Always Have a Backup

The clock is ticking.....

Every piece of machinery you have will fail at some point.  

Every second your equipment gets closer and closer to a problem.

It's inevitable.

It doesn't matter how well built your equipment is, eventually something will go wrong and you'll need to fix it.  Granted, well-built equipment will last longer and work better than the cheap stuff.  It may take longer before there's a problem, but there will be problems. 

So when your compressors fails is it time to panic?  Is your production shut down until the compressor is fixed?  Do you have to send people home because there's no work for them to do?

You shouldn't.  You should have had a backup compressor; you should have had redundancy. 

A redundant system would allow your production to continue.

I know what you're saying - "My compressor cost me thousands of dollars.  I can't afford two of them."

You're wrong. 

If your compressor is critical to your operation, then you can't afford to not have one.

How much money do you lose when your production shuts down for a day?  How much do you lose in one week?  For most companies, the price of another compressor pales in comparison to the cost of being down for just a few days. 

Additionally, when you're down, that requires you to ship the parts next day air and often pay overtime labor rates, further increasing the cost.  If you had a redundant system, then you could repair the compressor during regular hours; you could wait a week for ground shipping. 

What you can lose is more than just financial.  Your customers suffer, too.  The ones that rely on you to deliver when you promised, will be hurt.  If you lose their trust, you'll likely lose their business.

Your compressor is going to fail.  Work on getting redundancy right now.

There's a way to do it that will save you money in the long run, too.  If you're planning a new system, consider multiple smaller compressors with an intelligent control system, instead of one large compressor.  The savings on your electric bill and maintenance costs will eventually pay for the extra initial cost, and you'll have the security of a redundant system.  Spreading out the hours on the compressors will make failures happen much less often, as well.

If you already have an air system in place, you may not need a full sized backup.  Call us, and we can determine that out for you. 

A backup compressor or a redundant system doesn't have to break the bank, but not having one will eventually cost you a fortune.
 .....
It's just a matter of time.

Big Tank = Big Bank

Your compressed air tank is too small.

Yes, I'm talking to you.  I don't know who you are, but if you're reading this I'm probably right.  Compressed air storage is one of the most overlooked items when companies purchase a compressed air system.  A tank is a small expense compared to the other items in your air system.

In most cases, a large air receiver can improve energy savings, air quality and pressure stability.  It can also reduce maintenance costs and extend the life of your air compressors.  The best part about it is that there's no electricity and no moving parts.  There's nothing to go wrong with it, other than the drain (and you'd need the same drain on a smaller tank anyway). 

Think of your tank like a bank account.  It saves money for later use, and allows you to save that money in a more efficient way.  Also when large expense or a surprise bill pops up, you have already saved enough to cover the expense.  Think of it as having enough money in the bank, so that you only to have work when it's convenient and easy for you.  You don't have to scramble around looking for money or work because you don't have enough to pay the bills.  You would never put a limit on the amount of money you can save.  In the same way you should never limit the amount of compressed air energy you can save to just a small amount above what you can produce.

Another way to think of it is this:  Imagine if you had a two hour commute from your house to your job.  What is more efficient for you - going to work twice per day at 4 hours per day or going to work once per day for a whole 8 hours?  Of course you'd rather work the whole 8 hours.  Having to go back and forth to work twice per day wastes 4 hours of your time, doubles the gas, and puts more wear and tear on your car.  When your compressed air storage is too small, you're doing this to your compressor, and you're forcing it to go all the way home and back to work each time.

Another benefit to a big tank is that you can lower your system pressure.  This reduces leaks and saves you 1% on the electrical bill to run your compressor for every 2 psi.  Also, running at the lower pressure is easier on your compressor.

It's just a small extra cost initially, but it saves you money year after year after year.  There are many other benefits, as well, and if you'd like to go more into the hard science of it and see some examples of it, please read this excellent article from Kaeser Compressors. 


You can also contact us if you would like a free expert evaluation by our factory trained personnel. 

Five Easy Fixes To Save Money With Your Compressed Air System

If you use compressed air at your company, then it's likely the largest part of your electricity bill.  Also, if you're like most companies, you could make small improvements to reduce this bill by 15% or more.

Here are some easy fixes that would save you money:

1.  Fix The Leaks.
I'm sure you if you have the air conditioner on, you make sure everybody closes the windows and doors.  The same principle applies to your air system.  If you have leaks, you're just "leaving the doors and windows open."  Hundreds or thousands of dollars in electricity are literally leaking out of your system, until you fix it.  Not only that, it makes your compressor run more, which increases your maintenance costs and wear & tear on the compressor. You would never accept this with your A/C system, so why do most companies accept this with their compressed air system?

 2.  Lower The Pressure.
Every time you lower your system pressure by 2 psi, you save approximately 1% on your electrical costs.  Additionally, if you have leaks, they leak less air at lower pressures - sometimes a considerable amount.  Why not lower your system pressure to just above what you use?  If you have proper tank storage (4-5 gallons of storage per CFM of compressor) and air system with a  low pressure drop, then you should make this change immediately.  If you don't have proper storage, get it.  A big tank is big bank - it saves you money in so many different ways, I cannot list them all in this blog post.

3.  Pressure Drop.
Pressure drop is the difference in psi coming out of the compressor from the pressure at the end of the line where you use the air.  This is often caused by pipe being too small, in-line filter elements not being changed or too many twists and turn in the piping.  Changing the filter elements is an easy fix, but the others may take a little more time or money.  However, the return on investment should make it worth the effort.  If you are unsure about taking this step, call or email us.  We can figure out your return on investment.

4.  Maintenance.
You should be doing this anyway.  Changing the filters and oil on your compressor(s) lets them run more efficiently.  Changing the elements in in-line filters reduces pressure drop.  Cleaning the coils on condenser in a dryer makes it run more efficiently, and cleaning the coils on the compressor cooler lets the compressor run more efficiently and keeps it from overheating.  Make sure you have a proper preventative maintenance program in place is essential.  You may want to consider a professional compressor company to put you on a maintenance program.  Our service department offers this program for companies of all sizes, so please contact them if this interests you.

5.  Reduce the size of your blow down/blow offs.
A lot of personnel use compressed air to clean equipment or themselves.  They just take a hose and blow the dust off of them or the equipment.  If they're using an open hose, then you're losing a considerable amount of money every time.  Please look at this chart.  This is just a leak, so reducing the pressure and the size of the leak saves you a lot of money. Put a regulator and blow gun on that hose - it probably costs $20-$50, and will save you hundreds of dollars in energy costs.  Use the smallest orifice blow you can with the least amount of pressure you need to get the job done.

There are many other ways to reduce your electricity bill and compressor maintenance by optimizing your compressed air system.  Please call or email us if you need help or more information.