Tag: optimizing

Six Steps To Optimizing Your Compressed Air System — Step 5: Intermediate Storage

Published on by Russ BowmanLeave a comment

If you use compressed air for ANYTHING, odds are EVERYTHING you use it for has a minimum supply pressure for proper operation. And if the supply pressure drops below that:

  • Blowoff devices won’t develop enough flow & force to effectively clean or dry the object(s) you use them for.
  • Air-operated chucks on CNC machines won’t hold the piece steady enough for proper cutting, and tool changers will operate slowly/sluggishly. This is a bad combination…increasing the time it takes to make something, AND making it poorly.
  • Pneumatic cylinders will actuate slowly…if at all. This can cause a big problem if, for instance, they’re used to lift a lid on a mixing tank for an automated chemical add, which ends up pouring all over the partially closed lid of the tank instead of going inside it.

These are just a few of the problems that inadequate supply pressure can lead to, and I list them specifically because I experienced them all during my storied (and strange) career path before EXAIR made me the compressed air know-it-all expert I am today. It wasn’t my job to fix those problems (I was on site doing field service on a scale, a hydraulic motor, and a chemical pump, respectively), so I had no idea HOW to fix the compressed air-related problems…but I do now.

One quick & easy fix would have been to increase the compressor discharge pressure. That’d work just fine, but it comes with a cost. Every 2psi increase in discharge pressure increases the power consumption of the compressor’s motor by 1%. Let’s say you increased the discharge pressure from 100psig to 120psig – that’s a 10% increase in power consumption…and operating cost. To add insult to injury, that also increases the magnitude of any leaks in your system, making them more costly as well.

EXAIR Model 9500-60 60 Gallon Receiver Tank.

Actually, that probably IS what I’d have done as a scale, hydraulics, or industrial pump technician. The RIGHT answer, though, is intermediate storage. A properly sized Receiver Tank, located close enough to those operations, would have prevented those problems without increasing operating costs. In fact, it could have even brought them down, if the compressed air header pressure was already set to overcome any pressure drops on the way to those air guns, CNC machine, or mixing tank lid cylinders. Every 2% DECREASE in discharge pressure will also decrease the compressor motor’s power consumption by 1%. Which is actually Step 6 in our Six Steps To Optimizing Your Compressed Air System.

You electrical-types out there could also think of it as a capacitor – absorbing demand spikes & helping the circuit run more evenly.

Sizing a Receiver Tank is fairly straightforward, and we’ve written about it here, here, and here. You can, of course, always contact an Application Engineer to do (or check) the math…give me a call.

Russ Bowman, CCASS

Application Engineer
Visit us on the Web
Follow me on Twitter
Like us on Facebook

You Have To Start Somewhere.

Published on by Brian FarnoLeave a comment

The school year is in full swing here in Cincinnati and all three of my daughters have different extracurricular activities they partake in. This fall, that equates to divide and conquer for my wife and me 4 nights of the week for practices then the weekends are also separate and conquer, but mainly on Saturday. This eats away at times we would typically use at home to get some walking in or even just generally getting stuff done. This schedule combined with working earlier has caused me to lose almost all workout desire. That is until I got to the first practice my oldest had which just happens to be held on my alma mater’s campus and is right next to Nippert Stadium.

When we arrived I noticed most parents were just hunkered down in their cars and watching movies or doom scrolling social media. I try to avoid doing that for 90 minutes straight if I can and so far I have. I started hitting the stairs at the University of Cincinnati’s Nippert Stadium with my 35-pound ruck on my back. While my goal is to be able to complete the standard they have for their 9/11 memorial event I also want to get back into the shape I was in when I did back-to-back GORUCK events and could crank out burpees without crying on the outside. After going up one column of stairs from the field to the concourse level I go across and down the next set until I have done every column of stairs that go from the concourse to the area directly. For their event, I have to complete two laps which will equate to the number of steps within one of the towers.

So to train, I started with seeing how many sets I could do without feeling like I was going to not be able to reach the top and walk to the car. Surprisingly, I was able to get about half of the stadium done. Then I still had another hour to kill, so I hydrated a bit and rucked on over to the track/soccer field where I could walk the track and watch co-ed intramural flag football games while I did laps. Finally, I threw in some ruck PT exercises as a cool down and ended back at the building her practice was in. When I got to work the next day I felt like I got beat with a sack of oranges from my waist down. Then, on Thursday the thought crossed my mind as I hadn’t slept much the night before to just relax, then I had a buddy ask if he could come do stairs with me, and so we did it again Thursday night.

So from now until the end of the school year, I will more than likely be rucking on or around UC’s campus and Nippert Stadium to ensure I get back into a reasonable condition without having to lose more time with my family. This isn’t always easy and doesn’t come without pain. That pain though comes with added energy and increases in my mental position as well, so I am open to more things.

The same thing can be said about an industrial compressed air system. If you just trudge through every day and don’t look at any part of your facility, it is going to cause some pain when you first start to look at it. The first step is to acknowledge that something needs to change, and you have to have that finished goal of more capacity and capability available. The best place to start on your compressed air system is at the start with mapping out the system and getting a base measurement of where you are at for consumption.. This is the first step in our 6 steps of compressed air optimization, and we can help with every step along the way, You just have to reach out to us, your accountability partner for efficient compressed air.

Brian Farno
Application Engineer
BrianFarno@EXAIR.com
@EXAIR_BF

Lower Operating Costs by Minimizing Compressed Air Leaks

Published on by exaircorpLeave a comment

Almost every industry uses compressed air in some capacity. It is often referred to as the “fourth utility” In an industrial setting, next to water, gas and electric. and in many cases, is the largest energy user in the plant. With an average cost of $ 0.25 per every 1000 Standard Cubic Feet used, compressed air can be expensive to produce so it is very important to use this utility as efficiently as possible. When evaluating the performance of a compressed air system, it’s important to look at the system as a whole.

When you operate point-of-use devices at a higher pressure than necessary to perform a certain job or function, you are creating “artificial demand”. This results in excess air volume being consumed, increasing the amount of energy being lost to waste. For example, plant personnel or operators increase the supply pressure in an effort to improve the end use devices performance. When there is a leak in the system, the line pressure will actually begin to drop and performance begins to deteriorate in other areas in the plant. This not only puts stress on the existing compressor but it also leads to the false idea that a larger or secondary compressor is needed.

Here’s a quick reference on how operating pressure can directly affect operating cost:


Our Model # 1101 Super Air Nozzle requires 14 SCFM @ 80 PSIG. Based on the average operating cost of $ 0.25 per 1000 SCF used, it would cost $ 0.21 per hour to operate this nozzle. (14 SCFM x $ 0.25 x 60 minutes / 1000 SCF = $ 0.21)

If you were able to use the same Model # 1101 Super Air Nozzle operating at only 40 PSIG, while still achieving the desired end result, the air demand would decrease to only 8.1 SCFM, reducing the hourly cost to $ 0.12.  (8.1 SCFM x $ 0.25 x 60 minute / 1000 SCF = $ 0.12)

Don’t waste your money

Leaks in a compressed air system can account for up to 30% of the total operational cost of the compressor, wasting thousands of dollars of electricity per year. Some of the more common places for a leak to occur would be at connection points such as valves, unions, couplings, fittings, etc.

In this table, you will see that a certain amount of air volume is lost through an orifice or opening. If you have several leaks throughout your facility, it isn’t gong to take long for the waste and high operating costs to quickly add up as well as potential increases in repair or maintenance costs for the existing compressor. The industry average shows that any leakage more than 10%, shows there are areas where operational improvements could be made in a compressed air system.

Stay tuned to our blog over the next few weeks as we will discuss how following a few simple steps can help optimize your current compressed air system, in many cases, reducing energy costs related to compressed air waste, leading to a more economical operation.

In the meantime, if you have any questions or would like to discuss a particular application or EXAIR product, give me a call at 800-903-9247.

Justin Nicholl
Application Engineer
justinnicholl@exair.com
@EXAIR_JN

 

 

 

 

FREE EXAIR Webinar – November 2nd, 2017 @ 2:00 PM EDT

Published on by exaircorpLeave a comment

On November 2, 2017 at 2 PM EDT, EXAIR Corporation will be hosting a FREE webinar titled “Optimizing Your Compressed Air System In 6 Simple Steps”.

During this short presentation, we will explain the average cost of compressed air and why it’s important to evaluate the current system. Compressed air can be expensive to produce and in many cases the compressor is the largest energy user in a plant, accounting for up to 1/3 of the total energy operating costs. In industrial settings, compressed air is often referred to as a “fourth utility” next to water, gas and electric.

Next we will show how artificial demand, through operating pressure and leaks, can account for roughly 30% of the air being lost in a system, negatively affecting a company’s bottom line. We will provide examples on how to estimate the amount of leakage in a system and ways to track the demand from point-of-use devices, to help identify areas where improvements can be made.

To close, we will demonstrate how following six simple steps can save you money by reducing compressed air use, increasing safety and making your process more efficient.

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

Justin Nicholl
Application Engineer
justinnicholl@exair.com
@EXAIR_JN