BFGoodrich’s Woodburn plant gets the water supply from a well that produces very hard water, resulting in the need to chemically treat the water that is used for boiler feedwater in the steam systems.
BFGoodrich turned to GE due to lower quality water, which was not allowing the boiler systems to run at optimal levels, thus limiting efficiency and increasing water usage.
With the installation of a reverse osmosis system and with the proper chemical treatment program, BFGoodrich improved the quality of the boiler make-up water, which allowed for an increase in total boiler cycles, leading to fuel cost savings.
The tire manufacturing plant now conserves 9.9 million gallons of water annually, reducing the impact on the environment, and other savings included a reduction in steam, as well as an elimination of costs for sludge removal to a landfill and elimination of costs for chemicals such as lime and soda ash.
With the help of GE solution, the facility improved safety conditions by reducing the amount of chemicals needed to treat the boiler water as well as the increased efficiency of the boilers due to the improved quality of water.
