Corning Incorporated announced that eight more of its global manufacturing facilities have recently reduced energy intensity by an average of 13.2 percent, meeting or exceeding the goals set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s ENERGY STAR® Challenge for Industry. To meet the challenge, industrial sites must each increase energy efficiency by at least 10 percent in five years or less.
“Thousands of industrial plants are improving their efficiency, cutting energy costs, and reducing energy-related carbon emissions by taking the ENERGY STAR Challenge for Industry,” said Jean Lupinacci, director of the EPA’s Climate Protection Partnerships division. “By challenging their plants, companies like Corning and others demonstrate their commitment to strong energy management. Through their achievements, these companies have collectively saved more than 84 trillion British thermal units – an impressive accomplishment.”
Following are the newest Corning sites to meet the EPA’s ENERGY STAR Challenge for Industry criteria:
- Environmental Technologies facilities in Painted Post, New York, and Shanghai, China
- Life Sciences facilities in Borre, France; Kennebunk, Maine; and Wujiang, China
- Optical Communications facilities in Pune, India, and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- Specialty Materials facility in Canton, New York
“Corning is committed to sustainability – we believe protecting the environment makes good business sense and is the right thing to do,” said Patrick Jackson, director, Global Energy Management (GEM). “Our GEM teams around the world are continually proving our dedication to finding new and innovative ways to create energy savings across Corning. Each site should be proud of its energy management initiatives and ENERGY STAR Challenge for Industry recognition. We value our partnership with ENERGY STAR and will strive to receive this prestigious designation at all Corning sites.”
Corning began its GEM program at a time when prioritizing energy management was a relatively new concept for many large businesses. Since launching GEM in 2006 with technical and financial assistance from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, Corning has:
- Earned recognition as an ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year for the past seven years (2014-2020)
- Improved its energy productivity by 35 percent
- Delivered more than a half a billion dollars in energy savings
- Decreased its greenhouse gas emissions by more than 2.3 million metric tons, equivalent to one year of carbon dioxide emissions of nearly 250,000 U.S. homes
To meet its energy-saving goals, GEM researches and implements projects and programs at each of Corning’s manufacturing plants. This multifaceted strategy includes manufacturing process innovation, facility design, maximized energy efficiencies in plants and throughout the supply chain, and promotion of the importance of saving energy.