Tag: sustainability

RoHS, EXAIR, And You

Published on by Russ BowmanLeave a comment

The 20th century was an amazing time for technological advances. In just 70 years, the science & engineering communities went from believing that powered flight was impossible, to actually powering a flight that took three astronauts all the way to the Moon…and back. In the 50 years or so since then, the computers with the power required for space travel went from needing a whole room, to being able to fit on our desks, and eventually, our pockets.

All three of these: a state of the art computer from 1962 (left), the desktop computer I’m writing this blog on (middle), and a smart phone being used for its most popular function (right) all have about the same amount of computing power, believe it or not. (full disclosure: I believe it because I used my smart phone to look that up on the internet)

Along with these amazing advances in technology came exponential increases in the materials it takes to make devices like desktop (or laptop) computers and smart phones…and some of those materials don’t get along well at all with the environment, and by extension, those of us who live in said environment. This doesn’t normally matter as long as those materials are housed inside an operating computer or cell phone (or myriad other electronic devices), but it DOES become a concern when they’re disposed of. When stuff like that ends up in landfills, for instance, it has a bad habit of making its way into the water table…and that’s not good for anyone.

In 2002, the European Union (EU) started pursuing legislation to restrict the use of certain hazardous substances, to get out ahead of disposal issues by keeping them out of products from the very beginning. This led to the creation & implementation of the RoHS Directive. It’s been revised, amended, and updated over the years, because it turns out there are no viable substitutes for SOME of those substances in SOME situations. Among these exceptions:

  • Mercury is used extensively in a number of energy efficient CFL light bulbs and fluorescent tubes, so there are exemptions for that, and it works because there’s a whole industry devoted to the proper recycling of these products.
  • My personal favorite is the specific exclusion for lead in the manufacture of pipe organs. Seems that the lead based alloy that’s been used for centuries is critical to the tonal qualities of the sound that the pipes produce. Since disposal rates of these are negligible (the use of this alloy is one of the reasons they LAST for centuries), pipe organ pipes don’t have to be RoHS compliant.

Compliance with the RoHS Directive is so important to EXAIR, it’s part of our Sustainability Plan. All of our products that are subject to the Directive have certificates of compliance (available upon request) that document their compliance. Per the specifics of the Directive, these are comprised of certain products in our Optimization, Static Eliminators, and Cabinet Cooler System product lines:

  • Optimization:
    • EFC Electronic Flow Control Systems
    • Digital Flowmeters
    • Digital Sound Level Meters
    • Ultrasonic Leak Detectors
  • Static Eliminators:
    • Super Ion Air Knives
    • Standard Ion Air Knives
    • Ionizing Bars
    • Super Ion Air Wipes
    • Ion Air Cannons
    • Ion Air Guns
    • Ion Air Jets
    • Power Supplies
    • Intellistat Ion Air Guns
    • Intellistat Ion Air Nozzles
    • Static Meters
  • Cabinet Cooler System products:
    • Electronic Temperature Control Systems
    • Thermostats & Capacitors
    • Solenoid Valves

These are all of our products that are electrical or electronic in nature. Our broad line of engineered compressed air products are not subject to the Directive, as they have no electrical or electronic components. We DO make sure these comply with other regulatory directives, as applicable, such as:

  • Conflict Mineral Free: All compressed air products
  • CE: All products
  • UL: Static Eliminators and Cabinet Cooler Systems are UL Listed, HazLoc Cabinet Cooler Systems are UL Classified
  • ATEX: These are a brand new line (as of this writing) of Cabinet Cooler products

If you’d like to find out more about EXAIR’s commitment to compliance with any of these standards or directives, give me a call.

Russ Bowman, CCASS

Application Engineer
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Focusing to be a Good Corporate Steward

Published on by exaircorpLeave a comment

Every April, EXAIR takes the time to revisit our sustainability plan and the responsibility we have to be good stewards of our resources and to minimize our impact on the environment. It remains interesting how intertwined our internal processes are with the world around us, and we like to pay attention to this.

We realize that what we do as a company can directly impact others and our environment. We have reduced our consumption of resources, increased our recycling efforts and incorporated practices and standards into our product development, manufacturing and fulfillment processes that are beneficial to the environment. Our action plan significantly improves our operations, practices, facility and products. Here are some of the steps we’ve taken:

Compressed Air

  • Consumption reduced through a leak detection and mitigation program that saved one million cubic feet of compressed air per year.
  • Utilizing our own engineered compressed air nozzles throughout the plant minimizes compressed air use compared to commercial nozzles.

Metals

  • We recycle 100% of the metal scrap from our machining processes. The materials we recycle are aluminum, Type 303 and Type 316 stainless steel. 

Electrical Power

  • Our VSD (variable speed drive) air compressor reduced our electrical consumption by over 4,500 kWh in the past year compared to a conventional air compressor.
  • Consumption reduced through increased use of natural light, higher efficiency fluorescent fixtures and LED technology.
  • EXAIR continues to make improvements to the efficiency of our computers and computer servers which require fewer Kilowatt hours (KWH) per day.

Fossil Fuels

  • EXAIR delivers 91% of our invoices electronically which has eliminated those traditional postal service mailed copies.
  • We focus on local and regional vendors whenever possible, which reduces delivery distances and fuel.

       Paper/Cardboard

  • Electronic delivery of invoices allowed 67% reduction in printed pages.
  • Most shipments use recycled Kraft paper with a perfect “green score” of 360.
  • Recycled 100% of our cardboard and mixed paper products. Of the waste we place into our trash dumpsters – 80% is recycled and 20% is sent to the landfill.
  • Over the past year, EXAIR recycled 416 cubic yards of paper and cardboard.

Fresh Water

  • We use our very own Chip Trapper Systems in our manufacturing areas to extend the water-soluble coolant life from 6 weeks per changeover to 6 months per changeover. Keeping our coolant clean allows us to minimize the total amount of wastewater we recycle each year.
  • Our wastewater is 100% recycled

Natural Gas

  • Consumption reduced by installing programmable thermostats wherever possible to match heating/cooling cycles with facility usage patterns.

Through an expanded recycling program, we are able to 100% recycle our metal scrap, paper and cardboard, wastewater, wood and plastics.

The impact our products make is also notable:

  • EXAIR blow off products designed specifically to reduce compressed air consumption energy usage
  • A new tool developed as part of our coolant management system now available to customers
  • Packaging materials used by EXAIR are fully recyclable
  • Most EXAIR products themselves are largely or fully recyclable at the end of their useful lives
  • RoHS compliance on applicable products insures that, should these products end up in a landfill at the end of their useful lives, they will not contaminate the environment with unacceptable levels of lead, mercury, hexavalent chromium, PBB, PBDE or cadmium.

We will remain focused on our impact and make improvements through new materials, products, processes and technologies when we have the opportunity for continued improvement.

Enjoy today, the day where we recognize how precious the planet is. Join EXAIR and some of the largest and most notable companies on earth by practicing some of these improvements and using EXAIR Intelligent Compressed Air® products.

Sincerely,
The EXAIR Team
www.EXAIR.com

Oil Removal Filters: Never First, Sometimes Last

Published on by Brian FarnoLeave a comment

If you have been around compressed air systems, our blogs, or even optimized installations of point of use compressed air products, you will see point of use filtration in place. These filters come in a plethora of sizes, shapes, and specifications. Here at EXAIR we recommend to always keep a point of use filtration solution in place. This would include an auto-drain filter separator, as well as an oil removal filter.

Oil Removal Filters

So why do we have two instead of one? Could you use just the oil removal filter rather than two? Well, the answer lies in an optimized installation that will also carry with it a lower total cost of ownership. The auto-drain filter separators from EXAIR have a filter element which takes the air to a 5 micron level of filtration. (Except for the model 9004 which filters down to 20 micron.) The Oil Removal Filters have a coalescing filter element which filters to a 0.3 micron level for the finest debris/mists that may be contained within the compressed air stream. One reason for the separation is when a system is oil-free, the finer filtration level may not be needed. Also, by catching the bulk of material with the standard auto-drain filter and then leaving the finer filter to catch the residual amounts liquid that had been finely atomized within the stream of compressed air. This finer filter costs more so using it to catch larger particulate and risking it becoming clogged quicker will increase the total cost of ownership of the point of use compressed air product it is hooked to, hence never first and sometimes last. After the point of use filtration then placing the point of use pressure regulator and solenoid valves are next. This is all a better way to reduce risk of these being damaged from dirt and contaminants in the air lines. Total cost of ownership reductions all point to a better sustainability of any product.

To better showcase the importance of filtration, here’s a brief video I did a while back that visualizes just what one can see out of a compressed air line with minimal moisture introduced.

https://videopress.com/v/5M19DaLg?preloadContent=metadata

As you can see, keeping the point of use air filtered protects your process and decreases the total cost of ownership for your compressed air point of use product. If you would like to discuss other ways we can improve efficiency within your facility and help ensure you are getting the longest life out of your products, please contact us.

Brian Farno, MBA – CCASS
National Business Development Manager

BrianFarno@EXAIR.com
@EXAIR_BF

50 Years of Earth Day – Happy Earth Day!

Published on by Kirk EdwardsLeave a comment

Today marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day and it will be observed in over 190 countries. For EXAIR, this year marks our 37th year helping compressed air users save compressed air energy and electrical resources. And the 37th year for improving our own efficiencies and processes in order to reduce waste. Because your volunteer opportunities may not be available this year, Earthday.org has gone digital for 2020 and is providing ways to participate via your computer.

EXAIR remains committed to a minimal footprint and continues to focus on manufacturing our products with little impact and doing our part to help protect our planet. We are proud to manufacture efficient products, implement processes and programs throughout our facility to help use our resources wisely and recycle everything we possibly can.

We manufacture and sell Intelligent Compressed Air Products that are specifically designed to reduce the use of compressed air throughout facilities.  On top of that, when you purchase an EXAIR product it will arrive in fully recyclable packaging and, in most cases, is made from a material that will be recyclable should it reach a point it is no longer useful.

Over the past years we continually look for improvement opportunities within our systems and processes. Recently we have…

  • Over the past year, EXAIR recycled 1300 yards of paper and cardboard.
  • Recycled 100% of our cardboard and mixed paper products. Of the waste we place into our trash dumpsters – 80% is recycled and 20% is sent to the landfill.
  • Recycled 100% of the metal scrap from our machining processes. Improvements in these processes has reduced scrap rates, which equates to 5.5 tons of recycled metal.
  • Used our very own Chip Trapper Systems in our manufacturing areas to extend the water-soluble coolant life from 6 weeks per changeover to 6 months per changeover. Keeping our coolant clean allows us to minimize the total amount of wastewater we recycle each year.
  • Further reduced our wastewater for reclamation by another 25% compared to last year.
  • Minimized our own compressed air use by 1 million cubic feet per year
  • Made improvements to the efficiency of our computers and computer servers which require fewer Kilowatt hours (KWH) per day

Another waste reducing factor that has proven to work out well for EXAIR is asking every customer if they accept digital invoices rather than requiring them to be printed and mailed.  We have been able to eliminate over 91% of all printed and mailed invoices. This helps to reduce our resources used as well as the amount of materials that are possibly turned into solid wastes at customer facilities. This also prevents the gas and vehicles necessary to deliver all of these invoices by mail.

Adding to the efforts above, we continue to maintain RoHS compliance on all electronic products, as well as actively track our supply chains to ensure no Conflict Minerals are being sourced and used in our products.

If you have any questions on how we can help your facility reduce their volume of compressed air or why we continue to reduce our wastes and increase our recycling efforts, contact us.

Happy Earth Day from EXAIR!

 

 

Image Credit: NASA/NOAA/GSFC/Suomi NPP/VIIRS/Norman Kuring