March 19, 2021, Glendora, CA  The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced yesterday that 95 U.S. manufacturing plants earned ENERGY STAR certification in 2020 for being among the most energy-efficient in their industries. CalPortland is proud to announce that the company’s Rillito, AZ cement plant, was one of 13 cement plants and 95 U.S. manufacturing plants to earn this certification.  Facility Certification signifies that the industrial plant performs in the top 25 percent of similar facilities nationwide for energy efficiency and meets strict energy efficiency performance levels set by the EPA. Since the first industrial facilities received certification 15 years ago, ENERGY STAR certified plants have significantly helped the U.S. economy and the environment, resulting in over $6 billion in savings on energy bills and cleaner air by preventing over 65 million metric tons in greenhouse gas emissions compared to average-performing facilities. This is the ninth consecutive (2012 – 2020) year that the Rillito, AZ cement plant has earned the ENERGY STAR, reflecting a legacy of continued energy savings.

“CalPortland is pleased to accept EPA’s ENERGY STAR 2020 certification in recognition of our energy efficiency efforts at the Rillito plant,” said Allen Hamblen, President/CEO CalPortland. “We continue to demonstrate our commitment to environmental stewardship and ENERGY STAR while also reducing our energy costs through the hard work of our employees and our corporate energy management culture.”

“These forward-looking businesses have demonstrated that economic development and job creation go hand-in-hand with environmental progress,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “The transition to a clean energy economy is happening now, as partnerships like ENERGY STAR encourage companies to go the extra mile, bringing innovation, cost-savings and pollution reductions in return.”

Energy efficiency is an important decarbonization strategy for the industrial sector, which emits nearly a third of U.S. total greenhouse gas emissions.  To make the crucial reductions in industrial greenhouse gas emissions necessary—and enable a transition to a clean energy economy—manufacturing plants must significantly increase the energy efficiency of their operations.

ENERGY STAR provides manufacturers with resources for improving the energy performance of manufacturing plants. Plants use ENERGY STAR energy performance indicators (EPIs), or, in the case of petroleum refineries, the Solomon Associates Energy Intensity Index (Solomon-EII™) scoring system, to assess how their energy use compares to plants with similar operating characteristics. Plants with a verified energy performance score of 75 out of 100 or higher are eligible for ENERGY STAR certification, meaning that they perform better than 75 percent of plants within their industry. ENERGY STAR certification is available for 20 manufacturing sectors, from cement, steel, and glass to commercial bakeries.

CalPortland is receiving this ENERGY STAR certification in recognition for its commitment to high-level leadership in energy management throughout the company as well as demonstrating efficiency at the Rillito, AZ facility. Some of the key accomplishments for certification included:

  • Replacing 2 preheater tower cyclones with a new CalPortland design that improved heat exchange and efficiency and is expected to save over $800K/year.
  • Installing new high efficiency belting for a 3.5-mile quarry belt conveyor (7 miles of belting)
  • Replacing the kiln baghouse process fan and all dust collector bags in that baghouse which lowered differential pressure and substantially improved energy efficiency.
  • Increasing the plant’s focus on energy efficiency by expanding its energy team, conducting more frequent energy meetings and communicating energy efficiency best practices throughout the plant.

This distinct plant recognition is distinguishable from the 2020 EPA ENERGY STAR® PARTNER OF THE YEAR (POY) for Sustained Excellence award received by the company earlier in 2020. The company has received the POY award for sixteen consecutive years (2005-2020) which is a feat that is unmatched by any other industrial company in the United States.

 

About CalPortland

CalPortland Company is a major producer of cement, ready mixed concrete, aggregates, concrete products and asphalt in the western United States and Canada. Founded in 1891 with the principle of providing unsurpassed quality, CalPortland remains a leader in the industry through its commitment to quality, safety, customer service, technical excellence and environmental leadership. The company maintains its headquarters in Glendora, California and operates in the Western U.S. and two Canadian Provinces. For more information about CalPortland Company visit www.calportland.com .

 

About the ENERGY STAR Industrial Program

Since 2006, the ENERGY STAR Industrial Program has annually certified manufacturing plants for performing within the top 25% of energy performance in their industries nationwide. More than 230 plants have achieved this distinction since 2006. For more information, see: https://www.energystar.gov/industrial_plants/earn-recognition/plant-certification.  For a list of all certified plants, see: https://www.energystar.gov/buildings/reference/find-energy-star-certified-buildings-and-plants/registry-energy-star-certified-buildings. To learn more about how ENERGY STAR and industry work together, see: https://www.energystar.gov/industrial_plants/.

 

About ENERGY STAR

ENERGY STAR® is the government-backed symbol for energy efficiency, providing simple, credible, and unbiased information that consumers and businesses rely on to make well-informed decisions. Thousands of industrial, commercial, utility, state, and local organizations—including about 40 percent of the Fortune 500®—rely on their partnership with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to deliver cost-saving energy efficiency solutions. Since 1992, ENERGY STAR and its partners helped American families and businesses avoid more than $450 billion in energy costs and achieve 4 billion metric tons of greenhouse gas reductions. More background information about ENERGY STAR can be found at: https://www.energystar.gov/about/  and https://www.energystar.gov/about/origins_mission/energy_star_numbers.