Accessories to Supplement Your Line Vac

Published on by jasonkirbyLeave a comment

An essential rule you should follow when with accessories is that less is more. That remains true when it comes to Line Vac applications. Strategically placed accessories can help in the efficiency and productivity of your application.

Let’s start with the basics. The Line Vac Kits will offer three different accessories that can enhance the overall performance when using EXAIR‘s Line Vac System. Mounting brackets, filter separators, and pressure regulators are tools to enhance the quality and production of your application. Mounting brackets can be for stationary applications that require two hands, or a set placement of the Line Vac. Filter separators are a great way to ensure your Line Vac is provided with clean, moisture-free air, resulting in optimum performance. Lastly, the pressure regulator is a great way to regulate your pressure to increase or decrease your flow, or to make sure your Line Vac is provided with smooth and consistent compressed air supply.

EXAIR also stocks various I.D. sizes of conveyance hose. These PVC hoses are offered in lengths up to 50′, and are ideal for conveying applications. The flexible hose has a smooth internal bore that eliminates material build up. The reinforced walls of these hoses are clear, which helps in monitoring what you convey. These hoses are rated for -4 to 150F temperatures.

The Line Vac Drum Cover is another accessory that can assist in your application running as smoothly as possible. The fine mesh non-woven Drum Cover is built to fit over the top of 55 or 30 gallon drums. The breathable material allows the air from the Line Vac air operated conveyor to circulate, whether you are moving material into, or out of the drum. This cover also offers containment for your conveyed material, making sure no material is lost in your application.

Adding accessories to your Line Vac application is a proven way to increase efficiency and reliability. If you have questions about the Line Vac accessories offered by EXAIR, or any of EXAIR’s products, please reach out to any of our Application Engineers for assistance. A little extra help can make a world of difference.

Jason Kirby
Application Engineer
Email: jasonkirby@exair.com
Twitter: @EXAIR_jk

Super Air Knife Solves Condensation Labeling Issue for Pharmaceutical Manufacturer

Published on by Tyler DanielLeave a comment

In the pharmaceutical industry, it’s rather critical to ensure products are appropriately marked and labeled. This allows for proper tracing of the product throughout the manufacturing process and ensures the end customer has the necessary information they need on the container the products are packaged in.

For some processes in this industry, labeling applications present a few problems. While in many cases the problems are attributed to static electricity, I recently worked on an application for removing condensation prior to a labeling process. While this is a common application we help serve in the Food & Beverage Industry, this one was a first for me with regards to pharmaceuticals.

The manufacturer of a variety of different pharmaceutical products used for animals was having an issue with a few of their products they produce. They had a line that processes a variety of different styles of products, but with one particular type they were having this issue with the label application.

Some of their products must be held at relatively low temperatures. Throughout the filling process they are held within a refrigerated zone. The area in the facility where the labels are applied is also climate-controlled, but not completely refrigerated. The bottles are only in this location for the brief labeling process before being placed back into coolers, but it was not possible for them to relocate the labeling process elsewhere.

The issue they were having was occurring during the warmer, humid days of summer. As the bottles were placed into the labeling machine, condensation would form that prohibits the label from correctly adhering. This led to a lot of rework and manual label application, while also contributing to some waste as products were held outside of refrigeration for too long.

They began seeking out a solution for blowing off the residual condensation prior to labeling and contacted EXAIR for a solution. To combat this problem, we implemented a two-tiered blowoff solution. There was a rotating table where the product is initially held, (2) Model 110024SS-316 Stainless Steel Super Air Knives were used to provide an initial blowoff inside the contained area. This took care of some of that initial condensation, but left some bottles with still a bit of residual moisture that was still creating issues.

We added a Model 120020 ¾” Super Air Amplifier to blow on each individual bottle immediately prior to labeling to take care of any condensation that formed after the initial blowoff. With both of these solutions in place, the condensation is immediately stripped off the outside of the vials and allows for a clean label application each and every time.

EXAIR offers a wide range of products that can be used for blowoff. Options are available in 316 Stainless Steel from stock for a variety of applications in both the Food and Pharmaceutical Industries.

For help selecting the best products for your process, get in contact with one of EXAIR’s Application Engineers today.

Tyler Daniel, CCASS

Application Engineer

E-mail: TylerDaniel@EXAIR.com

X: @EXAIR_TD

Sanitary Flange Line Vac in Food Service

Published on by jasonkirbyLeave a comment

It’s inevitable, we are all going to have an unfortunate run in with some bad food that is going to make us sicker than a dog.  Maybe it wasn’t cooked long enough?  Maybe it wasn’t stored properly?  Maybe it’s the mighty Montezuma seeking revenge for being defeated by the Spanish?  OK, maybe not the last one.  Whatever the case may be, the importance of food safety is not something to be taken lightly.

EXAIR Line Vacs: For bulk material conveyance through lines from 3/8″ to 6″, in aluminum, 303SS, 316SS, or abrasion resistant hardened alloy, available from stock with the widest variety of connections in the industry.

Ensuring the safety and quality of food and beverage products is crucial in preventing contamination and spoilage.  This makes the Sanitary Flange Line Vac a perfect fit for the food and beverage industry. Made from 316SS, the EXAIR‘s Sanitary Flange Line Vac is the best way to convey materials in systems which require frequent or mandatory cleaning.  The Sanitary Line Vac is perfect to use within an existing sanitary piping system, and can be used to transport bulk materials, packaging parts, and product waste.

These compressed air operated conveyor systems are stocked in sizes of 1.5″, 2″, 2.5″, and 3″. This is a low maintenance product with no moving parts, which keeps production moving at a quick and easy pace, which can also be regulated by your compressed air supply. The Sanitary Flange Line Vac is compatible with ISO 2852, and fits standard sanitary flanges. Some of the more common applications are material conveying, hopper loading, and filling operations.

The EXAIR Sanitary Flange Line Vac is offered individually, and as a kit. The kit will include the Line Vac, mounting bracket, filter separator, and pressure regulator with coupler. If you have questions about the Sanitary Flange Line Vac, or any of the EXAIR compressed air products, please give us a call or shoot and email through our tech help line, where our team of qualified Application Engineers will be happy to assist you.

Jason Kirby
Application Engineer
Email: jasonkirby@exair.com
Twitter: @EXAIR_jk

Where Does It Go?

Published on by Brian FarnoLeave a comment
The Line Vac conveys scrap trim quickly and easily, and can be sized for most any product.

The EXAIR Line Vacs can be used for anything from launching bean bags to more popular uses like removing scrap, trim or conveying dry goods. An example of this is shown below where chips from drive train differentials are removed using this setup with a 2” Line Vac. The Line Vac is positioned at the top of this purpose built assembly and the bottom shroud fits over the differential housing of what will become a drive axle. It has internal nozzles to generate positive air flow within the housing in order to direct the chips into the suction side of the Line Vac.

For some applications like this, the discharge side of the Line Vac is connected to a hose and aimed into a bin or some form of a container without a lid, or filter, anything to simply catch the larger pieces of swarf. In other operations, the output flow may go straight into something as small as a 5 gallon bucket.   Rather than blowing all of this debris, sand, or dirt into an open-top container and risk it being released back into the local area, or missing the container and falling onto the floor, it can be channeled into a container with one of our Drum Covers.

The Drum Cover is a general purpose filter material that will trap debris inside either a 30 or 55 gallon open-top container that has a rolled lip on it. The spout of the Drum Cover can accept up to a 3″ flexible conveyance hose and includes several hose clamps to be able to secure the discharge hose down into the container. This means you could also put two or three smaller hoses if it is a small trim or debris removal, and combine all into a single container to simplify the cleanup. These have also been used to help convey adhesive backing paper out of an automation zone and into an area where operators can easily stay out of the way of production equipment and remotely empty waste bins.

                        We have seen this work in multiple applications from collecting sand from a drilling operation that was being performed on a sand casting, to material trim removal and metal chip removal from machining operations.   If you want more information on these or have a similar application, feel free to contact me.

Brian Farno, MBA – CCASS Application Engineer

BrianFarno@EXAIR.com
@EXAIR_BF