For Immediate Release: September 18, 2009
Contact:Cory Churches  (202) 482-3809

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE TO HOST FORUM ON ENERGY EFFICIENCY IN MANUFACTURING IN TOLEDO, OHIO

WASHINGTON – Representative Marcy Kaptur will join Acting Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Manufacturing Mary Saunders at the first Forum on Energy Efficiency in Manufacturing, September 21, in Toledo, Ohio. The U.S. Department of Commerce, in association with the Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency, will release a Checklist for Corporate Energy Efficiency at the event. The Checklist outlines a step-by-step approach for U.S. manufacturers to become more energy efficient with links to resources for each step.

The Forum, to be held at the Owens Corning World Headquarters, brings together experts from the Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration and Manufacturing Extension Partnership, the Department of Energy, the EPA Industrial Energy Star Program, and the Ohio State Energy Office to discuss the resources available to manufacturers for energy efficiency improvements. Industry representatives are invited to share their experiences with energy efficiency and report on best practices. Participants will visit the Clean and Alternative Energy Incubator at the University of Toledo in the afternoon to get a first-hand look at clean energy and energy efficient projects in action.

“Efficiency is the low hanging fruit of the world’s energy challenge,” said Saunders. “With efficiency, you don’t have to depend on scientific breakthroughs or engineering miracles. You don’t need to wait for economies of scale so efficiency can compete with other energy alternatives. An upfront investment in efficiency is often much cheaper than investments in new supply.”

The Forum on Energy Efficiency in Manufacturing is part of Commerce’s Energy Efficiency Initiative, and the first of several forums around the country focusing on industrial efficiency. Commerce will also host the Energy for Manufacturing Roundtable in Washington, D.C., on October 20, 2009. For more information on the Department of Commerce’s energy efficiency efforts, please visit: http://www.trade.gov/energy

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