Energy Signatures and Production Process Information

This paper proposes an innovative methodology to define the energy signature and traceability of a company producing agro-textiles from purposely extruded yarns and films. In the proposed analytical approach, Fourier analysis is applied to extract energy-related information. The analysis makes it possible to interpret the results in both the frequency and time domains, identifying interpretative features associated with energy consumption and balancing in yarn manufacturing. Dominant spectral components were consistently observed below 25 cycles/day, accounting for the majority of recurrent energy variability, while intermediate bands between 10-25 cycles/day exhibited amplitudes between 5% and 10% of the daily mean consumption. High-frequency components above 60 cycles/day were found to contribute less than 1–5% and were largely transient. The paper identifies key aspects for interpreting the energy signatures of the analyzed production lines and proposes a tentative protocol for implementing a data-driven approach to production-process monitoring and corrective action. A further possible outcome of the proposed analytical method is its application to manufacturing industries in other sectors.