Hydro MPC-E Used to Convert Food Waste into Energy in North America

INTRODUCTION

Grundfos, a leading manufacturer of advanced pumping solutions and services, established in 1945, is well-positioned to make a significant impact on the North American market in 2023 by providing customers with cutting-edge water pump technology and services. Leveraging their reputation for quality and their advanced network of reputable distributors and OEM providers, it is expected they will continue to excel in serving communities in North America and other regions around the world. Individual successes, where distributors and OEMs serve customers right where they are, are good signs coming out of the first quarter. A distributor that is currently selling Grundfos products, and has been in business since 1981, recently was able to provide a solution to a customer for a non-potable water (NPW) process water system converting food waste to energy. Their ability to understand the application and recommend the best solution for the job earned them the end-customer’s business. 

SITUATION

Anchor Pump and Engineered Equipment is a premium supplier of industrial pumps, based out of Pennsylvania. In the first quarter of 2023, Anchor Pump was approached by an engineering firm in State College, Pennsylvania to assist them with a new industrial project. The engineer was designing a non-potable water (NPW) process water system for a company that converts food waste to energy. The customer required a pump that could boost clean water at a rate of 650 GPM at 60 psi, with an incoming pressure between 20 - 30 psi.

According to Nicholas Polcha, engineering firms will often “spec out a pump, spec out a VFD controller, and spec out a pressure transducer, buying three different pieces of equipment minimally. We wanted to simplify this and make things work smarter and more efficiently. As a sales guy, I’m not going in to just sell features and benefits of the product lines because that is what every sales rep is going to do. Instead, I tried to show the end user and the customer how we can fit into their model for success. My goal was to understand the end users’ needs and what they want the system to do and then understand the technology that Grundfos has, then apply that technology to provide the best solution the customer needs for their application. Step one is always having a complete understanding of what the end user needs right now. We are not just providing system solutions; we're providing efficient system solutions by allowing the pumps to run at the best efficiency point on the performance curve and doing that providing iSolutions and MLE motors. Working with Grundfos is I think extremely beneficial when you’re in the pump industry. In a year you can circle back to this end user and say okay, now you’re using the system, let’s give you usable data and data management with Grundfos Machine Health, Grundfos’ predictive maintenance program. Grundfos gives you the ability to keep implementing, supplementing, and complementing all the different technologies they can provide. When you get an engineering firm that relinquishes control a bit on selections, then that helps you determine the best system solution.” – Nicholas Polcha, Regional Sales Manager, Anchor Pump and Engineered Equipment. 

SOLUTION

To ensure a solution appropriate for the application needed, Anchor Sales recommended a Hydro MPC-E packaged system that consisted of four pumps: one standby and three active pumps. The solution provided a cascade approach that maintained constant pressure in the system, regardless of the inlet pressure and flow demand. This was a totally new application, one where the engineer had asked for something simple; however, the best solution was a bit more complex.

The “E” portion of the system was very important. According to Robert Langton, “The E part of the Hydro MPC – E, leverages the use of MLE motors which have the integral Variable Frequency Drive’s. The advantage is that the Hydro MPC-E will automatically adjust to the varying demand from the customer’s system. It will use one pump, up to a certain flow rate. Then, if the flow rate goes higher, it will activate a second pump. In addition, the system is always looking for the most efficient way to pump to the system demand. For example, there may be three pumps running when it seems like the system should only need two, but the most energy-efficient solution is running three pumps.” – Robert Langton, District Sales Manager, Grundfos.