Total Cost of Ownership

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.

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
Application Engineer
BrianFarno@EXAIR.com
@EXAIR_BF

When you think about energy savings in general, there probably isn’t any product that has a higher degree of association with this mindset than the compact fluorescent light bulb. In terms of performance, the CFL lasts about 7 times longer than incandescent and uses about ¼ the energy input for an equivalent amount of light output as measured in lumens. CFL’s cost about 4 times more than an incandescent light bulb, but the overall cost of ownership is much lower due to the lower energy consumption. The major point here is that it is not the purchase price that determines the total cost of ownership. It is the energy use that determines it. Including cost of operation, an incandescent bulb costs more than 4 times to acquire and operate than a CFL bulb. BUT THE CFL IS MORE EXPENSIVE TO BUY!!!!

What does this discussion have to do with EXAIR and Super Air Knives, Super Air Nozzles or even Super Air Amplifiers?

These products represent EXAIR’s version of the compact fluorescent light bulb. We were the first in the industry to manufacture a Super Air Knife and still the only ones to have the Super Air Amplifier, both of which continue to provide significant energy savings to our customers for their precision blowing needs.

In recent past, there have been a few imitators on the market who try to “do one better” than EXAIR by publishing performance data that appears to be as good, or slightly better than EXAIR. Our testing has revealed that these imitators actually consume as much as 46% more compressed air than equivalent EXAIR products. Admittedly, there can be some slight variation in performance from one unit to another. But when the actual data is this far out from what is published, that is a serious performance problem which results in much higher total cost of ownership for the customer. And since the customer is generally not going to have the necessary equipment to verify these things, they are pretty much buying on faith that the seller is producing a product that is true to their word in terms of performance listed for it in their literature.

My message is simple. Don’t allow yourself to be lured into a situation where the purchase price is all that you consider when buying compressed air blowing equipment. The performance of the product is going to be a much larger portion of that total cost of ownership. Just make sure you are comfortable with that aspect of your purchase before making the commitment to buy.

At EXAIR we always strive to truly understand the needs of the customer and make proper recommendations based on those needs. We always have the total cost of ownership in mind and want to produce the best result for our customers. If the customer isn’t happy with the product for any reason, we will gladly take it back on our 30 Day Guarantee and they can move on to another solution of their choice.

Neal Raker, Application Engineer
nealraker@exair.com

CFL image courtesy of Mulad. Creative Commons License

Tag: Total Cost of Ownership

Oil Removal Filters: Never First, Sometimes Last

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