When a Canadian automotive parts manufacturer that produces urethane foam products started having problems with quality, the first suspected cause was humidity. As is often the case, humid air can contribute to numerous issues with the quality of a finished product.

The chief engineer of the plant called NuTemp to help solve this dilemma. What the plant needed was to control humidity and temperature of make-up air fed to the manufacturing area. NuTemp devised a solution that included providing a combination of rental mechanical refrigeration and rental desiccant dehumidification in order to control the make-up air conditions.

The first stage of carrying out the solution to the company's dehumidification issue involved condensing moisture from the air via an air-handling unit, using chilled water as the media. Following that, the final stage was accomplished by using a rental desiccant dehumidifier and directing the air to an air-handling unit again for tempering, prior to injecting it into the manufacturing area.

As NuTemp engineers worked on the process of lowering humidity in the auto plant, the successful results of their efforts became obvious. The airflow at 20,000 cfm had a temperature drop of 25 degrees, from 95 degrees F to 70 degrees F. Relative humidity decreased from 47 percent to 27 percent. After the first day of actual production, the plant saw a "tremendous improvement" in quality. Defects in the product decreased by 20 percent. The temporary system set up by NuTemp became an integral part of the plant's production process.

Melchor Isobal, international sales manager for NuTemp, commented, "We were happy with the fact that we could create a feasible solution for this client. The problem of excessive humidity is a typical one at many plants. NuTemp is well-equipped to handle such issues head-on."

NuTemp, a specialist utility rental equipment company with nine offices nationwide, and over 50 international locations, serves a range of markets including manufacturing, industrial, commercial, governmental, and institutional. Its rental products include chillers, cooling towers, air conditioners, spot coolers, air handlers, dehumidifiers, heaters, generators, and diesel-driven pumps.

For more information, visit www.nutemp.com.

Publication date: 02/09/2004