Page 35 - MetalForming February 2019

inhouse maintenance per- sonnel, instead of focusing on maintenance and repair to keep processes and equipment running smoothly, spend time and resources on air-handling issues. Ineffective air cleaning also leads to high- er lighting and heating costs, according to Meyer.
Then there’s the human
toll. Studies have demon-
strated the connection
between air quality and productivity in commercial environments. Improving
air quality has been linked
to reduced error rates,
increased output and a sig-
nificant reduction in absenteeism. A recent
study from the National
Bureau of Economic
Research revealed a 4.2-
percent improvement in worker pro- ductivity when reducing indoor-air- pollution levels by 10 ppb. Another study shows that poor indoor-air qual- ity causes six additional lost workdays per year for every 10 employees.
Indoor-air quality also affects employee recruitment and retention, according to Meyer.
“Clean indoor air in metalforming and fabricating operations assist in attracting and keeping good employ- ees—doing so creates an environment that people want to work in,” he says.
And, not only is clean air good busi- ness, it’s the law. A host of standards and guidelines regulate and support workplace air quality, and manufac- turers must stay current with ever- changing regulations. Liability awaits those who slack in such efforts, with fines, lawsuits and other sanctions a virtual certainty.
Advanced Systems Minimize Expenses
By closely examining their air-clean- ing systems with the help of reputable providers, metalformers and fabricators can fully determine true costs—con-
“Instead of designing an air-cleaning solution for a worst-case scenario where it works way too hard when filters are clean and costing a company money due to high electricity usage, or running a fan so slowly that it only captures dust well at the beginning but not as the filters fill up, a VFD offers the ideal setup,” Meyer says. “The proper design for cost con- trol as well as employee protection: a VFD that always pulls the correct amount of air to capture contaminants.”
Filters also benefit from technology improvements, which deliver increased fil- ter life.
“For example,” Meyer explains, “inert microscop- ic materials injected into ductwork absorbs oils and certain chemicals so that they don’t adversely affect the fil-
tration media.”
Pays Off Over Time
Ultimately, manufacturers must consider the total lifecycle cost of air- cleaning equipment, including the capital cost as well as expenses as detailed above, according to Meyer, who notes that doing so yields a solu- tion that pays for itself through max- imized benefits and decreased expenses over time. The most effective approach, according to Meyer: meet- ing with all stakeholders during sys- tem design.
“We want to talk to all stakeholders when we put a proposal together,” he says. “The owner, maintenance per- sonnel, the plant manager, etc., all have differing perspectives. Involving a vari- ety of people provides a broad swathe of knowledge and concerns, and gets everyone thinking of total cost of own- ership, including the initial buy as well as expenses—including hidden expens- es related to employee wellness and morale—over time.” MF
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MetalForming/February 2019 33
Newer material grades and coatings introduce unique dust hazards and can play havoc with filters. A correctly designed air-cleaning system and improved filter technology help combat these developments.
sidering the expenses detailed above— and select new systems or upgrades that provide a clean, healthy environ- ment and more productive shop floor without excessive costs for filters, ener- gy use, maintenance and repair.
Newer technology enables these improvements. For example, variable- speed drives in air-cleaning systems provide energy-efficient options for supplying needed power. A standard industry formula, the air-power equa- tion, provides a rough measure of the cost to run a motor for air flow. The formula: 40 x brake horsepower x num- ber of hours operating the fan x cost per kwh. Here, the variable is brake horsepower, explains Meyer.
“You can vary brake horsepower using a variable-frequency drive (VFD),” he says. “A VFD uses just enough brake horsepower to effectively capture the dust.”
Thus, VFDs decrease energy costs while reducing strain on system com- ponents, making them game changers, according to Meyer, who notes that RoboVent employs VFDs on 95 percent of its systems, save for the smallest units.
Fabrication: Air Quality