Merseyside-based linen and work wear rental company and laundry, Deeside Laundry, is enjoying saving of 15 per cent on its gas bills and lower maintenance costs following replacement of its mechanical steam traps with GEM Venturi orifice traps from Thermal Energy International
In all, some 30 GEM steam traps have been installed throughout the laundry’s two sites. Steam is used extensively in the operation of tumble dryers, steam presses and ironing machines.
Prior to the installation of the GEM Venturi orifice steam traps, Deeside Laundry found its mechanical traps were failing open, closed and partially open. As the traps were not regularly inspected, it was often sometime before it was found that the mechanical traps had failed, by which time the blocked steam traps were impacting on steam production by not returning condensate back to the boiler.
Following a successful trial of the GEM traps with a tumble dryer, Deeside Laundry MD Jonathan Cross organised GEM’s engineering team to carry out a full survey of the laundry. Now the laundry is saving ten per cent in energy costs alone, which over a ten-year period will equate to £54,000.
“We were really impressed with the trial and decided to gradually convert both sites to GEM,” said Cross. “As soon as we buy new machinery we arrange for them to be fitted GEM steam traps. Since we installed GEM traps throughout the site, not one trap has failed and maintenance, blockages and replacement costs are a thing of the past."
Instead of utilising a valve mechanism to close off steam, the efficient GEM steam traps use their patented venturi orifice design to effectively drain condensate from the steam system. As the GEM steam traps have no moving parts to wedge open or fail, it provides the ultimate in reliability necessitating only minimal maintenance and requiring no spares, testing or monitoring equipment.
Available in a wide range of sizes for a full cross section of applications, the hardwearing GEM traps are manufactured from corrosion-resistant stainless steel and are guaranteed for ten years, obviating the need for repair or replacement. These traps can provide a fast payback from reduced energy costs and increased equipment reliability. And in addition they can improve product processing by enhancing the quality of steam which in turn reduces equipment repairs, downtime and replacement costs.
