Rock grinding machinery used in quarrying can produce Respirable Crystalline Silica (RCS) which causes the lung disease silicosis. Officially acceptable levels of RCS exposure in the workplace were reduced last year, so it is vital that quarries continue to maintain and service industrial fans used for ventilation and dust extraction.

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?

Depending on its application a fan used in the quarrying industry can have a life span of more than forty years, during which time numerous potential problems can occur. Dirt and dust can collect on the impeller, for instance, throwing the fan out of balance, and the bearings and motor can fail.

Should a fan unexpectedly break down, as well as the danger from critical failure of rotating parts, there is also the additional cost associated with repair and lost production time.

Annual fan service and maintenance is a vital plant maintenance function in the quarrying industry. Often carried out during shut down periods, fan maintenance can be done quickly and efficiently and does not have to interfere with production output.

To stay in business and keep the fans working, regular servicing and maintenance is essential. It’s surprising how quickly things can start to go wrong once you stop servicing fans and businesses can’t afford to have their fans out of action for long periods.

Another important reason to keep up with the maintenance programme is that 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.

What does a typical service involve?

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.

A typical service takes a full day and normally involves:

• inspecting the overall condition of fans
• inspecting fan bearings for wear and re-greasing or replacing where necessary
• inspecting, adjusting or replacing drive belts on belt driven fans
• inspecting and checking alignment of couplings on direct coupled fans and replacing couplings if necessary
• removing access doors and checking impeller for wear or damage
• test running fans and monitoring vibration levels.

Leading fan servicing company Woodcock & Wilson, based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, has seen significant growth in its fan servicing operation this year, as more and more companies realise that having their fans maintained and serviced regularly can prevent serious health and safety issues, is better for the environment and saves time and money.

This growth also reflects the fact that the engineers at Woodcock & Wilson understand the construction principles of fan manufacturing and design, allowing 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.

Being energy efficient

Quarrying companies, just like any other industry, have a responsibility to reduce emissions, minimise energy usage, avoid accidents and consider all the environmental impacts of their work.

A regularly serviced and well maintained 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.

Companies that use industrial fans can also achieve significant energy savings by having high efficiency electric motors fitted when the regular service is carried out.

For further information contact:

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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