New extraction and filtration system.
Investments for an even better working environment.
vonrickenbach.swiss ag used its company holidays to replace the existing extraction and filtration system with a new, state-of-the-art plant. The new unit complies with current fire and explosion regulations, is more energy-efficient and protects the health of our employees even better than before thanks to its improved extraction performance. The plant was replaced in just four weeks. A great team effort in which various companies were involved to ensure that we were able to produce for our customers again by the end of the holidays.
Indispensable - but often neglected
For many companies, an extraction and filtration plant is a necessity. Such plants are expensive, consume a lot of electricity and compressed air, and nothing tangible can be produced with them. In addition, the operation of such a plant is associated with many requirements such as fire protection, safety at work, health protection, noise protection and many more. However, in a company like ours, the absence or failure of this extraction and filter system would mean a near standstill.
Our existing plant was getting on in years, caused increasingly high repair costs and, due to adjustments to the tube network and the unit, had too little capacity for our current production volume. In addition, it was no longer energy efficient from today’s point of view.
All these reasons made us invest in a new, modern, and highly efficient extraction and filtration system . The old plant was disassembled and the new one finished in only four weeks. It was a planning, technical, logistical, and constructional tour de force in which various companies were involved. They all helped to ensure that we were able to resume production for our customers without any further interruptions by the end of the holidays.
Advantages of a new and modern plant
The advantages of a new and modern plant are obvious to us. With the new plant, we are saving electricity – the sophisticated electric motors are much more energy-efficient and function demand-oriented thanks to controlled sliders. The risk of fire or explosion is significantly lower, which can have a positive effect on insurance premiums. We have also opted for extended fire and explosion prevention with a spark detector and extinguishing system, which monitors all pipes for sparks and extinguishes them in an emergency. Another very important advantage is the improved extraction capacity, which means that the air in the factory is cleaner than ever and therefore benefits the health of our employees. Another big plus is that the cleaning effort is less time-consuming than before.
AL-KO PROFI JET
Extraction and filtration systems are used to extract chips and harmful respiratory dust generated during production via a pipe network. The extracted air is cleaned via the filtration system and, depending on the season, partially or completely returned to the factory. This allows the air to be reused in winter in an energy-efficient manner with almost no loss of heat. Air is sucked through the filters and the chips and dust remain on the filters. Measuring the differential pressure between the raw air side and the clean air side determines how dirty the filters are. If the pressure becomes too high, filters are cleaned automatically. There is also a residual dust probe that checks residual dust values in the filtered air. If the residual dust value is too high, there is a message, and the plant is switched off to prevent air with too high dust concentration from being returned to the plant. The chips and dust are collected under the filter and used to produce heat energy for the company’s own district heating network.
Without such an extraction and filter system, many mechanical and various manual tasks could not be performed, as the MAK values (maximum workplace concentration value) would be too high. For certain mechanical work, the amount of dust generated would be so high that working in the immediate vicinity would be impossible.
The plant is operated via a modern, innovative, and visualised control system with touch screen. Various parameters can be monitored and, if necessary, manually controlled via the control system. For control purposes, there is remote access, which can be used for monitoring or manipulation outside of the plant if necessary.
Facts about the plant
- Product: AL-KO PROFI JET
- Plant builder: FUCHS AADORF Absaug- und Lufttechnik GmbH
- Capacity/extraction volume: 90’000 m3 air per hour
- Motors: 4 x 30kW with frequency converter (demand-controlled)
- Filter area: 600m2
- Highlights: Visualised control of the plant and the pipe strings, differential pressure monitoring, residual dust monitoring, air demand determination via pressure sensors, control of the automatic sliders with machine recognition via BUS system, spark detection and extinguishing system of all strings, night cooling function, cleaning function.
Passion, know-how and state-of-the-art machinery for your ideas
Our investment in a sophisticated and energy-efficient extraction and filtration system adds to our modern machinery. I would like to thank all the companies involved for their great work. Particularly I would like to thank the team of Fuchs Aadorf, responsible for planning the new plant and implementing it in a very tight timeframe. I would also like to thank Suter Holzbau AG, Muotathal, ebs Energie AG, ZELLcom AG, Heinzer Bedachungen & Fassaden GmbH, Blattner AG, Odermatt Kerns AG, Inderbitzin Technik AG and IEP Technologies GmbH. Many thanks to all of you.
Thomas von Rickenbach
Owner of vonrickenbach.swiss ag
