Postcard from EEDAL Berlin: Can I Get Some Energy Efficiency With That Espresso, Please?

June 18, 2009 - The fifth International Conference on Energy Efficiency in Domestic Appliances and Lighting (EEDAL) kicked off today in Berlin, Germany, and Mr. Green was there. The conference, held every three years in a different European location, is organized by the German Energy Agency with support from the European Commission Joint Research Centre, the International Energy Agency, and others. It’s a great place for stakeholders to network and get current on the latest worldwide efficiency activities affecting a wide range of home appliances including televisions, set-top boxes, computers, HVAC systems, washers, dryers, lighting, and more.

One session on the three-day agenda sounded unusually intriguing; it was simply titled, “Other Appliances.” My curiosity piqued, I entered the session room to learn about the next wave of products requiring efficiency enhancements.

The first product discussed in this session was the friendly home coffee machine. According to the presenter, there are 18 million coffee machines sold in Europe each year. While 10 million are the traditional drip filter machines, 8 million are the higher end espresso and filter-pad machines, and the trend (because of quality and comfort) is towards the latter. And that’s the problem, because those machines account for large, unnecessary energy losses due to their water preheating and standby modes. In fact, high-end coffee makers can consume up to 170 kWh per year, about the same as a class A++ refrigerator!*

The good news is that with a few relatively simple improvements, such as auto power-down, reduced standby consumption (≤ 1 W), and better boiler insulation, approximately 100 kWh per machine could be saved each year. And if, in the coming years, 100 million coffee machines in Europe were replaced by energy-efficient models, over 10 billion kWh per year could be saved.

Maybe that’s why coffee makers recently appeared on the EC EuP Ecodesign Directive’s list of additional energy-using products to be investigated for future efficiency standards. They may become a regular topic of discussion at future conferences.

There’s more to come from EEDAL, so check back soon.

*Class A++ is considered “highly efficient” per the EcoLabel rating system.