Multi-purpose mobile air cleaning solution

Challenge

Most air cleaning units (ACUs) on the market are either highly specialized or do not meet the quality and safety standards required for use in sensitive environments. For instance, some units are only able to filter certain things out of the air, such as odors, fine dust or viruses if in a medical environment. This high degree of specialization usually leads to high acquisition costs and limits usability.

In some cases, the focus is on positioning the unit at the lowest possible price, which means performance, quality and safety aspects are of secondary concern. As such, these air cleaning units are often made of plastic, which can cause problems with airtightness which makes the units unsuitable for sensitive applications, such as medical applications or when maintaining clean-room conditions.

In addition, poor sealing does not just pose serious health risks—it can also damage the environment if harmful substances are pumped through the unit but not filtered properly.

Solution

Thanks to more than 20 years of professional experience in the electrical engineering sector, Mr. Keukens knew Eaton, as a global brand with a comprehensive, high-quality portfolio and many years of expertise in machine building, would be able to support their business needs and product development.

"After our experience with the SMEs we approached, I had little hope for working with a company as renowned as Eaton," said Mr. Keukens. "But I knew they were the best partner for us in terms of technical expertise and portfolio, so I gave it a try. I felt an enormous amount of appreciation and trust from the very first phone call. Our fear that Eaton would be well out of our price range also proved to be unfounded. Within a week, we had a fair offer on the table."

Salema Technology B.V. and Eaton quickly established various options and development opportunities. With PICA, Eaton’s Lean Solution Partner, Eaton was able to provide full support for the project as PICA provided expertise in engineering and software programming, which gave birth to a plan to implement the Salema Technology B.V. concept.

The housing was made of powder-coated aluminum, which offers maximum airtightness at the lowest possible weight. Inside, a unique air-tight double-filter chamber and triple-sealing system were installed, whose filter integrity was rated “very good” in the DOP (dispersed oil particulate) tests. The high rating means that the air cleaning units are multi-purpose and can even be used in sensitive areas. Depending on the filter, any contaminants such as fibers, fine dust, microparticles, asbestos, mold, microorganisms like viruses or bacteria, pollen or even odors can be filtered from the air.

The power-optimized fans are driven by an IE4-rated electric motor, which presses up to 3200 m³ of air through the filters per hour using vacuum or overpressure to clean it. The modular design of the ACU also enables Salema Technology B.V. to offer solutions for up to 6,200 and up to 10,000 cubic meters of air per hour. The housing features RMQ LED signaling devices in red, yellow and green.

As visual alarms and signaling devices with 360° visibility, they enable the user to recognize problems at a distance and then reproduce them in the second step on the Eaton XV-102 touch panel. Acoustic alarm devices have also been installed on the unit. All alarms are controlled by the Eaton easyE4 control relay, so different acoustic or visual alarms can be programmed to indicate the type of fault.

The power-optimized fans are driven by an IE4-rated electric motor, which presses up to 3200 m³ of air through the filters per hour using vacuum or overpressure to clean it. The modular design of the ACU also enables Salema Technology B.V. to offer solutions for up to 6,200 and up to 10,000 cubic meters of air per hour. The housing features RMQ LED signaling devices in red, yellow and green.

The XV-102 touch panel was chosen to make operating the unit as simple and efficient as possible, as it was specially developed for visualizing and operating applications based on the easyE4 control relay. The seven-inch, full-graphics color touch panel can also be used with gloves, which is helpful for many of the applications in which the ACUs may be used. In addition, the HMI/PLC backs up and logs all work steps automatically.

The automatic logging function means applications can be tracked months later, which can be useful for communication with authorities and can also reveal potential for fault and manipulation data to facilitate further development.

Karst Pleijsier of PICA, took over the task of programming the XV-102 and easyE4, as well as implementing many of the ideas in the concept: "The Salema Technology B.V.  ACUs should meet the highest standards of user-friendliness and safety. That's why it was important for us to develop an intuitive human–machine interface while minimizing user error potential."

For security purposes, the XV-102 touch panel facilitates a user administration concept with different access levels, profiles and rights. This can minimize the risk of manipulation even during unattended work and prevent untrained staff from obtaining improper access.

Result

The ACU-IQ has been ready for operation since October 2019 and has already been tested in several sectors. The air cleaning unit was presented to the trade public at DCONex 2020, the trade fair for pollution management and environmental remediation held in Essen and attracted a great deal of attention.

"The feedback was very positive," says Mr. Keukens. "The performance, user-friendliness and versatility of our ACU-IQ air cleaning units was recognized and praised by visitors — and in that we have achieved an important goal."

"We want to provide our ACUs worldwide," says Mr. Keukens. "Thanks to the global Eaton network, our customers can rely on spare parts and competent service wherever they are in the world." The cooperation between Eaton, lean solution partner PICA and Salema Technology B.V. will also form the foundation for further development.