Melting Centre Pvt Ltd: Improving Cooling-Water Pump Efficiency

Location: Kolhapur, Maharashtra
Industry: Foundry
Focus: Pump efficiency and induction-furnace cooling

Cooling-water reliability is important in induction-furnace operations because the furnace coil and associated equipment depend on continuous cooling.

At Melting Centre Pvt Ltd in Kolhapur, an assessment identified inefficient operation of the raw-water pump serving the furnace cooling system.

The Challenge

A UNIDO/BEE technology compendium reported that the existing pump was operating at an estimated efficiency of 31.7%.

Measured flow was approximately 12.95 m³/hour, compared with a design flow of around 25.1 m³/hour. Power consumption was approximately 3.4 kW.

The Approach

The plant replaced the existing pump with a higher-efficiency unit better matched to the cooling-water requirement.

The compendium reports the efficiency of the new pump at approximately 53%.

Reported Performance

The published assessment shows:

• Pump power reduced from 3.34 kW to 1.97 kW 
• Estimated annual electricity savings of 9,864 kWh 
• Estimated annual cost savings of approximately ₹0.77 lakh 
• Estimated investment of approximately ₹0.53 lakh 

The document presents these figures as the project’s expected/assessed savings.

What the Case Shows

The case demonstrates why pump efficiency should be assessed as part of the complete pumping requirement, including actual flow and system conditions.

Simply having a functioning pump does not mean it is operating efficiently.

Source Note

This case is based on a technology compendium developed under a UNIDO/Bureau of Energy Efficiency energy-efficiency programme. Performance and financial figures are reproduced as reported by that source.

Source: UNIDO/BEE — Technology Compendium: Replacement of Existing Raw Water Pump with Energy Efficient Pump