ask the expert
greg arslanian
global electronics industry manager
“how can industrial gases improve the quality of electronic components and assemblies for the automotive industry?”
as the percentage of electronic components and assemblies in the automobile increases, air products is continuing to expand its offerings to help advance new designs and assist emerging technologies. we offer several solutions that can help manufacturers improve product quality, reduce operating costs, reduce defects, and increase production and reliability: nitrogen inert wave soldering system for dross reduction, enhanced joint quality, and overall cost of ownership improvementnitrogen for smt reflow assembly to improve solder joint quality, reduce costly rework, and improve reliabilityinerting gases, such as argon, for use in the area of flip chip assembly to improve assembly reliabilityliquid nitrogen for use in hass and halt stress testing and assistance in reducing nitrogen consumptionoxygen level control system for reflow soldering to improve process consistency, provide consistent nitrogen consumption, and widen the operating windowsystem understanding and process optimization capabilities for wave, reflow, and selective soldering and integrated circuit packaging operationslet air products put our vast experience in electronic applications to work for you. we provide total solutions for your electronic manufacturing requirements with equipment, technology and reliable gas supply. we have the expertise that comes from being a leading supplier to the automotive industry around the world.
motor manufacturer finds a pure solution to annealing problems
with a reputation as a top global supplier of reliable, high-performance electric motors, a.o. smith sought to make further improvements in its production process. (after all, market leaders are never content with “good enough.”) specifically, the company looked to enhance how it manufactures steel laminations for use in its motors, which power everyday products such as furnaces, air conditioners, pumps, refrigerators and garage door openers. a.o. smith narrowed its focus to the natural gas exothermic generator used to create an atmosphere for annealing, decarburizing and steaming blue the laminations to enhance the metal.
with a reputation as a top global supplier of reliable, high-performance electric motors, a.o. smith sought to make further improvements in its production process. (after all, market leaders are never content with “good enough.”) specifically, the company looked to enhance how it manufactures steel laminations for use in its motors, which power everyday products such as furnaces, air conditioners, pumps, refrigerators and garage door openers. a.o. smith narrowed its focus to the natural gas exothermic generator used to create an atmosphere for annealing, decarburizing and steaming blue the laminations to enhance the metal.
“we were looking to eliminate carbon monoxide to maximize the magnetic properties of our motor laminates—and, of course, we were looking for cost savings,” says a.o. smith’s jerry shrout, plant manager at the mt. sterling, ky., facility. “our exothermic generators simply weren’t giving us the atmosphere consistency we required.”
for a comprehensive, third-party opinion, a.o. smith called in a team of air products engineers and technicians to thoroughly assess the facility’s technical, equipment and financial needs. the recommendation: replace the exothermic generator with air products’ prism™ hpn (high purity nitrogen) system, an efficient and cost-effective way to produce one of the industry’s most pure grades of nitrogen. the on-site generators would offer a.o. smith a fully automatic and highly flexible on-site nitrogen supply system.
replacing the existing natural gas exothermic generators with the new hpn series plant gave a.o. smith the capacity to produce 48,000 standard cubic feet per hour of gaseous nitrogen. onstream since march 2004, the system also offers improved product quality, reliability and safety.
additionally, the hpn nitrogen was combined with hydrogen from an existing air products liquid hydrogen storage and delivery system. the blended and humidified end product provided an optimal atmosphere for a.o. smith’s motor lamination annealing process.
“air products’ team of application engineers and technicians designed and implemented the entire engineering package and converted us from an exothermic atmosphere to a system using nitrogen, hydrogen, and steam,” says shrout. “this solved our consistency problems, and got rid of the carbon monoxide issues. by installing an on-site nitrogen generator, air products was able to reduce our total system costs.”
according to john bakey, commercial manager, generated gases at air products, the solution stemmed from the marriage of cutting-edge technology and an understanding of a.o. smith’s ongoing needs. “our prism systems produce thousands of tons of nitrogen every day without interruption to our customers’ processes,” said bakey. “that commitment to service is our greatest asset, and one that we look forward to sharing with a.o. smith for many years.”
the prism line of gas generation systems supplies generated nitrogen and oxygen to more than 1,500 customers in over 30 countries worldwide. in addition to offering high purity nitrogen at a desirable cost, on-site gas generation systems offer the benefits of highly skidded and modular generator designs and the ability for remote system operation is backed by customer-specific technical support teams.
the prism line of gas generation systems supplies generated nitrogen and oxygen to more than 1,500 customers in over 30 countries worldwide. in addition to offering high purity nitrogen at a desirable cost, on-site gas generation systems offer the benefits of highly skidded and modular generator designs and the ability for remote system operation is backed by customer-specific technical support teams.
with a reputation as a top global supplier of reliable, high-performance electric motors, a.o. smith sought to make further improvements in its production process. (after all, market leaders are never content with “good enough.”) specifically, the company looked to enhance how it manufactures steel laminations for use in its motors, which power everyday products such as furnaces, air conditioners, pumps, refrigerators and garage door openers. a.o. smith narrowed its focus to the natural gas exothermic generator used to create an atmosphere for annealing, decarburizing and steaming blue the laminations to enhance the metal.
“we were looking to eliminate carbon monoxide to maximize the magnetic properties of our motor laminates—and, of course, we were looking for cost savings,” says a.o. smith’s jerry shrout, plant manager at the mt. sterling, ky., facility. “our exothermic generators simply weren’t giving us the atmosphere consistency we required.”
for a comprehensive, third-party opinion, a.o. smith called in a team of air products engineers and technicians to thoroughly assess the facility’s technical, equipment and financial needs. the recommendation: replace the exothermic generator with air products’ prism™ hpn (high purity nitrogen) system, an efficient and cost-effective way to produce one of the industry’s most pure grades of nitrogen. the on-site generators would offer a.o. smith a fully automatic and highly flexible on-site nitrogen supply system.
replacing the existing natural gas exothermic generators with the new hpn series plant gave a.o. smith the capacity to produce 48,000 standard cubic feet per hour of gaseous nitrogen. onstream since march 2004, the system also offers improved product quality, reliability and safety.
additionally, the hpn nitrogen was combined with hydrogen from an existing air products liquid hydrogen storage and delivery system. the blended and humidified end product provided an optimal atmosphere for a.o. smith’s motor lamination annealing process.
“air products’ team of application engineers and technicians designed and implemented the entire engineering package and converted us from an exothermic atmosphere to a system using nitrogen, hydrogen, and steam,” says shrout. “this solved our consistency problems, and got rid of the carbon monoxide issues. by installing an on-site nitrogen generator, air products was able to reduce our total system costs.”
according to john bakey, commercial manager, generated gases at air products, the solution stemmed from the marriage of cutting-edge technology and an understanding of a.o. smith’s ongoing needs. “our prism systems produce thousands of tons of nitrogen every day without interruption to our customers’ processes,” said bakey. “that commitment to service is our greatest asset, and one that we look forward to sharing with a.o. smith for many years.”
the prism line of gas generation systems supplies generated nitrogen and oxygen to more than 1,500 customers in over 30 countries worldwide. in addition to offering high purity nitrogen at a desirable cost, on-site gas generation systems offer the benefits of highly skidded and modular generator designs and the ability for remote system operation is backed by customer-specific technical support teams.
the prism line of gas generation systems supplies generated nitrogen and oxygen to more than 1,500 customers in over 30 countries worldwide. in addition to offering high purity nitrogen at a desirable cost, on-site gas generation systems offer the benefits of highly skidded and modular generator designs and the ability for remote system operation is backed by customer-specific technical support teams.
saving on gas consumption
for a ball bearings manufacturer, air products’ process management data system demonstrated gas consumption was higher than necessary. the data showed gas flow rates were too high and inconsistent, and the ratio of the gases was off by 200%.
gases
air products gases, typically provided in gaseous and liquid form, enable customers in a wide range of industries to improve their environmental performance, product quality, and productivity.
argon
compressed argon gas and liquid argon in a variety of purities and in various modes of supply around the world thanks to our network of storage and transfill facilities.
carbon dioxide
our experienced applications teams across the globe can use their industry and application knowledge to provide you with a compressed or liquid carbon dioxide supply and technology solution to meet your unique needs.
helium
an inert gas for cryogenic, heat transfer, shielding, leak detection, analytical and lifting applications
hydrogen
valued for its reactive and protective properties, and used by many industries such as electronics, foods, glass, chemicals, refining and more can benefit from its unique properties to improve quality, optimize performance and reduce costs.
nitrogen
useful as a gas, for its inert properties, and as a liquid for cooling and freezing. virtually any industry can benefit from its unique properties to improve yields, optimize performance and make operations safer.
oxygen
in addition to its use as a respiratory gas for healthcare applications, its strong oxidizing properties benefit many industries by improving yields, optimizing performance, lowering costs and reducing carbon footprint compared to other fuels.
related industries
air products offers thousands of products and services to a variety of different industries. this scope and experience has enabled us to develop a deeper understanding of the demands of these industries, and of your particular needs.
we have provided information most relevant to you within this industry section, but you may find information in other related industries of interest as well. the attached list is provided as a convenience for you or you can click on “industries” in the top navigation for a full listing.
we have provided information most relevant to you within this industry section, but you may find information in other related industries of interest as well. the attached list is provided as a convenience for you or you can click on “industries” in the top navigation for a full listing.
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