by Wallie Dayal

Although energy costs are high in The Netherlands today, most Dutch springmakers accept them as an unavoidable cost of production. For years, their focus had been on the twin problem of labor: the highest labor costs in Europe, and a pervasive lack of skilled labor. This spawned a number of highly automated CNC controlled springmaking operations which run on electricity costing between $ .24 and $ .30 per kWh. Most of this electricity is not generated by windmills, the traditional emblem of Holland. Only 2.5 percent of its electricity comes from wind. The rest is generated by burning local coal and natural gas which are more efficient sources of electricity than wind. But because wind is renewable and clean, the Dutch government wants to raise this amount to 20 percent by 2020. Environmental activists lobby against that and the blight windmill farms would put on the natural landscape.

...the real question is more than: What can my government do for me?

Ordinary Dutchmen cast envious eyes to nuclear France or to Sweden, whose government is actively promoting energy independence by not only nuclear power generation, but also hydroelectric power, and hydrogen filling stations for cars. But like Sweden, the Netherlands have also been using garbage as an energy source, and have done so for well over 20 years. All Dutch landfills closed in 1985. Biodegradable garbage is processed into gardening products and fertilizer; metallic garbage is recycled. The heat generated by burning residual garbage in specialized, highly controlled plants is converted to electricity and fed into the electric grid. But it is likely that wind will soon claim its stake as energy source. Currently non-existing subsidies will certainly help.

But for springmakers in Holland and elsewhere, the real question is more than: What can my government do for me? But rather: What can we do to contain energy costs beyond ordinary efficiencies?

“Heat treatment of springs is an opportunity for potential cost savings,” says Richard Schuitema, chairman, Dutch Springmakers Association. “Ovens tend to be small and often lack good insulation, but springmakers have not focused on energy in the past because their overarching challenge was with labor.”

Going forward, Dutch springmakers may benefit from hiring an energy efficiency consultant to review consumption. This could be expensive but fortunately, the government subsidizes 50 percent of such programs and in Schuitema’s opinion, any company’s out-of-pocket costs will have a return on investment that is far beyond expectations. For more information on the Dutch Springmakers Association, visit www.dsasprings.nl.

German Springmaker Contributes to Rail Transport

But rather: What can we do to contain energy costs beyond ordinary efficiencies?

Since 1922, Langen & Sondermann has been making steel springs for rail vehicles and machine builders; some serve as suspension for tubes and generators in power plants. Today, nearly 100 employees work at the Lünen site where they not only adhere to strict quality mandates, but are also committed to continuous improvement, satisfied customers and the ongoing economic success of the company.

Langen & Sondermann appears to be well-positioned to achieve its goals, as Europe’s longstanding efforts to transport goods ever more energy-efficiently have spawned many studies at universities and consultancies that foster growth and integration of rail, ship, air and truck transportation across the continent. Already a market leader, the company wants to further expand its leadership position as a maker of steel springs for railway applications.

The patent that was granted to the company in 1996 for its TKS parabolic spring, fuels an added sense of pride among employees. These springs withstand enormous force at optimal material utilization and they are meticulously coated against corrosion. Only proper treatment during their manufacture yields constant spring characteristics and the expected lifetime of these springs that find application in the axles of freight cars and trams.

But just as spending money tends to be required before money can be earned, heavy energy consumption precedes energy-efficient rail transportation.

Langen & Sondermann’s springmaking operation consumes large quantities of electricity. Machinery needs 3 million kWh a year, and enormous quantities of natural gas, an additional 10 million kWh a year, are burned up in the hot forming process and heat treatment. Consequently, the company constantly studies and reviews every aspect of energy consumption and potential containment. Wherever possible, it replaced gas heating with induction heating, as this type of electric heating prevents the loss of energy during breaks and setup times. Co-generation is also under investigation.

“Energy cost is a significant element of the cost of our springs; and it is rising. Fortunately, most customers understand this and we are able to adapt some of our prices,” says Dieter Schmidt, managing director, Langen & Sondermann. “Still, containing energy costs is one of our major concerns and we must find ways to contain or even reduce them.” For more information on Langen & Sondermann, visit www.langen-sondermann.de.

French Energy Concerns are Only Just Beginning

CGR employs over 750 people and operates 13 springmaking facilities in France, Spain, Poland and Mexico. The company supplies the aviation, automobile and various other industries with specialty, cold-formed and industrial springs.

In France, where nuclear energy provides over 80 percent of the country’s electricity, CGR pays the lowest price for electricity. On average, 1 kWh purchased from the grid costs Euro 0.06, a USD equivalent of $.093 Yet, former French president Valéry Giscard d’Estaing’s foresight and focus on building nuclear power plants in the 1970s gives Frenchmen a sense of energy independence that is the envy of all who suffer under speculative fluctuations or scarcity of energy.

At such stratospheric energy prices, it is little wonder that energy conservation is a not only a hot topic...

In CGR’s Polish operation, labor is indeed less expensive, but energy costs are more expensive. For instance, energy for heating is bought at a premium far above energy costs in France. In this formerly communist country, energy for private or industrial heating is traditionally available in the form of steam, which is purchased from a now-privatized central plant.

In its Mexican springmaking operation, the energy issues of the company are of another nature. There, production halls never require any heating, but the electricity required to run the machinery is not only very expensive, it can temporarily run out and force the shut-down of equipment.

In neighboring Spain, CGR used to be able to take advantage of relatively lower labor costs, but that is no longer the case, and electricity is not inexpensive either. Spain imports some of it from France.

Despite expensive energy, CGR’s energy costs, including heating (excluding transportation costs), are only 1.4 percent of springmaking costs. They pale compared to the increase in raw material costs (70 percent on low-carbide steel) in the second quarter of 2008. But the energy cost component is not low by accident.

In 1990, when Joseph Varoqui took over the company as chairman and CEO, it consisted of nine plants. Only one of these was efficiently heated and insulated. Today, he makes springs in 12 modern buildings, each custom-built or retrofitted. Effective insulation and targeted radiant heating were key motivators in new construction. CGR’s sole remaining older building has energy costs twice those of the new buildings. Because it is cheaper than oil and it also burns more efficiently, CGR burns natural gas to heat the radiant heating units that are suspended from the ceiling. They are positioned to keep operators warm and designed to minimize heat loss. This targeted heating system does not waste energy by inadvertently warming up tons of inventory.

Lighting, springmaking ovens and machinery run on electricity. At CGR, it is second nature to operators to regularly switch ovens and machines off when not in use, and in winter, a blower system recycles the heat they generate into the building.

Heavily taxed, gasoline has always been expensive in France. Over time, these high prices at the gas pump have instilled an energy consciousness in every Frenchman and European that is unequalled in the U.S. In part, this is reflected in the success of the diesel engine in Europe. On June 19, 2008, Varoqui filled his car’s tank with diesel at EURO 1.59 a liter, which calculates to a breath-taking USD gallon equivalent of $9.33. (At today’s diesel prices, it is on a par with gasoline.)

At such stratospheric energy prices, it is little wonder that energy conservation is not only a hot topic; it compels innovation and action in Europe’s private and commercial arenas.

European governments, including France, subsidize the capture of alternative energy by buying a kWh of energy from small providers at twice the price of electricity sold from the grid. This has spawned numerous cottage industries in the private and commercial sector. At this point, Varoqui is not participating in these programs that depend on the availability of wind or solar energy. He is focusing his undivided attention on producing and selling springs, and on reducing conventional energy consumption in other ways.

By working in concert with its customers, CGR is contributing to the weight reduction of cars. For example, traditional exhaust pipes used wire brackets exclusively. Today, key CGR customers have replaced the wire with tube which is much lighter and performs better at cooling down the exhaust line.

“Nearly 70 percent of Europe has already adapted to using these lighter tube-brackets,” says Varoqui, “but in the United States where energy is relatively inexpensive, adaptation to this innovation appears to be much slower. For us, energy is an ongoing concern. The survival of our world depends on it. Industry must find ways to replace more electrical devices with springs, because springs provide useful services everywhere. They are ubiquitous.

“Once upon a time we wound our wrist watches and they ran for a day. Then we started to use batteries. Most batteries already use a compression spring to secure the battery and a flat spring to connect the current. So why not replace the battery with a spring? Transistor radios can run on the power of a spring. Today, they are used in developing countries where they are cranked up to run for a few hours. Recently, even laptops were developed for use by villagers far from any electric grid. They also use a spring to store energy. Humanity must find ways to utilize the clean and sustainable energy-accumulation potential of springs.” For more information on CGR, visit www.cgr.fr

...it compels innovation and action in Europe’s private and commercial areas.

Grassroots developments such as the increasing use of bicycles in the developed world demonstrate that Varoqui is not on an isolated quest. Nevertheless, at present, the usefulness of such potential is still clouded in conventional thinking that is firmly anchored in the proverbial box. Only small innovations reach the western consumer, such as hand-propelled flashlights.

Yet, someday soon, the humble spring may well become a star contributor to providing substantial quantities of clean, sustainable energy. After all, the storage devices of mechanical energy springmakers produce every day are just as necessary for making generated energy useable than the raw material itself, and springs are unarguably as important to civilized living as salt is to life. In the long run, the current distress caused by high energy costs may end up being a launch pad for new applications of springs.

Wallie Dayal is president of Dayal Resources Inc., a Chicago-based firm that helps initiate and support American-European business. She is a business consultant, translator and writer. Readers may contact Dayal by Web site at www.dayalresources.com.