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North Pacific Industrial Coatings reduces energy costs and lowers emissions with ELGi

The company replaced two previous-generation air compressors with one variable-speed ELGi EG200V-125, potentially saving 100,000 kW of electricity per year.

ELGi North America, a leading air compressor manufacturer, announced that North Pacific Industrial Coatings (Coatings), a Kent, Washington-based commercial painting company, selected an EG200V-125 to support its blasting and painting operations. The new ELGi compressor will provide a reliable source of compressed air for the company and potentially save 100,000 kW per year.

Coatings worked with ELGi distributor Evergreen Compressed Air (Evergreen), based in Renton, to analyze its air compressor operations that support the heat and sandblasting of steel that is used in prefab construction, mezzanine structures, staircases, and more. The company had been using two 200 hp rotary screw air compressors. Their old age had become a factor — frequent breakdowns were resulting in expensive service bills and halted production, which decreased the company’s operational uptime. Additionally, their older and less efficient design was contributing to high energy bills.

Evergreen technicians collected multiple weeks’ worth of data from Coatings compressors using specialized, electronic loggers. The results were analyzed with custom software that showed exactly when Coatings energy use was spiking — specifically, certain shifts on specific days and times. Evergreen’s analysis showed that Coatings could potentially save 100,000 kW per year of electricity by switching to a single variable-speed air compressor.

Evergreen recommended an EG200V-125 — an ELGi EG Series 250 HP Rotary Screw Compressor with Variable Speed Drive. The design of this compressor enables operations at extreme temperatures — from cold to hot, and from dry to extremely humid conditions, leading overall to higher reliability in industrial settings. Its high-efficiency air ends are equipped with unique η-V profile rotors that have a 4/5 lobe combination, enabling it to run at low rotor speeds. This design reduces pressure losses, and together with OSBIC (oil separation by impact and centrifugal action), its 3-stage separation provides best-in-class oil contamination reduction (<1ppm) and excellent energy efficiency.