Kawneer North America, a part of Arconic’s global building and construction systems business unit, is a manufacturer of architectural systems and products such as doors, windows, and curtain wall systems. With approximately 8,500 employees across 20 locations throughout North America, the company specializes in providing building envelope solutions to the commercial construction industry.
The Challenge
A key piece of equipment in Kawneer’s manufacturing process is the upcut saw station, which produces about 15 gallons of chips on an average shift. While the saw itself was designed to expedite and streamline material cutting, cleanup was anything but efficient. Despite the use of self-cleaning, vibrating dust collectors, work at the upcut stations was constantly interrupted by the need to spot clean the saws of debris due to insufficient airflow and suction. The upcut stations were bottlenecking production workflows at several facilities, and eating into goal times. Knowing there had to be better dust collection methods on the market, Mitch Hogan, Process Engineer for Kawneer, began searching for better alternatives to their in-house units.
The Solution
After significant research, Hogan decided to purchase several cyclone dust collectors made by Oneida Air Systems, including the V-System 1500, V-System 3000, and the High Vacuum. Hogan based his decision on several factors.
Integrated High Efficiency Cyclone. Oneida Air’s cyclone dust collectors separate 99% of dust and debris from the airstream, allowing only a small portion of the finest dust to be passed to the unit’s filter. This helps to ensure more efficient airflow and better collector performance.
ETL Certified And Properly Labeled. In the past, Kawneer had purchased other collectors which claimed to be ETL or UL certified but lacked proper labeling, creating issues with electrical inspectors. Oneida Air’s collectors were all properly labeled per ETL/UL certification standards.
3rd Party Tested Filtration. Each of the collectors purchased from Oneida Air came equipped with filters certified by an accredited, independent testing lab.
The Results
Kawneer installed the V-System collectors at several U.S. facilities. Staff at each site noticed an immediate improvement, with fewer chips on the floor. “The V-Systems are better at collecting chips and dust than other brands of collectors that we’ve used in the past—none of which were cyclones,” said Hogan.
Better dust collection decreased the need for constant cleanup on their upcut saw stations, resulting in less interruption to the production line. “I’d estimate the new collectors save us at least 30-45 minutes on any given shift,” said Hogan. “We’re very satisfied with the productivity gains and improved working conditions from the Oneida Air V-System dust collectors,” Hogan said.
Looking to upgrade your plant’s dust collectors? We can help. Contact us today for a free dust collection needs assessment.
Call Scott McLaughlin
Business Development Manager
T: 800-732-5044 ext. 148
About Oneida Air Systems
Since 1993, Oneida Air Systems has existed for one purpose—to be the industry leader in dust collection. As a manufacturer of Made in America dust collection systems and components, Oneida Air remains at the forefront of market innovation and technical sales support across the globe.
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