Lower life cycle costs

FOR A manufacturing plant, compressed air is one of the principal utilities. For industries such as pharmaceutical manufacturing, medical care, electronics, and food and beverage – as well as their sub-suppliers – a lack of quality air, which does not meet the global compliance requirements of ISO 8573, 1:2010 and ISO 8573-7, can cause a high risk of contamination. There is risk of product recalls and export bans, damaging the reputation of the company, its brand and its products.

As with all such stringent standards, they can add to the costs, energy consumption, and ultimately complicating the work of operations leaders who need to reduce the life cycle cost (LLC) of their capital investments.

Filtering removes much of the oil but not all of it, and it raises two more problems. Firstly, given that approximately 10 million litres of oil have been expelled into the atmosphere over the past 10 years from oil-lubricated compressors, the safe and sustainable disposal and re-use of oil continues to be a challenge.

Secondly, filters create a drag on efficiency by their very function, resulting in increased energy use, contrary to the very goals of operations leaders. For every filter that is installed in the downstream compressor line, energy consumption increases by approximately 1%. Furthermore, filters are often installed and paired in various combinations in the compressor room and at the point of use, resulting in additional cost and efficiency loss.

Thus, meeting these requirements for contaminant-free air has always seemed at odds with the need to reduce total life cycle costs.

Best of both worlds

Today, innovation and new product development has resulted in solutions that deliver ISO:8573 (P-2):2007 ‘Class 0’ oil-free air to ensure that 100% contaminant-free air is produced for various applications in their manufacturing and packaging processes.

Until recently, these compressors were expensive and used primarily by large companies and those that exported their products to markets with stringent standards (for example as set by the EU’s European Food Safety Authority). Now, technology advancements and market developments in oil-free technology and ‘Class 0’ certified compressors are changing the game. Every manufacturing company can now access technology that assures oil-free air in compliance with the most stringent standards, but also higher energy savings and uptime at lower life cycle costs.

For example, there are very few compressor companies that design their own oil-free air-ends and even less that make them along with their own pressure vessels, castings, motors while also conducting complete machining and compressor assembly. With in-house technology and manufacturing capabilities of all these various elements, compressors can now be engineered to deliver maximum uptime and reliability, leading to an optimised compressed air system for operators.

The technology exists to affordably cater to the dual demands of contaminant-free air and improved Life Cycle Cost. But we can and should do more. Operational leaders need not only the best and most reliable compressors, but also expert support in designing and optimising the complete compressed air system.

Plant leaders should consider a 'bird’s eye view' of the compressed air system – understanding the supply and demand sides, and starting at the point of generation, through transmission and finishing where the air is used at the end of the line. A solution-focused, comprehensive approach building on the components, but holistically looking beyond just the compressor room, is essential to lowering the life cycle cost.

With the advance of energy efficient oil-free compressed air, oil-free air will become more prevalent, supported by design initiatives to further improve cost and efficiency. Data will serve as a key enabler, and with this evolution we can expect increasing energy and cost savings and improvements for this vital energy source in manufacturing.

David De Pril is head of product management and marketing, ELGi Europe

For more information, visithttps://www.elgi.com/eu/