Alleviate Energy Crisis Challenges with Tapes
The rising costs for energy have become omnipresent in the news and industry, and private households are already feeling the impact of higher gasoline, natural gas and electricity prices. The current global energy crisis is a result of a cascade of issues like the pandemic that resulted in reduced global demand for oil and other energy sources, which in turn limited their production. But the fast industrial recovery has led to a rapid increase in energy demands and higher coal and oil prices.
Especially in Europe, many countries, industries and private households are strongly dependent on natural gas, and geopolitical conflicts are worsening the energy supply situation through limited availability of natural gas, causing higher costs for alternatives. Like most companies these days, Saint-Gobain® Tape Solutions is also impacted by these higher prices but is doing everything possible to manage the new situation as best we can for our customers, employees, partners and suppliers. Higher costs for energy are one driver of inflation we’re currently seeing and energy-intense industries need short and medium-term solutions to remain competitive.
Five Ways Tapes Can Help Reduce Reliance on Energy
The situation is complex and there are different ways to face the challenge, but we all share one common goal: to make the best of the situation with reliable solutions that help us to emerge stronger and with less environmental impact from the crisis. Of course, the right tape cannot be the solution to solve all energy challenges but sometimes little parts like these can have unexpected influence in increasing overall efficiency and mitigating the effects we’re currently witnessing.
Optimizing energy efficiency in mobility
Electric vehicles are an important step in reducing fossil fuels and carbon emissions in today's and future mobility. High-end materials like our tapes can help increase their efficiency and range, resulting in less need for energy to reach new destinations. We support the shift towards electric mobility with industry leading materials that increase efficiency, power density and safety of EV battery packs to enable longer reach, durable performance and increased loading cycles.
In addition to unique thermal runaway protection materials, compression pads with the flattest CFD curve or innovative cushioning pads, our EV solutions are designed to accelerate new electric mobility concepts. Beyond the battery pack, electrical insulation tapes specifically designed to increase EV motor performance with excellent mechanical, chemical and electrical resistance due to the use of high-end materials like Kapton®, Nomex® or Polyimide, battery-electric vehicles can also help to become independent from fossil fuels — especially if the power source to charge these vehicles is completely based on renewable energy sources.
Increasing efficiency in renewable energy production with tapes
Industry, mobility and almost every part of our daily lives is powered by electricity. Wind-, hydro- or solar-based renewable energy production is nothing new but booming worldwide. Becoming independent from fossil fuels and suppliers has become even more important with recent world events currently unfolding. Manufacturers are working to increase efficiency of renewable energy production and our tapes support this goal by enabling more efficient production of the largest wind turbines in the world to optimize the output of windmills. Special tapes built to withstand tough environmental influences help to guarantee durable performance of hydro- and solar-power generation with less maintenance and facilitated assembly.
New energy in transformation
Renewable energy production is already a big trend in energy supply and it’s only just taking off. To make energy available wherever it is needed, it must be transformed and transported. Minimizing losses and maximizing efficiency are critical here and our electro-mechanical tapes can open new doors for modern transformers and energy grids. These high-end UL recognized products with proven chemical compatibility are optimized to address challenging electro-mechanical requirements like solving chemical compatibility concerns when adding a new adhesive tape to an oil filled transformer system. Through direct collaboration with our technical experts, we're here to assist in selecting the right products to accommodate design requirements and navigate the barriers to enter this specification-driven market.
Supporting energy storage wherever and whenever needed
One of the biggest challenges in renewable energy sources is that they are not always available when and where they are needed. To help renewable energies achieve a full breakthrough, it takes new and powerful storage systems. Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) are currently on the rise with increased performance, reduced costs and higher durability. These systems benefit from materials also used in EV batteries, helping to increase power density, safety and lifetime of the battery while reducing space at the same time. Whether in large scale or smaller systems optimized for private households, energy storage systems can help to store renewable energy produced in peak times and make it available when and where it needs to be consumed. This decentralization of energy production and storage can reduce costs, improve grid stability and strengthen independence from suppliers. But the best and perhaps fastest way to reduce energy costs is to reduce its consumption.
Saving energy in buildings with tapes
The building and construction sector is energy intense — during construction as well as over lifetime. This is one of the reasons governments all over Europe these days are counting on industry and private households to reduce their energy consumption, such as by turning down the heat or not heating less commonly used rooms on colder days. These requests might help in short sight but reduce comfort and quality of life inside. A more long-term solution is therefore to improve energy efficiency of buildings and there are many ways tapes can support this. Materials with low Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) in heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) solutions can increase thermal comfort and indoor air quality while others are ideal to help creating air- and watertight building envelopes that minimize heat loss.
Strong Bonds for New Energy
At our Saint-Gobain Tape Solutions sites in Europe and worldwide, many projects are already in place or being currently implemented to reduce our carbon footprint and the use of energy. On our path to Net Zero Carbon until 2050, recent steps have already better positioned us for dealing with the recent energy crisis and rising costs that show no end in sight. With the expectation to stabilize in 2023 but with prices significantly higher than before it started, industry, governments and private households will have to find new ways in dealing with the situation. Finding partners you can trust during tough times has proven essential to weathering this storm, and these strong collaborations — and the material innovations that result — may just be one way that we can accelerate change in the way energy is produced and consumed together. Whatever lies ahead, you can rely on us in supporting you and your projects, so contact us today to find the best tape solutions together.
