Capital Ornaments – Expansion of Compressed Air Capacity
Capital Ornaments produces unique designer flowerpots for both indoor and outdoor use. With a wide variety of styles and textures, there is a suitable flowerpot for everyone. Part of the production takes place at their own factory in Tilburg. In addition to contemporary design, Capital Ornaments flowerpots are known for their high quality. They are lightweight – despite their robust exterior – and weather-resistant.
Thanks to the company’s success, Capital Ornaments has significantly expanded in recent years, adding several production cells. This expansion also increased the demand for compressed air; however, the system began to suffer from pressure drops at certain points. Adding a larger compressor did not provide the desired effect.
More information: www.capi-europe.com
The Most Reliable and Efficient Compressed Air Supply for New Production Facilities
To address these issues, Capital Ornaments turned to Q Plus. Together with our dealer Coenraads Perslucht, a compressed air measurement and analysis were carried out to assess current demand and future requirements. The results showed that the piping diameter of the compressed air system needed to be adjusted to eliminate pressure drops and to use energy more efficiently.
Based on the measurements, it was concluded that a single 15 kW compressor would be sufficient to meet the compressed air demand. In practice, however, two compressors of this capacity had been running simultaneously. As a result, 50% more energy was being consumed than required – equivalent to approximately €4,500 in wasted energy per year.
Savings on Maintenance and Energy with a Vane Compressor
One of the key advantages of a vane compressor over other technologies is its mechanical simplicity. This makes maintenance work quick and easy to carry out. Add to this the fact that there are very few wear-sensitive parts, and it becomes clear that this is where the first savings in Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) can be achieved.
Further savings can be realised in terms of energy consumption. Because compressor oil does not require a long cooling-down period, idle running time (unloaded operation) is negligible compared to, for example, a screw compressor.
Reliable Production Lines
In this case, a redundant setup was chosen with two new 15 kW Naili AB vane compressors, with both the piping network and compressor placement designed to accommodate potential future expansions.
The successful collaboration between Capital Ornaments, Q Plus, and Coenraads Perslucht has resulted in smooth-running production lines, with the newly installed line operating flawlessly alongside the existing ones.