News & Insights
VIDEO: Combined heat & power: energy from waste
Why this matters now
Industrial operators, campuses, and large institutions are under pressure to reduce emissions, manage rising utility costs, and improve resilience. Combined heat and power systems, especially those that use waste heat or waste fuels, can address all three at once when conditions are right. Interest is growing, but so is the complexity of evaluating each opportunity against shifting fuel prices, grid rules, and decarbonization goals.
What leaders are weighing
Owners are weighing the capital cost and operational complexity of CHP against long-term value across cost, carbon, and resilience. They are deciding how to size systems for current loads versus future ones, how to integrate with renewables and storage, and how to handle changes in fuel availability or price. There are also tradeoffs around interconnection, permitting, and how the project fits with broader decarbonization plans. The economics depend on site-specific conditions and how the system will actually be operated.
How Salas O’Brien is helping clients respond
Our energy and resiliency team helps clients evaluate CHP and waste-to-energy options with a clear-eyed view of cost, carbon, and risk. We bring engineering depth, project delivery experience, and an independent perspective that helps clients compare scenarios without bias toward a particular technology. We help leaders ask the right questions and make decisions that hold up across long operating horizons. Hear Ryan Mowery, Stephen Gibson, and Burkley Allen talk through where CHP makes sense and where it does not.
Ryan Mowery, PE
Ryan Mowery is a mechanical engineer specializing in industrial process and power. He is experienced in project management and design of power and steam generation systems, chilled water systems, thermal distribution systems, process piping, industrial HVAC, and plumbing. In addition, Ryan is specialized in the development of utility models to predict the energy usage and economic impacts associated with various district energy systems, including various combined heat and power (CHP) technologies. Ryan serves as a Principal at Salas O’Brien. Contact him at [email protected]
Stephen Gibson
Stephen Gibson is an Industrial Systems Engineer with a vigorous background in Continuous Improvement. His skillset includes cost-benefit analysis, ergonomic analysis, facility layout and design, inventory optimization, applied statistics, process optimization, project management, time studies, and work sampling studies. His areas of expertise include Lean and 6-Sigma methodologies to drive cost reductions and improving speed to market. Through multiple projects, he has applied advanced statistical analysis to resolve complex quality issues, demonstrated continual cost reductions through Kaizen events, sustained Just-In-Time (JIT) inventory models utilizing Kan-Ban systems, and implemented visual management systems leveraging 5S. Stephen has successfully applied his knowledge across multiple industries including automotive, design and construction, consumer electronics, durable goods, food processing, and warehousing. His project work has taken him to Asia, Europe, and South America. Stephen serves as a Vice President at Salas O’Brien.
Burkley Allen
Burkley Allen is experienced in process design, evaluation of co-generation alternatives, and design and analysis of district heating and cooling systems. She has prepared feasibility studies, proposals for waste-to-energy projects, including design of major equipment and energy and heat balance calculations. Burkley has conducted energy management studies for various types of facilities. Burkley has designed heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning systems with emphasis on chiller upgrades and central plant renovations.