La Crosse Plant Takes a Proactive Approach to Saving Energy

Crown is committed to living by the principles of sustainability across its business. When it comes to our manufacturing facilities, while the mantra is ‘safety first,’ employees are also challenged to continually raise the standard of excellence by which we operate and to identify ways to improve productivity and reduce our impact on the environment.

Crown’s beverage can facility in La Crosse, Wisconsin, has recently shown its strength in this area by being recognized for its work with the state’s Focus on Energy program.

The plant manufactures an impressive six million aluminum cans for beer, soda and energy drinks every day. With that kind of production, there is constant demand for high pressure air at the plant, which operates 24 hours a day, seven days per week. Local plant engineer Chad Jacobsen saw an opportunity to tap into the Focus on Energy program as a means to identify the facility’s energy savings potential.

After collaborating with a local Focus on Energy Advisor, Xcel Energy and other trade allies, Crown completed the installation of a new energy efficient centrifugal compressor in January 2017, which will help the Company save 920,403 kilowatt hours annually and reduce its power demand by 102 kilowatts.

This significant improvement has led the La Crosse plant to be recognized with a 2017 Excellence in Energy Efficiency Award from the program.

Pictured at the June 21, 2017 awards presentation (left to right) is Alex Lueck, Xcel Energy; Bill Clements, Crown Beverage Packaging; Chad Bulman, Focus on Energy; Chad Jacobsen, Crown Beverage Packaging; Randy Urness, Focus on Energy.