U.S. Department of Energy Efficiency Standards (DOE)

Why is the DOE requiring Commercial and Industrial Electric Motors to meet efficiency standards?

For more than three decades the efficiency of new motors has been regulated by federal law.

Nearly half of the electricity consumed in the manufacturing sector is used for powering motors and about two thirds of this machine-drive consumption occurs in the bulk chemicals, food, petroleum and coal products, primary metals, and paper industries.

The two rules that have most recently been established by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) are the Small Motor Rule and the Integral Motor Rule.  These changes impact electric motors and will once again increase the minimum efficiency of new motors.

The updated electric motor standards apply the standards currently in place to a wider scope of electric motors, generating significant estimated energy savings. DOE‘s analyses estimate lifetime savings for electric motors purchased over the 30-year period that begins in the year of compliance with new and amended standards (2016-45).  The annualized energy is equivalent to 1% of the total U.S. industrial primary electricity consumption in 2013.