Gold Series® Cartridge Dust Collector Provides "Vigilant" Protection
The Challenge
A 10-year-old cyclone and baghouse dust collection system was creating headaches for Vigilant, Inc. (Dover, N.H.), a leading manufacturer of finely crafted cigar humidors, wine racks and cellars, gun cabinets and custom cabinets. Problems included insufficient airflow through the system, time-consuming maintenance of bag filters, and the re-entry of nuisance dust into the building after bag cleanout, resulting in a dusty work environment.
"As we made plans to build a new facility more than triple the size of our existing plant, we knew we had to find a better way to deal with the dust," states Vigilant president Charlie Griffiths. A high efficiency cartridge dust collection system, manufactured by Camfil Farr APC and designed by Ventilation Control Products (Rumney, New Hampshire), has eliminated baghouse maintenance problems and cleared the air in Vigilant's new 40,000 sq. ft. facility.
"We planned to construct the new facility while continuing production at the old one, which gave us an opportunity to start from scratch with our dust collection," explains Griffiths. He turned for help to Ventilation Control Products (VCP), a manufacturers' representative organization that offers a full range of equipment designed for process ventilation and air pollution control in industrial and commercial applications. "VCP recommended that we look at cartridge dust collection technology," notes Griffiths. "Though we knew it would be a big departure from a baghouse, we learned that cartridge collection had the potential to give us better air, a cleaner shop, and lower maintenance requirements."
At first the company investigated dust collectors with horizontally-mounted cartridges, but VCP arranged for an on-site demonstration of a mobile Farr "Gold Series" dust collector, which uses cartridges that are vertically mounted. "Vertical filter cartridges eliminate the problems of uneven contaminant loading and dust blinding that can occur with horizontal cartridges," says Kevin Flynn, vice president of VCP. "Also, the vertical design would allow us to incorporate nylon overbags that fit loosely around the cartridges, protecting the filter media from clogging with sawdust, wood chips and other large particles."
A maintenance-friendly solution
The system used at the new Vigilant facility is a Gold Series "GS16" unit, an extremely rugged and maintenance-friendly system that contains 16 filter cartridges that readily handle the 10,000 cfm air volume required for the expanded production area. The pleated filters use a wide-pleat cellulose/polyester blended media that provides high efficiency removal of fine hardwood mahogany and medium density fiberboard dusts, while the overbags keep large particles away from the cartridge filters, helping to prolong their service life. A reverse pulse air cleaning system delivers periodic blasts of compressed air to clean dust off the cartridges and overbags.
During operation, dust generated by a variety of equipment (table saws, moulders, edge banders, chop saws, sanders, jointers, planers and routers) is sucked out of the work area and exhausted to the dust collector, which is located just outside the plant. The collector is mounted on support legs that straddle a covered dumpster, where dust collects as it falls from the cartridges and overbags during cleaning cycles. The cleaned air is then recirculated back into the workplace, allowing considerable savings in heating costs during the long and cold New Hampshire winters.
Since the system is designed to recirculate air, VCP equipped it with an explosion vent and spark detection and suppression system with an automatic abort gate for explosion prevention, as stipulated under NFPA 664 ("Standard for the Prevention of Fires and Explosions in Wood Processing and Woodworking Facilities"). They also used automatic sprinkler heads to satisfy insurance requirements.
Gold Series GS16 on Woodworking at Vigilant, Inc.
Cleanliness, productivity improved
"The Farr dust collector and other system components were delivered and installed right on time, which made things much easier from the start," says Griffiths. VCP designed and built the system, and an in-house crew from Vigilant installed the ductwork. At the time of this writing, the Gold Series collector has been operating since March 2005 with the original set of filter cartridges and has experienced no problems.
"First and foremost, we like the way it cleans the air," Griffiths states. "Having a clean work environment enables us to attract and keep top-notch employees. Not only do they enjoy clean air, but the workplace is also safer because floors and other surfaces are no longer slippery from dust.
"Productivity is another area where we have seen improvement," he adds. "In the old facility, we were frequently pulling people off other jobs to deal with dust disposal, constant clean-up of the work area, and similar tasks. The Gold Series collector is so reliable and user-friendly that we no longer have to worry about these issues. Aside from that, it is a proven fact that employees are more productive when the work environment is clean and comfortable."
The increased capacity and airflow of the Gold Series collector has allowed Vigilant to capture dust from more locations in the shop, including numerous tools and equipment where they did not previously have dust collection. Service requirements are minimal: A waste management company empties the dumpster every three weeks and hauls the dust to a composting site for recycling. General housekeeping is also made easier because workplace surfaces are no longer covered with a thick film of dust. "We still have to clean dust off the ductwork pipes - but only twice a year, when it used to be almost a monthly task," says Griffiths.
Vigilant maintenance personnel inspect the dust collector filters every few months and anticipate the first filter changeout will occur after 2-1/2 to 3 years of operation. At that time, they will upgrade to a new Farr "HemiPleat" cartridge that is designed for even longer life and lower pressure drop. The overbags have no special service requirements and do not require changeout unless a bag should rip.
"Protecting your passions"
Many of Vigilant's products started out of necessity for proper storage. The multitude of products on the market were not doing the job necessary to assure that fine possessions such as cigars and wine would maintain their quality over time. The company's slogan is "protecting your passions", a proposition that Vigilant fulfills by maintaining the highest product quality and strict adherence to the principle of preservation through proper storage. "Having the best dust collection technology allows us to maintain a clean, safe shop - and having a clean, safe shop in turn allows us to deliver on our slogan," Griffiths concludes. 