Tag: cP

March is National Cerebral Palsy Awareness Month.

Published on by Jordan T ShouseLeave a comment

March is National Cerebral Palsy Awareness Month, a time dedicated to raising awareness about cerebral palsy (CP), celebrating those who live with it, and advocating for better support and research. As someone personally touched by CP, I find this month incredibly meaningful. My son, Lincoln, was diagnosed with spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy at age one, and our journey has been one of challenges, triumphs, and a deepened appreciation for the strength found in our community. This month, marked by the vibrant color green and the #GoGreen4CP movement, encourages us all to learn more about CP—a neurological condition affecting movement and muscle tone—and to push for inclusivity in education, healthcare, and beyond.

For me, the #GoGreen4CP movement is more than just a campaign; it’s a reflection of our daily life. Lincoln’s form of CP is the most severe form of spastic CP and affects all four limbs, the trunk, and the face, making mobility a hurdle, but his determination shines through every step he takes with his walker or pedal on his adaptive bike. I’ve written about this before in my work here at EXAIR, where I’m fortunate to have a platform that allows me to share personal stories like ours. CP affects over 1 million people in the U.S., with around 10,000 new diagnoses each year, often due to brain development issues or injuries before, during, or shortly after birth. This month, I’m reminded of how far we’ve come—thanks to therapy and support—and how much more we need, like increased research funding, which groups like the Cerebral Palsy Foundation tirelessly advocate for.

Speaking of EXAIR, February holds its own significance for us here at EXAR with Founders’ Day on February 21st each year. It’s a day to celebrate the vision of our company’s founders, who built a culture of innovation and community that I’m proud to be part of. This year, as we marked Founders’ Day just a few weeks ago, I couldn’t help but connect it to the spirit of resilience my family and so many others honor in March. At EXAIR, we design engineered solutions to solve problems, much like the adaptive tools and therapies that help Lincoln navigate his world. The overlap of these two moments—Founders’ Day and CP Awareness Month—reminds me how a supportive workplace and a passionate community can intersect to make a real difference.

So, how can you get involved this March? Wear green to spark conversations, share stories on social media with #GoGreen4CP, or donate to organizations driving CP research and support like the Cerebral Palsy Foundation. For my family, it’s also a chance to thank those who’ve walked alongside us—therapists, nurses, friends, and even my EXAIR colleagues who’ve cheered Lincoln on. National Cerebral Palsy Awareness Month isn’t just about awareness; it’s about action and connection. As Lincoln and our family continue this journey, I hope you’ll join us in shining a light on CP, not just this month, but every day.

Be kind and love one another!

Jordan Shouse
Application Engineer

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Image courtesy of The Cerebral Palsy Foundation

March is National Cerebral Palsy Awareness Month

Published on by Jordan T ShouseLeave a comment

One of the many great things about working at EXAIR is they allow us to be us, and typically once a year or so I get to do a blog about something this is important to me as a person away from work! Now I’m not saying using an intelligently designed engineered compressed air product isn’t important to me… to steal a line from my coworker Russ, “I could talk about our compressed air products and how they can help you all day! And most days I do!!”

But National Cerebral Palsy Awareness Month is very important to me as my two-year-old Lincoln is affected by Quadriplegia Spastic Cerebral Palsy;

  • The majority of individuals with CP have the spastic form (approximately 85 percent). In spastic CP the individual has abnormal muscle tone and the muscles are stiff, making movement difficult. The graphic below illustrates common areas where an individual’s body may be affected by spasticity-also known as topography.
  • In people with diplegia mostly the lower half of the body is affected.
  • In people with hemiplegia mostly one side of the body is affected.
  • And in people with quadriplegia, all four limbs are affected and the muscles of the trunk, face and mouth may also be affected.
  • Increasingly more researchers and clinicians have begun using the terms bilateral CP (affecting both sides of the body) and unilateral CP (affecting one side of the body) to replace diplegia, hemiplegia and quadriplegia. The terms you hear will depend on the preferences of the professionals.

Every day as a Dad I see things that my son does and will have difficulty doing, but boy that doesn’t slow him down! And since 2021 I’ve made it a mission to share information on CP with as many people as possible. Because before Lincoln came into my life I knew very little about it myself. He is different, but that doesn’t make him bad! It makes him shine brighter than everyone else!

Be kind and love one another!

Jordan Shouse
Application Engineer

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Twitter: @EXAIR_JS

Compressor internals image courtesy of The Cerebral Palsy Research Network

Product Overview – High Lift Reversible Drum Vac

Published on by exaircorpLeave a comment

Are you needing to move a thick fluid, move liquid farther or higher? Do you have a below grade sump or pit you’re looking  to empty? Then EXAIR has the solution for you, enter the High Lift Reversible Drum Vac. Like the standard Reversible Drum Vac, the High Lift RDV is a compressed air operated, liquid only vacuum with no moving parts or motors that can fail,  like those in traditional electrically powered vacuums. What separates the High Lift RDV from the traditional version is the higher vacuum it achieves which allows you to lift liquids up to 15′, move liquids up to 20′ and handle fluids with viscosity as high as 1400 centipoise.

The High Lift Reversible Drum Vac is a high powered vacuum able to lift liquids up to 15′ and fill a 55 gallon drum in less than 85 seconds!

The High Lift Reversible Drum Vac features a two-way pump constructed of stainless steel and a built-in safety relieve valve to avoid over pressurizing or over-filling the drum. Air consumption is minimal, at 43 SCFM @ 80 PSIG, while maintaining a low noise level of only 83 dBA. In “empty” mode, the HLRDV achieves a flow rate of 30 gallons per minute (water) to quickly empty the drum.

Systems are available in 30, 55 and 110 gallon capacities in 3 different variations:

The Standard Systems include the High Lift Reversible Drum Vac, shutoff valve, 20′ vacuum hose, standpipe, 90° quick release elbow and aluminum chip wand.

Model # 6195, 6195-30 and 6195-110

Deluxe Systems include all of the items shown above in the “Standard” System and adds a drum dolly, ABS plastic spill recovery kit, (2) extension wands, crevice tool, skimmer tool and a magnetic tool holder.

Model # 6295, 6295-30

And Premium Systems include all of the items in “Deluxe” Systems and adds the drum with lock ring and lid, heavy duty aluminum tools and 20′ compressed air hose.

Model # 6395, 6395-30, 6935-110

Viscosity – Why it Matters

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EXAIR has been manufacturing Intelligent Compressed Air Products since 1983.  We work every day with air properties, such as compressed air pressures and flow rates, when evaluating product performance to provide a solution to a customer problem. We also need to be versed on a certain liquid property, viscosity, as it relates to the operation of (2) of the EXAIR product families, the Atomizing Spray Nozzles and the Industrial Housekeeping liquid vacuums (Reversible Drum Vac and Chip Trapper).

Viscosity is often referred to the thickness of a fluid.  A common example would be water and honey.  Water is a low viscosity fluid, while honey is a high viscosity material.

Dynamic, Shear, or Absolute Viscosity is a measure of the resistance to shearing flow.  If you think of 2 plates (see below) with the bottom one stationary and the top one moving horizontally, and with a fluid between them – this illustrates Absolute Viscosity. When the top plate moves to the right, there will be induced multiple horizontal layers of the fluid, each moving at different speeds (the fluid will be at rest at the bottom, and the top layer will move with the top plate.) The friction generated between the layers will give rise to a force resisting this motion.  The force is proportional to the speed and area of the plate and inversely proportional to the distance between the plates.Capture

In simplest terms, viscosity is the ratio of the shear stress, τ,  to the velocity gradient du/dy.  Of concern to us, it takes more force to cause a very viscous (thick like honey) fluid flow.

Centipoise, cP,  is the common unit of measure for viscosity, and 1 cP is equal to 0.01 g/cm/s.

Water has a viscosity of 1 cP at room temperature and honey ranges from 2,000-10,000 cP.

How does all this relate to EXAIR? It relates to EXAIR because we engineer products to specifically move and use liquids. There are limitations to the viscosity each of these products can handle and still perform well.

The EXAIR Atomizing Spray Nozzles can be used with liquids up to 800 cP. The Internal Mix type nozzles can be used on liquids up to 300 cP. The External Mix nozzles can be used with liquids over 300 cP and up to 800 cP.  Lastly, the Siphon Fed models are good to 200 cP, and do not require a pressure source for the liquid. Each nozzle type will atomize the fluid and provide a very small droplet size, which is ideal for washing,  rinsing, coating, cooling and other applications. Exceeding the cP each of these nozzles are designed to use will result in larger droplet sizes and a more inconsistent fluid flow, which may impact your process.

atomizing nozzle
Atomizing Spray Nozzle

The other EXAIR product family where viscosity is important, is the Industrial Housekeeping Products, especially the High Lift Reversible Drum Vac and High Lift Chip Trapper.  They are capable of moving liquids with viscosities of up to 1400 cP through 20′ of hose.  Simply provide compressed air and turn any closed head drum into a high powered liquid vacuum. Great for coolant, hydraulic oils, waster water, and many other fluids. For these products, as the cP increases, so does the time it will take to move the liquids into or out of the drum.

HLRDVpr_openpit_3mbcmyk (2)
High Lift Reversible Drum Vac

To discuss your fluid viscosity and how an EXAIR Intelligent Compressed Air Product can make your process better, feel free to contact EXAIR and myself or one of our other Application Engineers can help you determine the best solution.

Brian Bergmann
Application Engineer

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