The Government has announced a new Eur1.69 million energy efficiency research project aimed at significantly reducing energy costs for industry and creating jobs. The Total Energy Management for Production Operations (TEMPO) research project will focus on establishing an effective way of monitoring total energy consumption during the manufacturing process, so as to reduce overall energy costs. The results of the research will allow international and indigenous companies to significantly reduce their energy costs by helping them reduce their energy bills. This will be achieved by helping the companies to understanding where excess energy is being used.
The project is a cross-border collaboration between Limerick Institute of Technology and the University of Ulster, funded through the International Energy Research Centre (IERC) located at Tyndall National Institute, Cork.
The principal scientist with the TEMPO project is John Cosgrove, Director of the ACORN Research Group at Limerick Institute of Technology, working with Professor Martin McGinnity, Director of the Intelligent Systems Research Centre (ISRC) at University of Ulster’s Magee campus and Professor Neil Hewitt, Director of the Centre for Sustainable Technologies (CST) at the University of Ulster’s Jordanstown campus.
“This research project, with its strong focus on reducing energy costs for industry, is exactly the type of initiative we want to see coming fromIreland’s research community,” says Pat Rabbitte TD, Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources. “It clearly demonstrates the benefits that come from linking our research capability with industry needs, and from developing integrated energy projects that can deliver measurable cost-effective solutions. Energy efficiencies are strategically highly important both to industry and to the national economy and this research initiative underpins the Government’s objectives in this important area.”