Founded in 1990 by Dr. Georg Schu, the Hallbergmoos-based engineering office for energy and environmental technology (IGS) has been working on innovative ideas for a more energy-efficient future for 30 years. Now, of all things, it has achieved the highest honors on its milestone anniversary. On October 20, 2020, Dr. Schu received the Bavarian Energy Prize, which is awarded by a jury of experts in eight categories, from State Minister Hubert Aiwanger at the Bavarian Ministry of Economic Affairs. “We are very proud that the expert jury selected us as the winner of the Bavarian Energy Award 2020 in the category ‘Energy efficiency in industrial processes and production’,” says Schu, who emphasizes the cooperation with the Aying brewery, with which the prize is also shared, for the award-winning project.
This is the first time that the new, innovative and extremely energy-saving bottle washing process has been used on an industrial scale, reducing water and heat requirements by 87% compared to the previous model. This is made possible by the use of a high-performance heat pump, which has drastically reduced the amount of water required to cool the bottles. Heat is extracted from the cooling water via external heat exchangers and fed to a heat pump. In addition, waste heat from a combined heat and power plant is added, which completely covers the heating requirements of the bottle washer. Another plus point: both the running time and the efficiency of the connected combined heat and power plant have been significantly increased in this way.
In connection with the awarding of the prestigious prize, Dr. Schu would also like to express his special thanks to the Federal Ministry for the Environment, which supported the development and implementation of the efficient process as part of the environmental innovation program. The award-winning Hallbergmoos-based engineering firm has also put its thanks into action: The entire prize money was donated to UNICEF to feed malnourished children in South Sudan. In this way, the world has been made a little bit better in two places.
Click here for further information on the Bavarian Energy Award 2020.
Images © Bayern Innovativ/Astrid Schmidhuber
Caption: Joint winners of the Energy Efficiency in Industrial Processes and Production and Energy Efficiency Networks categories (from left to right): Dr. Georg Schu, IGS GbR – Ingenieurbüro für Energie- und Umwelttechnik, Hallbergmoos; Hubert Aiwanger, Bavarian State Minister for Economic Affairs, Regional Development and Energy; Franz Inselkammer, Brauerei Aying Franz Inselkammer KG, Aying Prize-winning project: bottle washer with high-temperature heat pump in conjunction with CHP unit
