Process Heating - All fired up
Eliminating bottlenecks in the heat-curing phase of any assembly process, thereby increasing the efficiency of the whole operation, is an essential goal for any business - nowhere more so than at Hepworth Building Products.
Process Heating - Steaming into first place
There are many viable ways to provide heat for processing: these can be divided into direct and indirect systems. A direct heating system is one where heat is released directly into the product - for example a gas flame heating a small cooking vessel. Indirect heating is more complicated in that a heat transfer medium is heated, and the medium is then applied to the process. An everyday example of indirect heating is the way in which a central heating system uses the boiler to heat water, which is then pumped through a heating coil in the hot water storage tank.
Saving the earth
In the rush to save energy and reduce emissions, it's easy to forget the sheer range of potential solutions. Dr Tom Shelley reviews some of today's most powerful options
Instant heating is flavour of the month at Fox’s biscuits
Fox's Biscuits in Preston reports that its problem of hot water shortages has been solved since installing an EasiHeat engineered system, from Spirax Sarco.
Latent heating
As UK government ups the ante on going green and slashing emissions, air- and ground-source heat pumps are rearing their heads again. Brian Tinham examines the issues
Tamar Foods saves 23 percent on HVAC energy
One of the UK's largest producers of pastry-based products is reporting 23% energy cost savings on its HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) plant, following installation of ABB variable-speed drives.
Efficient energy
Combined heat and power plants are anything but new. However, evolving technologies are revolutionising their scope and HM government likes the sound of it. Brian Tinham reports
Five questions you should ask before you invest in an economiser
Economisers have the potential to slash the energy and environmental costs from boilers. However, the way economisers are designed and manufactured plays a major role in determining to what extent they can lower a boiler’s energy requirement and environmental impact.
Fluid thinking
According to the Carbon Trust, UK industry spends around £9.5 billion on energy, with at least 40% of that consumed by process heating. 'Using straightforward techniques, between 5% and 10% of this could be saved, reducing spending on energy by £280 million,' it states. A sobering thought in an age when going green - and doing so for sound economic reasons - has never been higher up the corporate agenda.
The heat is on
Two of the key concerns for anyone involved in process heating are to save energy and reduce running costs. But how many organisations really know how well – or badly – they are doing? Brian Wall finds out