Month: March 2011

Alarmingly Helpful

Published on by Bryan PetersLeave a comment

I was talking with someone the other day about EXAIR, and they asked me for some words or phrases to describe our company and our philosophy.  I thought about it for a few minutes, and I added “Alarmingly Helpful” to the standard “Big 5” (Efficiency, Performance, Safety, Quality, Service), along with some others.

“Alarmingly helpful?  How can help be alarming?”, they asked.  Here’s the explanation:

EXAIR strives to be so helpful that customers are actually taken aback that we are willing to go to the lengths that we are in order to help a them.  We want them to take away the impression that we aren’t like most other companies.  Truth is, we aren’t, and we’re proud of it.

When a customer calls us with an application that we can’t solve with EXAIR products, we’ll REFER THEM TO ANOTHER COMPANY instead if we know that the solution already exists.  Our Application Engineers maintain an extensive list of products and technologies sold by others that can sometimes help customers.  If you require something like an explosion-proof purge system, a dense-phase conveying system, or a vehicle-mounted air compressor – we have a list of companies that can probably help you with your application.

Want a more extreme example?  From time to time (including a couple of times in the past week or so), customers contact us for technical support for a product that’s in their plant and isn’t working correctly.  The catch?  They aren’t even EXAIR products.  A handful of times already in 2011 a customer with a competitive product has contacted us for technical support even though we didn’t make the product at all.  Why did they contact us?  Because they couldn’t get the support they needed from the other manufacturer or distributor.

Here at EXAIR, we put the customer first, and we try to help them solve their problems even if we didn’t sell them the product.  Of course, we let them know that the product isn’t ours, but we try to help them anyway.  Why?  Because they will remember that we were able to help them even though we didn’t make or sell the product that is causing them problems.  They’ll also remember that we helped when the company that sold the product (and took their money) could not or would not.

So what makes EXAIR, EXAIR?  Give us a call, drop us an e-mail, a live chat request or even a tweet.  We’ll be there to help.

Just don’t be too alarmed.

In the meantime, please check out this video about Blackberry technical support.

Claims are easy, proof is hard.

Bryan Peters
President
bryanpeters@exair.com

Safety Schmafety…But It Beats The Alternative

Published on by Russ BowmanLeave a comment

Soon it will be summer, and for those of us involved with Cub Scouts, it means a transition from regular meetings to a series of less regular outdoor activities.  For our Pack, that means a picnic where we hold our annual Raingutter Regatta, a flag retirement ceremony with a local American Legion post, and a marshmallow extravaganza that we call “S’more Summer Fun.”  It’s all in fun until someone falls into a diabetic coma…

Then there’s Summer Day Camp.  For a whole week, Cub Scouts from all over the District converge on a local State Park to shoot BB guns and Bows & Arrows, learn how to cook over an open fire, take turns raising and lowering the US Flag at formal ceremonies that start & end the day, and get a jump start on some of next year’s advancement requirements.

For the past few years, Day Camp in the US Grant District has culminated with a Water Gun Event on Friday afternoon.  We didn’t call it a “Fight” because that might be construed to be in conflict with the central controlling authority: The Guide To Safe Scouting.  Now, I know to the uninitiated, the name itself doesn’t sound all that foreboding, so allow me to draw a familiar parallel:  Think OSHA.  ‘Nuff said?   More on OSHA later, though.

We were recently informed that either a change in The Guide, a stricter interpretation of The Guide, or a previous misunderstanding of The Guide has rendered the Water Gun Event a violation of The Guide.  We’re struggling to come up with a suitable replacement activity, but it’s hard to top a couple hundred hyperactive boys – and most of their parents – loaded for bear with Super Soakers.  I’m sure we’ll come up with something, and if I know my fellow leaders, it will be the stuff of legend.

Although it's not officially a competition, the Bethel Fire Department usually "wins" The Water Gun Event.

Just as the The Guide To Safe Scouting has cancelled our Water Gun fun, there are a multitude of stories about seemingly over-reaching OSHA regulations that look like they only protect against a Complete-Loss-Of-Common-Sense accident.  But the fact is, they’re there for a reason, and a great majority of us should be glad that a great majority of them are.  Let’s face it: forklifts, acetylene torches, and drill presses are inherently dangerous.  Until rules of safe operation are applied, then there are no safer or more efficient ways to move a steel beam into the shop, cut it in half, and drill a bunch of holes in it.

OSHA has rules about compressed air use, too.  We’re all familiar with the ones about safety glasses and ear plugs…those of us who like to see and hear, anyway.  Some of you may even be intimately familiar with the 30 PSIG limit on any compressed air that can be deadheaded – OSHA standard 1910.242(b).

EXAIR, to date, doesn’t manufacture a product which discharges a force of compressed air that precludes the need for eye protection.  But we are proud to offer a complete line of products that are specifically engineered with those other OSHA safeguards in mind: None of our nozzles, jets, knives, etc. can be dead-headed.  We also pay particular attention to sound levels and engineer our products to reduce the amount of sound power generated. 

Russ Bowman
Application Engineer
EXAIR Corporation
(513)671-3322 local
(800)923-9247 toll free
(513)671-3363 fax
Web: www.exair.com
Blog: http://blog.exair.com/
Twitter: twitter.com/exair_rb
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/exair

Compressed Air Consumption Assessment

Published on by 1 Comment

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

The Professor’s Take on Basketball Madness

Published on by Kirk EdwardsLeave a comment

Here is the professor explaining the madness of March as only he can. Sometimes I wonder about this guy but then he breaks out the COOLEST Starsky and Hutch t-shirt and I know he’s A-OK. Anyway, he seems to think the madness of March has to do with saving compressed air but we staightened him out, so now he’s talking about basketball…

Enjoy,
Kirk Edwards
Application Engineer
kirkedwards@exair.com