A Manufacturer’s Guide to Winter Energy Efficiency
It’s common knowledge in the manufacturing world that energy bills rise in winter. One of the main reasons for this – a seasonal increased demand for natural gas that drives up prices – we unfortunately can’t change. We can, however, take steps to winterize our facilities for greater energy efficiency in manufacturing.
To help you cut down on your energy bills during the colder months, we’re sharing our top tips for winter energy saving tips for manufacturing plants. This advice, straight from the heat recovery experts at PRE-heat, will set you up for energy savings for years to come.
Optimize Your Heat Exchangers
As an industry leader perfectly positioned to design and install a heat exchanger system tailored to your manufacturing plant, this is where PRE-heat shines. Our heat recovery systems capture exhaust air, heat it, and reuse it in other areas of your production process that need hot air. This significantly reduces heating costs. In fact, our waste heat recovery units pay for themselves within five years and recover up to 70% of exhausted energy.
We highlight the heat exchanger models we produce and the wide variety of industries we work with in a previous blog. We highly recommend giving it a read if you’re new to heat exchanger systems and would like to learn more.
Calibrate Your Heating Systems
We recommend setting and maintaining one temperature on your thermostat throughout the work day as opposed to adjusting it throughout the day. Frequent fluctuations will add up on your energy bill. Plus, the production process benefits from a consistent temperature as it helps to ensure a consistent product composition, texture and appearance.
After work hours, it’s wise to lower your thermostat because production is halted, and since workers aren’t present there’s no need to align with OSHA temperature recommendations (68-76°F). We recommend using a programmable thermostat to lower the temperature by about 10°F overnight; going lower than this will likely cause a surge of energy usage the following morning as your heating system returns your facility’s temperature to the desired daytime temperature.
Also, check on your furnaces and boilers and make sure they receive regular maintenance. Poorly performing furnaces and boilers will drive up your bills. Well maintained equipment will boost efficiency and lower bills.
Seal Your Building Envelope
Your building’s envelope consists of everything that separates the interior from the exterior: the foundation, floors, walls, windows, doors, and roof. It’s crucial to ensure you have a tight seal on your building envelope when the winter months arrive and cold air starts to creep in. Insulate all areas of your building envelope, even small window gaps and pipe penetrations, to keep the cold air out and the hot air in. To prevent cold air entering at your loading dock, install a dock seal or dock shelter.
Fine-Tune Your Compressed Air Systems
When was the last time you inspected your compressed air system? A leaky system will perform suboptimally year-round, but hazards are even worse in winter. Moisture freezing will quickly expand cracks in the system, cold air can stiffen parts and components which will lead to additional leaks, and an overall reduction in dryer efficiency will create more condensation. By swiftly repairing leaks and properly insulating your compressed air systems, your system will perform as desired and use less energy.
Bonus tip: place your air pipes in warmer areas of your facility to lessen your compressor’s workload.
Streamline Your Ventilation Systems
If you’re still using constant exhaust ventilation (CAV), it’s time to transition to demand controlled ventilation (DCV). CSV runs at a fixed rate that is difficult to control and oftentimes wasteful. DCV, on the other hand, uses sensors to increase airflow when needed and decrease airflow when it’s not needed. This sensing ability promotes optimal energy efficiency.
Furthermore, make sure you have enough ceiling fans to lower hot air that rises. Circulating that warm air reduces the strain on your heating system.
Monitor Your Energy Usage
The best way to implement an efficient heating strategy is to know your facility inside and out. We recommend tracking your energy usage patterns; identifying spikes and locating the cause will make it clear to you what solutions are needed – especially in winter. Take thermal imaging scans of your plant to get a visual map of heat loss areas. Doing this during the coldest time of year will give you the clearest picture of where cold air is leaking in.
Partner with PRE-heat
PRE-heat has been innovating the heat exchanger industry for four decades. We specialize in designing and producing custom heat exchangers that are tailored to each client’s specific needs. Whatever industry you work in and whatever heating issues you face, PRE-heat is ready to get to work and cut your energy costs.
Contact us to start your project or reach out to our sales team at sales@pre-heat.com and (920) 564-6876.
For more than 40 years, the team at PRE-heat, Inc. has focused on high-performance industrial air-to-air heat exchangers as well Read more
Process heating is critical to a variety of industrial processes, from food manufacturing to pollution control systems. Indirect-fired heaters heat Read more
Every facility loses heat to the atmosphere. In industrial settings, this loss is a significant source of wasted energy and Read more
Air-to-air heat exchangers are common in various industries, effectively carrying out heat transfer and recovering wasted heat from exhaust air Read more
- Published in Applications, Featured
Heat Exchangers Are the Backbone of Manufacturing
All across the business world, companies are looking to adopt new technologies and processes to make their businesses more profitable and maintain a competitive edge. Manufacturing is no exception.
Air-to-air heat exchangers provide a proven way to lower energy usage and costs. If you want to progress towards your sustainability goals and save money in the process, incorporating a heat recovery system from an industry leader like PRE-heat is the clear choice for success.
Energy Efficient Heat Exchangers for Manufacturing
What are heat exchangers, exactly – and how do they improve energy efficiency? Air-to-air heat exchangers collect air that is emitted during the manufacturing process. They then heat (or cool, depending on your intended end use of the air) the air and reuse it elsewhere in the process, like in a kiln, dryer, or oven.
The beauty of air-to-air heat exchangers is that they only need the air released in your facility to operate. There are no outside energy sources required. Implementing a heat exchanger will cut down on your energy usage tremendously while incurring no new energy costs – meaning a quick ROI, lower energy bills for years to come, and an eco-friendlier workplace.
When it comes to results, the numbers speak for themselves. With a PRE-heat air-to-air heat exchanger, you can recover and reuse up to 70% of waste air. And you’ll get your ROI in just 2-5 years – much faster than other forms of green energy.
Industrial Heat Exchanger Uses
PRE-heat can produce and install industrial heat exchangers to work for any type of manufacturing facility. We offer three different heat exchanger models. Each has its own strengths, and we can custom fabricate the model you choose to fit seamlessly into your work environment:
Due to our decades of experience in the heat transfer industry, PRE-heat is well equipped to take on heat exchanger projects for companies all across the industrial landscape. To name just a couple examples, we have saved a powdered egg producer over $130,00 in one year by installing a dimple plate heat exchanger, and we designed a custom cooling tower to recover heat at a scorching 1,500°F for an oil refinery. To see more examples of our heat exchangers in action, check out our case studies.
We proudly serve a wide range of industries and common manufacturing needs, including but not limited to:
- Air pollution
- Food production
- Metals and surface finishing
- Automotive
- Mining and minerals
- Alternative fuels
- Combustion air
Partner with PRE-Heat
PRE-heat has been innovating the heat exchanger industry for four decades. We specialize in designing and producing custom heat exchangers that are tailored to each client’s specific needs. Whatever industry you work in and whatever manufacturing issues you face, PRE-heat is ready to get to work.
We are always looking for additional ways to serve our customers. That’s why we have formed strategic partnerships to address any needs that might fall outside of the air-to-air realm.
- We can take on liquid-to-liquid heat exchanger requests through our partnership with Zilonis.
- We are the exclusive fabricator and seller of the Warmatic Supercell line of gas fired heat modules for the NAFTA region.
Start streamlining your processes and saving energy today. Contact us to start your project.
For more than 40 years, the team at PRE-heat, Inc. has focused on high-performance industrial air-to-air heat exchangers as well Read more
Process heating is critical to a variety of industrial processes, from food manufacturing to pollution control systems. Indirect-fired heaters heat Read more
Every facility loses heat to the atmosphere. In industrial settings, this loss is a significant source of wasted energy and Read more
Air-to-air heat exchangers are common in various industries, effectively carrying out heat transfer and recovering wasted heat from exhaust air Read more
- Published in Air to Air Heat Exchangers, Featured
Partnering with Warmatic to Broaden Our Heat Module Offerings
We are proud to share that PRE-heat has become the exclusive fabricator and seller of Warmatic Supercell line of gas fired heat modules for the NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) region, which encompasses Canada, the United States, and Mexico.
Warmatic Limited is a Britain-based manufacturer of bespoke, efficient climate solutions for the commercial and industrial sectors. The company strives to help its clients achieve their desired environmental conditions. Warmatic has over 30 years of experience working in the HVAC and manufacturing industries.
Here at PRE-heat, we are pleased with this new relationship with Warmatic and excited to expand our product offerings for our customers. Per the Warmatic website, the Supercell gas fired heat module is, “the latest generation fully packaged heating module designed for inclusion in air handling units to provide a condensing high efficiency ultra low NOx gas fired heating section.” These modules are ideal for replacing steam and hot water coils in existing units, installation in ductwork units, drying and curing, and many other industrial applications.
Dan Bergin, President and one of the owners of PRE-heat, looks forward to the potential this partnership offers. “We saw a need to provide small indirect fired heaters, and Warmatic’s design as well as their company and values were a great fit for us. We wanted to expand what we could offer our current and new customers.”
With over four decades of experience in the heat transfer equipment industry, PRE-heat has cemented its place as the industry leader. Get in touch today to learn more about Supercell heat modules and how we can incorporate them to streamline your manufacturing processes.
For more than 40 years, the team at PRE-heat, Inc. has focused on high-performance industrial air-to-air heat exchangers as well Read more
Process heating is critical to a variety of industrial processes, from food manufacturing to pollution control systems. Indirect-fired heaters heat Read more
Every facility loses heat to the atmosphere. In industrial settings, this loss is a significant source of wasted energy and Read more
Air-to-air heat exchangers are common in various industries, effectively carrying out heat transfer and recovering wasted heat from exhaust air Read more
How Heat Exchangers Revolutionize Manufacturing Processes
In the industrial world, it is extremely common for manufacturing processes to create some type of exhaust or byproduct. The byproduct is commonly released into the environment. This heated air is one of the most wasted resources in the manufacturing world. With air-to-air heat exchangers, this heated air is recaptured and put back into use in the manufacturing process. This blog will look at four of the benefits of air-to-air heat exchangers and the reuse of heat.
Efficiency
One of the main benefits associated with recuperating heat is improved efficiency. Creating large amounts of heat takes time and energy, and maintaining this heat takes even more time and energy. With air-to-air heat exchangers, heat can be recycled back into the system, improving energy efficiency, manufacturing efficiency, and pollution control efficiency. With new energy efficiency standards coming to manufacturing industries, air-to-air heat exchangers provide the perfect solution.
Air Pollution Control
Air-to-air heat exchangers can help mitigate the issues related to managing volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in industries where production processes generate harmful VOCs as a byproduct. It’s important to note that heat exchangers do not destroy or incinerate VOCs but help to control these compounds. By using a heat exchanger, a manufacturer can control the temperature of contaminated air. This can be done in conjunction with a regenerative thermal oxidizer or a combustion chamber. The heat exchanger in these instances can pre-heat the contaminated air before the VOCs are destroyed in the connected system.
Money Savings
The main money savings of air-to-air heat exchangers come from their energy efficiency, which requires less investment than systems without them. Manufacturers also see substantial savings from a heat exchanger due to its high return on investment (ROI) in the long term. While the initial investment for air-to-air heat exchangers may be high, they require very minimal maintenance and last for an extremely long time. This means that using an air-to-air heat exchanger will passively recoup the initial investment in a standard manufacturing process. Comparatively, other forms of heat exchangers, like liquid-to-liquid or gas-to-liquid, require far more maintenance and go through much more wear and tear, shortening the lifespan of the heat exchanger.
Versatility
Air-to-air heat exchangers are extremely versatile in both application and structure. They can be retrofitted to existing systems to minimize changes to existing manufacturing processes. We can achieve this through custom fabrication methods, which we can also utilize to replace old and inefficient heat exchangers.
Air-to-air heat exchangers can be used in numerous diverse industries, such as automotive, bottling plants, grain dryers, industrial heating/cooling, oil refineries, food and beverage, asphalt production, and many more. It is very unlikely that an industry can’t benefit from an air-to-air heat exchanger.
A Leader in the Industry
PRE-heat is the leader in the heat exchanger industry with its air-to-air heat recovery equipment. PRE-heat serves industries with shell and tube, wave plate, cooling towers, and specialty dimple plate heat exchangers. With PRE-heat, you can save money and stay up to date with the latest energy efficiency requirements.
For more than 40 years, the team at PRE-heat, Inc. has focused on high-performance industrial air-to-air heat exchangers as well Read more
Process heating is critical to a variety of industrial processes, from food manufacturing to pollution control systems. Indirect-fired heaters heat Read more
Every facility loses heat to the atmosphere. In industrial settings, this loss is a significant source of wasted energy and Read more
Air-to-air heat exchangers are common in various industries, effectively carrying out heat transfer and recovering wasted heat from exhaust air Read more
- Published in Air to Air Heat Exchangers, Applications, Featured
Facilitating Safer Food Production with Air-to-Air Heat Exchangers
From raw ingredients to food packaging, there are myriad stringent processes and technologies in place throughout every step of the food production industry to make sure that the foods and drinks we consume every day are safe. As food industry professionals, it is our responsibility to ensure that we are always incorporating the best possible methods to improve the safety and quality of our products – after all, foods and beverages are quite literally a life or death matter.
Food Industry Needs for Temperature Regulation
Food production facilities often require precise temperature control over long periods of time. Specific temperatures are needed to be reached and maintained for vital processes like pasteurization, refrigeration, freezing, and sterilization – just to name a few. And these can all change based on the specific ingredients used.
Case in point: the FDA’s frequently updated Code of Federal Regulations Title 21 lays out a detailed account – nearly 1,800 words as of August 2024 – of demands and best practices for temperature controls at food processing facilities to prevent dangerous outcomes like microorganisms.
Air-to-air heat exchangers are a proven effective and reliable source for temperature control in food processing. Heat recovery units recapture the waste air that is emitted during food processing and reuse it in other parts of the process to maintain those precise temperature requirements.
The Air-to-Air Difference
Heat is one of the greatest sources of wasted energy in manufacturing. Typically, this heated air is vented out into the surrounding environment. Air-to-air heat recovery providers see this waste air as an opportunity, not a mere byproduct. Air-to-air heat exchanger units recapture and recycle air that would have gone to waste, delivering an efficient and economical solution for manufacturers.
There are a number of types of air-to-air heat recovery units to best fit the needs of various food production facilities.
The most commonly used style of heat recovery system in food processing is called dimpled plate (DPL) heat exchanger. The DPL is a versatile, rugged, heavy-duty, and easily cleanable plate heat exchanger. Its dimpled design ensures consistent plate spacing and enhanced turbulence while maintaining low-pressure drops. The all-welded construction prevents cross-contamination between gas streams. Variable plate thickness, plate spacing, plate sizes, and air-flow patterns are designed to meet system requirements and fine-tune the system to maximize efficiency and cost savings. DPLs are most commonly used across the food processing industry in areas like bakery oven pre-heaters, indirect heating of sterilized air used for bottle drying at bottling plants, indirect heating of grain dryers, and pre-heating air for batch ovens.
Another style of air-to-air unit frequently utilized in the food industry is the vertical shell & tube heat exchanger. Cooling towers contain large tube diameters designed to cool air streams that have large amounts of particles. These towers help air control equipment to function more efficiently, and they recover heat that can be reused as building make-up air. This is a great system for facilities that use ovens, dryers, kiln cupolas, and incinerators with particulate exhaust emissions that need to be cooled or dried out before going into a more stringent, temperature-sensitive, particulate collection device. In food manufacturing, cooling towers are often used in conjunction with food dryers and feed dryers.
For food processors that demand the most heavy duty option, the shell & tube heat exchanger is the solution. This style of heat exchanger is designed for high temperatures and very dirty exhaust streams. It is ideal as a primary and secondary heat exchanger for various volatile organic compound abatement and fume incineration methods, including catalytic, thermal recuperative, and thermal regenerative incinerators.
PRE-heat Air-to-Air Innovation
Start your food processing industrial air innovation journey with PRE-heat. PRE-heat has been providing the highest quality air-to-air heat recovery units for over 40 years. Our knowledge of the industry has driven us to where we are today, creating improved shell and tube designs and improved plate designs all in-house.
See our food processing industry work in action in this case study for Marriott Walker Corporation, a powdered egg producer. We worked with Marriott Walker to design and deliver a custom plate heat exchanger that caused minimal disturbance to their process and used all of their existing process equipment to minimize costs.
For more than 40 years, the team at PRE-heat, Inc. has focused on high-performance industrial air-to-air heat exchangers as well Read more
Process heating is critical to a variety of industrial processes, from food manufacturing to pollution control systems. Indirect-fired heaters heat Read more
Every facility loses heat to the atmosphere. In industrial settings, this loss is a significant source of wasted energy and Read more
Air-to-air heat exchangers are common in various industries, effectively carrying out heat transfer and recovering wasted heat from exhaust air Read more
- Published in Applications, Featured
Air-to-Air Heat Exchangers Cut Costs and Boost Efficiency in Manufacturing
Throughout the industrial world, cost savings is the name of the game. Manufacturers are always looking for new ways to lower their overhead without sacrificing on the quality of their final product.
There’s one proven solution that many factory owners still haven’t heard about – air-to-air heat recovery units. In this blog, we’ll explain what heat exchangers are, how they work, and their unique benefits.
What Is an Air-to-Air Heat Exchanger?
Simply put, air-to-air heat recovery units recapture waste heat that is emitted during the manufacturing process, and recycle it back into other areas of assembly that require heated air. This results in significant energy savings. It’s an effective and efficient solution for all types of manufacturing.
There are a couple different ways to put air-to-air heat recovery units to work. In the most direct application, air-to-air heat recovery units take in exhausted air from a given area in the industrial process and funnel it directly into another part of the process that needs heated air.
Additionally, after capturing exhausted heat, a heat recovery unit can run this air through a tube while also taking in new air from the outside. The unit runs the outside air in a tube that passes over the exhausted air, which preheats it for use in the factory. All of this happens without mixing the air streams, so there is never a risk of the exhaust air contaminating the incoming air.
Benefits of Air-to-Air Heat Exchangers
By recapturing and reusing this air, manufacturers will see a significant return on investment with long-term use and a decrease in the amount of energy used at their facility, which will, in turn, result in a noticeable decrease in their energy bills.
Air-to-air units can also aid in the mitigation of airborne particulates and fumes, since they keep the exchanged air totally separate from the surrounding air. Heat recovery units also include a system of sleeves, grills, and filters that pre-filter the interior air. If your workplace deals with volatile organic compounds (VOCs), fumes, toxins, or pollutants, installing a heat recovery unit is an excellent way to help control and minimize them.
Types of Heat Exchangers
All heat recovery units have the same basic design of a vertically or horizontally stacked core that consists of a series of plates. Other commonalities include a handful of key characteristics:
- Affordable
- Lightweight
- Noise absorption capability
- Excellent thermal conduction
- Highly corrosion resistant
Beyond that, the designs of heat recovery units begin to diverge. Another benefit of air-to-air heat recovery systems is their flexibility to fit many different manufacturing facilities and industries. There are three common types: the dimpled plate (DPL) heat exchanger, the shell and tube heat exchanger, and the cooling tower.
The DPL is a versatile, rugged, heavy-duty, and easily cleanable plate heat exchanger. Its dimpled design ensures consistent plate spacing and enhanced turbulence while maintaining low-pressure drops. The all-welded construction prevents cross-contamination between gas streams. DPLs are most commonly used in manufacturing facilities that incorporate chemical processing, closed-loop to open-loop water cooling, cryogenics, food processing, and furnaces.
The shell and tube design contains cooling towers with large tube diameters that cool air streams with large amounts of particles. These towers help air control equipment to function more efficiently, and they recover heat that can be reused as building make-up air. Shell and tube units are most commonly used in factories that use boiler blowdown heat recovery, industrial paint systems, oil refining and cooling, preheating, steam generation, and vapor recovery systems.
The cooling tower is a vertical shell and tube heat exchanger with larger tube diameters that are designed for cooling air streams with large amounts of particulates before it enters a bag house for final cleaning and discharge into the atmosphere. Hot, dirty air enters the top of the unit and goes down through the tubes. Most of the particulates fall through the tubes and are collected underneath the exchanger in a large material collection hopper. Cooling towers are often used in facilities that contain any oven, dryer, kiln cupola, or incinerator with a particulate exhaust emission that needs to be cooled or dried out before going into a more temperature-sensitive collection device, food and feed dryers, mineral dryers, silicone thermal incinerators, solid waste incinerators, metal chip dryers and incinerators, and high-temperature kilns for curing materials.
Air-to-Air Innovation at PRE-heat
Air-to-air heat recovery units clearly have a lot to offer in virtually all areas of manufacturing. As the industry leader in air-to-air solutions, PRE-heat has been providing the highest quality air-to-air heat recovery units for over 40 years. PRE-heat’s knowledge of the industry has driven us to where we are today, creating improved shell and tube designs and improved plate designs all in-house. See how we tackle a project with innovative designs and efficient processes to get orders delivered exactly when they are needed. Contact PRE-heat today to start your air-to-air heat recovery project.
For more than 40 years, the team at PRE-heat, Inc. has focused on high-performance industrial air-to-air heat exchangers as well Read more
Process heating is critical to a variety of industrial processes, from food manufacturing to pollution control systems. Indirect-fired heaters heat Read more
Every facility loses heat to the atmosphere. In industrial settings, this loss is a significant source of wasted energy and Read more
Air-to-air heat exchangers are common in various industries, effectively carrying out heat transfer and recovering wasted heat from exhaust air Read more
- Published in Air to Air Heat Exchangers, Featured
How Heat Exchangers Can Work for Your Business
Are you interested in learning more about air-to-air heat exchangers, but you’re not sure how they can work for your business? PRE-heat is here to help. In this blog, we’ll highlight the broad range of industries we work with most frequently. This way, you can more easily envision how PRE-heat air-to-air heat exchangers can fit into your facility.
Air Pollution
Air pollution is an output in nearly every manufacturing industry. In a world where more and more customers and government regulations are demanding greener practices, incorporating a heat exchanger is an easy switch to make.
Heat exchangers promote efficiency by reusing air emitted during manufacturing and repurposing it in other areas in the manufacturing process. More air is being used within your facility, and less is going out into the environment. If your business incorporates thermal oxidizers, catalytic oxidizers, selective catalytic reduction concentrator systems, or RTO secondary waste heat recovery, a heat exchanger is a must.
To see an example of PRE-heat’s work in limiting air pollution, check out our case study in which we worked with an artificial leather producer to enhance their pollution control system with a heat recovery unit containing a regenerative thermal oxidizer.
Food Production
Food production facilities demand strict temperature requirements to ensure that food products are not compromised. We have years of experience developing preheaters for dairy and supplement spray dryers, ovens, rotary dryers and many other drying and baking applications.
Preheaters are also a cost-effective solution for food producers. Our technologies can regulate emissions economically and efficiently, ensuring compliance with permit regulations.
Want to see our work in action? Read our case study featuring powdered egg producer Marriott Walker Corporation. We worked together to design and install a heat exchanger in their facility, all while causing minimal disturbance to their process and using all existing equipment. The result? Marriott Walker saved an average of 10% on fuel costs, or $133,056 in the first year after installing their PRE-heat heat exchanger.
Metals and Surface Finishing
Properly applying heat is crucial in the metals manufacturing and finishing industry. Heat exchangers give manufacturers more control over the air temperatures in their facility without breaking the bank on energy costs – in fact, you’ll save money with PRE-heat.
Our heat exchangers can also cool airstreams to suit your unique projects and metal materials. We can optimize your system to the specifications your process requires.
To see our work in use at a metal manufacturing facility, take a look at our case study. We designed a custom heat exchanger system wherein one heat exchanger captures the excess heat from the thermal fume incinerator for reuse, and another heat exchanger later cools the exhaust airstream to ensure optimal performance of the baghouse filtration system. Our client not only achieved substantial energy savings but also enhanced their operational efficiency.
Building Materials
Many machines in the building materials industry, like gypsum board dryers, carpet and floor tile dryers, and lumber dryers, emit significant amounts of heat. Don’t let that heated air go to waste – PRE-heat’s air-to-air heat exchangers can capture and reuse that air elsewhere in the building materials manufacturing process, thereby reducing the time and energy needed to maintain a required temperature and lowering energy costs.
We have done just that in our work with a leading drywall manufacturer. We designed a heat exchanger system that harnessed and reintegrated the substantial heat and water vapor emitted from their drywall dryer system. Read the case study to find out more.
Automotive
Automakers are starting to feel the pinch of environmental requirements. PRE-heat can take on much of that burden by reducing emissions and energy usage. Not only are air-to-air heat exchangers better for the environment, they will also save on your energy bills and create a more efficient manufacturing process.
Air-to-air heat exchangers can be incorporated into numerous areas of the assembly line, such as paint line heater boxes and the waste heat emitted by thermal oxidizers.
Mining and Minerals
Whatever metal or mineral your company works with, PRE-heat can develop a heat exchanger system to streamline your process, lowering your facility’s energy consumption all while creating more heat. Our air-to-air systems are frequently utilized with industry-standard processes like calciner combustion air and calciner process air.
Alternative Fuels
Global energy usage is on the rise, and alternative fuels are emerging to meet the demand. PRE-heat is here to support this growing industry with dryer preheaters for biofuel manufacturing and oxidizer fume preheaters.
Our heat exchangers are extremely versatile in biofuel manufacturing, managing high temperatures, pressures, and vapors. They can also be utilized in fume abatement equipment and preheating dryer air. Heat exchangers are frequently used with ethanol plant RTO secondary dryers and battery oven dryers.
Combustion Air
In industry, achieving optimal combustion efficiency while minimizing environmental impact is crucial. Air-to-air heat exchangers paired with boilers, thermal oil heaters, and heat treat furnaces can ensure that your facility’s combustion air is logically utilized, resulting in cleaner operations and compliance with environmental regulations.
Start Your Heat Exchanger Project
No matter what industry you operate in, PRE-heat has the expertise to develop and install an innovative air-to-air heat exchanger system for your business. Start streamlining your processes and saving energy today. Contact us today to start your project.
For more than 40 years, the team at PRE-heat, Inc. has focused on high-performance industrial air-to-air heat exchangers as well Read more
Process heating is critical to a variety of industrial processes, from food manufacturing to pollution control systems. Indirect-fired heaters heat Read more
Every facility loses heat to the atmosphere. In industrial settings, this loss is a significant source of wasted energy and Read more
Air-to-air heat exchangers are common in various industries, effectively carrying out heat transfer and recovering wasted heat from exhaust air Read more
- Published in Applications, Featured
Air-to-Air Sustainability Starts Here
Why is Sustainability Important in Manufacturing?
In recent years, we have been witnessing a push across manufacturing industries worldwide to cut down on emissions and promote sustainability initiatives. PRE-heat’s air-to-air heat exchange offerings are a welcome addition for any manufacturing company looking to promote a more sustainable business. We’ve highlighted three reasons why air-to-air heat exchangers are a smart choice to stay on top of industry trends and usher in a greener future.
1. Reduce Waste – and Costs
In much of industrial manufacturing, heated air is produced as a byproduct of energy transferring from one piece of equipment to another. Without the incorporation of an air-to-air heat exchanger, this exhaust would vent outside, into the environment surrounding the manufacturing facility. Our heat exchangers make sure that this air output doesn’t go to waste by capturing it and redirecting it for use in other steps in the manufacturing process.
For example, air-to-air heat exchangers can capture heated air and use it to preheat other machines, like ovens or dryers. In the automotive industry, air-to-air heat exchangers are used to recover heat from incinerators and redirect them to dryers. Air-to-air heat exchange allows automotive manufacturers to spend less money on outside energy sources to achieve the required temperature ranges.
By capitalizing on exhaust airstreams and not expending any power, air-to-air heat exchangers are a greener, low-energy alternative to many heating and cooling applications. Air–to-air heat exchange is a smart option to lower the carbon footprint of your business.
Air-to-air heat exchangers save on costs as well as energy consumption. Since this process requires much less energy than standard air conditioners, for example, heat exchangers deliver a much lower energy bill.
2. Improve Air Quality
In addition to transforming the air temperature, air-to-air heat exchangers also improve air quality within manufacturing facilities and in the surrounding environment. PRE-heat products use high-performance filters that remove pollutants and allergens from the air, facilitating a healthier workplace. And through the heat exchange process of capturing the heated air generated during manufacturing and redirecting it into other steps of manufacturing processes – as opposed to allowing the emitted air to flow outside – air-to-air heat exchange prevents the air quality in the area surrounding the facility from decreasing.
Heat exchangers also provide a low-energy method to eliminate VOCs (volatile organic compounds). A VOC is a compound, often a gas, that is emitted during the manufacturing process. Many VOCs are harmful to our health. In order to eradicate VOCs, many manufacturers use incinerators, which use a large amount of fuel to keep the incinerator operating and its required high temperature. Air-to-air heat exchangers can reduce fuel usage by redirecting the hot air captured during the manufacturing cycle to heat up the VOCs; this lowers the amount of energy needed to maintain the high temperature of the incinerator.
Air-to-air heat exchangers can also cool down captured air and use it to cool down VOCs that are headed to a baghouse, which is another way to get rid of VOCs. A baghouse is a type of fabric filter used in industrial manufacturing that removes pollutants like VOCs from the air. Baghouses run at a comparatively lower temperature than incoming VOCs, so precooling VOC air through a low-energy air-to-air heat exchanger before it enters the baghouse creates a more energy-efficient process.
3. Increase Product Longevity
Another reason to adopt PRE-heat air-to-air heat exchangers is not because of how our heat exchangers work, but rather what they’re made of. Our guiding ethos is: “Design and deliver equipment that saves energy and exceeds the customer’s performance and quality expectations.” With 40 years of industry expertise, we build durable stainless steel heat exchangers that are designed for each manufacturer’s specific environment. Our dedication to resilient materials and intentional design result in a quality product that can last for decades.
Investing in a high-quality heat exchanger is a smart and eco-friendly decision in the long run. Our customers will spend less money on one reliable air-to-air heat exchange system that they can depend on for years to come than they would on a different heating or cooling system that doesn’t have the proven durability of PRE-heat air-to-air heat exchangers. Replacing parts or for a less reliable heating and/or cooling system or installing a new system entirely uses a significant amount of energy. The best choice is to opt for a system that is built to last.
To find out how we can create a customized air-to-air heat exchange system for your business, contact us today: https://www.pre-heat.com/contact-us/
For more than 40 years, the team at PRE-heat, Inc. has focused on high-performance industrial air-to-air heat exchangers as well Read more
Process heating is critical to a variety of industrial processes, from food manufacturing to pollution control systems. Indirect-fired heaters heat Read more
Every facility loses heat to the atmosphere. In industrial settings, this loss is a significant source of wasted energy and Read more
Air-to-air heat exchangers are common in various industries, effectively carrying out heat transfer and recovering wasted heat from exhaust air Read more
- Published in Air to Air Heat Exchangers, Featured
Types of Air-to-Air Heat Exchangers
Various industries rely on air-to-air heat exchangers to collect heat energy lost during heating applications. They are vital to many industrial applications, recovering heat to save energy, reduce expenses, and increase operational efficiency. Heat exchangers are generally classified by the way the air moves through the unit, and they come in three primary types: plate, tube, and wheel. Each variation provides distinct advantages and disadvantages for performance in a range of applications and environments.
We will discuss the types of air-to-air heat exchangers, their benefits, and applications to help you select the ideal heat exchanger for your application.
Plate Types
Plate-type air-to-air heat exchangers provide a low-cost and effective solution to reduce heating and cooling loads in process air treatment. The plates on the heat exchanger physically separate the supply and exhaust air, with the supply air passing on one side and the exhaust air passing on the other side. The exhaust air is used to preheat or precool incoming supply air without mixing the air streams.
Plate-type heat exchangers can slide into an enclosure with a box-like design to protect the thermal plates. Their ability to preheat or precool air is ideal for ovens, kilns, and fume incinerators.
Dimple plate heat exchangers
Dimple plate heat exchangers have enhanced versatility and ruggedness for heavy-duty applications. The dimples on the plate allow the heat exchanger to handle low-pressure drops and improve turbulence. The flat plates and the consistent dimple patterns allow for simple cleaning and maintenance.
Tube Types
Tube-type industrial air-to-air heat exchangers accommodate higher pressures and temperatures than wheel and plate-type heat exchangers. They are also an ideal choice in environments that can become dusty or have a high concentration of particles in the air.
Shell & tube air-to-air heat exchangers deliver optimal performance for recovering valuable heat energy from dryers, ovens, kilns, and furnaces. They can also be a reliable primary and secondary recovery system for fume incinerators and VOC abatement systems.
Shell & tube air-to-air heat exchangers have various patterns on the tubes, including rotated squares, rotated triangles, squares, or triangular patterns. Further variations include multiple tube side passes, and shell side passes to increase performance and meet size specifications.
Wheel Types
Wheel-type air heat exchangers have a space-saving design, delivering higher efficiency for their size than larger plate-type heat exchangers. The rotating wheel’s extended surface makes contact with heat energy from the exhaust and transfers it to the incoming fresh air while each stream remains separate. Wheel-type heat exchangers are suitable for hot and cold air ducts, with the capacity to handle high airflow and low-pressure drops, in addition to their compact size.
Industrial Air-to-Air Heat Exchangers From PRE-heat
Air-to-air heat exchangers come in several types to suit a range of industrial applications. They offer an efficient way to recover heat in various industries. At PRE-Heat Inc., we carry plate-type and tube-type air-to-air heat exchangers.
We have over 40 years of experience designing and building industrial air-to-air heat exchangers, offering innovative, top-quality solutions that meet your specific needs. Request a quote today for more information or to get started on your custom solution
For more than 40 years, the team at PRE-heat, Inc. has focused on high-performance industrial air-to-air heat exchangers as well Read more
Process heating is critical to a variety of industrial processes, from food manufacturing to pollution control systems. Indirect-fired heaters heat Read more
Every facility loses heat to the atmosphere. In industrial settings, this loss is a significant source of wasted energy and Read more
Air-to-air heat exchangers are common in various industries, effectively carrying out heat transfer and recovering wasted heat from exhaust air Read more
- Published in Air to Air Heat Exchangers, Featured
Common Industrial Applications for Air-to-Air Heat Exchangers
Many industrial processes create heated air as some type of exhaust or byproduct. Typically, this heated air gets vented outside into the environment. Air-to-air heat exchangers offer a way to capture this exhaust air and reuse it at other points in the application process. Exhaust air can preheat outside fresh air that needs to be used for certain tasks, such as curing sealants or pre-heating ovens, by running the exhaust air through tubes. When the outside air passes over the tubes, the fresh air heats up without the risk of contamination by the exhaust air.
Another type of heat exchanger, called an air-to-air plate exchanger, allows an industrial facility to harvest the potential energy found in exhaust air and provide air pollution control. The heat exchanger attaches to incinerators, kilns, and ovens. The exhausted air and clean air pass over the plates without encountering each other. The plate collects the heat from the exhaust air and passes into the clean intake air, while the cooler exhausted air condenses onto the walls and the plates. Cleaner exhaust air is then vented into the environment.
Applications That Rely on Air-to-Air Heat Exchangers
Automotive and air pollution control rely heavily on air-to-air heat exchangers to recover wasted heat energy and direct it toward other processes. Air-to-air heat exchangers allow these two industries to lower their energy costs and condition fresh outdoor air use in their applications.
Automotive Industry
The automotive industry uses heat exchangers to recover heat from incinerators for use in dryers. The stainless steel construction of the heat exchanger allows it to withstand any particulates and corrosive contaminants that may collect in the exhaust flow. Because the inflow of cooler air becomes heated when passing through the heat transfer equipment, the preheated air can then be directed to e-coat and paint curing ovens. Pre-heating the air allows automotive manufacturers to spend less on outside energy sources to bring the oven temperatures up to required temperature ranges.
Air Pollution Control Systems
Large amounts of energy are used to incinerate harmful VOCs or cool compounds before a baghouse. Those incinerators use a lot of fuel to keep the burners running at the required temperature. The use of a heat exchanger can reduce this cost by using the hot air to heat up the VOC air before the burner. Or vise versa, the heat exchanger can be used to cool air streams with volatile compounds before a baghouse to be captured.
Other Industrial Heat Exchanger Applications
Many other industries also use air-to-air heat exchangers in their processes. The heat exchanger may be used to pre-cool air, pre-heat air, start curing or drying processes, and provide secondary air/heat recovery.
Industries and applications that rely on air-to-air heat exchange capabilities may include, but are not limited to:
- Bag house precooler
- Furnace
- Plastics industry
- Solvent recovery systems
- Bakery ovens
- Power generation
- Printing industry
- Mineral industry
- Tape manufacturing
- Bottling plant
- Plant machine hood exhaust
- Textile industry
- Make up air/heat systems
Air-to-Air Heat Exchangers from PRE-Heat
Air-to-air heat exchangers play a critical role in reducing energy costs and minimizing industrial air pollution. At PRE-Heat, Inc., we offer heat exchangers for a variety of industrial applications.
For assistance identifying the right air-to-air heat exchange solution for your needs, please don’t hesitate to contact us or request a quote today.
For more than 40 years, the team at PRE-heat, Inc. has focused on high-performance industrial air-to-air heat exchangers as well Read more
Process heating is critical to a variety of industrial processes, from food manufacturing to pollution control systems. Indirect-fired heaters heat Read more
Every facility loses heat to the atmosphere. In industrial settings, this loss is a significant source of wasted energy and Read more
Air-to-air heat exchangers are common in various industries, effectively carrying out heat transfer and recovering wasted heat from exhaust air Read more
- Published in Air to Air Heat Exchangers, Featured
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