Industrial Utility Efficiency

Air Compressors

When selecting an air compressor for your manufacturing operation, the common choice is the industry-standard rotary screw compressor. Known as the work horse of compressed air machinery, the rotary screw compressor comes in a multitude of sizes and power levels. However, centrifugal compressors have seen some exciting technological progress in recent years and offer a wide range of pressures, flow and turndown. Long known for their longevity and durability, they offer higher efficiency, even qualifying for energy rebate programs offered by local utilities and all, notably, produce Class 0 oil free air.

Good Things in Store as Hitachi Global Air Power Takes Shape

When Hitachi Industrial Equipment Systems Co., Ltd. (HIES) announced Sullair, Hitachi, and Champion Compressors (Australia) have come together under the umbrella of Hitachi Global Air Power (HGAP), many wondered what it would all mean. 

Ceramics Plant Deploys a New Air Compressor Heat Recovery System

An air compressor is synonymous with an electric heater – providing compressed air as a side effect. 85-90% of the electrical energy taken in by the air compressor is converted into heat, while the maximum efficiency of compressed air generation is less than 10%. In air compressor heat recovery systems, the focus is on capturing the heat energy contained in the oil, as up to 80% of the energy extracted from the power plant is found there.

Centrifugal Air Compressor Maintenance: The Importance of OEM Parts

Aftermarket genuine parts ensure that the compressed air system will continue to meet the requirements it was engineered to achieve. Replacement parts must fit the compressor correctly so that operation continues to function properly. Parts that are not fitted properly could affect the function of the unit downstream.

Hannover Messe 2023 Show Report

The 2023 Hannover Messe was held April 17-21 at the Fairgrounds in Hannover, Germany. I have been visiting this event, since 1992, and it’s great to see old friends, new companies and the latest company and technology developments of firms in the compressed air industry. This article will provide readers with a sampling of compressed air technologies seen. 

Food Processor Conserves Energy with Compressed Air System Audits

A focus on sustainable products and packaging, in combination with a passion for quality, has resulted in considerable growth for the firm. Plans to add production lines at facility #1, in turn, drove the need to address the plant’s faltering compressed air system.

ABC Compressors Supports Logoplaste Embedded Wall-to-Wall Sustainable Manufacturing

Logoplaste, based in Cascais, Portugal, introduced its embedded wall-to-wall manufacturing model to reduce waste and increase efficiency. The model also results in a more economically and environmentally sustainable method of production of rigid plastic packaging since it eliminates the need for a separate secondary packaging plant and the logistics associated with transporting empty bottles. 

Mattei Rotary Vane Technology Advancing Efficiency and Durability

Compressed Air Best Practices® Magazine interviewed Mr. Bill Kennedy, Global Marketing Manager, Mattei Compressors.

If the electricity costs 8x what you paid to purchase the compressor, and you can reduce that value by 20% or more, the compressor is virtually free as the energy savings provide a return-on-investment that exceeds the purchase price. Now, if you eliminate the need to ever have to overhaul the airend you gain a massive financial and long-term reliability advantage.

Using Heat Improves Compressed Air Production Efficiency by 90+%

Compressed air production in industrial facilities consumes 10% of electrical power, on average. While this can vary up or down, it is an industrial average, and is very significant in most plants.
Do you know how much of your power cost goes to producing compressed air? We’ll come back to this at the end of this article.
 

When Three Air Compressors Are Better Than One (or Two)

During Dealer Week, they needed enough compressed air to power multiple machines at a time all day long. Keeping simultaneous demos running for all their top machines required airflow of up to 400 cubic feet per minute (CFM). However, outside of Dealer Week, their compressed air demands were quite modest. On a typical day, they only needed 20 CFM to power their dust collection system and pneumatic tools for their dock and warehouse crating areas. 

Atlas Copco Compressors Enables Sustainability-Based Production

The U.S. air compressor market has a compressed air installed base of at least 15 million horsepower. Further, it evaluated various air audits across different customer types, sizes and segments and determined U.S. manufacturers stand to save around 13 billion kilowatt hours (kWh) annually in electricity associated with compressed air. That translates to a savings of $1 billion in energy costs per year, which would remove nine million metric tons of CO2 annually. That equates to more annual energy usage of more than 1 million homes in the United States.