Compressed Air Best Practices - October 2008 - (Page 42) | 10/08 Compressed Air Industry AUTOMOTIVE TRANSIT | ALUMINUM PIPE SYSTEMS: PREVOST CORPORATION been in a plant on a day when there is no activity? Listen to the sound of air leaks, that’s the sound of wasted energy, which is wasted dollars. Prevost offers a complete solution from the outlet of the compressor to the tool. We call it “The Perfect Shop.” I am as passionate about this product today as I was 10 years ago. The popularity of aluminum air piping has grown substantially year after year — and I see no end in sight. The market was clearly ready for a new product. In the beginning it was difficult to gain acceptance after years of black iron and copper systems and even plenty of PVC pipe. The distributors who took the risk back then to introduce aluminum pipe systems have been rewarded many times over. A Cost Comparison Between Piping Systems This is an installation cost comparison between black iron, copper and aluminum piping systems. The system compared consists of a 300-foot looped header using 1" pipe. The total of 1" pipe compared is 340 feet. There are six ½" pipe drops — each being 10 feet long and connected to a double ported outlet. Proper piping practice used so that condensate does not directly flow down a drop. In the case of black iron and copper, a reducing tee, and two 90-degree elbows are used to create the swan neck. Prevost aluminum pipe uses a single tapping saddle with a built-in condensate retention device. Labor hour estimates for the installation were obtained from the MCAA Labor Manual as follows: aluminum — 20 hours, black iron — 63 hours, copper — 74 hours. All labor was figured at $65 per hour. Please note that the cost comparison does not include pipe hangers and threaded rod, as all pipe systems must be hung in the same fashion. Material costs are approximate and are close to list price. What was the spark that ignited the growth of aluminum pipe systems? I think the spark was and continues to be the education provided by the Compressed Air and Gas Institute (CAGI), air audits, magazines like Compressed Air Best Practices™ and the Compressed Air Challenge®. Education has encouraged companies to look at a systems approach to optimizing compressed air operations. This was a huge change from traditional concepts of “adding another compressor” to solve air delivery problems. Generating and maintaining compressed air is typically a company’s second largest energy expense. An efficient air system can pay for itself in less than two years. A good system can also resist corrosion, scale and other debris that damage and reduces the life of expensive components and tools. What are some of the disadvantages of traditional pipe materials? Black iron pipe and galvanized pipe have been around forever. The cost of black iron material has increased and over the life of a shop, black iron will cost the owner more due to problems associated with corrosion and leaks. Leaks created due to corrosion can occur as quickly as six months after installation. Corrosion causes a reduction in air pressure thereby increasing energy consumption. Black iron pipe is also heavy requiring several people to install and requires threading machines which creates a mess with cutting fluids and debris. Copper pipe provides excellent resistance to corrosion, but the material cost of copper has risen sharply over the last two years. It also requires open flame, skilled labor and extensive labor hours to install. There are no built-in condensate prevention devices so a swan neck needs PIPING SYSTEM WEIGHT* MATERIAL COST LABOR COST TOTAL COST Aluminum Black Iron Copper 4 lbs. 35 lbs. 18 lbs. $1,822 $1,196 $2,080 $1,300 $4,095 $4,810 $3,122 $5,291 $6,890 *Weight is for a 21-foot section of pipe (aluminum was 19.7 foot) 42 www.airbestpractices.com http://www.airbestpractices.com
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