When you envision a thriving agricultural market, compressed air may not be among your primary imagery. But, what if I told you that compressed air powers the wheel that makes that world go round?
Air compressors can be found in most large production and manufacturing facilities worldwide. Agriculture-based locations are no different and greatly rely on compressed air to help achieve their goals of sustainability, sorting, and product delivery.
Let’s talk about that word: sustainability
When someone throws out the term, “sustainability”, they are typically referring to the ability to maintain something (production, manufacturing, etc.) long term without depleting natural resources and adding to environmental toxins and waste.
Air compressors are big energy users. There’s no way around that. However, when we look into the ways that air compressors minimize waste and optimize time efficiency, it is clear that they play a vital role in reaching the goal of sustainability for a society that is ever-expanding.
- Waste reduction
Compressed air is essential in ensuring that all parts of an agricultural resource is used.
For example, in a pecan plant, compressed air will power the machinery that sorts and assigns whole pecans, partial pecans, shells, and meat. Each part can then be used for different purposes; the oil from pecan shells is used by some cosmetology companies as an ingredient for make up!
- Time efficiency
The need for quick agricultural turnover is high due to its perishability.
In an agricultural society that has massive amounts of product to move with very limited time, compressed air systems make the task manageable AND energy efficient.
Sustaining energy efficiency
While we’re on the topic of sustainability, we would be remiss not to mention the vital requirement of having the appropriate compressed air system for the agricultural application.
You would think that one energy efficient compressed air system is equal to the next. But, like most things in life, there is no one-size-fits-all product for every facility.
The best compressed air option for your facility is going to come down to your:
- Application
- Facility size
- Climate
- Production Goals
We will also point out that an air compressor is only part of your compressed air system. Your system is going to involve things like lubricants, filters, dryers, and piping to name a few. So, when you are honing in on your ideal compressed air system, you need to account for all materials that it comprises.
Piping up on pipes
In 2022, our team began working with an existing peanut processing company that operated two side-by-side facilities. They seemingly had the perfect air compressor sizes for their facilities but they could not ever get enough air pressure in their plants.
They called Blake & Pendleton in to see if we could find the problem and after completing a detailed air study, the issue was found in their pipe distribution system.
Their existing pipe system comprised of pipes that were undersized and restricting the air flow and were made of a material that greatly disrupted their magnetic process equipment.
The solution? We re-piped both of their plants with the appropriate size and material of piping and replaced one of their finicky air compressors. Since these changes, they have stable systems and can run at 100% capacity without issue.
This is a perfect example of how a compressed air system’s parts work together to meet the efficiency required for sustainability.
Sorting
Let’s revisit the point on waste reduction. In order to optimize our agriculture facilities and ensure that the precious resources provided by farmers are not wasted, sorting actually becomes a major staple in a thriving agricultural society.
We discussed the ability of machines to effectively sort the parts of pecans, but sorting is required in almost all agricultural processes.
These are just a few other examples of agriculture categories that require precise sorting:
- Produce
- Peanuts
- Dairy
- Poultry facilities
- Beef & Pork ranches
- Tobacco
- Cotton
- Corn
- Grain
- Beans
So even though sorting capabilities seem like an obvious elementary-level assumption, there is clearly more science in the recipe for a thriving agricultural market.
A thriving agriculture market is the key to longevity in any culture – and as our society continues to grow, it’s reliance on compressed air powered agricultural facilities increases.
If you want to make a lasting impact in the sustainability of your agricultural operations, contact Blake & Pendleton. We factor in all that you need in a compressed air system to have an efficient and sustainable operation.