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Edition 01/15

Article and compact news

Our AERZEN customer journal "AERZEN com.press" will provide you with detailed information at regular intervals about our company, our products and application solutions.

Article

The mills grind efficiently

The – “Milser Mühle“ – has relied on AERZEN for 50 years

In the pneumatic conveying of food, the highest possible level of supply reliability and energy efficiency can only be achieved with perfectly planned, tailor-made solutions. And so it is with the “Milser Mühle”, where, for five decades, AERZEN Positive Displacement Blowers have been used – eleven of them in total.

The Milser Mühle processes approximately 400 tonnes of cereals a day with 25 employees, and is, thus a medium-sized company in the North German mills sector.
Three AERZEN Positive Displacement Blowers with partly dismounted acoustic hood in an adjacent room
AERZEN Positive Displacement Blowers in the central station

When the Borgstedt Family took over the Milser Mühle 130 years ago, at first, it only produced feed material, and then, from 1918, it started to produce flour for human food. “Therefore we selected oilfree compressing AERZEN Positive Displacement Blowers of series GM as conveying air producer for the closed piping systems. Until today we are only using AERZEN units“- says Mastermiller Friedrich-Wilhelm Borgstedt. These blowers are from several generations of the series, due tothe long operation period of the units.

“Today, pneumatic conveying is necessary for the economical operation of a modern mill company”, explains the senior chief. In the Mehlstraße, eleven AERZEN units have been working with a highest pressure from 650 to 750 mbar and driving power from 4 to 30 kW. According to Borgstedt, the relatively low pressure range is reached with the longer lifetime of the blowers, the locks and the pipings, and, in particular, the pipe bends. Seven AERZEN blowers, not of sound insulated design, are in a central station, with three further units, which are sound-insulated, located in an adjacent room.

The version without acoustic hoods was consciously selected in order to avoid contaminations as a result of vermin-nesting places – a widespread problem for mill technology. However, this means that considerable radiation heat is generated, as well as high noise levels. Consequently, sufficient fresh air has to be ensured for compression and cooling of the units. Due to the corresponding openings, however, noise does not escape from the station.

Calculation of the optimal room ventilation

Using a special AERZEN online-tool, the so-called “room ventilation calculator”, the maximum required inlet air quantity, the ventilator power and the size of the wall openings were determined. In this calculation program, the installed type of machine must first be selected – in this case “Blower”, however, “Compressor“ or “Turbo Units“ may also be selected. The type of suction must then be defined – in the case of Milser Mühle, the options are: “room suction from outside of the room“, or “room suction out of the room“. The calculation is effected after input of the following information – the totally installed motor rating, the ambient temperature, the admissible temperature increase, the maximum intake volume flow of the whole station, the installation height and the flow velocity. The combination of this data produces precise findings which can then be used to determine the optimal solution. Although splitter silencers in the channels allow air to enter the station, the noise level outside the building is minimized.

In operation around the clock

Production at the Milser Mühle normally takes place behind the mills, from Monday mornings through Saturday mornings, prior to the cleaning work. In exceptional situations, production also takes place on Sunday mornings. Therefore, a reliable and fail-safe supply of conveying air is imperative for Borgstedt. Only then, – can the mill operate on as troublefree basis – an essential requirement for meeting the delivery dates agreed with customers.

However, such solutions for pneumatic conveying concepts in the food industry are not – “ready-made“ –. In the preliminary stages of such an investment, a detailed specification has to be compiled. AERZEN supplies the AERZEN Positive Displacement Blowers of the series Delta Blower – “Generation 5“ – tailor-made for all ranges of application in the pneumatic conveyance including all standard accessory components for effective operation at the push of a button. They can be used in all climates and will work in the most difficult ambient conditions just as safely as they will in a hall installation – reliably, durably and energy-efficiently. As an option, AERZEN blowers can also be supplied in ATEX-design according to EU-guideline 94/9/EC. This is an increasingly important criterion not only for the food industry, but also for many other branches of industry such as the synthetics industry, environmental technology, the chemical and pharmaceutical industries, in refineries and in power plant technology.

Friedrich-Wilhelm Borgstedt, Senior chief Milser Mühle: „We would always decide on AERZEN. Our main reasons for doing so are the high quality and reliability of the units, their longevity as well as the geographic proximity of the manufacturer.“  

Compact news

AERZEN Thailand founded

With the recently opened subsidiary in Thailand’s capital Bangkok, AERZEN is now present in the “Land of Smiles”. Since 3rd December 2014, Mrs. Jittarat Maneewan, who already knows our products very well, has been working as Business Development Manager for Thailand. In her role, she reports directly to Mr. Andy Lim, AERZEN Singapore, General Manager for South East Asia. Opening a new office in Thailand is part of the AERZEN service strategy to always be close to our customers and to be able to support them directly. The co-operation with the present sales partner, Uni Royal International, will continue - in particular in the After Sales range.

Laser-based coupling alignment – efficient and precise

Machines that are optimally aligned have lower operating and maintenance costs. Thanks to precise alignment, the “Mean Time Between Failure” is reduced and machine availability is increased.For this reason, AERZEN applies across the group the laser-based alignment system OPTALIGN smart RS5 AERZEN. This enables the alignment of directly driven machines. The customer benefits are obvious: lower-wear operation, increased machine availability and prevention of production failures. Using this approach, AERZEN expands its service competence. For any questions, just contact our service managers on site, or our specialists in our parent company.

AERZEN further expands its range of compressors

AERZEN has expanded the new Delta Screw E compressor-series to a total of six different sizes: the new models VM 30 and VML 35 cover the lower volume flow range of 330 to 2,590 m³/h and thus supplement the belt-driven packaged unit types. The VM- and VML compressors, with a maximum differential pressure of 2 or 3.5 bar, are optionally equipped with pressure retaining valves, overflow regulators and air-toair aftercoolers, and include cyclone separators and an automatic condensate drain. Specially tailored solutions are also possible.

New concept for service and maintenance trade fairs

AERZEN has developed a new, modular fair stand concept which can easily be adapted to various base areas, and which reflects the new Corporate Identity. The freestanding, portal-like beam construction of this fair stand is designed to attract the attention of visitors from some distance. Therefore, an adequate presentation area is now available for products and services of the AERZEN After Sales Service. We celebrated its debut at this year’s “Maintenance” fair from 25-26 February in Dortmund, Germany.

Automatic re-lubrication devices

Packaged units with high annual operating times may require more service calls for the re-lubrication interval of the electric motors. Therefore, AERZEN has included automatic re-lubrication devices in the After Sales Service Programme.

These systems are driven by electric motors; the dispensers are provided with the necessary power supply by an integrated removable battery.

Cartridges are available in three different sizes and various types of lubrication. The devices can be applied at temperatures from - 10 °C to + 60 °C. Thanks to corresponding programming, the dispensed quantity can be accurately dosed and adjusted to the requirements of the electric motor. Therefore, an efficient and safe lubrication without downtime is guaranteed. In this way it can be ensured that the system is permanently available. Retro-fitting of new AERZEN machine lubrication devices is also possible for existing standard motors.

Aerzen do Brasil celebrated its 15th anniversary

Last year, the team at our subsidiary Aerzen do Brasil celebrated its 15th anniversary: to have been in business successfully for 15 years in the important, but highly competitive Brazilian market, is a great achievement. To celebrate this milestone, all Aerzen do Brasil colleagues, and their families, were invited to a celebration “in the green”.