Ask a Question:
What does OSHA say about hose safety?
Answer:
OSHA guideline publication states:
"Hoses, cables, and other equipment shall be kept clear of passageways, ladders and stairs."
OSHA says reduce your slips, trips and falls.
Slips, trips and falls constitute the majority of general industry accidents, which cause 15% of all accidental deaths, and are second only to motor vehicles as a cause of fatalities. The OSHA standard for walking and working surfaces apply to all permanent places of employment, except where only domestic, mining, or agricultural work is performed. www.osha.govConsider adding reels to increase safety & efficiency with your electrical cords, welding cables, air hose, oil, grease, liquid/water or fuel hoses.
Ask a Question:
How much can my AIR LEAKS cost me?
Have you ever wondered what that hissing sound is when you walk through your plant or shop area?
Most likely it is a COMPRESSED AIR LEAK.
But what about the air leaks you can not hear?
Size cannot be judged by sound.
Answer:
A Department of Energy publications states:
"Compressed air leaks can account for 20% to 30% of
compressors cfm output in small to medium size plants."
In other words- you could be losing up to 30% of your compressed air because of AIR LEAKS!
That is your money leaking away! It is worth the effort to find
and fix your air leaks.
Ask a Question:
How do you estimate the SIZE and COST of an AIR LEAK?
Answer:
Here's how to estimate the size of air leaks: It iss not very hard.
We will use the "TIME METHOD" to estimate percentages of loss due to air leaks in your plant.
1.Turn OFF all air operated end-user equipment.
2.Start your air compressor and let it cycle 5 times.
3.Time the OFF-LINE/UNLOAD TIME (T)
(not pumping time) using your watch. (Example: 5 minutes)
4.Time the ON-LINE/LOAD TIME (t)
(pumping time) using your watch. (Example: 2 minutes)
5.Calculate total percentage of air leaks as follows:
Add the OFF / UNLOAD and the ON / LOAD times together.
Example: T(5 minutes) + t (2 minutes)= 7 minutes
Divide ON / LOAD time (t) (2 minutes) by the total minutes:
2 ÷ 7=.029
The results tells you 29% of your air compressor's CFM's are doing nothing but maintaining your AIR LEAKS.
How to figure the cost of air leaks:
Based on values from the Compressed Air & Gas Handbook,
we can assume 4 CFM* per air compressor horsepower.
So, if you have a 100 HP compressor and the above determined 29% air leaks -use this formula:
100 HP x 4*=400 CFM x 29% (.29 air leak loss) = 116 wasted CFM.
As the chart below shows, you now know that you are
are losing over $13,000 a year because of AIR LEAKS
SIZE OF YOUR LEAK CFM AIR LOSS WASTED $
Orifice Diameter Inches DOLLARS PER YEAR
1/32 1.6 211.70
3/32 14.5 1905.30
1/4 104.0 13665.60
1/2 415.0 54531.00
*These figures are based on values from the Compressed Air & Gas Institute Handbook. Calculations assume a very conservative cost of $.25 /1000 cubic feet of compressed air, 100% coefficient of flow and working 8,760 hours/year at 100 psig.
