Results from projects led by the Fan-Div team, in the customers' own words. Includes work by our team at Motion Industries Canada and Vibe.FX, so the year is shown on every result.
Jump to: Cooling and airflow · Noise and inlet bells · Field support
Cofimco fan blade upgrade. Shell expected the gains would let them drop plans to replace the coolers.
“In the 35 C weather yesterday, looks like the upgraded unit was the only one Ops could keep running… I am guessing that the improvements are going to be enough that we can rule out future plans to replace our units.”
Five fans across two trains converted from Moore to Cofimco, with inlet bells, tip seals and new longer fan rings.
“Our run time in hot weather is much better.”
Belt drive upgrade, installed by our field crew.
“We have seen an outlet gas temp reduction of somewhere between 20-24 C lower than it was previous to this upgrade work being conducted.”
16 fans converted from low efficiency Moore to high efficiency Cofimco-Hudson, tip speed raised from 8,000 to 10,000 fpm, timing belts, inlet bells and DG-II Anti Rotation Devices®. About 50% more airflow projected from the existing horsepower, backed by HTRI runs. Before the upgrade the plant cut production at 30 to 31°C.
“We did not have to cut production as the fans did their job this time.”
New fans plus internal and external bundle cleaning, on a cooler designed for 5.2 MMBtu/h.
“Now with the new fans and the cleanings both internally and externally, we were getting around 7 in the warmer fall weather!! Big improvement.”
Air cooler fan upgrade. Discharge temperature rose only 5°C through a 10°C rise in ambient.
“Our approach temp is down 5deg from prior to the upgrade, and our final discharge temp is up only 5deg in the last month, despite the 10deg increase in ambient.”
After only 4 of 22 fans were upgraded, operations reported enough added cooling capacity to lock out more than one fan at a time for the rest of the rebuild.
Site visits and performance data, fan modelling and airflow improvements. A fouling problem was diagnosed and a cleaning specialist brought in.
“We implemented solutions to improve our fan performance and increase production resulting in an economic profit of $2-4 million/year.”
Fan capacity upgrade on the SM column coolers, backed by Nick's airflow testing. Value measured May to mid August 2016.
“Believe the numbers below are, if anything, understating the value… Excellent work, thank Nick Agius for me please.”
Bundle cleaning, higher fan speed, a blade tip change and a tip seal.
“Yes it is +19% cooling duty. A real home run for this cooler.”
Two new fans for process and engine cooling, with a 3 to 4 degree improvement.
“We saw a significant change (3-4 degree change) with the new fans. These new fans allowed our operations team to run our units a full capacity in the heat of the summer.”
New Cofimco and Hudson fans, inlet bells, tip seals, poly chain belt drives, upsized shafts and bearings, anti-rotation devices and structural repairs.
“Overall the work was much needed and I am certain we are realizing benefits.”
Manual pitch adjustment devices repaired, air side bundle cleaning, pitch adjustment and fan replacement, and the tower adjusted to its new operating pressure. Later, poly chain belts and a fixed hub upgrade.
“All the changes contributed to a flare reduction estimated at $270K/year.”
Hudson B blades upgraded to the Hudson HC series: 6°C better on 12 fans and 4°C on two more.
“This translates into a $250,000 more throughput for Scotford on our CCR each and every summer from this point forward.”
An installer partner's report of a retrofit to Nick Agius's MOC package. The shaft, sheaves, belts and motor were reused; only the fan changed and a tip seal was added. Airflow was up to 50% higher than the original Moore fan.
Inlet bells on cooler 5E18.
“The inlet bells we installed fit up really well and we have noticed an improvement on cooling. We would like to install these on two other fans in our plant.”
Howden ultra low noise fan upgrade on a 1960s cooler. On one bay the old 12" fan ring was cut out and a 24" ring welded in so a 10 ft fan could replace the 9 ft. Also inlet bells, timing belts and DG-II Anti Rotation Devices®.
“On a positive note, the resident nearest the plant noticed a huge difference in noise once we fired back up last September after the turnaround… Nice to know it's having a positive effect on the people in the surrounding area.”
New fans, inlet bells and tip sealing.
“Our trending indicates we got between 2C and 4C improvement on our approach temperatures in summer. So this was a win for us.”
Troubleshooting on an old fan that is no longer made, followed by an order for three replacement fan packages.
“I truly appreciate the support you've both provided. Your assistance has been invaluable.”
Phoenix fans brought back into shape before the site's outage.
“Thank you for all the support… getting our Phoenix fans sorted out leading into the outage. You've been a tremendous ally over the years.”
Field crew support on site.
“I wanted to reach out and let you know how happy I was with your team and the support they provided for us last week. I was impressed with how efficient and professional the guys were and will definitely be recommending your support in the future.”
Another cooler fan upgrade on TC Energy's NGTL system, following the Acme station upgrade.
“Please pass on a 'Thank you, and Job well done!' to Mariusz and all the crew that executed another successful upgrade.”
Ongoing air cooler and fan support from Nick Agius.
“Every single time I've run into an issue, you've had solutions… I will take any call from anyone regarding your capabilities and mission to help people fix their problems.”
Tell us what you're running and we'll call you back with a straight answer on whether there's something worth doing.