Hydraulic Institute’s Circulator Pump Energy Rating Program Increases Savings and Sustainability

This new, trusted source of energy performance ratings can be used as a qualified product list for approved circulator models. This is the first step in the industry’s effort to promote market transformation to more efficient products.

“Pumps drive the comfort and convenience we are accustomed to today.  Their performance can make or break the functions of water lines, heating and cooling systems, processing operations, and more,” said Michael Michaud, Executive Director, Hydraulic Institute. “Informative Energy Rating labels make it easy to identify a pump’s energy performance and opportunity for energy savings. As the industry strives for more energy-efficient solutions and to make a substantial impact toward sustainability targets, implementing the right pump technology is critical. With the Circulator Energy Rating label and database, utilities and energy efficiency program administrators can streamline their incentive programs for the selection of energy efficient circulators.”

Circulator Energy Rating labels are only applied to the most efficient circulator pumps in the market. Rated circulators save energy, maximize overall system efficiency, cut operational costs, and reduce carbon emissions. Since these pumps have integrated variable speed controls, additional benefits include optimized performance, improved comfort through more even space heating or cooling.

The Energy Rating label enables the comparison of selected circulator pumps based on average power consumption. It can be used to estimate the power savings or to estimate and compare the power savings of multiple circulator pumps. When looking to replace a circulator pump, for example, selecting an Energy Rating labeled pump with an ER value of 200 can achieve up to 80 percent power savings compared to a traditional constant speed circulator. This is made possible by replacing traditional motors with advanced ECM motors. While that modification alone provides a significant reduction in energy consumption, the addition of integrated variable speed control allows the circulator to react to its surrounding system by speeding up or slowing down to meet demand. This reduces energy costs even further and improves overall comfort. Proper sizing and selection of circulator pumps in combination with the HI Energy Rating is vital to achieving the most efficient and reliable pumping system.

“HI is committed to growing its collection of data and insights that can better inform the pump system community and allow professionals to make the best possible decisions,” said Michaud.

The Hydraulic Institute’s Energy Rating Program supports the increased adoption of efficient products into the market. The Energy Rating label serves as the industry’s recognized symbol for energy efficiency and can be used by utilities and energy program administrations as part of a program to incentivize the selection of energy efficient circulator pumps.