EXAIR Corporation has devoted almost 37 years to manufacturing engineered products aimed at the most efficient, quietest, and safest use of compressed air. Sometimes, a caller has recognized that an open pipe blow off, for example, is loud, wasteful, and unsafe, and just wants to install an engineered product that they know will be an improvement. They may not be interested in precisely quantifying the savings…they’ll just notice that their lone air compressor runs less, and their electric bill isn’t as high anymore.
Others, however, may have a compressed air system that comprises multiple compressors, with advanced controls, and they may have specific operational goals in regard to how the individual compressors are loaded and controlled, or maybe even eliminating the need to run particular compressors all the time…or at all.
The skills & knowledge necessary to handle such a task are within the confines of discipline of mechanical engineering, but oftentimes, specialized training is needed to effectively conduct an audit in order to formulate an execute such an optimization plan. If you’re interested in pursuing this training, or working with trained personnel, here’s a brief description of the training that’s available, and how you can find people that have been through it:
- The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) publication “Guidance for ASME EA-4, Energy Assessment for Compressed Air Systems” details the requirements for performing an audit. Since there are so many configurations of compressed air systems, it’s not a “step by step” procedure, but it IS handy for developing one, if you know how. Speaking of which…
- The Compressed Air & Gas Institute (CAGI) offers training & certification in two categories:
- Certified Compressed Air System Specialists (CCASS) – these are qualified experts who have demonstrated competence (by means of a comprehensive examination) in skills and abilities relating to the design, service, sales, and installation of compressed air systems & equipment.
- Certified Compressed Air System Assessors (CCASA) – in addition to CCASS certification, these individuals has passed another comprehensive examination, verifying their knowledge and skills as practitioners performing assessments (audits) of compressed air systems.
Both of these certifications comply with the ISO 17024 Conformity Assessment standard, which governs General Requirements for Bodies Operating Certification of Persons in any field of endeavor. This means that, not only have certified personnel all passed the same tests regardless of where they are, but the tests they’ve passed meet stringent standards for examining knowledge level and competence in these fields.
Bottom line: if you want an in-depth, accurate evaluation of the efficiency of your compressed air system, experts are available. The Compressed Air & Gas Institute even publishes directories so you can find them in your area.
Russ Bowman
Application Engineer
EXAIR Corporation
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