Tag: competition

3.2.1…Fight Robots FIGHT!

Published on by Brian FarnoLeave a comment

I have mentioned before that my undergrad degree is from the University of Cincinnati. The Combat Robotics Team was not a thing back then; in fact, robot fighting was still high-level and just coming around to the mainstream. Well, this past weekend, I had the chance to attend my first-ever PLANT at UC’s 1819 Innovation Hub.

What is PLANT, you ask? It is a class of combat robots restricted to PLA, ABS, or PETG construction materials. The bots cannot weigh more than 1 pound and have some other guidelines generally set forth by SPARC. The teams generally design these bots as scaled-down versions of the bots they plan to build and take on larger battles. In addition, they must weigh no more than 1 pound. They are mostly 3D printed, and the benefit is that they are a cost savings to manufacture and then test against other similar-sized bots to try and see how a design may work out in a larger form.

Because these bots are all 3D printed, they can test complex geometries without the cost of the machining hours. This also helps them to see the value a complex part may add or helps them to come up with other methods to manufacture the product. The entire point is for them to test on a small scale with lower impact/risk, then scale up.

Super Air Knife installed

When talking with customers here at EXAIR about projects that may require long Super Air Knives to blow off an entire conveyor belt, we will often suggest doing a scaled test. Use a 12″ Super Air Knife to test an edge or a dedicated section of the belt. If a stock EXAIR product is tested, it can be returned within 30 days of the date of the order. This means you can take a small test section, with low risk, put it in place, and test it under production scenarios for nearly a month, and then contact us to let us know whether it works or not. Get a sales return order for the shorter length, and then scale up for the full demand of the application.

EXAIR’s offering a 30-day guarantee on stock products truly reduces the risk of testing out even a full-length Super Air Knife if you want to. This can sometimes give the decision makers the last little bit of confidence that EXAIR is the correct team to work with. If you want to discuss how we can help your production lines, contact an Application Engineer today.

Brian Farno, MBA – CCASS Application Engineer

BrianFarno@EXAIR.com
@EXAIR_BF

EXAIR Air Wipes Offer an Improvement Over Competition

Published on by Dave WoernerLeave a comment

Last week, I had a customer using a competitor’s air wipes to remove water from an extrusion. These were air wipes built from UHMW blocks or similar material with a hinge and some air holes drilled in it.  He had several extrusion lines, and on each of these lines he used several air wipes. The one positive of these air wipes is they used less air than EXAIR’s Air Wipes, so on paper they seem the better choice. In practice it took 5 of these Air Wipes to do the job of one EXAIR Super Air Wipe. In addition to being more effective, EXAIR Air Wipes were also less expensive and produced a lower noise level.

The customer had two sizes of air wipes. The smaller version was a 1/2″ Air Wipe which used 8.3 SCFM (times 2 = 16.6 SCFM) at 80 PSIG, but it produced a noise level of 85 dBA. EXAIR Super Air Wipe, model number 2400, requires 13.9 SCFM and produces a quiet noise level of 75 dBA at 80 PSIG inlet pressure. EXAIR’s air wipe is able to easily remove water from an extrusion in a single pass. The 360 degree uniform blast of air works to remove water evenly and quickly. We offer the Air Wipes in aluminum and stainless steel with a braided stainless steel air line to join the two halves of a clamshell design.  The EXAIR 1/2 Air Wipe produced a much better blow off while reducing noise level by 10 dBA.

Super Air Wipe
1/2″ Super Air Wipe

The larger version of the air wipe was a 2″ unit that used 15.3 SCFM (times 3 = 45.9 SCFM) of compressed air and created 80 dBA of noise at 80 PSIG of inlet pressure. The EXAIR 2″ Super Air Wipe, model 2402, used 29.5 SCFM and lowered the sound level to 77 dBA at 80 PSIG of inlet pressure.  The EXAIR Super Air Wipes also were significantly thinner than the competitive offering which allows them to fit in tighter spaces. The EXAIR 2″ Air Wipe is 1.125″ in depth, the competitor’s product was more than 4″ long. By reducing the amount of the space need on the line and reducing the number of Air Wipes needed EXAIR was able to supply a better Air Wipe for their extrusion process.

 

EXAIR 2" Super Air Wipe
EXAIR 2″ Super Air Wipe

Dave Woerner
Application Engineer
@EXAIR_DW
DaveWoerner@EXAIR.com

The Best Lunch Is One Prepared For You

Published on by Brian FarnoLeave a comment

This past week was another celebration here at EXAIR, in case you didn’t notice, we like to do that here.  This wasn’t a birthday, anniversary or someone leaving the team, it was another record breaker for the EXAIR team.   I know we have talked about cookouts before and these only happen for special occasions.   Nonetheless when you have the EXAIR management team, including the owner and President, grilling everyone’s lunch –  it is a great day.

You can see our Production Manager doing some quality inspection here.
You can see our Production Manager doing some quality inspection here.

This builds so much camaraderie through the ranks of EXAIR that I don’t know any way to do it better.   The entire time we had the cookout there was still no hiccup in our standard operations either, that means if you called in, you still got to speak to a live person and not a recording.   That is the level of service that we provide every day, every week, every month, and every year.   That is what sets us apart from any of our competition and allows us to continue to reach higher goals than we have ever reached before.

MMMmmmmmmm!!!!! Steak!
MMMmmmmmmm!!!!! Steak!

Now if you will excuse me,  I need to go take a jog and try to work myself out of this food coma from the steak.

Brian Farno
Application Engineer Manager
BrianFarno@EXAIR.com
@EXAIR_BF

 

I Just Saved 15% Of My Compressed Air Usage In 15 Minutes

Published on by Brian FarnoLeave a comment

I’ve been pretty entertained over the past few weeks with all the new commercials from a certain insurance company that boasts their ability to save you 15% in 15 minutes.  Well sure enough one of their competitors has now flipped that on them and turned it into almost a joke.  Their competitor now claims to save the same amount in half the amount of time.  While they never say the name it is still making sure that you get the point they are better than their competition.

dirtysales

While the commercials are funny and I do get a kick out them it is still just talk until you actually try them out.   Here at EXAIR we have our own competitors who will claim their flow is one less SCFM than a similar EXAIR product, or maybe 1 dBA quieter.   The fact of the matter is, they can say whatever they want to in advertisements, catalogs, on websites, or even blogs.   What matters is the actual performance of the products as well as the level of service you receive from the company before and after you purchase.  We’ve said it before, and we will say it again, the proof is in the pudding.

EXAIR will not only provide you with enough (if not more than enough) information before you purchase a product, we will also then stand behind the product with a 30 day guarantee.  To top all of that off, we make ourselves available through phone, email, fax, mail, live chat, or even stop in our facility.  The point is we are here to help and we aren’t going to disappear after you buy the product.

Note: Depending upon your current SCFM use and total capacity – you may be able to save 15% by just twisting on some engineered air nozzles in place of open blow offs. This could actually be performed in less than 15 minutes – you get the picture…

Brian Farno
Application Engineer
BrianFarno@EXAIR.com
@EXAIR_BF