Finishing - May-June 2022

32 SUSTAINABILITY
can lead to substantial results. Up until that
point, the team had just one gold medal to
show in its 76-year history. Under Dave’s
guiding hand and adoption of the ‘marginal
gains’ theory, the British Olympic cycling team
won seven out of 10 gold track cycling medals
at the 2008 Olympics. The rest, as they say,
is history.
The marginal gains idea is not only
applicable to sport, but has made an
impression in industry and commerce.
At Brammer Buck & Hickman, we have
been looking at how marginal gains can be
applied across our customers’ businesses to
improve productivity and reduce costs. We
have applied this same theory to issues of
sustainability and one area where it has had
the most impact is in compressed air usage.
Generating compressed air is energy
intensive and, as a result, expensive. Up to
73% of the total cost of ownership of
compressed air installations can be attributed
to the cost of energy consumed by the
compressor and ancillary equipment over a
ten-year period. Is it possible to reduce this
energy usage without negatively affecting a
machine’s performance and without significant
expenditure? The answer is a resounding yes!
Here are our top five tips to reducing
energy consumption when it comes to
compressed air:
Tip 1: Choose the correct components
Switching to high flow couplings could
increase the productivity of air tools by some
50% and reduce energy consumption by up
to 30%. In more than half of all applications,
the pneumatic drive is too large for the
intended purpose. Simply downsizing the
cylinder or using single acting cylinders are
often all that is required of a pneumatic
system and can help reduce air consumption.
Also look at the connectors you are using.
Every tube run, fitting and filter causes a
pressure drop. Every 1 bar pressure drop
means an increase of 7% to the cost of
compressed air generation. A 90 elbow can
be the equivalent of a 1.6 metre pipe length.
Check to see if you can change elbows to
straight connectors and Tee’s to Y pieces.
Tip 2: Hose and tubing sizes
Opting for a tubing size with a smaller
diameter for valves and cylinders can reduce
air consumption, while choosing a larger
diameter hose for air tools can save money.
Using tubing with low drag co-efficiency can
increase air flow and reduce pressure drops to
optimise compressed air systems to achieve
yearly savings of around £15,000.
Tip 3: Reduce the pressure
Incorporating pressure regulators at point of
use can very quickly pay dividends. Reducing
the pressure by just 1 bar can see up to a
10% reduction in energy usage. Installing a
regulator means the pressure may be reduced
without having a negative effect on the
operation of the machinery. As well as wasting
compressed air, operating at too high a
pressure can increase wear on the
components leading to burnout and the
associated maintenance and replacement costs.
Tip 4: Switch off and save
Pneumatic equipment left idling can
consume between 20-70% of its full load
power. Apply responsible usage principles to
pneumatic components such as: installing
manual shut off valves and switching off when
machinery is not in use; implementing timeoperated
solenoid valves which allow the
operation of pneumatic components only if a
subsequent piece of equipment is in use; or
installing sensor-operated interlocks which
detect the need for compressed air equipment
to operate can isolate or apply air as
appropriate.
Tip 5: Stop leaks
In a pneumatic system, leakages can
account for between 5-10% of the air
supplied, although some systems record a loss
of 40-50% of the air input. One of the biggest
sources of air leaks are push-in fittings,
although It’s probably not the fitting that’s to
blame but the tube. Using scissors, box
cutters and the likes to cut pneumatic tubing
can compromise the seal and cause the fitting
to leak. Using a tube cutter ensures a good
seal.
Consider installing a flow meter, which is
the most effective way of reducing leaks and
energy consumption, by monitoring leaks as
part of a facility wide maintenance
programme. You might also want to consider
investing in a Compressed Air Leak Audit to
fully identify leaks so you can take remedial
action.
These small adjustments are easy to make
without the need for any costly equipment or
intervention from third parties. In fact, they
can be done by some of the most junior
employees, including Apprentices, ensuring
everyone can participate in the move to more
sustainable processes.
We regularly run workshops on compressed
air under the name of ‘REHAB’, which stands
for:
• Reduce Energy
• Education
• Health & Safety
• Autonomous Maintenance
• Best Practise
These workshops are designed to empower
customers to make changes for themselves
and the response is always one of
astonishment when we can prove together,
with hands on training, how these minor
adjustments can generate significant results.
When you consider that compressed air
represents around 30% of electricity usage for
an average UK factory, and 30% of
compressed air is wasted or misused you can
see why this is so.
With climate change an inescapable fact and
companies moving sustainability up the
agenda, everyone has a part to play and even
small changes can have a big impact when
made universally.
Finishing - May/June 2022