Oil temperature: 47°C
Critical threshold set at 45-50°C. Imminent risk of valve and hydraulic component deterioration.
Analytical Case Study
ENEAGREEN: the air cooler for ceramic presses that cut consumption and temperatures.
How Alfagres brought oil temperature from 47°C down to 40°C, saving 48,000 kWh per year with an investment that pays back in 18 months.
Alfagres and the engineering challenge of extreme heat
Alfagres is Colombia’s second-largest ceramic group, with two manufacturing plants: one in Bogotá and one in Barranquilla, on the Caribbean coast.
The Barranquilla plant (the newer and more technologically advanced facility) operates under extreme climatic conditions, with outdoor temperatures ranging from 24°C to 33°C year-round. While this climate is ideal for people, it is far less favorable for industrial machinery.
In particular, keeping the hydraulic press oil below 45-50 degrees is a critical condition to ensure production efficiency and the longevity of mechanical components.
Keeping hydraulic press oil below 45-50 degrees is a critical condition to ensure production efficiency and component longevity.
Cooling press oil above the 33-degree ambient threshold
Hydraulic ceramic presses require hydraulic oil to stay below 45-50 degrees to operate correctly. In Barranquilla, the cooling system had become the most critical component of the entire plant.
With the previous-generation cooling unit, the oil temperature reached 47°C, dangerously close to the critical damage threshold. A radical solution was needed. The customer was considering installing a water-cooled chiller system, but this would have resulted in high operating and maintenance costs associated with the water circuit and water treatment.
Hidden Chiller costs
Continuous maintenance of the water circuit and water treatment: hidden but significant cost items.
Extreme installation
Positioned on the plant roof, exposed to direct sunlight at 20m height.
The Diagnosis: Why a Chiller Solution Would Have Failed in the Tropical Heat
During a technical site visit, the Inter Ser team analysed real operating conditions. The diagnosis was clear: a water cooling system, under continuous extreme heat, is structurally failure-prone.
New-generation air cooling completely eliminates water-related criticalities and delivers superior performance even with outside temperatures above 33°C, exactly the conditions in Barranquilla.
| Parameter | Previous solution | New solution |
|---|---|---|
| Technology | Water-based | Air-based with variable ventilation |
| Maintenance | High (treatment, cleaning) | Minimal (reverse self-cleaning) |
| Operating costs | High | Reduced (-6 kW/h) |
| Hot-climate output | Limited | Optimal up to 45°C outside |
ENEAGREEN — High-efficiency air cooling
ENEAGREEN is the most widely used heat exchanger in the ceramics industry for cooling press oil. Manufactured by FIMO in Sassuolo, it has been completely redesigned over 40 years of sector-specific experience.
The self-cleaning fan-reversal system eliminates the risk of clogging from dust, leaves or debris, a common issue in outdoor rooftop installations, like the one in Barranquilla.
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Variable airflow
Variable-speed ventilation to adapt to real oil and outside climate temperatures.
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Self-cleaning
Automatic fan reversal to expel dust and debris without operator intervention.
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Compact
Reduced footprint vs Chillers, ideal for rooftop installations in constrained spaces.
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Energy saving
-6 kW/h vs previous cooler, over an 8,000-hour annual operating cycle.
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Zero water
Complete elimination of water circuit and related treatment and maintenance costs.
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Guaranteed hot-climate output
Optimal operation up to 45°C ambient temperature, certified under real conditions.
From commercial objection to full trust
The main obstacle was commercial, not technical. Alfagres’ procurement office had initially requested an older-generation cooler, cheaper but less efficient, and completely inadequate for Barranquilla’s climate conditions.
The Inter Ser team chose not to lose the sale by proposing the cheap product, but to guide the client: detailed technical email exchanges, precise performance comparisons and a competitive proposal progressively convinced Alfagres. Result: the first ENEAGREEN sold outside European borders.
“Our goal wasn’t simply to sell, but to provide the most suitable machine. With an initially higher investment, Alfagres would consume less, maintain less, and achieve better performance.”
Ivo Zanetta, IZ Sales South America, Inter Ser
In the Field
Photo gallery of the project
Real numbers after one month of operation
Before
47°C
Old water Chiller
After
40°C
ENEAGREEN air cooler
After one month of in-line operation, Alfagres confirmed the numbers: oil temperature stable at 40 degrees (vs the previous 47), energy consumption reduced by 6 kW per operating hour over an 8,000-hour annual cycle. All achieved with a more compact machine, with no water circuit maintenance required.
| Metric | Result | Impact |
|---|---|---|
| Press oil temperature | -7°C | From 47°C to 40°C, well below damage threshold |
| Energy consumption | -6 kW/h | Constant hourly saving in production |
| Annual saving | -48,000 kWh | Calculated on 8,000 annual operating hours |
| Water circuit | Eliminated | No water treatment, no cleaning |
| Investment payback | 18 months | Full recovery of the higher initial cost |
What this case demonstrates
The ENEAGREEN Alfagres case demonstrates three fundamental principles of the Inter Ser method: don't sell the cheapest product, sell the most suitable one; invest in technical dialogue to overcome commercial objections; create shared value for client, supplier and partner.
01
The right solution
Not the cheapest product, but the one that solves the problem under the client's real conditions. The higher initial investment pays back in 18 months.
02
Technical dialogue
Technical explanations and performance comparisons turn objections into trust, and investment into ongoing operational savings.
03
Shared value
Success is measured when client, supplier and Inter Ser all gain: only then is the partnership built to last.
Next step
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