Load Management

The basic strategy of load management is to reduce costs by shifting loads or limiting equipment operation during the peak demand periods. In most cases, this will be done by shifting loads to times of lower demand and cost. In fact, many industrial plants have rescheduled some of their manufacturing steps just to reduce peak demand costs. Facility management tries to do the same thing by determining which loads can be interrupted for relatively brief periods of time during a demand interval without causing undue discomfort, process disruption, etc. These loads are then connected to control equipment which, when demand approaches or reaches the maximum demand desired, sheds and restores them according to a well planned sequence. Some large pulp and paper mills will now shut down an entire paper plant and schedule everyone to do periodic maintenance just to avail themselves of the reduced power price.

Some common examples of load shifting includes:

1. Scheduling deferrable loads such as electric furnaces, process ovens, incinerators, and infrared rail car thawing heaters, to hours when electric rates and/or demands are lower.
2. Using a demand controller which continuously monitors demand throughout each 15 or 30 minute demand measurement time interval and turns off pre-selected loads to keep demand at the end of the interval within a preset limit.