In case you are new to the EXAIR blog, we talk a lot about the intelligent and safe use of compressed air. Most manufacturing facilities in the world have point-of-use compressed air and that will also equal to any that do, probably have a handheld blowgun in their facility which may or may not be safe and efficient. This may very quickly be one of the most common tools used throughout some facilities and is often the most overlooked when safety and efficiency are a concern.
The Soft Grip Safety Air Gun is a versatile safety air gun from EXAIR that can easily replace most of the loud and inefficient blowguns in a facility. The option to choose from 14 different engineered air nozzles, most of which are also available in multiple materials to fit the application just right, will give the ability to fit any operator’s requirement for force and flow. Couple that with the ability to add one of 8 different extension lengths or 6 different stay set hose lengths, and it will give the operators exactly what they need for those hard-to-reach areas while staying out of harm’s way. Lastly, the chip shield adds yet another layer of protection for the users and can be adjusted up and down on the extension to fit each application’s needs.
EXAIR’s Free Efficiency Lab
If you aren’t sure whether the handheld blowguns in your facility would meet or exceed OSHA standards for dead-end pressure and allowable noise level exposure, contact an Application Engineer today and send one to us for a FREE Efficiency Lab and find out which EXAIR Safety Air Gun is going to meet or exceed OSHA standards and your expectations.
At EXAIR ,our Application Engineering team strive to give our customers, the best advise possible. Very often we are going to have a product that is going to help in your application, but sometimes it’s. “Hey we don’t have what you’re looking for, but here is a resource I think will help!” We want to be a subject-matter expert to you, the person using the products on your compressed air system. And that is why most of our team here are Certified Compressed Air System Specialists (CCASS) through CAGI.
Since air compressors use a lot of electricity to make compressed air, it is important to use the compressed air as efficiently as possible. EXAIR has six simple steps to optimize your compressed air system. Following these steps will help you to cut electrical costs, reduce overhead, and improve your bottom line. In this blog, I will cover the first step – Measure the air consumption to find sources that use a lot of compressed air.
****But if you are interested in the other steps here are some blogs written by some of my colleagues! Step 2 , Step 3, Step 4, Step 5, Step 6. (Teaser, the Fall 2023 Webinar may be about Step 4!)
Processes lead to continuous improvement.
Real time Data is important to diagnose wasteful and problematic areas within your compressed air system. To measure air consumption, flow meters are used to find the volume or mass of compressed air per unit of time. Flow rates are very useful data points to find problems like leaks, over-use in blow-offs, waste calculations, and comparison analysis.There are many different types of flow meters. Many of them entail a breakdown of your current compressed air lines by cutting, welding, or dismantling for installation. This will add cost in downtime and maintenance staff. But, not with the EXAIR Digital Flowmeters. In this blog, I will share the features and benefits of the Digital Flowmeters including options for you to start measuring and optimizing your compressed air system in Step 1.
Overall, it only takes a few minutes to install and start measuring. The installation kit comes with a drill bit and a drill guide to properly locate the two holes on the pipe. The Digital Flowmeter uses a clamp to mount to the pipe and to seal the area around the probes. Once it is powered, the unit is ready to measure the air flow inside the pipe with a large LED display. The display can be customized to show flow readings in three different units; SCFM, M3/hr or M3/min; and, it can display the Daily Usage and Cumulative Usage.
To get started, the EXAIR Digital Flowmeter is a thermal dispersion device that can accurately measure compressed air flows. They use two sensing probes for comparative analysis. One probe is a temperature sensing probe, and the other is a flow-sensing probe. By comparing these, the Digital Flowmeter can measure precisely the mass air flow without needing to be recalibrated. They are a cost-effective, accurate, and simple way to measure compressed air flow. EXAIR stocks Digital Flowmeters to ship same day for U.S. and Canadian customers.
Digital Flow Meter with Data Logger
We also offer a 30-day unconditional guarantee to try them out. We stock meters for pipe diameters from ½” NPT to 4″ NPT Schedule 40 black pipe. EXAIR can also offer flow meters up to 8″ NPT black pipe; copper pipes with diameters from 3/4″ to 4″, and aluminum pipes with diameters ranging from 40mm to 101mm. If you have another type of piping for your compressed air system, you can give us the material, O.D. or I.D., and wall thickness. We may still be able to offer a Digital Flowmeter calibrated for you.
When you need to analyze your pneumatic components, flow is an important point in diagnosing the overall “health” of your compressed air system. EXAIR Digital Flowmeter can give you that important data point. With optimization, you can cut your energy consumption, find additional capacity, improve pneumatic efficiencies, and save yourself money. This blog is an overview of Step 1 of six steps. You may have more questions; and, that is great! You can find them in other EXAIR blogs, (linked above) or you can contact me or any of our Application Engineers here at EXAIR.
EXAIR manufactures a variety of Intelligent Compressed Air™ products that can cool, clean, coat, convey, and conserve. They’re designed with efficiency, OSHA safety, and high quality in mind. One of our best products for replacing open pipes for blow-off is our Super Air Nozzles. They will improve the safety for your personnel and save you much money by reducing the compressed air usage. The payback period is typically less than two months. What could make these products even better? Making them adjustable, with the ability to aim them exactly where you need them! EXAIR offers Swivel Fittings with our Air Nozzles and Jets to achieve this. In this blog, I will cover the features and benefits of both products.
EXAIR’s engineered Air Nozzles and Jets are designed to optimize your compressed air system. Inefficient solutions are commonly used in the form of inexpensive nozzles, and sometimes even worse, open pipes and tubes. An open pipe or tube, even if “flattened”, wastes an excessive amount of compressed air and is not OSHA compliant. The wasted compressed air can create problems in your facility due to unnecessarily high energy costs as well as pressure loss in your system, affecting other pneumatic processes. An open pipe or tube will also produce sound levels in excess of 100 dBA. At these noise levels, according to OSHA, permanent hearing damage can occur in just 2 hours of exposure. If one of your goals is to reduce air consumption and improve safety in your facility, look no further than EXAIR’s engineered Air Nozzles and Jets.
To add versatility to the EXAIR Air Nozzles and Jets, we offer Swivel Fittings. Swivel Fittings are a great way to securely install and aim EXAIR nozzles. They are dynamic, as they can be adjusted and set to a flow direction with 50-degrees of movement. They are made from stainless steel for corrosion resistance, with ports ranging from 4mm to 1” NPT. If you need positioning for precise blowing or adjustments for different locations, the Swivel Fittings could be a nice addition to include with your EXAIR Super Air Nozzles and Jets.
Companies that think about safety when using blowoff devices will evaluate the items that they purchase. Some of the more common fines for OSHA violations deal with loud noises and dead-end pressure. To avoid any future fines, it is important and more economical to purchase EXAIR products. If you would like to improve safety and save money with your current blow-off devices, an Application Engineer at EXAIR can help you select the appropriate items.
Much of the news cycle these past few weeks has covered this massive “heat dome” that’s elected to hang out over much of the Central and Midwestern US. As a result, temperatures for much of the US (and elsewhere in the world) have reached or exceeded record highs far more often than we’d expect from a typical summer. To add insult to injury, an El Niño weather pattern emerged in July that’s exacerbated the problem due to warming ocean temperatures in the Pacific.
While this heat has led to a wonderful pool year at the Daniel household, it’s not exactly an ideal situation for control panels in an industrial facility. As temperatures rise inside your plant, this can begin to cause issues with your electrical panels. Rather than letting the heat buildup inside, EXAIR offers our Cabinet Coolers to address this heat before problems arise.
Utilizing Vortex Tube technology, the Cabinet Cooler produces cold air from an ordinary supply of compressed air. This cold air keeps the enclosure free of debris and moisture and is easily installed in minutes through a standard electrical knockout. Here is a short video that shows just how simple it really is. The Cabinet Cooler Systems are available with NEMA 12 (IP54) ratings and are also available in Aluminum, 303 Stainless Steel, and 316 Stainless Steel construction for NEMA 4/4X (IP66) rated enclosures. For systems that are not able to be mounted on top of the cabinet, we also have Side Mount Kits available in Aluminum, 303 Stainless, and 316 Stainless.
I recently worked with a customer in the brewing industry that experienced a myriad of issues with their electrical panels last summer. Their maintenance manager came up with the idea to place a 5mm ID tube (operating at 4 BAR, or 58 psi) to keep the air purged with compressed air. While certainly wasteful, it did work for them for a period of time as temperatures began to creep up in their plant. However, as soon as temperatures began to rise to around 90°F inside, the warm compressed air was no longer effective. As high heat alarms began to sound throughout the shop floor, they began looking for an alternative solution.
They landed on the EXAIR website and filled out a Cabinet Cooler Sizing Guide. We were able to determine that our Model 4830 2000 Btu/hr system was more than enough to keep things at a safe temperature. Not only were we able to reduce their air consumption, but rather than blowing hot compressed air into the panel we were now delivering air 50°F cooler than the supplied compressed air. The vent that was permitting the compressed air to exhaust was sealed off, which helps keep the panel clean during months where cooling is not needed.
A 5mm ID tube operating at 4 BAR (58 psi) will consume 40.08 SCFM of compressed air. Our Model 4830 comes in at 30 SCFM at a pressure of 100 psi for rated operation. A 33% reduction in compressed air usage wasn’t necessarily their goal, but a welcomed result nonetheless. The Cabinet Cooler was installed in minutes and immediately solved their overheating issues. With several more panels in the facility using the same ineffective method of cooling, they plan to outfit all their panels with an EXAIR Cabinet Cooler.
Don’t wait until you have a line down to start fixing the issues with your electrical cabinets. Contact an EXAIR Application Engineer today. We’ll help ensure you’re able to operate year-round WITHOUT heat-related shutdowns.
