Tag: Sound Level Meter

Six Steps to Optimization Series Summary

Published on by Brian FarnoLeave a comment

Well folks.  The numbers are in and it is time review our journey through The Six Steps To Optimizing Your Compressed Air System.

In the first step we found that by installing a Digital Flowmeter into your compressed air system will allow you to get a baseline on just how much air your system is consuming.  The Digital Flowmeter is available for many pipe sizes and types.  We also offer a Summing Remote Display which allows you to see cumulative consumption for a 24 hour period. The meters come in either Standard Cubic Feet Per Minute readout or in Standard Cubic Meters Per Hour.  Once you have a base meter reading on what the current system uses all improvements from there on will be easily measured and the cost savings can be calculated.  This is a key step to complete optimization of your compressed air system.  Blog/Poll #1

Next we learned that by fixing any and all leaks within the system you could save a considerable amount of air.  The problem is some leaks are not audible to human hearing.  This is where the Ultrasonic Leak Detector factors into the equation.  The ULD is a handheld unit with headset and LED readout that will allow you to check all connections and trouble areas for compressed air leaks.  The ULD will ultimately help you to fix those tiny leaks that are blowing your profit straight out the door.  Blog/Poll #2

The third part of our venture is always a good idea.  Install engineered EXAIR products to replace non-engineered, inefficient blow off and other compressed air applications.   A very common application is replacing open pipes with our Engineered Super Air Nozzles or use a Super Air Knife to replace that drilled pipe you are using.  The savings will stack up quickly and the return on investment will be easily visible not to mention the sound level reduction and OSHA Approval.  Blog/Poll #3

Once you have the EXAIR Engineered solution installed then you can start cutting the air usage even further by turning it off when it is not needed.   This is very easy to do with the installation of the EXAIR Electronic Flow Control.  The unit will easily retrofit onto existing conveyors or other areas and allow you to only use your compressed air when the sensor is triggered.  Blog/Poll #4The fifth step is to make good use of intermediate storage when applicable.  Adding an EXAIR 60 Gallon Receiver Tank can not only be an easy task but can also take the spikes and surges off of your air compressor for the intermittent applications.  This will also help other existing compressed air applications within your facility by not fluctuating their supply pressure and volume.  Blog/Poll #5

 

The final step in our journey was to install EXAIR Pressure Regulators.  This is yet again another easy installation due to their modular design and the many sizes available.  By utilizing a pressure regulator you can fine tune the application to use the minimum pressure and volume of air needed to achieve your process.  Blog/Poll #6

Throughout the course of these six blogs and polls we have discussed numerous ways for you to reach a completely optimized compressed air system.   This will not only help you lower your energy bills but will also lower the noise level in your facility and help you to achieve an OSHA approved process. 

If you have any questions on how or which product to install in your application please contact us.

Brian Farno
Application Engineer
BrianFarno@EXAIR.com
Twitter: @EXAIR_BF

Working With Metal and a “Whole Lot of Love”

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Just imagine having to remember in minute detail what you did over forty years ago and repeat it in front of five hundred people. That’s what happened to me earlier this summer.

Many years ago I lived in the heart land of England, just a stone’s throw  from Birmingham, known as Brum by the locals. Like many would be musicians I began my singing career in a band at the ripe old age of twelve. I soon found out that everyone wanted to be the lead guitarist but me I loved the bass guitar. I took lessons with this old guy (he was probably thirty) called Horace Jonson and soon I was playing bass at Youth clubs, Pubs (bars), Social clubs, Weddings, in fact anywhere “our manager, the lead guitarists father” could get us a gig and get paid. Three or four nights a week we learned our trade sometimes playing four hours a night.

By this time the influence of Elvis, the Mersey sound of the Beatles and the London groups like the a Rolling Stones had seen better times. New bands called power trio’s like Cream and Jimmy Hendrix’s Experience were the rage so our band reformed and became a trio. Amps and speaker cabs suddenly became larger than life, towering over band members at college gigs like South Bank Polytechnic. Where we played with bands like Hendrix, Cream, Super Tramp, Roy Woods Wizard (later to become ELO) and many others. Glen Hughes soon to be of Deep Purple even used my gear. We had several different names over a three or four-year period in the seventies but a musical change was on its way.

Back in Brum Heavy Metal was on the rise, bands like Judas Priest and Black Sabbath with Ozzy (John Osborne) were on the rise. It was a crazy time rubbing shoulders with Robert Plant at JB’s but the music was something else. Just listen to the musical progression of the albums from Led Zeppelin.

Many people ask where the name heavy metal came from? Well if you’d have been in Brum forty years ago you would hear it, see it, smell it and work in it, it was “metal bashing”. The whole area was one massive manufacturing hub and the sound day and night was like a deep rumble. The only way you can experience the sound is if a bass player is playing bottom E through four 15 inch and eight 12 inch speakers at around 200 watts of sheer power.

This summer with two friends Nathan (guitar) and George( on skins), we played live after many hours of rehearsal  for five hundred friends for two hours.  I did remember most  of the music I played and loved over the years. But I do wish I had taken an EXAIR Digital Sound Level Meter with me……WOW!

Ivan Banks
Business Development
ivan.banks@exair.com

Can You Hear Me Now?

Published on by Brian FarnoLeave a comment

No this blog isn’t about a cell phone commercial, it’s about an application call I received this past week.  The call was from a customer that is trying to do an audit on his facility.  This was not an air audit to find all the leaks or an energy audit, but a sound audit.  The customer ran a production facility that had a regulation implemented to reduce all noise levels to 85 dBA or below.  They had purchased several engineered nozzles and air knives from us but still had open pipes and other devices in their system that they were unsure of the sound level produced.  What I offered to the customer was our Digital Sound Level Meter. 

 

The DSLM will measure sound levels from 35dB – 130dB and has a frequency range of 31.5Hz – 8 kHz, it is also NIST Certified.  The unit is used to monitor what sound levels you may have at your operator stations to make sure you are not exceeding the OSHA maximum allowable noise exposure or to find out if one blow off operation is in fact louder than another. 
With the unit in hand the customer was able to perform his sound audit and discovered that some non engineered nozzles that he thought were under 85 dBA were in fact louder and exceeding his requirement.  These nozzles were all removed and replaced with EXAIR nozzles that meet or exceed OSHA requirements.
The DSLM also allowed him to determine which of his operators were going to be required to wear hearing protection and those that were not.  The company now performs a monthly check on all of their systems to ensure nothing has changed and that none of their equipment needs replaced.  They also send their DSLM to us once a year to have it recalibrated and certified.
All in all the Digital Sound Level Meter can save employees hearing and help you to make sure that your nozzles are all performing at the sound levels you think they are.

Brian Farno
Application Engineer
BrianFarno@EXAIR.com

Ultrasonic Predictive Maintenance

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A while back my daughter was mowing the grass. She drove the mower up to me and said that it started sounding different. I checked it out and sure enough the belt had flipped over and was riding on its flat side rather than its V side.

Back before all the electronic monitors on our autos, savvy owners could predict developing problems just by changes in the usual sounds. Ultra Sonic Predictive maintenance is simply that. It is an inspection method by which sounds emitted from equipment are compared against an established sound benchmark of a healthy system.

The advantages of ultra sonic inspection

  • Does not require expensive complicated equipment
  • Can be used in noisy environments
  • Systems do not have to be shut down to inspect
  • Provides early warning indicators
  • Provides important data for, trend analysis, need to watch lists, and an interface with analysis software

EXAIR has an Ultra Sonic Leak Detector (ULD) which for the most part is promoted for detecting compressed air leaks. Since it is a sound detector though, it lends itself well to ultra sonic predictive maintenance. Here are a few examples.

    Bearing Problems
    Ultrasonic inspection and monitoring of bearings is by far the most reliable method for detecting early bearing failure and conditions such as lack of lubrication. Bearing analysis requires prior knowledge of the sound that a “healthy” bearing makes. A log that notes the date, location of the test area, sensitivity setting, and LED display panel reading should be available for regular inspection of bearings. A bearing will emit ultrasonic sound even when it is “healthy”. When the bearing system begins to deteriorate, the ultrasonic sound will change long before problems are detectable through any heat and vibration monitoring systems.
    Air brakes
    Air leaks in trucks can be a source of many problems. This is particularly true when a leak is small enough that it cannot be heard over the sound of a running engine, but is large enough to empty the air tanks overnight. By tracing the air supply lines and all of its couplings, the ULD can accurately isolate a leak in a fraction of the time normally needed.
    Electrical
    In electrical applications, the prior knowledge of the sound a healthy circuit makes is vital to make useful comparisons. Expensive equipment is not needed to check the conductivity of insulators when the ULD is used. In areas that are close to high voltage insulators (such as switch yards), the tubular extension and adapter is the appropriate tool to use with the ULD. This accessory is particularly useful when checking insulators because the circuit does not need to be interrupted
    Cracked Rubber V-belts
    Any crack in a moving rubber belt will emit ultrasound when the crack passes by the pulley.  Prior knowledge of the sound a healthy belt will give you a benchmark to compare against.
    Dry Fire Sprinkler Systems
    In a dry system air pressure holds back the flow of water. Small leaks in the system requires compressed air to be added. Simple enough but leaks tend to grow. Enough leakage could overwhelm the compressor capacity resulting in all the sprinklers activating resulting in massive water damage.In a plant where loud noise levels often exist, it is very difficult to locate leaks by merely listening for them. Most plant noises are in the normal audio range while air escaping from a small orifice will be in the ultrasonic range. The ULD or will ignore the background noise and detect only the ultrasonic sounds that are generated.For more information feel free to contact me or one of the application engineers here at EXAIR.