Thermal power station
A thermal power station is a compact power station operated directly where the power is consumed. Basically, the station consists of a motor, a generator, and a heat exchanger. The interaction results in supplying the building with both heating and electrical power.
The special feature of this technology is the efficiency rate. It is significantly higher compared to the traditional combination of local heating and a central power plant,: The heat produced by the thermal power station during electrical power generation can likewise be used directly at the site.
Depending on their design, thermal power stations can be heat-driven (that is, their output is oriented toward local heating requirements) or electricity-driven (with their output oriented toward electricity needs). Because their efficiency rate is about twice as high as that of a conventional large coalfired power plant, they are currently regarded as the economically and ecologically most sensible way to generate heat and electricity for larger private, commercial, and industrial buildings.
As with nearly all industrial manufacturing processes, the need for heating and electrical power is one of the most significant environmental factors that a responsible and environmentally conscious company must consider. This naturally applies to our consumable production facility in Oldenburg. In 2014, we decided for a greater energy efficiency and sustainability by installing a modern thermal power station which since then enables to benefit for the first time at Eppendorf from combined heat and power generation. The sophisticated energy recovery technology enables a total utilization rate of around 90%.
A large modern coal-fired power plant (which is still the common power plant around the globe) loses approximately half of the produced energy as heat which is wasted. In contrast to this, the heat produced by our thermal power station during electrical power generation can be used directly in our operations.
For our facility in Oldenburg, this means more than just economic progress; the environment, too, benefits from the increased energy efficiency in our production there. The power station naturally reduces the carbon footprint of our production by a substantial degree.