Richard Wilson of Woodcock & Wilson explains the benefit of having fans regularly serviced and maintained
Industrial fans play an important role in the water and waste treatment industries. Current environmental legislation means that air pollution dominates the operations of sewage treatment and drainage utilities and fans are crucial for extracting odours.
Odour control, extraction and ventilation at water and waste treatment plants usually involves the use of bio-filters which remove and cleanse foul air in line with health and safety regulations.
As well as odours, gases, fumes and dirt are common by-products of water and waste treatment, for example. A typical water and waste treatment company might have as many as 15 heavy duty industrial fans in operation to control emissions and prevent pollution.
Fans are clearly an essential component of the water and waste treatment industries and if companies want to continue to operate efficiently, cost effectively and profitably in an ever changing market they must ensure that they have effective ventilation systems, keep their fans well maintained and regularly serviced.
Regular maintenance and servicing of fans is essential
Just like a new car, a new fan needs regular servicing. To get the best return on your investment you need to ensure that the machinery is in perfect working order.
Regular fan servicing means:
Meeting legal requirements. Your company will comply with Health and Safety regulations and extraction regulations. Regular servicing and maintenance enables you to maintain a clean working environment and reduce emissions.
Saving money - A well maintained fan is more energy efficient and means you avoid the added costs of repairing badly damaged and worn machinery. Remember, things can go wrong quickly when you stop servicing your fans. What’s more, servicing can be done quickly and efficiently.
Peace of mind. Using a fan servicing company which employs qualified engineers who understand the construction principles of fan manufacture and design means you get a better quality, better value service.
Full security. Setting up a repair and servicing contract means you are covered for breakdowns which enables your business to be more competitive and maximise production.
Tax savings. If you minimise your energy use and have high efficiency electric motors fitted to your fans you can take advantage of tax incentives designed to benefit those who are energy efficient.
What does fan servicing involve?
Industrial fans can last for more than forty years during which time numerous potential problems can arise. And if a fan does break down unexpectedly, as well as the danger from critical failure of rotating parts there is also the additional cost associated with repair and lost production time.
Servicing a fan usually takes a full day. It includes inspecting the overall condition of the fan and the fan bearings; checking them for wear and re-greasing or replacing where necessary.
On belt driven fans drive belts are adjusted or replaced where necessary. With direct coupled fans alignment of the couplings is inspected and checked and couplings replaced where necessary.
Access doors are removed and impellers checked for wear or damage. Dirt can collect on the impeller and throw the fan out of balance which could cause the bearings and motor to fail.
Fans are also put through a test run and vibration levels are monitored. A badly maintained fan can be noisy and vibrate which causes an uncomfortable working environment for employees, a situation that could potentially breech Noise and Vibration Legislation.
Regular on-site maintenance and servicing by experienced engineers can help to detect and prevent faults to all types of industrial fans, reducing the risk of breakdown, saving time and money as well as ensuring the life expectancy of the machine is maintained.
It is recommended that companies enlist the support of a fan servicing company that employs qualified engineers who understand the construction principles of fan manufacture and design, as this experience allows them to draw on their in-house expertise when inspecting fans on site – crucial when fault-finding and problem solving.
In order to maintain a competitive edge, more and more companies from a wide range of industries are realising the real and tangible benefits of having a contract maintenance and repair service for their fans, enabling them to maintain and maximise production performance levels at all times.
What about saving energy?
The water and waste treatment industry, like other areas of industry, has a responsibility to consider the environmental impact of its work.
A well maintained and regularly serviced fan is by definition an energy efficient piece of machinery and neglecting to have fans serviced could impact on a company’s ability to meet its environmental targets.
One way of achieving significant energy savings with industrial fans is to have high efficiency electric motors fitted when the regular service is carried out.
Electric motors account for as much as 65% of electric consumption in industry. Over its lifetime a motor can cost 100 times more to run than it did to buy which is an excellent reason to take energy saving seriously.
Motors are classified according to their energy efficiency. The most energy efficient 15KW motor operating for 6,000 hours per year driving a water pump can provide an energy saving of 4MWh each year when compared to the least efficient motor.
A typical medium-sized plant with 149 motors rated between 0.37 and 132kW could save around 3.4% of the annual cost of electricity for its motors by upgrading to the most efficient motors. Even greater savings are possible when energy efficient motors are used in conjunction with variable speed drives. And there are also financial incentives on offer from the government for being energy efficient. See http://www.eca.gov.uk www.eca.gov.uk for details of a scheme which provides tax and other incentives.
High efficiency motors also provide other excellent benefits. The use of superior materials makes for cooler operation, which means a longer life expectancy and higher reliability with less maintenance. Operating at lower temperatures also means that the motors can be fitted with smaller fans, resulting in lower noise levels.
By reducing their energy consumption and costs, businesses can boost their
competitiveness. At the same time they are also contributing to efforts to protect the environment by helping to reduce overall CO2 emissions. If high efficiency motors were used throughout Europe, energy savings equivalent to the output of several large power stations could be realised, with a dramatic reduction in CO2 emissions.
ATEX compliance
When it comes to selecting a fan manufacturer, companies operating in the water and waste treatment industries need to ensure that they choose a supplier that is fully compliant with the ATEX European directives 94/9/EC and 99/92/EC.
ATEX is a framework for controlling explosive atmospheres and the standards of equipment and protective systems used in them.
In the water and waste treatment industry, for example, an explosive atmosphere could be caused by flammable gases such as methane and other potentially explosive mists and vapours present in the treatment process.
If there was an explosion, it is the end user who will be held to account. Therefore, companies should ensure that sites are safe and that all equipment in hazardous areas, including industrial fans, conforms to the ATEX regulations.
Conclusion
In conclusion, choosing the right fan manufacturer to carry out servicing on a regular basis is clearly important. Regular servicing and maintenance can prolong the life of a fan, whilst neglecting to maintain and service a fan can lead to serious health and safety issues.
Too many companies fail to keep up with regular maintenance and servicing requirements, but they soon learn that the age-old adage ‘prevention is better than cure’ is as accurate as ever. After all, why would anyone neglect a piece of equipment that is critical to the smooth running of their business?
Companies have a responsibility to maintain a clean working environment, take measures to reduce emissions, avoid accidents and consider all the environmental impacts of their work.
Richard Wilson is Service Director at Woodcock & Wilson.
Telephone: 0845 475 7085
Woodcock & Wilson Limited
Huddersfield
West Yorkshire
Can be contacted on
Tel: 01484 462777
Fax: 01484 462888
Email: service@fanmanufacturers.com
Web: www.fanmanufacturers.com
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