Our Impact
After multiple, expensive repairs to an electric pump in the 3-acre fish pond outside the Worthington Steel Delta facility, a team of employees came up with a new idea for aerating the pond—a windmill.
Lead Electrical Technician Don Ritta had researched windmill aerators for the pond at his own home and concluded that installing one at the facility pond would be better for the environment and save money on maintenance.
Now, as employees or guests travel the long driveway to the facility or enjoy the pond at the annual company picnic and kids’ fishing derby, the 33-foot galvanized steel windmill is hard to miss.
A Sustainable Solution
With the aeration windmill in place, Ritta explained that no electricity is being used, and the expensive electric pump costs have gone away. Ritta says he likes how it blends in, too.
“It’s a good fit for Northwest Ohio, with its windmills and farming,” Ritta said.
Demetri Michaelides, senior director, environmental, health and safety (EHS) and sustainability, said Ritta and his team’s idea for the windmill was a smart way to approach a challenge and it represents the kind of thinking he encourages throughout the company.
Michaelides, pictured right.
Demetri Michaelides, sr. director of EHS & Sustainability
We have internal goals to reduce our emissions, and we are looking at every aspect of the business. While some projects emerge out of their own necessity, each quarter the company shifts to a different focus area tied to energy, water or waste efficiency.
Worthington Steel's Sustainability Strategy
Worthington’s overall sustainability strategy involves a variety of approaches, from looking at a facilities’ consumption of resources to planning projects of all sizes. It also includes engaging with employees, including teams at Delta, who, in addition to the windmill, stewarded roadside cleanups and the planting of 300 trees along the facility driveway.
Delta has had some big sustainability wins recently, including installing a galvanized coating line water cooling system that saves more than 1 million gallons of water a year, and converting the pickle line tension leveler segments from DC to AC motors which saves more than 2 million kilowatt-hours of electricity per year. As the largest and most energy intensive of Worthington Steel’s 32 facilities, changes like these have a significant effect. However, Michaelides says that the drive for both small projects and larger strategic initiatives is happening companywide.
“We have internal goals to reduce our emissions, and we are looking at every aspect of the business,” Michaelides said. “While some projects emerge out of their own necessity, each quarter the company shifts to a different focus area tied to energy, water or waste efficiency.”
A Company-Wide Effort
Michaelides added that one of the side benefits of these projects is how cross-functional they are, pulling together employees from across the business.
“Our operators are spotting the issues. Our engineers and maintenance teams are typically the ones who can drive and deploy the project. The EHS team member is then the one who communicates to the team. It takes all these folks to see the next problem, speak up and address it,” he said.
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Guided by Our Philosophy
Just as our Philosophy states the importance of communication, he reiterated the importance of employees raising concerns or ideas for how and where improvements are needed.
“It’s the people who are closest to our operations every day who have the most nuanced take on what’s normal and what’s wasteful,” Michaelides said.
Michaelides points to the Delta team’s aeration windmill as a perfect example.
“It’s innovative and it’s effective. These small-scale wins are great for the environment and have awesome payback for us, he said. “There are many more of these opportunities across the company that we have to find.”
Members of the Delta facility team pictured right at a recent community event.