Month: November 2013

Memoir of a Sexagenarian (or a 65 Year Old)

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Coming upon my 20th anniversary with EXAIR and my 66th birthday (which makes me a sexagenarian), I’ve been reflecting on my past. The thing I like most about my job as an application engineer is that I come across most every application in all market segments. Some of the most unusual ones that come to mind are removing fish guts with a Vac U Gun, sucking defective chicken eggs from a sorter with a Line Vac,  and cooling hot spots on a kiln with an Air Amplifier to get a little more life out of the kiln are just a few off the top of my application filled head. It’s also nice to hang out with my fellow Vicenarian, Tricenarian and Quadragenarian Application Engineers.

I find gratification with the run of the mill applications as well; having an engineer call in perplexed for a solution to a production problem then being able to provide a solution for him is what it what makes my day.

I would be happy to assist you with your application. Give me a call at 1-800-903-9247.

If you celebrated Thanksgiving, I hope you had a memorable holiday. If you did not, I hope you had a memorable day too!

Joe Panfalone
Application Engineer
Phone (513) 671-3322
Fax (513) 671-3363
Web: http://www.exair.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/exair_jp
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/exair

¿¿Could It Be??

Published on by Lee EvansLeave a comment

idea

As the evening came to a close on Saturday and I put my son to bed, I drifted off into a short nap.  It couldn’t have lasted more than 5 minutes, but I woke myself up with a thought as to how the engine on my A4 could be making such a horrible sound, and how the noise could sound as though it is in the bottom half of the engine, but in fact be in the top.  I woke myself up to be sure I wouldn’t forget the dream-logic that had just made such perfect sense.  And, really, it’s pretty simple – a collapsed lifter (even though it doesn’t sound at all like a collapsed lifter).  Given that the engine is a dual overhead cam, and that a collapsed lifter could make for a nasty metal on metal rattling sound, I thought back to the original noise and thought “maybe”.  Not likely, but maybe.  Just maybe an intake lifter is collapsed, completely unable to help open the valve, the cam shaft is slapping the heck out of it with each engine revolution, and acoustics are playing a foul trick on me.

So I pulled the A4 back into my garage, listening with a new ear, and noticing a rough idle that progressed into a full-on misfire.  (In line with my dream-logic, this was actually a good thing)  I pulled the car in to remove the valve cover, check cam-lifter clearances, and check compression, which I’ll be doing over the holiday weekend.  But, before the weekend kicks off, I’m here at EXAIR placing EXAIR devices in applications like it’s my job – oh wait, that IS my job.  So, I guess you could say I’m working.

Last week, as I felt my jacket clinging to my shirt and I got zapped when touching a few doorknobs, I realized that I had been working more with static eliminating applications for end users.  Looking through my emails and notes, there was one call that stood out because I’ve noticed the application with greater frequency compared to years past.

The application was to remove the static from an enclosed chamber.  In this particular application the static buildup on the enclosed space was causing dust to accumulate, and the end user needed a dust free environment for final analysis of their experiment.  So, they used an Ion Air Jet to remove the static and dust from the inside of the enclosure prior to analysis.  The model  #7299 system was shipped, is likely already installed, and we are awaiting feedback.

Hopefully I’ll have an email or voicemail from the end user when we return from the holiday break.  Until then my family and I will be enjoying a table filled with Indian cuisine!  (We chose a style of food each year and then build the Thanksgiving dinner around the choice.  This year is Indian, last year was Mediterranean, the year before was South American, etc.)  Delish!

If you find yourself in need of EXAIR products, contact an EXAIR Application Engineer for product assistance.

Lee Evans
Application Engineer
LeeEvans@EXAIR.com
@EXAIR_LE

Thanksgiving

Published on by Russ BowmanLeave a comment

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. I’m blessed beyond measure to be able to spend this day, for the twentieth consecutive time, at the home of Grandpa Harry…my wife’s grandfather. I’ll be having dinner with him, his six children and their spouses, most of their children (my wife included), and THEIR children (among them, my sons). It takes four rooms to seat everyone, but nobody leaves hungry.

Speaking of being blessed, it’s not the only – or even the first – Thanksgiving dinner for me this year. Last Sunday, the boys and I had dinner with my best friend Andrew and his son – the ones we’ve spent the last eight Father’s Day weekends camping with – at his mother’s home, which we’ve also been doing for years now. After dinner, the five of us always take a hike down the railroad tracks that run through Pleasant Plain, Ohio. Sometimes we head east, sometimes west…this time, we went west. As Andrew and I watched the boys run ahead of us, we decided to turn and head back when we reached a certain pond. As we walked on, we both marveled that the boys, who surely hadn’t heard us, took a sudden turn towards that very pond. It could have been coincidence, but we chose to believe that the five of us are all just like-minded. Which is true, regardless of the reason they might have actually headed for the pond.

Also on the subject of being blessed…and turkey dinners…my wife brought home a modest-sized bird from the grocery store the other day, to cook up on Friday. Plans are to spend the day at home, decking the halls and putting up the Christmas tree, and playing board games.

EXAIR, like a lot of American businesses, will be closed until Monday. Whatever your plans are for the holiday weekend, I wish, for you and yours, the richest of blessings. If you’re spending this time treasuring each others’ company, then that’s a wish well wished.

Happy Thanksgiving,
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

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Customer Uses Chip Trapper to Recover Boron Carbide from Slurry for Disposal

Published on by Neal RakerLeave a comment

boron carbideCT

In this short story, our customer operates multiple water jet cutting machines. They have slurry buckets stationed at each machine. When the slurry bucket becomes full, they want to empty the bucket and dispose of the slurry.

The customer wanted to use the model 6198 Chip Trapper to perform the function of filtering the Boron Carbide from the water component of the slurry. Boron Carbide is a very hard material used for making armor plating for everything from bullet proof vests to tank armor. Being such a hard material, the abrasive factor is really high. They were concerned about the abrasive nature of the material and contacted me to check and see if this material would present a problem for our system. Turns out that the Chip Trapper will operate just fine without any degrading of performance. The reason is that there are no moving parts that could be worn by the abrasive material moving through. In fact, the abrasive material never comes into contact with the pump of the Chip Trapper. The slurry is directed straight into a 5 micron filtering bag where the solids are pulled out. The remaining water is pumped out of the Chip Trapper into a water treatment system for proper disposal.

The customer did have a few questions regarding what was included with model 6198 Chip Trapper. The answer is basically, everything you would need to get the unit assembled and operational is included with the Chip Vac. The only input required from the customer is the compressed air utility which is in reasonable supply for this customer’s facility.

The customer placed their order with me directly and asked for a tracking number which was sent followed by the invoice which he needed to expense his credit card purchase.

If you have an application where you need to vacuum up an abrasive solid that is mixed in with water or some other non-flammable fluid, give the Chip Trapper consideration. You will be glad you did.

Neal Raker, Application Engineer
nealraker@exair.com