A scavenger hunt for efficiency

Upon returning, the team went hunting across the plant for potential projects they could explore for cost and energy efficiencies. The plant, which was originally repurposed from a former B.F. Goodrich plant built in 1942 during World War II to support the war efforts, began producing resin in 1962, making it one of the oldest. Their initial list stood at just north of 100 possible ideas. According to Stull, the initial motivation was twofold: identify opportunities for cost efficiencies and/or environmental improvements. Once the team began rolling out the projects, the returns became evident quickly. For example, one of the improvements included implementing code to control the level of the Heating Tank and shut down the pumps to prevent overheating and overfilling during shutdowns. That small improvement has reduced the plant’s water consumption by 0.14% and energy use by 0.11%.

That was just the start. Given its focus on water reduction efforts, the team paid particular attention to how the Netherlands plant was using a variety of strategies to reduce their dependence on fresh water. As part of their own due diligence now, they began examining the lifecycle of their water use for opportunities to reduce, recycle or reuse better. One example: could they recycle their neutralized waste stream during the waste treatment process to reduce the amount of fresh water used every time?

The answer was yes, and that change alone is expected to help the plant reduce its water use by almost 10% year over year. Other projects implemented in 2020-2021 included:

• Identifying where and how much freshwater could be eliminated across the manufacturing process,
• Trialing changes to the water treatment process,
• Identifying the lines where recycled water could be introduced, and
• Determining where to introduce reuse of process water instead of freshwater.

And the team has only just gotten started. For Stull, who is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the TempRite Resin department, these projects are emblematic of how a cultural shift is currently underway at Louisville and how the team is living its mission of Create Smarter. Stull says, “These projects, and their early returns, have motivated everyone at the plant to join in. Today, the whole plant—shift leads, process operators, line operators—all want to be a part of our sustainability journey with most of the project ideas coming straight from the Operations Group.”

These efforts also helped the plant win the American Chemistry Council (ACC) Energy Efficiency & Waste Minimization, Reuse, and Recycling Award in 2020. For Stull, this experience has underlined the importance of having the whole team on board. After all, one of the core principles of sustainability is that we go further when we work together. What began as an exploration in identifying energy and water efficiencies has turned into a plant-wide effort in sustainability, in line with Lubrizol’s mission to help the world Move Cleaner, Create Smarter and Live Better.

A shifting culture

Already, Stull is seeing the culture shift percolate well beyond her team and the Louisville plant. Active conversations are underway with the Brecksville, Ohio Commercial and R&D facility on their own sustainability journey. On Earth Day earlier this year, Stull presented the plant’s exciting journey and achievements with the entire company. Coming up soon: site visits and sharing of best practices. Sound familiar? For sure, says Stull. “We’re seeing the momentum grow around sustainability. Lubrizol has had a corporate sustainability effort for a while but now the grassroots are participating in operationalizing it.”
And that is where intention meets action.

About Lubrizol Corporation

Lubrizol Corporation, headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, is a leader in polymer chemistry, creating unique materials and formulations that improve the performance, compatibility, reliability, and efficacy in products around the globe. They are the inventor and world leader in chlorinated PVC (CPVC) resins and compounds. And their TempRite® Engineered Polymers product line, which uses their CPVC is used in hot and cold water plumbing, fire sprinkler systems and more.

Sustainability is at the foundation of Lubrizol’s success and growth, and they view it as a vital driver to the long-term health and growth of their organization. The company has a long-standing commitment to operating ethically and responsibility while still creating value for all stakeholders, including society as a whole.

To be sustainable, Lubrizol believes in conducting their business responsibly, maximizing environmental, social governance, and ethics performance, while minimizing their negative impacts on nature’s ecosystems. In order to do this, Lubrizol is committed to supplying products that address some of the world’s toughest challenges, while still seeking continuous improvement in their health, safety, and environmental performance practices of their workers and the communities they serve.

For more information about Lubrizol, visit their website.