Tag: Adjustable Air Amplifier

6 Steps to get the most out of your Compressed Air System: Engineered Products

Published on by Jordan T ShouseLeave a comment

If you’re reading the EXAIR Blog, you’re probably well aware that compressed air is the most expensive utility in an industrial environment. The average cost to generate 1000 Standard Cubic Feet of compressed air is $0.25. If you’re familiar with how much air you use on a daily basis, you’ll understand just how quickly that adds up.

To make matters worse, many compressed air systems waste significant amounts of compressed air just through leaks. According to the Compressed Air Challenge, a typical plant that has not been well maintained will likely have a leak rate of approximately 20%!! Good luck explaining to your finance department that you’re carelessly wasting 20% of the most expensive utility.

The six steps to optimizing your compressed air system is something we cover a fair amount on this blog. And there is a real reason for that. Yes, we sell compressed air products. But we are also aware compressed air costs money to generate, so using this source responsibly is very important.

This is where the 6 steps come into play, but today we are just covering Step 3. Which is upgrading your blow off, cooling and drying operations using engineered compressed air products. (If you want to read about the other 5 steps, check them out here, Step #1, Step #2, Step #4, Step #5, Step #6)

I compare step three to replacing your house windows. We recently got some prices to replace our windows, but along with that comes the cost savings we expect to get as they are better designed now than in the 1990ies to retain your temperature inside. Thus reducing the cost to cool and heat your home.

Similar to my “upgrade” to new windows, upgrading blow offs, cooling and drying operations using engineered compressed air products is Step 3 in EXAIR’s Six Steps To Optimizing Your Compressed Air System. We’ve assigned an order to these steps in accordance with basic good engineering practice & protocol, but it’s not necessary to follow them in any particular order. In fact, all six steps really don’t apply to every single compressed air system.

Step 3 does apply to most systems, though. I spent a fair amount of time in all sorts of industrial facilities in my previous roles, and almost all the time, regardless of the industry or the size of the facility, the maintenance and production part of the facility used air guns. However, I don’t recall ever seeing an engineered nozzle on one before I came to EXAIR. Since then, I’ve worked with a bunch of users to dramatically reduce compressed air consumption by replacing their cheap and inefficient air guns with EXAIR Safety Air Guns, or by retrofitting EXAIR Super Air Nozzles onto their existing air guns. We actually carry adapters to fit our Super Air Nozzles to a number of readily commercially available air guns for that very purpose.

In addition to air guns & nozzles, our Air Knives have a long history of replacing drilled pipes & pipe manifolds with inefficient nozzles used to make a curtain of air flow. The following chart details the savings you can get from the use of a 24″ Super Air Knife instead of similar devices for a 24″ wide air curtain:

Even though an electric powered blower will use less electricity than the amount of electricity an air compressor uses to supply an engineered product like the Super Air Knife, the maintenance costs make the total cost of ownership eclipse that of the engineered Air Knife.

Our Case Study Library documents many real-world situations where customers worked with us to gather & publish “before/after” documentation, proving the benefits of Step 3. I encourage you to check those out, and if you think you might have an opportunity to do a Case Study with us, we offer discounts or credit for that…give me a call.

Jordan Shouse
Application Engineer

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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

Super Air Amplifiers vs. Fans

Published on by jasonkirbyLeave a comment

When it comes to blowoff, cooling, and ventilation, most people will immediately think of a fan as the best option for these needs. It makes sense. People use fans everywhere. They’re in the kitchen, the gym, your car, pretty much anywhere you go, there will be a situation where a fan is used. But what about industrial use? Is it the best option? Is it the only option? This is something that the majority of people probably haven’t thought of, but if you have, you may have found your head, well…spinning.

Here at EXAIR, we have thought about it, and have come up with some of the most innovative and cutting edge designs for point of use compressed air products on the market. The EXAIR Super Air Amplifier is one of those products. The Super Air Amplifier features a patented design that incorporates a unique shim to ensure the precise positioning of its component parts, thereby delivering a consistent volume of compressed air at specific intervals directed towards the center. The jets of air generate a continuous, high-velocity outflow that spans the entire cross-sectional area of the output flow. Furthermore, additional ambient air is drawn into the unit, leading to increased amplification ratios. The optimized airflow from the outlet reduces wind shear, resulting in sound levels that are generally three times lower than those of conventional air movers.

Fans, on the other hand, function differently from the Super Air Amplifier. Many of the fans used for cooling are centrifugal style fans which are also known as blowers. These systems use an impeller that consists of a central shaft with blades that form a circle around a central opening. Blowers produce a high volume of air at a high velocity and low pressure. Fans can take up a significant amount of space, and can require a fair amount of maintenance over the course of their operating lifetime. An additional, and arguably more significant drawback, is that a blower raises the temperature of the air being expelled, which diminishes the air’s capacity to absorb further heat and efficiently provide cooling.

Simply put, Super Air Amplifiers are a cost-effective alternative to blower systems and can be more efficient in certain situations. They are able to amplify the airflow without the need for electricity or moving parts, and their laminar output makes them a simpler and more effective and reliable option. In many cases, Super Air Amplifiers can provide the same level of performance as blowers at a fraction of the cost. This makes them a practical choice for businesses looking to save money without sacrificing functionality.

If you have any questions about the Super Air Amplifier, or any of our other EXAIR products, please do not hesitate to reach out. Our group of specialized Application Engineers will be happy to assist you in any way we can.

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

5S + Constant Evolution = 6S

Published on by Brian FarnoLeave a comment
A sticker on my dad’s old lunch box. I still use the lunchbox today. He worked for a steel mill in maintenance for more than 35 years. This was from one of their many safety program pushes.

6S is a standard in many facilities. This standard spawns from the Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma standards of 5S. Of course, it adds one more characteristic to it: the sixth S, Safety. Back in 2006, I achieved a Green Belt in Six Sigma and Safety was mentioned a good amount as a driver for several of the processes. The fact Safety was not one of the fives shows two things, I’m getting older and getting closer to that age where I have been out of school longer than I was in; and Safety is and should be a top priority, maybe it always should have been.

In case you have never been introduced to Lean Manufacturing or Six Sigma, this principle focuses on a single piece flow and optimizing a work process to minimize the amount of time it takes. This increases efficiency in the manufacturing process and ultimately puts money back into the bottom line of the business.

The first S is Sort, you should remove anything that is not needed for the production process, this could be additional tooling or resources that are not needed for the specific work station or task. This prevents any kind of clutter or confusion on what is needed.

The second S is Set In Order, just like the photo above, every tool and bin should have it’s place at the work station. This helps operators find what they need when they need it. The outlines also give a visual indicator to any tool or device that may be missing and or in use. Again, it helps with the operators time efficiency and reduces risk of leaving a tool in a process.

Third is SHINE, every aspect of a work area should be cleaned up, sometimes this needs to be done throughout the shift and other times just at the end of the shift to put everything back in place and prepare for the next operator or day. When I worked in retail I would hear managers tell people, “You have time to lean, you have time to clean.” and while it isn’t the best approach, it is a true statement. This does contribute to keeping production running at high efficiency, being able to spot leaks or wear issues on equipment that aren’t caked in chips, grease, and used fluids. It can also aid with safety by preventing slips or falls from a leak or debris building up from a process.

Fourth, Standardize, this means all work areas should look the same, maybe not the exact same tools, or process, but any operator should be able to walk into a work station, read the documentation, and be able to function sufficiently. This also helps to keep the old ways of tribal knowledge from happening which will prevent changes and adjustments from not being documented and will help to reduce learning curves when changes happen.

Fifth, Sustain, this is one of the hardest. This means the standards that have been set in place are kept. Repetition is key in a scenario where 5S or 6S are being implemented and even where they have been set in place for a while. Revisiting the standards and ensuring they are aligned to production and operator needs is always good.

A Safety Sticker from my dad’s 1988 lunchbox that I still use to this day. They were running safety programs before it was cool.

Sixth, Safety, this should always be at the forefront of any process. Being able to keep operators safe during a work day is always a high priority and one of the many ways to do that is to use the other five Ss to make sure that they can efficiently and safely work throughout their day.

Whether it is replacing open pipe blowoffs with engineered nozzles, cross drilled blowguns with Safety Air Guns, installing Line Vacs to help evacuate trim or debris, Super Air Amplifiers to cool down a part before it is being handled. I’ve even helped customers with custom length air hoses to ensure their operators can’t reach the air hose into a process too far in order to ensure operator safety. EXAIR is always focused on safety and ensuring our products help increase process efficiency. If you want to see how we can help you and your team, contact an Application Engineer today.

Brian Farno, MBA – CCASS Application Engineer

BrianFarno@EXAIR.com
@EXAIR_BF