Industrial ventilation systems are responsible for many functions in your facility. They help with comfort by assisting with temperature and humidity control, improve health and safety by removing potentially harmful contaminants, and overall make your facility a more productive environment. Ventilation systems can also help control contaminants like smoke and fumes in your facility.
What are Industrial Ventilation Systems?
Ventilation is the process of bringing in fresh air and expelling contaminated air. Air can be contaminated in many ways, such as by extreme temperatures, high humidity, dust, chemical fumes, or smoke. Industrial ventilation systems use specialized equipment and sophisticated design to meet the ventilation needs of industrial facilities. Industrial ventilation systems may include a wide range of equipment to create proper airflow, air exchange rates, temperatures, and humidity. For instance, your system might include a combination of fans, blowers, louvers, dampers, filters, dehumidifiers, and cooling units to create the ideal indoor environment for your needs. Ventilation can help improve health, safety, comfort, and productivity for workers inside your facility. It can also help protect your facility itself and the equipment and products inside from damage due to conditions like extreme temperatures, humidity levels, or contaminants.
How Industrial Ventilation Systems Help Control Smoke and Fumes
Ventilation systems are essential for controlling smoke and fumes in a wide range of facilities. Smoke is a type of contaminant that can negatively impact your operations. For instance, it can reduce visibility indoors, burn lung tissue, and have a toxic effect on people within your facility. It also typically holds harmful particulates and chemicals that may damage sensitive equipment, goods, and systems inside your facility. Therefore, smoke and fumes can put your facility at risk in many ways.
Industrial ventilation systems can help remove smoke and fumes from your indoor environment. It’s necessary to have ventilation experts design a system suited to your specific smoke and fume control needs. However, there are a few common systems you may need for proper ventilation in your facility, including exhaust, make-up air, and filtration systems.
Industrial Exhaust System
An industrial exhaust system is one of the main components responsible for managing smoke and fumes. Exhaust systems are essentially systems that rid the indoor environment of contaminated air. There are many ways to approach an exhaust system. However, when it comes to smoke control, typically exhaust systems use a combination of natural and mechanical ventilation methods to rid the facility of contaminated air.
Of course, this will depend on your specific facility, and a ventilation specialist may recommend a different strategy based on your needs. However, in most cases, the exhaust opening is located in the roof of a large open space. This is because smoke naturally tends to rise quickly. Once it reaches the top area of the building, an industrial fan aids in directing the contaminated air out through the exhaust system opening in the roof to remove it from the indoors. Exhaust fans speed up the removal process to keep interiors safe and healthy for your personnel and processes.
Make-Up Air for Industrial Ventilation Systems
Exhaust systems are important, and likely the first thing that comes to mind when you think of smoke management. However, exhaust systems often require make-up air systems as well. For industrial ventilation systems to function properly, you need to maintain certain pressures in your facility. Otherwise, exhaust systems and other ventilation equipment may start to malfunction. Make-up air equipment adds in fresh outdoor air to replace the contaminated air expelled through the industrial exhaust system. They also help maintain proper pressurization to prevent undue stress on the ventilation system and avoid pressure related safety issues.
Installing make-up air systems can help you avoid many of the issues associated with a space with too much negative pressure, commonly thought of as a facility “starved for air.” Make-up air system must bring in fresh, uncontaminated air. Therefore, systems should be located well away from the exhaust system outlets where smoke and contaminants may be present. They must also be configured to work in-tandem with exhaust systems to maintain proper pressure based on your facility’s needs.
Filtration Systems for Pollutants
In addition, some smoke control ventilation systems need filtration systems to remove harmful particulates before entering the outdoor air. Depending on your processes, you may need filtration systems in addition to your industrial exhaust system. Fabric filters known as baghouses are commonly used to help filter smoke and fumes before exhaust systems release the air into the outdoor atmosphere. Just like other components of your ventilation and smoke management systems, filtration systems should also be customized to suit your needs. Different filtration methods and materials may work for one facility and not the other based on the building and processes. Ventilation specialists can help you determine when and how to include filtration systems to remove pollutants from exhausted air.
Industries that Need to Design a Ventilation System with Smoke in Mind
Practically every building needs to consider smoke control in the event of a fire. Directing and venting smoke from an unexpected fire can help keep your people and property safe. Smoke inhalation can cause injury and even death and make it difficult for your personnel to evacuate. Also, smoke can cause significant damage to your building and everything inside. Therefore, from a fire safety perspective, your industrial ventilation systems need to address smoke from potential fires.
However, it’s also important to note that some facilities have smoke naturally present due to certain processes. These buildings typically need a sophisticated industrial exhaust system to expel harmful smoke, fumes, and water vapor. Industrial smoke can take many forms, including white smoke which is actually mostly water vapor in most cases, though is often mixed with other contaminants.
There are many industries that may need smoke management systems for everyday processes. Some industrial tasks that can create potentially harmful smoke and fumes include:
- Semiconductor manufacturing
- Plasma cutting
- Laser cutting
- Heat pressing
- Heat treating
- Welding
- Forging
- Soldering
It’s essential to design a ventilation system tailored to your facility and your processes. There are many factors to consider for your industrial ventilation systems, including innovative evaluations such as heat load and psychometric calculations, fluid flow analysis, and CAD design. Our team offers years of experience to provide turnkey ventilation system design and installation.
High-Performance Industrial Ventilation Systems from Eldridge
Industrial facilities need reliable, high-performance, and heavy-duty ventilation systems. Our team at Eldridge is here to help you achieve exactly that. As a leading ventilation company, we draw on over 75 years of experience to find cost-effective, efficient solutions for all your ventilation and noise control needs. Our goal is to create successful environments for your facility, personnel, and processes. Whether you need general ventilation or require specialized systems for specific process concerns, you can trust our experts to provide you with effective solutions that fit your needs and budget. We work with companies in a wide range of industries throughout the nation. We are dedicated to adding value through quality industrial ventilation systems for your facility. Get in touch today to request a quote for ventilation design, maintenance, or installation.