Plant Services - February 2008 - (Page 36)

EQUIPMENT Safety is increased by a non-penetrating rooftop railing system cientific Protein Laboratories (SPL) operates a 96,578-sq.-ft., FDA-audited manufacturing facility in Waunakee, Wis., to produce Heparin and pancreatic enzyme products. In 2006, the company added 4,800 sq. ft. to a six-year-old metal building originally erected in 2000. The first floor provides office space, and the second is used for warehouse storage. Rooftop safety was a concern because of a need to access rooftop equipment for maintenance. SPL wanted a railing system that could be installed without penetrating a standing-seam metal roof. Eileen D. Spahn, associate project manager for SPL, contacted Kee Industrial Products, Inc. of Buffalo, N.Y., to inquire about its KeeGuard rooftop safety railing system. Comprised of galvanized pipe rails, upright assemblies and structural pipe fittings, typical KeeGuard systems are counterbalanced to allow installation without penetrating the roof. They meet OSHA Standards 29 CRF 1910.23 and 1926.500, which require the presence of a barrier within 6 feet of roof edges. Counterbalanced weights, however, wouldn’t work on SPL’s standing seam roof. Pavel Tretyakov, fall protection manager for Kee Industrial Products, says the best solution was to apply a fastening system designed specifically for metal roofs. Base plates are clamped to the roof seams and uprights, and 4-in. toe boards then connect to the plates. Bachmann Construction, a design-build contractor from Madison, Wis., installed the KeeGuard system on the building expansion to form a walkway 21 ft. from the roof ’s edge and a 16-ft. by 20-ft. area around an HVAC unit in the middle of the roof. Lengths of 11/2-in. schedule 40 pipe rails were cut to length and connected with Kee Klamp slip-on, steel pipe fittings. Reduce maintenance and consumable costs with high-capacity filter elements Keeguard (www.keeguard.com) Although the customized KeeGuard system didn’t penetrate the roof, further modifications were required. Endres Manufacturing Co., Waunakee, Wis., designed and constructed a ladder with a birdcage-style barrier to provide safe access to the roof from the side of the building. “But this left too wide a gap between the two returns, ladder and cage, and the location of the handrails,” Spahn says. Bachmann Construction designed and built two D-returns, using Kee fittings, to bridge the gap at the ladder and to eliminate a potential safety hazard. Railing system durability and ease of installation was why SPL selected KeeGuard, Spahn says. Only a hex wrench is needed to connect the non-penetrating mounting plates to the rails. This can save as much as 50% of the installation costs compared to welded railings. Scientific Protein Laboratories used the KeeGuard non-penetrating railing system and complementary ladder and cage when expanding its facilities to preserve roof integrity and provide optimal safety for its maintenance workers. safely and reliably measure flyash by detecting material in the path of the energy beam. The maximum range of the switches is more than 300 feet. Sensitivity adjustments are used for higherdielectric materials (paper bales, plastic film) or very small ranges (less than 3 feet). Hawk Measurement Systems (www.hawklevel.com) Commodity air filters offer lower initial cost but require more frequent replacement. High-capacity filters are still in service after four years, resulting in lower part and maintenance costs. Donaldson Torit (www.donaldson.com) Save space and cost with integrated switchboards A pre-wired, integrated switchboard (ISB) is used instead of installing and wiring separate transformers, power and lighting panels and lighting contactors. The freestanding ISB is more compact, uses less conduit and cable, and saves hours of assembly and installation time. General Electric (www.ge.com) Lower pump life cycle costs with dynamic seals Monitor fly ash levels reliably and accurately using microwave switches Traditional packings and mechanical seals require clean liquids, typically water, for lubrication. The cost of a seal water system can be as high as $20,000, plus energy and water consumption. A dynamic seal contains the pumped liquid by centrifugal force and pump suction-side pressure. It consumes some power, but its life cycle costs can be significantly lower. ITT Goulds Pumps (www.gouldspumps.com) Accurate bin level measurements inside the flyash hoppers under an electrostatic precipitator are compromised by flyash properties such as repose angle, temperature, dielectric constant, material buildup and space limitations. A non-contact, span-measuring, microwave-based switch system has proven to 36 Replace mercury level switches to eliminate potential contamination A utility power plant replaced feedwater level switches with mercury-free switches. Dealing with spilled mercury is a difficult task, and won’t be necessary with the new switches. System Components Corp., Clark-Reliance (www.clarkreliance.com) February 2008 www.PLANTSERVICES.com http://www.keeguard.com http://www.hawklevel.com http://www.donaldson.com http://www.ge.com http://www.gouldspumps.com http://www.clarkreliance.com http://www.PLANTSERVICES.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Plant Services - February 2008

Plant Services - February 2008 Contents From the Editor Letters The PS Files Up and Running Crisis Corner What Works Asset Manager: Why Six Sigma? Technology Toolbox: Ensuring a Calm Response Cover Story: Best Practices Awards Lubricants: A Slick Success Story Motors: Reliable Torque Compressors: Before You Call for Help Web Hunter: Exploiting Intellectual Capital In the Trenches Product Picks Classifieds Fast Facts Energy Expert: Energy, Climate and Food

Plant Services - February 2008

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