Pick it up or stick it to a wall

August 27, 2010 — bdfarno

So the applications that I am going to share with you come from earlier today.  Both of the applications involved our E-Vac Vacuum Generators being used for similar applications but in completely different industries.

 

The first gentleman was a construction worker that uses a core drill to drill holes through concrete walls.   He was working on a site using their core drill when all of a sudden the electric vacuum pump that holds the drill to the wall failed because the motor burnt up.   He was looking for something to replace the expensive electric motor and it had a few week lead time as it was not a normally stocked part for anyone he could find in the country.  When he started searching for Vacuum Generators he came across our website and decided to call in. 

The electric vacuum pump that burned up had very similar specifications to our largest E-Vac.  I recommended he take a look at the models 800017 and 810031 which are the largest In-Line E-Vacs that we offer. 

He then began to tell me that they already had an air compressor on site for a jack hammer.  After discussing with him the air consumption of the E-Vac he admitted that he would rather run something off of compressed air that has no internal moving parts and not another electric motor that could fail again and cost them a very expensive repair on the drill not to mention if it was to harm someone.  

The second gentleman called within an hour of the first and explained to me that they are a manufacturing company and have containers that they currently use a blower operated vacuum system to lift from a conveyor belt to a pallet on the floor.  The only problem with the system is that the containers are changing and the new shape of the lid will not allow their current system to work.  

After receiving a dimensioned drawing of his new container and lid I began to calculate and draw the vacuum cup system that would work for his application.   The containers could weigh anywhere from 60 – 100 pounds each.   Also with the shape of the new lid he was not able to lift from the center which would cause an unstable load if you only used one cup.  To further the complexity of the new system he also mentioned they would be running the old containers every now and then too so he needed to be able to lift either style of container.  

The system I designed for him included one 6” round cup that would lift the old containers and fit within the space for the large area on the new container.  Then I added two 2” cups to form a triangle that would allow the customer to lift the new rectangular containers level and safely but if he needed to lift the old container then he wouldn’t even have to switch out cups or lifting equipment at all.  This was achieved by using two Modular E-Vacs, one to power the main 6” cup and the other to power the 2” cups. 

As you can see our E-Vac Vacuum Generators are used across many fields and industries and sometimes they are even used for evacuation or sample retrieval.   If you have an application that you think might fit within these parameters, feel free to contact us.

Brian Farno
Application Engineer
BrianFarno@EXAIR.com

Posted in Accessories, Vacuum Generators. Tags: , , , , , , , . Leave a Comment »

This is no Behavior for Going Back to School

August 25, 2010 — Kirk Edwards

Today is the last day of summertime freedom for my kids, school begins tomorrow. It is no longer OK to not know what time it is or sleep until 9:00 or 10:00 or 11:00 in the morning. No more sleeping in a basement fort on a Wednesday night. The daily events and zoo camp and vacation have all been recorded. The excitement created by the ice cream truck is gone…

But my kids are showing no signs of changing their behavior. They spent all day running around with the neighbors with no sense of responsibility for what was upon them. And more power to ‘em…carpe diem!

Here are the creatures which greeted me when I got home, in no less-than eight containers from aquariums to bug habitats to jars with holes in the lids: Three big wood bees, two butterflies, one moth, one giant grasshopper, two little green grasshoppers, mating bugs, crickets, a red and black beetle, assorted dead bugs, one cicada and two cicada shells.

 

All in a days work - click for larger image

Along with the creatures were five kids. Four of whom struck me as quite loud compared to hearing co-worker volume levels all day. The fifth was merely quiet due to the kid tribe pecking order of speaking and his inability to shout anything bug related before I put the hush down on the unruly group of entomologists. I found myself thinking if they could only shout out the genus and species of these crawly creatures, they may be on their way to a worthwhile skill. Though I did hear a kid say “we know it’s a moth because it has those feathery antennae and he’s fat”.

I was also pleased that no one inquired further about the mating bugs, regardless of a clear “the birds and the bees” environment (though telling a kid to go ask her mother about it isn’t quite as hard as I make it out to be).

It also struck me that it is a good call to begin school on a Thursday, these kids clearly need a couple of days to adjust their behavior and wrap their heads around a whole week of school. You just don’t say goodbye to summer the same way you greet it - kids spend weeks daydreaming of summer so they greet it like an old friend with whom no time has lapsed and get right into action. They say goodbye with kicking and dragging feet, composing themselves only after it is no longer visible.

As “grown-ups” we can be happy we don’t have to make that slap in the face adjustment, but not so much that we wouldn’t enjoy a couple months off work. It is a slighter adjustment to move out of Cabinet Cooler system season and closer to Static Eliminator season during colder, drier weather ahead. But our kids will find that out soon enough. I am sure none of them is willing to give up that slap in the face adjustment at the end of summer in return for a job. Besides, at some near point in time I will arrive home to frustrated home-working kids and my seize the day opportunity to learn about feathery, fat moths will have been recorded as well.

Here’s to an easy transition back to school kids. Enjoy yourselves.

Kirk Edwards
Application Engineer
KirkEdwards@EXAIR.com
http://twitter.com/exair_ke

Posted in Cabinet Cooler, Static Elimination, Uncategorized. Tags: , , , , , , , , . Leave a Comment »

Compressed Air Consumption Assessment

August 23, 2010 — japanfalone

Today I am going to share with you an application that started out as an analysis for purchasing a new compressor but ended up with shutting down one 50 HP compressor.

My customer approached me with an interest in the EXAIR Digital Flow Meter to monitor various sections of their facility for compressed air usage. At times their system pressure would drop precariously low for some machines. It was their thinking that by monitoring compressed air demand by sector they could decide the size of compressor they needed to add and where to direct that air.

They installed model 9092 1″ Digital Flow Meter to each spur feeding the various sections of the plant. The monitored results were quite unexpected! It was thought the machining sectors were the ones drawing the most load. As it turned out it was the packaging area. Upon investigation they found blow guns with their triggers taped open for a constant blow off as the operator packed parts. Ten work stations alone were using over 200 SCFM of compressed air!

The blow guns were replaced with air saving Super Nozzles activated by a foot pedal. 

 Model 9040    

  •   

 Model 1101

The air savings enabled them to shut down a 50HP air compressor. So instead of a capital expenditure for a new compressor, they realize an operational savings.

If you would like to see how much you can save with EXAIR’s engineered nozzles feel free to call 1-800-903-9247 and ask to speak with one of our application engineers.

Joe Panfalone
Application Engineer
joepanfalone@exair.com

Posted in Compressed Air, Compressed Air Optimization, Super Air Nozzle. Tags: , , , , , , . Leave a Comment »

Testing the Waters

August 20, 2010 — bdfarno

When traveling overseas a few years ago I was forced to “Test the waters” of foods I would not normally eat.  (Or even consider for that matter)   Now I didn’t just dive right in to eating the mystery meat that may or may not have been someone’s pet the day before.  I started slowly by sampling items I knew with other vegetables or side dishes I would not normally eat.  By the end of the trip I am pretty sure I had consumed more than my fair share of shrimp and  a few other things I still don’t know what they were.  This lesson to test the waters is something that can even happen to your compressed air operations. 

During numerous application phone calls and discussion I have been asked, “Well how can I justify implementing all these nozzles?”  Well I have an answer that you can use even if you aren’t looking to start anything new and just want to know how much air you are currently using.   The answer to this is to “Test the waters” by installing a Digital Flow Meter anywhere you wish to know your air consumption.

The Digital Flow Meter will allow you to measure in real-time the air consumption of your system.  These can be installed on your main compressed air line to check the volume of compressed air the compressor is putting out, or even select a single machine and install it to see which device is using the most compressed air in your system.  If you have multiples of the same machine then install it one of the machines to get a good baseline reading for how your machines currently run, then implement new compressed air processes to allow you to see the benefits of the new process compared to the old. 

This also is an ideal installation and use of the Summing Remote Display which will allow you to monitor the air consumption up to 50 ft. away from the Digital Flow Meter.  The Summing Remote Display allows you to view the current usage from the DFM, sum the total usage for a 24 hour period of time, or a straight cumulative usage that will track up to 9,999 SCFM.  This would even permit a breakdown of per shift usage.  To see if one operator is using more compressed air than others to perform the same task. 

All in all if you are debating on whether or not to look into an engineered compressed air blow off operation then why not sample one entire machine and have sufficient data to determine the return on investment of the new system. 

If you would like to discuss the Digital Flow Meter, Summing Remote Display, or any compressed air application feel free to contact us. 

Brian Farno
Application Engineer
BrianFarno@EXAIR.com

Posted in Accessories, Compressed Air, Compressed Air Optimization, Sustainability. Tags: , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a Comment »
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