32 n ENERGY EFFICIENCY September 2026 www.drivesncontrols.com From 20-page spreadsheets to one-click analyses For 120 years, the German ceramics manufacturer Paul Rauschert Steinbach has been producing technical ceramics for precision components, heating elements and plastic moulded parts at its factory in Steinbach am Wald. However, the company was having problems managing its energy consumption. It relied on outdated systems that provided isolated data from several buildings – some of them dating back more than a century – without any clear visualisation of what was happening. Moreover, some of these systems were no longer being supported. As a result, Rauschert was suffering from unexplained peaks in energy consumption during the winter, while its monthly energy reports required extensive manual analysis of 20-page Excel spreadsheets – a timeconsuming process that delivered information too late to be used effectively. Mandatory EU energy-reporting requirements further intensified the administrative burden, requiring dedicated personnel to put in significant manual effort. “We had data, but no understanding,” recalls Fabian Völk, from Rauschert's maintenance and construction plant engineering team. “When energy peaks occurred, we couldn't trace their origin. “Our monthly reports required extensive manual compilation – a time-consuming process that delivered information too late to be useful." The company therefore decided to implement an energy management system that could connect to its existing energy meters, and store historical energy data for analysis and reporting. The system it chose is compatible with many types of meter, enabling quick deployment and rapid return-on-investment through reduced engineering time. The new system provides real-time energy monitoring across all of Rauschert’s buildings, identifying any peaks in consumption immediately. When spikes occur during the winter, operators can trace their origin using intuitive power distribution diagrams – from the facility level, down to sections of buildings, or even specific items of equipment. Asset-based management allows them to drill down to individual sources of energy inefficiencies, and pinpoint consumption offenders. Automated report generation has replaced the company’s previous manual compilation processes. EU compliance reporting is achieved using a single-click data extraction function. Standard reports include consumption, cost and carbon data for electricity, gas, water and other utilities, alongside operating conditions. An A German ceramics manufacturer has slashed the time that it spends monitoring and controlling its energy use from hours to minutes. It previously relied on manual analysis of 20-page Excel spreadsheets. Now, a modern system provides real-time energy insights, reducing peak consumption. Parts of the Paul Rauschert Steinbach ceramics factory are more than 100 years old. (Image: Paul Rauschert Steinbach) Energy consumption trend analysis from the new energy monitoring tool (Image: Paul Rauschert Steinbach)
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