Asking The Right Questions (continued)

4. Will it provide the best possible return on investment (ROI)?

Although initial capital expenditure is important, it is not only the initial cost but also the total life cycle cost that is important. What will it cost to operate and maintain the unit and as well as the frequency of filter replacement? How much compressed air will it use? Can it save on maintenance of electrical components such as motors and control panels that are exposed to the dust?

A final consideration revolves around the ease of manipulating and servicing the dust collector's components. Is the dust collector user-friendly? This is important since maintenance personnel time is a cost factor. If the filters last nearly twice as long as competing technologies, and slide in and out more easily, there is both an economic benefit and a safety benefit. Obviously the fewer man-hours spent on filter changeout, the more cost-effective the dust collector becomes.

User-friendly designs also create several safety benefits such as reduced exposure to dusts by reducing the frequency and time of each filter change. A user friendly design becomes even more important for operations and maintenance personnel when utilizing contained dust collectors, because if a system is difficult to service, there is a greater chance of circumnavigating the safety features: i.e., containment is operator dependent.

A reputable equipment supplier can analyze the various cost and safety factors and help analyze the best ways to improve ROI and get the most out of dust collector performance.

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