Research Project

Sustainable Manufacturing Alliance for Research and Training Industrial Assessment Center for Southern California

Abstract

Manufacturing employment and output in California in general and Southern California in particular is largely provided by small to medium sized manufacturers (SMMs). While large sophisticated companies like Space X dominate the public’s perception of manufacturing it is the SMMs (less than 50 employees) that produce most of the innovation, output and employment. Under the leadership of Dr. G.P. Li at the University of California Irvine (UCI) the Sustainable Manufacturing Alliance for Research and Training (SMART) seeks to establish an Industrial Assessment Center (IAC) to provide SMMs with assessments and recommendations on energy efficiency, productivity, sustainability and competitiveness to include measuring the impacts of these recommendations on reducing greenhouse gas emissions. In addition, the SMART IAC will address the growing shortage of engineering professionals with applied energy and manufacturing-related skills by training a diverse cross-section of engineering students through hands-on involvement in these assessments. UCI will collaborate with Cypress Community College (Cypress CC), California State University Northridge (CSUN), California Manufacturing Technology Consulting (CMTC), the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), and California industries to create innovative training programs that engage community college students, university students (graduate and undergraduate), professional engineers and laboratory scientists in a dynamic program that addresses broad themes such as the nexus of Food Energy and Water systems (e.g. Cold Food Storage Networks and Indoor Agriculture) as well as specific themes such as energy optimum human workflows for SMMs. Our focus for this program includes not only optimizing productivity and energy efficiency for manufacturing systems (i.e. equipment) but also for the people and buildings that comprise the whole of a manufacturing system.

Motivation/Research Problem

The objective is to assist small and medium-sized manufacturing facilities in reducing unnecessary costs due to inefficient energy consumption, as well as identifying ineffective production procedures, excessive waste production, and other production-related issues. The goal of the research is also to demonstrate cybersecurity awareness, smart technologies, and effective energy management systems. The student IAC team will work with small- and medium-sized manufacturers in identifying potential areas of annual energy savings opportunities and reducing annual costs.

Research Team

Lead Researchers

Bingbing Li, Manufacturing Systems Engineering

Collaborators

Dr. G.P. Li, Calit2 at University of California Irvine
Dr. Li Zhao, Calit2 at University of California Irvine
Dr. Kathleen Reiland, Cypress College

Student Team

Jasmine Glover, Mechanical Engineering,
Jason Kim, Mechanical Engineering

Funding

Funding Agency: U.S. Department of Energy
Funding Program: Industrial Assessment Center

Alignment, Engagement and Contributions

The U.S. Department of Energy with contribution and collaboration with the DOE IAC

Research Questions and Objectives

The SMART IAC will conduct at least 20 industrial sustainability (energy, water, health and safety) assessments per year while enrolling at least 10 students in the SMART IAC certificate program. By year two at least 5 students will earn a Certificate of Achievement in Industrial Assessment. The SMART IAC will establish a support center at Cypress Community College to establish a Commercial Building Efficiency assessment program to provide training to 5-10 students annually and conduct 10-20 commercial and/or other buildings each year. The SMART IAC will establish a Satellite Center at California State University Northridge (CSUN) to develop Life Cycle Analysis methods that can be incorporated into the sustainably assessments to be conducted for Topic 1 and Topic 2. In addition, the CSUN Satellite center will also develop broad based sustainability content for the SMART IAC curriculum. Students at all the affiliated institutions will be eligible for consideration in the SMART IAC industry sponsored internship program. All students will also be encouraged to participate in the SMART IAC Pueblo Fellowship program which is designed to provide students with leadership opportunities through which they can help to guide the direction of the SMART IAC with respect to operations and thematic focus. The proposed program will create a deep access and inclusion program to support the goals of producing diverse cohorts of Science Technology Engineering and Math professionals who have the knowledge and skills to effectively access sustainability in industrial contexts and to provide STEM leadership to address the challenges global climate change.

Research Methods

The following protocol presented by the DOE IAC is designed to detail the typical process of the IAC assessment. IAC Assessment Protocol:

Pre-Assessment Information Gathering: Client completes and submits a pre-assessment form.

Ensure key plant personnel are involved:
• Plant manager
• Energy manager
• Environmental personnel
• Maintenance personnel

Pre-Assessment Analysis:
• Facility manufacturing processes and utility bills are analyzed;
• record primary energy systems, design and other technical documentations

Day of Assessment:
• Introduction
• Description of manufacturing process and operations
• Facility tour
• Debriefing
• Review notes
• Refine list of opportunities to be investigated
• Data gathering
• Exit interview

Post Assessment Activities:
• Engineering and financial analysis
• Compose IAC report
• Facility follow-up

Research Deliverables and Products

IAC assessment report IAC certificate issued by DOE

Research Timeline

5 year project 09/2021–08/2026