattsmart energy efficiency incentives from Pacific Power.

Expert assistance brings energy savings

Pexco also retrofitted the interior of the facility with LED lighting and controls that illuminate areas during occupancy and turn off automatically after a programmed amount of inactive time. Pexco worked with Core Northwest, a local wattsmart Business Vendor that partners with Pacific Power, to identify additional energy efficiency projects for future implementation. “The partnership between Pexco, Pacific Power and Core Northwest was phenomenal,” said Steve Lewis, Pexco facility manager.

“I would highly recommend that all companies invite Pacific Power into their facilities to see what opportunities for energy savings exist,” said Lewis. “Pacific Power had identified potential energy savings in areas I never thought about. Core Northwest did an amazing job assisting us in the completion of all our projects, especially the extensive LED lighting upgrade that we completed last summer.”

In addition to lighting improvements, Pexco also made several upgrades to their compressed air and process cooling systems including compressed air leak repair, dryer upgrades, and economizer control optimization. Pexco and Pacific Power partnered with Energy Resources Integration to assess energy-savings potential for the mechanical projects. This expertise provides Lewis and his team another resource for energy efficiency ideas.

Benefits beyond savings

Joe Glover, Pexco president, has made energy efficiency a priority in business operations. “From a business perspective, it is an evergreen goal at Pexco to keep our costs as low as possible and energy consumption, being a capital intensive business, is a significant cost.” Glover sees the investment in energy improvements reaching well beyond business needs. “From a personal perspective and as a father of four girls, managing our energy consumption is one small way that we can help sustain the future for the next generation and beyond.”    

“With the cost savings that we have been able to see, it has allowed us to reinvest in the community in literally dozens of ways,” said Glover. Pexco has channeled some of the savings back into the community through support of dozens of youth organizations, shelters, internship programs and the local education systems. “Our employees are able to see the impact those investments have on the community and it gives them a sense of pride that working at Pexco is more than just a job. It shows that we care about our community and those around us in ways beyond just the business itself.”