DUST EXTRACTION Study in Green Extraction at University Design School Dust Control Systems Ltd has installed an energy-saving dust extraction system at Loughborough University’s newly-built Design School building. Renowned for the very highest quality of research and teaching, the Design School undertakes a broad spectrum of design-related programmes ranging from product design to engineering design. The new state-of-the-art building includes design studios, research, teaching and IT laboratories, a lecture theatre/auditorium, offices and meeting rooms, exhibition spaces and two wellequipped prototyping workshops. The two workshops comprise a wood preparation shop, located on the ground floor, and a wood machine shop, housed on the second floor. Equipment in the wood preparation shop is restricted to use by university technical staff and includes a wall saw, dimension saw, crosscut saw, two routers, planer, thicknesser and a grooving machine. Within the machine shop there are a total of 24 woodworking, sanding and finishing machines which are made available to students to utilise in the construction of design prototypes.
The requirement for a dust extraction system was set out by mechanical and electrical contractors, Imtech G&H, and called for an internally-sited filter capable of extracting from all machines on both floors. It was also an essential requirement that the system must provide low-noise operation and be energy-efficient to run. A major constraint placed on the plant’s design and installation was that the filter and fans would have to fit into very limited space on the ground floor. Also, the route for ducting between floors had been established when the building was designed and meant that all main ductwork had to in place ahead of other trades. DCS designed a scheme which centres round a custom-built bag filter that perfectly fits the available space, and features their computerised ECOGATE® energy-saving extraction optimisation system. The high-efficiency bag filter has a capacity of 23,000m3/hr and is fitted with 160 tubular polyester needle-felt filter bags - ideal for collection of many different types of dust. Filter cleaning is by ‘shaker system’ and waste is collected in quick- release bins beneath each filter section. As the filter is housed inside the building it is fitted with
Custom-built DCS bag filter plant fits perfectly into very limited space.
spark detection equipment to prevent the possibility of fire by spark ignition. The system employs two main fansets – 7.5kW for the wood preparation shop and 22kW for the machine shop. Energy saving measures involved the fitting of variable speed drives to each fan, and machines in the workshops were fitted with ECOGATE automatic motorised gates with sensors. The system employs two ECOGATE greenBOX12 controllers in the machine shop and one in the wood preparation workshop. The sensors signal the controller to open or close gates as machines come on line or shut down. The greenBOX12 detects changes in extraction load and adjusts the variable speed fan drive accordingly. The result is a highlyefficient dust extraction system, which operates at reduced noise levels, and provides precise extraction volumes only when needed. It is expected that the ECOGATE ‘on-demand’ system will reduce power usage by around 60% when compared with a traditional fixed-speed system. For more information: Tel: 0800 040 7116 Fax: 01924 482530 www.DCSlimited.co.uk
Extraction from 24 machines in the wood machine shop is controlled by two ECOGATE greenBOX12 controllers. See our website and interactive magazine www.p-j-production.com
MARCH/APRIL 2012 Panel & Joinery Production
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