Pneumatech nitrogen generator aids in laser cutting process for Orion Hunting Products
Orion Hunting Products
Primarily focused on hunter safety and comfort, they are dedicated to providing hunting stands that allow hunters of all ages to enjoy the thrill of the hunt.
Nitrogen application
For several years Orion had been using racks of high-pressure bottles provided by a local bulk nitrogen supplier. The racks of bottles were expensive and due to supply chain issues the delivery had become unreliable causing production delays. The racks were very heavy and required a lift to swap them out when they ran out of nitrogen. The used rack had to be disconnected and a new rack connected to resume cutting introducing air and contaminates into the system which could damage the system. The racks, and associated space required for moving them, took up valuable floor space next to the laser and loading dock.
Solution
Pneumatech supplied an on-site nitrogen system capable of providing the required nitrogen while eliminating the pitfalls associated with the bottle racks. The system begins with a 20 horsepower compressor with an integrated refrigerated dryer, to remove moisture, and 120 gallon storage tank. The air is then filtered by a series of coalescing and adsorbing filters to remove any impurities from the air stream. The air enters the generator where it is monitored for quality to protect the generator. Next, the generator removes oxygen and moisture from the air stream using a high-quality carbon molecular sieve. This produces dry, high-quality nitrogen which leaves the generator and is stored in a buffer tank. Before the nitrogen is sent to the lase,r it is filtered one more time and re-enters the generator so the correct purity, pressure, and flow can be maintained and monitored by the Purelogic controller. The nitrogen is then sent to the laser for shield gas.
The benefits of on-site nitrogen generation
Generating your own nitrogen offers many benefits.
- Full control of the nitrogen generation – no more production delays due to supply chain issues.
- Increased productivity – On demand nitrogen and no more racks to swap out.
- Reliability – On site system is never opened preventing contamination of the laser.
- Increased production area – New system is on a mezzanine away from the production floor.
- Cost savings – Bottles were costing the customer approximately $52,000 a year. With the Pneumatech system they are currently running they will have a less than 1 year return on investment.
Customer testimonial
“We were paying $1000 a week for high pressure bottles. Now we are paying several dollars a day for energy costs to run the new system. Our return on investment will be less than one year. We’ve also saved floor space, don’t have to swap tanks, and have had no issues associated with pressure drop as the tanks began to run out of nitrogen. We couldn’t be happier. Everything worked just as they said it would and they were able to answer any questions we had.”
Cole Welch, Operations Engineer, Orion Hunting Products
