Engaging new business divisions

Lehigh Hanson is a large building materials manufacturer that operates several business units within the construction industry. The company’s energy intensive cement plants have historically been the focus of  energy management efforts. However, as Lehigh Hanson built out its energy management program, the energy program needed to be expanded to the less intensive business units. To do this, the energy program launched its “Boots on the Ground” campaign which uses the ENERGY STAR Challenge for Industry to engage plants.

The company began by selecting eleven high priority sites from its aggregates business for the first phase of the project and plan to integrate the other 200 plants later. These priority plants were from the company’s aggregate division, which had historically been hard to engage in energy program initiatives.

Lehigh Hanson’s strategy has been successful. The Mission Valley plant was the first aggregate site to achieve the ENERGY STAR Challenge for Industry. Since then a number of other plants have achieved the ENERGY STAR Challenge for Industry. Leroy Goree, Sr. Electrical Engineering Manager, and the driving force behind this effort said, “The ENERGY STAR Challenge is a win-win for our aggregate production facilities and positively contributes to Lehigh Hanson’s overall sustainability strategy. The EPA’s ENERGY STAR program provides our operations management team with tools and resources to help identify areas for improving energy efficiency by managing energy strategically. The Challenge for Industry aligns perfectly with our energy efficiency initiatives to support the company’s commitment to improve energy efficiency and to reach the company’s energy goals while conserving natural resources and protecting the environment.” Using a 2011 baseline, Lehigh Hanson so far has saved several millions of dollars with the ENERGY STAR Challenge for Industry.