Electronics are boosting energy consumption. Or, electronics are reducing energy consumption. It depends on one’s perspective. Dueling reports, both issued on May 13, appear to suggest differing conclusions.

The view presented by the Paris-based International Energy Agency (IEA) in its report “Gadgets and Gigawatts” holds that the improved efficiency of electronic devices is being overshadowed by the soaring demand for them. The IEA said that electronic devices currently account for 15 percent of household electricity consumption, but their share is rapidly rising.

The IEA study cited some examples of that growth. By the end of the year, the number of people using a personal computer will pass the 1 billion mark. There are nearly 2 billion television sets in use, with an average of over 1.3 sets in each home having access to electricity. More than half the global population subscribe to a mobile telephone service, and the number of external power supplies associated with many electronic devices now exceeds 5.5 billion.

Without new policies, the energy consumed by information and communications technologies, as well as consumer electronics, will double by 2022 and increase threefold by 2030 to 1,700 Terawatt hours (TWh). As a reference, IEA noted that 1,700 TWh is the equivalent to the current energy consumption of the U.S. and Japan combined.

The IEA said that such a rise jeopardizes efforts to maintain secure energy sources and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The organization called upon governments across the world to urgently implement policies that would make electronic devices more energy efficient to help slow the growth of energy consumption.

Taking more of a component perspective, the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE), Washington, D.C., said that semiconductor technologies are so essential to advances in energy efficiency gains that the U.S. economy could expand by more than 70 percent through 2030 and still use 11 percent less electricity than it did in 2008. The ACEEE study, “Semiconductor Technologies: The Potential to Revolutionize U.S. Energy Productivity,” concluded that semiconductors already are the leading factor behind energy efficiency gains.

The report estimated that, compared to the technologies available in 1976, the entire family of semiconductor-enabled technologies generated a net savings of about 775 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity in the year 2006 alone. If the U.S. economy had expanded to its current size using 1976 technologies, the country would be using about 20 percent more electricity than it actually consumed in 2006, requiring an additional 184 large electric power plants.

Lead author of the report John A. “Skip” Laitner, director, Economic and Social Analysis, ACEEE, said that the powerful connection between semiconductors and energy consumption is more than just unappreciated; it is actually misunderstood by some. “Despite the immediate growth in electricity demands to power the growing number of devices and technologies, semiconductors have enabled a surprisingly larger energy productivity benefit in that same period.”

The report noted how semiconductors have improved the operation and performance of electronic equipment and a whole host of motor-driven systems, including heating and cooling equipment.

JAPANESE GIANTS STUMBLE
Sony Corp., Tokyo, reported a loss of 98.9 billion yen (U.S. $1 billion) for its fiscal year, its first annual net loss in 14 years. The company predicted it would suffer an even larger loss in the year ahead, citing decreased sales and increased competition in electronics. Sanyo Corp., Tokyo, reported a loss of 93.2 billion yen (U.S. $976 million). NEC Corp., Tokyo, went into red ink to the tune of 297 billion yen (U.S. $3 billion). Panasonic, Osaka, posted a loss of 378.9 billion yen (U.S. $3.97 billion) for its fiscal year and projected another loss for this year. But Hitachi, Tokyo, set the record, posting a loss of 783.3 billion yen (U.S. $8.1 billion), the largest annual loss ever recorded by a Japanese manufacturer.

CHINA BOOSTS EFFICIENCY
The Chinese government will use subsidies with the goal of boosting the sales of energy-efficient appliances by 30 percent by 2010. The country hopes the effort will save up to 75 terawatt/hours of power per year. Targeted products will include air-conditioners, refrigerators, clothes washers, microwave ovens, flat-screen televisions, rice cookers, water heaters, computer monitors, and electric motors. China kicked off the program by releasing a list of efficient air conditioner models that will be eligible for subsidies ranging from 300 yuan (U.S. $44) to 850 yuan (U.S. $125). According to China’s National Development and Reform Commission, air conditioners account for about 20 percent of the country’s power consumption on average, and about 40 percent of consumption during peak demand periods. China produced more than 70 million air conditioners in 2008.

HAIER INVESTS IN F&P
Chinese appliance and electronics giant Haier will acquire a 20 percent stake in appliance maker Fisher & Paykel, Wellington, New Zealand, as part of F&P’s recapitalization plan, which also includes a rights issue and establishment of new credit lines. F&P had posted sharp losses over the previous year due to declining sales and had acquired significant debt as a result of shifting manufacturing operations to lower-cost countries. As part of the deal, Haier will take two seats on F&P’s board after the investment. The companies have also agreed to cooperate in product development, sourcing, manufacturing, and marketing activities. The companies also gain exclusive distribution rights for each other’s products in their respective home markets. F&P said that the deal is unlikely to affect its existing relationship with Whirlpool, which includes several product and sales arrangements. Haier, based in Qingdao, China, is reported to be the world’s fourth largest home appliance manufacturer and employs more than 50,000 globally. The agreement with F&P helps with two of Haier’s objectives, increasing its global presence and furthering its expansion into higher-end premium appliances.

SMART GRID COMPATIBILITY
Whirlpool Corp., Benton Harbor, Mich., announced that by 2015 all of its electronically controlled appliances will be capable of receiving and responding to signals from smart grids. The company says that its ability to successfully deliver on this commitment in the timeframe is dependent on two important public-private partnerships: The development by the end of 2010 of an open, global standard for transmitting signals to and receiving signals from a home appliance; and appropriate policies that reward consumers, manufacturers, and utilities for using and adding these new peak demand reduction capabilities.

ENODIS ICE SOLD
The Manitowoc Co., Manitowoc, Wis., has sold the Enodis global ice machine operations to affiliates of Warburg Pincus, New York, N.Y., a private equity firm. Scotsman Industries Inc., Vernon Hills, Ill., will become the official name of the new holding company for all of the assets of the former Enodis global ice machine business, including six factories in the U.S., Italy, and China. All of the company’s brands, which include Scotsman, Ice-O-Matic, Simag, Barline, Icematic, Tecnomac, and Oref, will continue to operate as they have in the past, with no change to sales, distribution, or service.

SMART APPLIANCES
Six months into a joint pilot program by GE Consumer & Industrial, Louisville, Ky., and Louisville Gas & Electric Company (LG&E), Louisville, Ky., the two companies said that the testing of smart meters, smart or demand response appliances, and a tiered pricing program, reveals that participants are choosing money-saving options. The program tests the use of smart appliances to help offset energy costs when higher prices are implemented during peak usage times — generally 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. Pilot participants were provided with a suite of GE smart appliances — or Demand Response appliances — to replace their standard appliances, as well as an LG&E programmable HVAC thermostat and smart utility meter.

LESS ENERGY CONSUMPTION
The Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers (AHAM), Washington, D.C., has released the 2008 Energy Efficiency and Consumption Trends data for home appliances. This data, based on 2008 shipments of major appliances, shows the continuing pattern of decreased energy consumption. Clothes washers show a 64 percent decrease in energy consumption per unit since 2000, while tub capacity increased by 9 percent. The data also shows that both refrigerators and dishwashers are more than 30 percent more efficient than models sold in 2000.

TYLER REFRIGERATION TERMINATED
Hill Phoenix Inc., Conyers, Ga., a Dover company, has announced the acquisition of certain assets and intellectual property of Tyler Refrigeration, Niles, Mich., a unit of Carrier Corp. Under the terms of the transaction, Hill Phoenix has purchased select equipment and other physical assets, order backlog, intellectual property, and the service parts business of Tyler Refrigeration. In addition, Hill Phoenix also has purchased Tyler’s five service and installation branch businesses, located in New Jersey, Minnesota, Arizona, Southern California and Mexico. Tyler’s manufacturing facility in Niles, Michigan, is not part of the transaction. However, Carrier Corp. will discontinue the production and sale of Tyler-branded refrigeration product lines, ramping down production at the Niles, Michigan, facility throughout the year and shutting down after existing orders are filled.

ENERGY EFFICIENT SERVERS
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Washington, D.C., has established Energy Star requirements for computer servers. On average, computer servers that earn the Energy Star label will be 30 percent more energy efficient than standard servers.

ENERGY EFFICIENT COOKING
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Washington, D.C., has established new requirements for commercial griddles and ovens to earn the Energy Star label. Energy Star labeled griddles and ovens are approximately 10 to 20 percent more energy efficient than standard models.

CE SPENDING
The average U.S. household spent $1,229 on consumer electronics (CE) products in the past 12 months, $176 less than in the prior year, according to a study released in May by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), Arlington, Va. According to the 11th Annual Household CE Ownership and Market Potential Study, video products are expanding already high levels of ownership. Televisions are the most owned CE device in the U.S., with 99 percent of households owning a TV. Fifty-two percent of households own at least one HDTV, an increase of 11 percent from last year and double the penetration rate from 2007. Ownership of plasma and LCD screens as well as sets more than 40 in. also are on the rise.

GREEN JOBS
GE’s Consumer & Industrial division, Louisville, Ky., will manufacture energy-efficient hybrid electric water heaters in Louisville, Ky., at the company’s Appliance Park facility — creating approximately 400 jobs. The company says that the water heaters will meet the 2009 Department of Energy’s Energy Star standards for heat pump hot water heaters. GE’s planned manufacturing facility also has a potential to create 1,600 incremental green jobs over time for suppliers and contract partners.

SAECO SOLD
Royal Philips Electronics, Amsterdam, the Netherlands, has reached an agreement to acquire Saeco International Group S.p.A., an Italian espresso machine maker controlled by PAI partners. Successful completion of this transaction is, among other concerns, subject to Philips reaching an agreement with Saeco’s banks, with which the company has outstanding credit obligations.

EMERSON ACQUIRES VILTER
Emerson Climate Technologies, St. Louis, Mo., a business of Emerson, has acquired Vilter Manufacturing LLC, a compressor manufacturer based in Cudahy, Wis. Vilter will become a part of Emerson’s refrigeration division, which provides commercial refrigeration products and solutions.

E INK ACQUISITION
Prime View International (PVI), Taipei, Taiwan, supplier of small displays and ePaper display modules, has signed a definitive agreement to acquire E Ink Corp., Cambridge, Mass., maker of electronic paper display materials. The new company plans to expand capacity and develop improvements for ePaper display screens.

LG Displays ultrathin LCD.

ULTRATHIN LCDS
LG Displays, Seoul, Korea, has announced that it has succeeded in developing the world’s thinnest 42-in. and 47-in. LCD TV panels. The panels employ LG’s edge-lit LED backlight system instead of the commonly used CCFL (cold cathode fluorescent lamp) to realize a panel thickness of 5.9 mm. Proprietary LGS (light guide sheet) technology enabled the company to reduce the thickness of the LGP (light guide plate) by more than half. In addition, the panels weigh 6.1 kg and 7.3 kg, about 50 percent less than conventional CCFL-backlit products.

WI-FI-ENABLED THERMOSTATS
GainSpan Corp., Los Gatos, Calif., maker of low-power semiconductor solutions; Radio Thermostat Co. of America (RTCOA), San Francisco, Calif., provider of programmable communications thermostats; and Our Home Spaces, Novato, Calif., supplier of energy management solutions for homeowners, have joined to bring Wi-Fi-enabled thermostats to market. GainSpan’s semiconductor technology powers a module that plugs into an RTCOA thermostat to enable it for Wi-Fi, allowing users to remotely control it.

TI ACQUIRES LUMINARY
Texas Instruments Inc. (TI), Dallas, Texas, will expand its microcontroller (MCU) portfolio with the acquisition of Luminary Micro, Austin, Texas, supplier of ARM Cortex-M3-based 32-bit MCUs and Stellaris Cortex-M3 processors. Stellaris devices will allow TI to address mainstream 32-bit MCU markets, giving customers access to the general-purpose processing power of the industry-standard ARM Cortex-M3 core and the Stellaris family’s advanced communication capabilities.

F&P AT SEARS
Sears Holding Corp., Hoffman Estates, Ill., has announced two agreements with appliance manufacturer Fisher & Paykel, Auckland, New Zealand. Sears Outlets will be the U.S. distributor of the ELBA brand of home appliances and Sears Appliance Showrooms will carry Fisher & Paykel appliances. The ELBA brand will be manufactured in Fisher & Paykel’s North American facilities and will be sold in all Sears Outlet stores. Sears Appliance Showrooms will offer several lines of Fisher & Paykel appliances at all locations.

CHROME ALTERNATIVE
Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, Mass., have developed a nickel-tungsten alloy chrome substitute that is safer to manufacturer and more durable than chrome. The alloy has been found to remain stable at room temperature and is highly resistant to decomposition when heated.

SUPER-EFFICIENT BULBS
An ultra-powerful laser can make regular incandescent light bulbs very energy efficient, say researchers at the University of Rochester, Rochester, N.Y. The process could make a light as bright as a 100 W bulb consume less electricity than a 60 W bulb. The laser process creates an array of nano-scale and micro-scale structures on the surface of a regular tungsten filament — the tiny wire inside a light bulb. These structures make the tungsten become far more effective at radiating light. The findings will be published in an upcoming issue of the journal Physical Review Letters.

OUTDOOR ENTERTAINING STRONG
Despite the sluggish economy, most consumers are engaging in some form of outdoor entertaining, with an average frequency of about four times per year, according to a recent report from research company NPD Group, Port Washington, N.Y. In addition, more than 40 percent of outdoor entertainers told NPD that they plan to purchase an outdoor item for their property in the next 12 months.

QUANTUM DOT LAMP
Nexxus Lighting Inc., Charlotte, N.C., and QD Vision Inc., Watertown, Mass., have unveiled a quantum dot lighting solution that combines the efficiency of LED lighting with the color of incandescent bulbs. The lamp integrates a quantum dot optic with cool white LEDs to produce color-rich, true incandescent, warm white light, which can provide 80 percent energy savings and lasts up to 25 times longer than comparable halogen lighting.

ANTI-CORROSION COATING
Scientists at the Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, N.Y., have developed a method for coating metal surfaces with an ultrathin film containing nano-particles that renders the metals resistant to corrosion, eliminating the need to use toxic chromium for that purpose. A simple two-step or three-step process produces the thin film structure by cross-linking among the component compounds. The result is a layer less than 10 nanometers thick. The coating can be applied to a wide variety of metals, including aluminum, steel, nickel, zinc, copper, bronze, and brass. The coatings can be designed for dipping or spraying.

NATURAL REFRIGERANTS
An international conference on natural refrigerants will be held Oct. 19-20 in Brussels. The Atmosphere 2009 conference will explore technology, policy, and funding opportunities for ammonia, carbon dioxide, and hydrocarbons. The goal of the conference is to speed the adoption of natural refrigerants in the market. For more information, visit: www.atmosphere2009.com.

EFFICIENCY STANDARDS LOOKUP
The Power Sources Manufacturers Association, Mendham, N.J., is offering as a free service access to an online database of energy efficiency standards by region, agency, and application. The database is designed to help design engineers keep track of the latest standards and initiatives being undertaken by government agencies and industry organizations. For more information, visit: www.psma.com/green.

FUEL CELLS GROW
The commercial market for fuel cells will more than triple to $1.9 billion in 2013 and almost triple again to $5.1 billion in 2018, according to a study titled “World Fuel Cells,” compiled by The Freedonia Group, Cleveland. The report says that, although market gains are projected to be strong for most applications, virtually all of the increase will be attributable to an explosion in demand for portable fuel cells, which is expected to account for 98 percent of all unit sales in 2018.

Innovative Foodservice Appliances

The National Restaurant Association honored 18 recipients with its 2009 Kitchen Innovations Awards at the 2009 National Restaurant Association Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show held in Chicago’s McCormick Place, May 16-19. All the honored products were showcased in an interactive demonstration area on the show floor. Among those featured were:

• Everpure MRS-600 HE Envi-RO reverse-osmosis system averages 78 percent water conversion efficiency and features 600 gal./day capacity.
  
  
• Frymaster (Manitowoc Foodservice) Gas Protector has a 30-lbs. fry pot that delivers the production capacity of 50-pound fryers and auto oil replenishment.
  
  
• Garland (Manitowoc Foodservice) restaurant range Xpress Clam Shell Grills can be pre-programmed with up to 30 easily adjustable platens-gap settings.
  
  
• Henny Penny Evolution Elite SmartFilter Express enables operators to conduct as-needed oil filtering in 4 minutes.
  
  
• Hobart Bluetooth-enabled combi oven with barcode scanner automatically controls the cooking program and features wireless exchange of recipes.
  
  
• Irinox USA CP multi-function holding cabinets provide combined temperature and humidity control for fresh or frozen foods.
  
  
• Lincoln Foodservice Products (Manitowoc Foodservice) Quest EMS Energy Management System reduces air flow and, combined with fastBake finger profiling technology, maintains uniform heating and recovery to full performance within 45 seconds.
  
  
• Market Forge Industries gas 3500 Power Plus boiler-based convection steamer has a jacketed kettle and uses 80 percent less water and 30 percent less energy.
  
  
• Rational USAs self-cooking center with CareControl features automated de-liming to eliminate filters, labor, and down time.
  
  
• Viking Range (Commercial Division) modular range design allows flexibility of changing individual modules before and after installation.
  
  
• Winston Industries CVap universal holding bin cabinet allows operators to serve directly from the cabinet with optimum conditions.