Smart Air Newsletter SEPTEMBER, 2020 Contents: News, Events and Happenings Customer Success Stories Compressed Air Application Advice and Tools Service Event of the Month Aftermarket At Its Best Market Performance Information September Sales Special Airmatic Compressor | 800.864.7621 | [email protected] | AirmaticCompressor.com 2 Letter From the President 2 New Hire 2 New Products 4 Technical Project Of The Month 4 Competitive Vendor 5 Benefits of Data Logging 5 Tools of the Trade 7 Service Event of the Month 7 Aftermarket 8 Market Performance 9 Atlas Copco Promo 3 Success Story
Leadership always makes itself available to us, providingopportunitiesthroughoutourdaytoreach out for it and make it part of ourselves. Itcallsouttoallofustobringitinandmakeaculturebetterandstronger.Forsome,itcomeseasier than others. For some, because of a certain title, it becomes more expected than it would be forothers.Forsome,nothavingatitleorpositioncould act as reason not to stretch themselves andreachforthegiftofleadership.Agift,thatultimately helps others more than it helps themselves.
Eachday,weworkondevelopingleaders.Whenwe hire a new employee, we can’t always be sure ifthepersonhasthequalityinthemornot.Welearn as the work days turn into months and as opportunities for leadership develop and present themselves.Thenweseewhoisreachingforit.
Youmustserveifyouaregoingtolead.
I am constantly inspired by people in our organizationwhodonothaveaspotlightonthemandforwhosomemightbelievethatthereislittle opportunity to be a leader, who denounce thosethoughtsandstepupandanswerthecall.Theypickupateammatewhomaybestruggling,staywiththemandguidethemthroughaproblemandintoasolution.Theygivetheirteammatemoreconfidencethenexttimeheorshe encounters the issue so that they can have anenhancedemployeeexperience.Whichinturn, leads to an enhanced customer experience. Andthenhumblyandsilentlywalkawayknowingthatnothingfurtherneedstobesaidaboutthematter, that the act alone is the reward and that speaks for itself.
Keepinspiringme.
WilliamN.Vowteras President Airmatic Compressor Systems, Inc.
New Hires
WearepleasedtoannounceanewmemberoftheAirmaticTeam,JeremyGarfield.Jeremycomes to us with many years’ experience in the compressed air industry and is expected to provideanotherlayerofknowledgeandsupportasAirmaticcarriesoutsignificantgrowthplansfor the future. Jeremy’s primary focus will be to develop and establish our vacuum business, creatingadedicateddepartmentworkingwithAtlas Copco Vacuum Products and Edwards Vacuum.
In addition, Jeremy will assume product line responsibilityforNitrogenaswellaslaunchingthenewBauerhighpressureproducts.PleasejoinmeinwelcomingJeremytotheteam!
JeremyGarfield Assoc.Director,BusinessDevelopment
New Product - Bauer Compressors, Inc.Airmatic Compressor SystemshasofficiallybeengrantedfulldistributionauthorityfortheBauerIndustrialproductlinecoveringNorthernJerseyandOrange&RocklandCounty,NY.Theagreementincludesnewequipmentsales,parts,and service support.
Typicalapplicationsareforcomponenttesting,hydro-pneumatic systems, pneumatic actuation, processcontrol,gasrecovery,highpressurecylinderfilling,propellant,gasinerting,nitrogengeneration,highpurityinstrumentair,etc.Industrial compressor systems are available in capacitiesrangingfrom10toover750scfm(percompressor)withworkingpressuresfrom350-7000psigandwithpowerrequirementsfrom1.5to400hp(percompressor).
WiththeadditionofBauerhighpressureproductsAirmaticbroadensitscopeofcoveragewithin the marketplace. From low pressure, ‘blower’typeapplicationsrequiringunder70psi,tostandardindustrialcompressorpressuresto175psi,andnowqualityhighpressurecompressorsupto7,000psi,AirmaticCompressors Systems covers the bases with equipment sales, parts and service.
Customer Success StoriesManaging Extreme Fluctuating DemandFrank Asbaty, System Specialist
Theimportanceofconductingenergyaudits,and compressed air facility demand analysis is criticalindeterminingequipmentselection.Alocalmilitarypartsmanufacturerwashavingissueswiththeir100HPVSDmachine.Uponinvestigationoftheirdemandprofile,itwasuncovered that the facility has, what’s called
“extremefluctuatingdemand.”Thistermrefersto a compressed air system that uses a certain amount of compressed air for the majority of time,butatspecifictimes,requiresasubstantiallymore amount of compressed air for shorts burstsoftime.Thistypeof“extremefluctuatingdemand”cancauseseriousissuestotheinternalcomponents of compressed air equipment. After careful review of their system, from a demand standpoint(plantairrequired)andsupply(100HPVSDcompressoroutput),itwasdeterminedthatthislarger100HPunitwastoolargetohandlethe low demand needs of the facility, and was thereforenotrunninglongenoughtoheatupandburnoffinternalcondensatewithintheunit. This can cause corrosion, and have quite a negativeeffectoninternalcomponents.
Oursolutionwastoreplacethe(1)larger100HPcompressorwith(3)smaller50HPunits(1-VSD,and2-fixed-speed).Thiscombinationallowsforthe3smallerunitstoruneffectivelyandefficientlyforwhateverdemandtheirfacilityhas,smallorlarge,byutilizingtheVSDcompressorasthemainunit,andtakeadvantageoftheenergy-savingproperties,butalsohavetheabilitytoaddandutilize(1)fixedspeedmachinewhenthedemandspikestremendously,aswellashavingthe 3rd machine as a full backup machine and offering100%redundancyincaseany(1)oftheother(2)goesdownorneedsservice.Thebottomlineisthatfor“extremefluctuatingdemand”profiles,smaller,multipleunitsystemsprovidemuchmoreefficiency,andlevelofredundancy,comparedtoalarger,1unitsystemdesign.
September, 2020
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Comparing Competitive Vendor Quotes - Part 2Michael Johnson, Director of Sales & Marketing
1.OutofPocketSpendandCostofOwnership(COO) 2. Performance and Efficiency 3.ReliabilityandUptime 4.Maintenance,RepairsandVendorSupport
FollowinguponourJuneNewsletterarticle,let’s review the importance of the 2nd item PerformanceandEfficiency,particularlyinthelongterm.Manufacturerpublishedperformanceandefficiencynumbersgiveusagoodideaof what a piece of equipment will do, but 3rd partyverificationprovidesconfidenceandcomfortinknowingyou’regettingwhatyoupay for. The Compressed Air and Gas Institute (CAGI)hasprovidedthisserviceformanyyearsto manufacturers, distributors and end users alike.It’sliketheConsumerReports™fortheCompressed Air industry. Always check that your compressor and/or dryer is tested and approved bygoingdirecttotheirwebsiteandlookingupthespecificdatasheet.Or,askoneofoursalesmenforacopy,thereisnoadditionalchargefor the report.
Performanceandefficiencyforthemostpartgohandinhand,butitreallydependsonyourdemandprofileandhowwellitmatchesthecompressor’soperatingsweetspot.Thisiswhereselectingtherightsizedequipmentcomesin.Itshouldneverbetoobigortoosmall.Forthisdiscussion,toobigwouldberunningattoolowademand level, where the compressor is outside ofitsdesignedperformanceandefficiencyrange(BTW,youcanstill“sizeforgrowth”andoperatewithin a compressor’s sweet spot). Too small is not necessarily a compressor that does not supplyenoughairtomeetdemand,it’swhenitisrunningtoohardforlongperiodsoftime,abovethenormaloperatingcapacity.
Compressed Air Application Advice and
ToolsTechnical Project Of The MonthRobert Smith, System Specialist
Because of oil contamination in compressed air lines,electricalsupplyandbudgetrestrictionsthesolution would be to use the facility’s compressed air and place a point of use Hydrocarbon removal system that would only supply oil free compressedairtothenewpackagingsorter.
Withthissolution,wewereabletosupplytothe customer oil free compressed air and as a byproduct of the Hydrocarbon removal system the compressed air is now sterile because of theheatingofthecompressedairkillingallmicroorganisms.
September, 2020
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Tools of the TradeTips on Sizing a Refrigerated Air Dryer: David Van't Slot, System Specialist
Manycustomersask:Howdoesarefrigerateddryerworkandhowdoyouproperlysizeonefor my compressed air system? The easiest explanationforhowitworksisthis:Similartodewcollectedonthelawnonacoolmorning,when compressed air is chilled, usually to 38 degreesF,suspendedwaterdropsoutoftheairandchangestoliquidwater(condensate).Thecondensate collects in a moisture separator, once enoughwatercollectstheelectronicdrainvalvewillblowcondensateintoanOilWaterSeparatorfor proper disposal. The compressed air then will have a pressure dew point similar to the temperature that the air was chilled to. I have alsoexplaineditinthisway:Youknowwhenyouleavea6packofbeerinthecarona100Degreeday,ittakeslongertocoolintherefrigeratorthanbeerthatstartsat70degrees.It’sthesameconcept. The customer typically smiles and nods, but understands how initial temperature can affecthowquicklysomethingiscooledtothedesiredtemperature.(ormaybetheyaresmilingbecausetheyarethinkingabouttheweekend).
September, 2020
Bothextremesnotedaboveincreaseoperatingcoststhroughhigherenergyrequirementsandhighermaintenance/repairbills.TheoveralllifeofyourequipmentsuffersashortenedexistencebyoperatingoutsideitsdesignedrangeresultinginearlyreplacementandamuchlargerCOO.Asure-firewaytomatchacompressortoyourdemandisbyrunningdataloggersontheexistingcompressorsandrecordingexactlywhatyouroperatingprofileis.GetwithyourSystemSpecialist and schedule a time for a walk-thru and no-chargeloggerinstallationtoday.
The Benefits of Data LoggingBill Goerke, System Specialist
Companiesspendsignificantamountsofmoneyto compress air to operate or support their production processes. Industry studies show that 30to60%ofthatamountspentiswasted!EnergyStar,theprogramrunbytheEPAandDOEthatpromotesenergyefficiency;saysonaverage,76percent(76%)ofthelifetimecostofanaircompressor is electricity. For many facilities, compressed air is one of the most expensive utilitiesintheiroperatingbudgets.Ifwetakeamomenttoask,“howdoesthishappen?”Contributingfactorswouldinclude,butcertainly,notlimitedtoinefficientandineffectivesystemoperation, misapplication of the air system components,andthebiggestculprit…artificialdemand and system leaks.
Baseliningacompressedairsystemcanbecomparedtogoingtothedoctor’soffice,andbefore the physician starts the examination, a reviewofyourbloodworkandtakingofyourvitalsignsbeforegoingin-depthwiththequestions. Toputitinsimpleterms…it’sastart…abenchmark. Youmaybeasking,“Whatisdone,andwhatdoyouget?”TheM-BoxandP-Loggersystemrecordsamperageandpressuredataatarateofonescanpersecond,resultinginmorethan3,000,000datapointsduringatypical7-dayproductioncycle.Duringthestudy,youoperatenormally,andourM-Boxdataloggersrecordtheamperage,aleadingindicatorofcompressoroperation.Usingthatdata,M-Boxcreatesaweek-long24/7profileofyourproductionairrequirements, discover plant air pressure levels,
establishescurrentenergyperformancelevels, determines costs of a compressed air system, and correlate the results with your plant’s present production levels. You receive a detailed report with your compressor scope ofsupply,datapages(includingpowerandairconsumption,loadcycles,runninghours,etc.),profilegraphsandcharts,andanexecutivesummary that is reviewed with the customer. Muchlikeyourbloodworkandvitalsigns…Thesereportshistoricallyraisequestionspertainingtotimes and operations that are contributors to the results displayed. Only after a review of the data,andapost-collectionQ&Asession…wecanbegintodiscussrecommendationsonhowtorunyourcompressedairsystemmoreefficiently."Solutionswithoutdata,systemknowledge,andanalysis...arejustguesses."Innextmonth’sissue…acasestudyonhowasolutionthatdidnot involve an equipment purchase, results in a significantbenefittothecustomer.
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Compressed air dryers are rated to achieve a specifiedpressuredew-pointormoisturelevel(usually.38°Fpressuredewpoint)foracertainvolumeofairflow(cfm).Thisflowratingisbasedon“standardconditions” (100psig,100°Finlettemperature,and100°Fambienttemperature).Youractualconditionswillchangefromdaytoday.
It is important to understand how pressure and temperatureaffectwatercontentincompressedair,whensizingadryer.Thesuspendedwatervaporcontentofairchangesdirectlywithtemperature—if temperature increases, the air’s ability to suspend water increases. The hotter theairenteringthedryer,itwilltakealargerrefrigerationsystemtobringtheairtothepropertemperature/dew point.
Watervaporcontentofairchangesinverselywithpressure—ifpressureincreases,itsqueezesmoisture out. Because of these physical relationships, compressed air dryers need correction factors to determine how much air a particulardryercanactuallyhandleatspecificconditions.(seecorrectionfactorchartbelow).
Whileselectingpointsonthecorrectionfactor,makesureyougowiththe worst-casescenariousingtheconditionsduringthehotterandhumidsummer season. The chart below shows how a dryerwillbemoreorlessefficientdependingonhowtheconditionsvary.Thisisagreattoolwhilesizingadryerforyourparticularconditions.
September, 2020
RulesofThumb:
•Thehigherpressureabove100PSI-----dryerwillbemoreefficient • The lower temperature of the room and the compressed air that enters----the dryer will be moreefficient. •Thelowerpressurebelow100PSI------dryerwillbelessefficient •Thehighertemperatureoftheroomandthecompressed air that enters----the dryer will be lessefficient.
UsingtheCorrectionFactorChart. ProposedConditionsfora100CFMDRYERSelection:130PsiCompressedAir--100DegreeFambientroomtemperature--115DegreeFapproach(temperatureofcompressedairasitenters the dryer)
Thisisforbasicsizingonly,pleasecontactyour compressed air professional for further assistance.
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September, 2020
Service Event of the Month
Small Unit Service Call Turns into Big New Account OpportunityWilliam De Luca, Director of Technical Service
OurServiceDepartmentwascontactedbyacustomerinearlyAugustduringtheoneofhottest weeks of the summer season. Like many other companies this summer season, theircompressorhadshutdownonhighdischargetemperatureduetothelackofproper maintenance and the elevated ambient temperatures.ThiscustomerisaleadingmasonrymanufacturingcompanyinNJthatreliesoncompressedairtokeeptheirplantgoing,especiallyinthehighdemandsummerseasonwhenconstructionprojectsareinfullswing.
Thecustomerhadcalledtheirexistingserviceprovider 3-days in a row with no response action, so mid-afternoon on the 4th day they reached outtoAirmaticforthe1sttime.Themachinethat was down was a smaller 25hp unit, but that had no impact on the priority of the call, and our ServiceDepartmentjumpedrightintoaction!
Our Service Team immediately tracked down oneofourTechniciansthatwas+30milesawayon a 2-day PM job. The Technician was able to expeditiouslygethiscurrentservicejobtoapointof acceptable completion for the day, and then promptlyheadedrightovertothecustomerthatwas desperately in need of service.
The customer was very impressed with the immediate response from our Service Department,andthediligenteffortsofourTechnicianwhogotthemupandrunningsoquickly,especiallyinsuchoppressiveworkingconditions. The very next day the customer reachedouttoenrollall(17)oftheirplantlocations(totaling+400hpworthofcompressors)on full maintenance service contracts.
This customer went from 3-days of no response from their current service provider, to up and runningwithin2.5hrsoftheirinitialcallintoAirmatic’sServiceDept.Thiswasjustanotherdayofdoingourverybesttoassistcustomersanddeliveringgreatresultsforourorganization.
Aftermarket At Its Best
Importance of a Preventative Maintenance ProgramCraig Verga,DirectorofAftermarketSales
Withanypieceofindustrialequipment,itisimportant to understand the total costs of ownership. Another term sometimes used to describe this is the life cycle cost. It refers to the cradletogravecostsofoperatingthemachine.Thisprimarilyfallsintothreecategories:
2.Maintenance&Repair:Thisistypicallytheroutine preventative maintenance costs, repair costs, and potential overhaul costs associated with the equipment.
3.UtilityCosts:Thisistypicallytheelectricalenergytooperatethesystem.Therecanalsobeotherutilitycostssuchasfuelorwaterdependingon the type of equipment.
In the compressed air industry, the capital project usually accounts for about 8% of the equipment’s life cycle cost. Equipment maintenance and repair usually accounts for 7% of these costs. Theremaining85% of the equipment life cycle cost is typically utilities. The part that not a lotoffacilitymanagersrealizehoweveristhatrobust maintenance practices promoteenergyefficiency.Sobyinvestingamodestamountinyourmaintenanceprogramyoucontributetosignificantlyreducingthelifecyclecostofyourequipment.Here’sanexampleof:
Fluid Analysis & Change Intervals
Fluidlifeisshortenedbysevereoperatingconditions. The most common form of this is thermalstress,whichbasicallymeansoperatingconditionseitherlowerorhigherthandesigned.Here’s two examples of how thermal stress can cause severe problems in an oil injected rotary screwaircompressor:
1.Duetoanaircompressorbeingoversized,thefluiddoesnotreachregularoperatingtemperature.Asaresult,thefluidcannot“burnoff”themoistureingrainedinthehumidinletair.This moisture builds up in the air compressor’s fluid.Thefluidisdesignedtoperformthreefunctions;seal,cool,andlubricate.Allthreefunctions are compromised as a result of liquid watermixedin.Theresultislowefficiencyfrompoorsealing,overheatingfrominsufficientcoolingcapacity,andalackoflubricationwhichcan lead to catastrophic failure.
September, 2020
Arobustpreventativemaintenanceprogramwhichincludesfluidanalysiswillhelpdetecteitheroftheseissuespriortoseeingtheeffectsandeventualfailures.Keepingyouraircompressor’sfluidingoodoperatingconditionswillincreaseenergyefficiencyandcomponentlongevity,guaranteed.Apreventativemaintenanceprogramcanproveeffectivenotonlykeepingtheequipmentingreatshape,butitcanalsocontributetosignificantlyreducingthelifecyclecostofyourequipment. Forthebest results, consult with Airmatic Compressor to understand and implement the best maintenance practices. Weareheretohelp.
MARKET PERFORMANCE INFORMATION
Market Performance InformationMichael Johnson, DirectorofSalesandMarketing So, what’s the latest on Industrial market conditionsforNorthernJerseyandOrange&RocklandCounty,NY?Airmatichasexperiencedastrongbouncebackinthe service business and even broke records last monthwithalargejumpinnewcustomers.Pentup demand was a key driver of course, but just likeluck,youhavetobetheretorecognizetheopportunityandcaptureit.Weweretherewith17fieldservicetechnicians’readytogo.AirmaticfurloughednoonethroughoutCovid19.Allemployees remained employed with full pay.
Largerplannedandbudgetedpurchasesarebeingreviewedbythecustomerbaseastheygetasenseofwheretheeconomyisheading.WiththestronginflationarypressuresincludingtheFederalCovid19reliefbillsprovidingsupporttofurloughedandlaidoffemployees,expectpricesto rise on many items, industrial equipment included.Anyoneconsideringcapitalequipmentpurchases should keep in mind that price increasesareheadedourway…thisisthewordfromtheindustry.Purchasingsoonerthanlatercouldsavethousandsbyavoidingtheestimated3-6%,orhigherincreases.
Withtheoveralleconomycontracting32.9%lastquarter,wearemakingsignificantgainsclawingourwaytopre-Covidlevels,butit’sgoingtotakesome time. There is a movement politically and onmainstreetto‘re-shore’manufacturing,itpotentiallycoulddrivestronggrowthandhelptomakeupforthebiglossesintheservicesectordue to restaurant and other related service sector business lockdowns still in place.
SEPTEMBER SALES SPECIALAtlas Copco PromoFor the month of September, Airmatic Compressorwillbeoffering10%off onselectAtlasCopcoGA30+throughGA75+(40-100HP),GA37throughGA75(50-100HP)rangeofscrewcompressors,andallCR reciprocating compressors.
