A blow molding facility contacted me about an energy audit. He had 40 machines that were operating at his facility. His compressed air system was able to produce 1200 SCFM (2,039 M^3/hr) of compressed air at 435 psig (30 Bar). He understood the cost to produce compressed air, and how it would affect the bottom line. He wanted to evaluate each blow molding line to monitor the amount of compressed air being used by each machine. Compressed air is a necessary utility, and when you use large portions in your operation, like in blow molding, you need to observe the usage because it can eat into your profits.
As machines get older, or modifications are made, compressed air use can increase. You can have a cylinder that is bypassing, worn out seals, a valve that does not completely close, or fittings that start leaking. Like a drip in your faucet, it adds up rather quickly. For his energy audit, he placed an EXAIR Digital Flow Meter with the USB Data Logger on each compressed air line that was feeding a machine. He had two types of blow molding machines, a single stage and a two stage. With the USB Data Logger, he was able to record the amount of compressed air being used by each machine. He downloaded the information into Excel which included time stamps. He took that information to see how much compressed air was being used to run certain products on certain machines. He then compared the information to know which machines to target for maintenance.
In the end, he was able to identify some of the problems with his machines, and he could better track the cost to produce each product. To be more competitive as a manufacturer, you have to start looking at energy costs, which includes the compressed air system. With EXAIR products, we can measure the current use, find the problems, provide efficient engineered products, and measure the savings. If you would like to go over your compressed air system with our Application Engineers, you can contact us at EXAIR.
John Ball
Application Engineer
Email: johnball@exair.com
Twitter: @EXAIR_jb