Eaton focuses on water management challenges and is committed to carbon neutrality

Shanghai, China – Although the amount of water on the earth is huge, the amount of water that can be directly used by people in their lives and production is extremely scarce. In the recent release of the Asian Development Bank's Water Development Report, the Asia-Pacific region was labelled as "one of the regions most severely threatened by water scarcity in the world". According to water data released by the United Nations in 2018, more than 2 billion people in the Asia-Pacific region currently lack access to sufficient and safe freshwater resources, and this number could surge to 5 billion by 2050, leading to this achievement is likely to be due to the rapid growth of population, economy, agriculture, modernization and urbanization, and now has 60% of the world's population, making it one of the most disaster-prone regions in the world, especially floods and droughts.

Faced with the dire situation of water scarcity, CY Shong, senior vice president of Eaton's Electric Group, said: "Given the dire consequences of water scarcity in our region, it is clear that we all have a responsibility to make a difference for the planet and future generations. ”

After water management, it is safe and sustainable

The security of water resources cannot be ignored. It refers to the ability to provide sufficient quantities of high-quality water for life, production and ecological systems, and to accept the risks associated with water resources to people, the environment and the economy. In order to achieve acceptable quantity and quality of water resources in the Asia-Pacific region, we need to better apply the "3R" strategy of reduce, reuse and recycle.

Reduction means cutting water consumption. Industrial water consumption is the second largest in the world, after agriculture. The key to ensuring industrial water efficiency is to identify areas where improvements are needed (e.g., leaky areas or inefficient water treatments) and to adopt an active and effective plan to address the problem.

The trickle-down power gathers majestic power. An effective water management method can save water resources and manipulate the cost of enterprises. Eaton's power quality plant in the Philippines has steadily reduced its average monthly water consumption to 2,646 cubic meters in 2020, a 32% reduction from 2019. The approach they adopted in the plant was simple but effective:

1. The water flow rate is reduced by adjusting the water valve and descending water pressure;

2. Install water meters in areas with large water consumption, monitor abnormal water consumption twice a day, optimize and rectify in real time, and prevent water waste.

Eaton's Cooper Electronics plant in Dongguan has introduced an active cleaning machine to replace manual cleaning for the production line, which is expected to reduce wastewater by 0.5 cubic meters per day and more than 180 cubic meters per year.

The scarcity of freshwater resources is so severe that water conservation alone cannot address the root cause, so the other "R's" (reuse and recycling) are also crucial.

The team at Eaton's Cooper Electronics plant in Dongguan has also adopted a wastewater reuse and recycling approach, introducing a new wastewater filtration system for its supercapacitor production line, which can reduce wastewater by about 2.5 cubic meters per day, equivalent to more than 900 cubic meters of wastewater per year. In addition, the plant improved the existing wastewater filtration system for fuse substrate cutting, dealing with the problem of frequent clogging of the filters of the circulating water system due to limited space. The newly designed system now cuts 1 cubic meter of wastewater per day.

Eaton's two factories in Shenzhen, China, have also identified local improvements in their processes, not only recycling wastewater, but also saving money. Both plants have introduced new filtration systems to treat oily wastewater from air compressors. In this way, the filtered water can be transported to the plant's cooling tower or spray tower for reuse. The introduction of this filtration system is expected to save the two plants approximately $20,000 per year.

"These operations are not cumbersome, but in the long run, the cumulative effect is considerable," says CY. At Eaton, the concept of 'going on' is embedded in our culture and operations. From the people on the shop floor to the leadership team, we are constantly looking for opportunities to identify and overcome inefficiencies in the process, and continue to invent value for our customers, employees, communities and our shared planet. ”

Strive to achieve the 2030 sustainable development policy

Eaton's commitment to water security is forward-looking and continuing, and these treatment plans are implemented across the Group as part of a sustainable 2030 approach. Sustainable development approaches include waste reduction, greenhouse gas emissions and water use, as well as other social and management approaches. From 2018 to 2020, Asia Pacific has cut water consumption by more than 180,000 cubic meters, a 15% reduction in just two years, a joint effort of all plants in the region and a testament to Eaton's commitment to sustainable water use.

Water is an indispensable and irreplaceable material resource for human survival and social development. On Earth, where there is water, there is life. There is no doubt that water has a serious impact on the healthy functioning of our planet and society. In the future, Eaton will continue to put water conservation at the center of its work and spare no effort to advance sustainable development.

Eaton focuses on water management challenges and is committed to carbon neutrality

Eaton focuses on water management challenges and is committed to carbon neutrality

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