An on-demand dust ventilation system is helping Brentwood to control airborne particles and debris, eliminating the need for new dust collection equipment and saving the plant an estimated $86,000 in annual energy costs.

The EcoGate® On-Demand Ventilation System improves the capability and energy efficiency of the plant’s existing dust collectors. Equipped with three new variable frequency drives for existing fans and one new master control station, the system senses when airflow is or isn’t needed to a machine and uses a series of automated gates to direct capacity to other workstations. Brentwood now has room for additional pieces of equipment in the plant at limited additional energy cost.

Over $257,600 in cash incentives from Energy Trust covered nearly 50 percent of the project’s upfront cost. The new system is estimated to save more than 1.3 million kilowatt hours of electricity in annual energy consumption.