The Value of Precision

Why EXAIR Delivers More Than โ€œCheapโ€ Alternatives Ever Can

The Overlooked Opportunity in Compressed Air Efficiency

In the compressed air industry, most efficiency initiatives focus on the production side of the system. Significant resources are invested in improving compressor efficiency, upgrading controls, managing pressure drops, and recovering heat. At the same time, leak detection and repair programs have rightly gained momentum as a powerful way to eliminate waste.

These efforts are essentialโ€”and they should absolutely continue.

However, there is a third major opportunity for efficiency that is frequently overlooked:
the products used at the point of use.

In many facilities, compressed air is consumed by open pipes, improvised blow-offs, improperly sized nozzles, or low-cost devices that were never engineered for efficiency. Some compressed air advisors focus exclusively on eliminating compressed air applications entirely. While that approach has its place, it ignores an important reality:

Compressed air is an extremely valuable, flexible, and effective utility when it is used correctly.

The real opportunity is not just to produce compressed air more efficiently or stop leaksโ€”it is to use compressed air more intelligently where it actually does the work.

This is where engineered compressed air products come into play.

Manufacturers like EXAIR demonstrate that compressed air does not have to be inherently wasteful. Through precision engineering, optimized air entrainment, and applicationโ€‘specific design, EXAIR products dramatically reduce air consumption while improving performance, safety, and reliability.

The result is a smarter compressed air strategyโ€”one that recognizes that efficient pointโ€‘ofโ€‘use products are just as important as efficient compressors and proactive leak management.


Precision That Pays You Back

When evaluating compressed air products, itโ€™s easy to focus on purchase price alone. But in real-world industrial environments, the actual cost isnโ€™t what you pay upfront, itโ€™s what you pay to operate, maintain, and replace that product over time.

Thatโ€™s where EXAIR stands apart.

EXAIR products are engineered to deliver measurable energy savings, safer operation, and long-term reliability, helping customers lower operating costs while improving productivity and compliance.


Save Energy. Reduce Operating Costs.

Compressed air is one of the most expensive utilities in any plant. Even small inefficiencies at the point of use can result in thousands of dollars in wasted electricity each year.

What makes EXAIR different:
EXAIR air nozzles and air amplifiers are precisionโ€‘engineered to maximize air entrainment while minimizing compressed air consumption. Compared to open pipes or lowโ€‘cost alternatives with crude internal geometry, EXAIR products can typically reduce air usage by 30โ€“50%.

What this means for the customer:

  • Lower energy costs
  • Reduced compressor run time and maintenance
  • Fast, measurable ROIโ€”often in months

A nozzle that costs less today may silently waste far more tomorrow.


Builtโ€‘In Safety. Builtโ€‘In Compliance.

Safety is not optionalโ€”and nonโ€‘compliant compressed air devices introduce risk for both employees and the organization.

What makes EXAIR different:
EXAIR products are engineered to meet OSHA requirements for noise levels and deadโ€‘end pressure, reducing the risk of injury and eliminating compliance concerns that often accompany lowโ€‘cost imports.

What this means for our customers:

  • Lower workplace risk
  • Easier EHS audits
  • Confidence that safety has been designed into the solutionโ€”not added later

With EXAIR, safety is part of the product, not a compromise.


Reliability That Protects Uptime

Downtime is expensive. Failures caused by clogging, worn components, or inconsistent manufacturing often show up at the worst possible moment.

What makes EXAIR different:
Many EXAIR productsโ€”including Vortex Tubes and Air Knivesโ€”are designed with no moving parts. No bearings to fail. No internal mechanisms to wear out. Just consistent, repeatable performance.

What this means for the customer:

  • Maximum uptime
  • Minimal maintenance
  • Long service life, even in harsh environments

Install it once. Depend on it for years.


More Than a Productโ€”An Engineering Partner

Low-cost compressed air products often come with little more than a tracking number. When performance issues arise, the support ends at delivery.

What makes EXAIR different:
Every EXAIR solution is supported by experienced Application Engineers who help ensure the product is properly selected, sized, and applied.

What this means for our customers:

  • Faster implementation
  • Optimized performance
  • Reduced trialโ€‘andโ€‘error costs

You are not just buying a compressed air product, you are gaining our expertise in solving the very problems that plague manufacturing processes.


The EXAIR Value Proposition

When customers choose EXAIR, they gain:

  • Lower energy consumption
  • Improved safety and compliance
  • Proven durability and reliability
  • Expert application support

All of this delivers the lowest total cost of ownershipโ€”not just the lowest purchase price.

Before choosing a cheaper alternative, the real question is:

  • What is the cost of wasted compressed air over time?
  • What is the cost of downtime?
  • What is the risk of nonโ€‘compliant equipment?

EXAIR is precision engineering that pays for itself.

Neal Raker, Application Engineering Manager
nealraker@exair.com

Air Amplifiers – Done Your Way

Photo by Ryan McGuire Licensed by Pixabay

Air Amplifiers are amazing tools that pack a punch (if the punch is a ton of air flow). Imagine an amplification rate up to 25 times. You supply 29 SCFM and yield 730 SCFM coming out? It’s incredible. These little beauties work by flowing compressed air (80psig) through the inlet to the annular chamber. It is then throttled through a small ring nozzle at a high velocity. This Airstream employs the Coanda profile directing all this air to the outlet. Although you should never blow air at a person, a little bit of air input, would easily produce the results to the right!

Why would you use these? See below for starters:

Although we have many options to choose from, sometimes you may need something outside the box. Maybe it’s a different size? A different Material? A different fitting? Ask us we do have many ways to customize this product. Here are 3 examples of things we have done in the past.

The High Temp Air Amplifier (right) was developed for moving hot air to surface needing uniform heating while in a furnace or oven. This is designed for temps up to 700ยฐF, and is now a standard offering in 1 1/4″.

Another example of a “Special” Air Amplifier is a stainless steel version with a flange mount (left). This was designed for exhausting flue gases from a furnace. If there were a power failure, this Special Air Amplifier will quickly evacuate harmful fumes, prior to affecting the workers.

A third “Special” was made when we were brought an application that required a sticky material to be pulled through the Air Amplifier, and it was unable to stick to the inside of the Amplifier. So we developed an Adjustable Air Amplifier with e PTFE Plug (Right), so the material would not stick.

If you have an application that requires a tool that is not quite in line with what we offer, don’t hesitate to reach out. I can’t promise you that we will be able to make it for you, but I can promise you that we will look at it and give it our best shot.

Thank you for stopping by,

Brian Wages

Application Engineer EXAIR Corporation
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NIOSH Hierarchy of Controls

Last year I hosted a Webinar about the NIOSH Hierarchy of Controls and compressed air safety! You can watch that here on our website!

The hierarchy of controls is a strategy that originates from NIOSH (National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health). NIOSH is the federal agency responsible for conducting research and making recommendations for the prevention of work-related injury and illness. This hierarchy is their recommendation for increasing safety for personnel by taking specific steps and how each step increases safety moving from bottom to top of the pyramid. In this blog I will explain the main elements of the HIERARCHY OF CONTROLS and illustrate how to reach the highest level of control with important compressed air safety standards.

The least effective methods are Administrative Controls and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). Administrative Controls involve making changes to the way people perform the work and promoting safe practices through training. The training could be related to correct operating procedures, keeping the workplace clean, emergency response to incidents, and personal hygiene practices, such as proper hand washing after handling hazardous materials. PPE is the least effective method because the personnel themselves make the choice to wear them or not wear them in any particular situation. They can be trained on the risks of not using PPE equipment (ear plugs, gloves, respirators, etc.) but we all know it does not always get used. PPE can also become damaged, may be uncomfortable and not used, or used incorrectly.

In the middle range of effectiveness is Engineering Controls. These controls are implemented by design changes to the equipment or process to reduce or eliminate the hazard. Good engineering controls can be very effective in protecting people regardless of the the actions and behaviors of the workers. While higher in initial cost than Administrative controls or PPE, typically operating costs are lower, and a cost saving may be realized in the long run.

The final two, Elimination and Substitution are the most effective but can be the most difficult to integrate into an existing process. If the process is still in the design phase, it may be easier and less expensive to eliminate or substitute the hazard. Elimination of the hazard would be the ultimate and most effective method, either by removing the hazard altogether, or changing the work process so the hazard is no longer part of the process.

EXAIR can help your company follow the Hierarchy of Controls, and eliminate, or substitute the hazards of compressed air use with relative ease. 

Home of Intelligent Compressed Air Products

Engineers can eliminate loud and unsafe pressure nozzles with designs that utilize quiet and intelligent compressed air products such as Air Nozzles, Air Knives and Air Amplifiers. Also, unsafe existing products such as air guns, can be substituted with EXAIR engineered solutions that meet the OSHA standards 29 CFR 1910.242(b) and 29 CFR 1910.95(a).

Elimination and Substitution are the most effective methods and should be used whenever possible to reduce or eliminate the hazard and keep people safe in the workplace. EXAIR products can be easily substituted for existing, unsafe compressed air products in many cases. And to avoid the hazard altogether, remember EXAIR when designing productsย  or processes which require compressed air use for cooling, cleaning, ejection, and more.ย 

If you have questions about the Hierarchy of Controls and safe compressed air usage from any of the 15 different EXAIR Intelligent Compressed Airยฎ Product lines, feel free to contact EXAIR and myself or any of our Application Engineers can help you determine the best solution

Jordan Shouse
Application Engineer

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Hierarchy of Controls Image:  used from  Public Domain

Understanding Air Entrainment

EXAIR uses the word entrainment a lot, all of our blowoff products use the principle to amplify the air stream and increase efficiency. But, what is entrainment and what causes the phenomenon? Entrainment can be defined as a fluid that is swept along into an existing moving fluid. This brings Bernoulli’s equation into the picture. When looking at specific situations and conditions Bernoulli’s equation can show some interesting significance with gases.

Bernoulli’s Equation

Bernoulli’s equation takes into account four main variables which are Pressure (P), Density (r), Velocity (v), and a height difference (z); along with a single constant for gravity. you can see the relationship between the velocity squared and the pressure from the equation above.ย  Being that this relationship is a constant along the streamline; when the velocity increases; the pressure has to come down. Now we have to look at how fluids like to behave. Fluids within a system like to be at a constant pressure when at the same height and reach a state of equilibrium. This means that fluids will always flow towards a low pressure area, which means that if you create a constant low pressure area you can amplify the air stream. This is the same principle as to why airplanes can fly.

EXAIR Super Air Nozzle entrainment

Since compressed air can be an expensive utility, it is good to minimize it and maximize the surrounding entrained air. Therefore we have designed our products to use this entrainment principle to amplify the air blast while using less compressed air and more entrained ambient air. Products like our Super Air Knife can see an amplification ratio (ambient air to compressed air) of up to 40:1; this means for every 1 SCFM of compressed air used we are entraining 40 SCFM of ambient air.

EXAIR’s Super Air Knife

We use this principle for our Air Amplifiers, Air Knifes, Air Nozzles and Jets, Safety Air Guns, and our Gen4ย Static Eliminators. Our goal is to save you money and give you better results in the process. ย 

If you have questions about any of our engineered Intelligent Compressed Airยฎ Products, feel free to contact EXAIR or any Application Engineer.

Cody Biehle
Application Engineer
EXAIR Corporation
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