Combustion Equipment is used in the Printing Industry?

While the internet has caused some people to transition away from reading hard-copy print to reading in only digital format, the printing industry is still a booming business. The printing industry processes virtually every item we come into contact with throughout our day; every tangible item containing pictures, letters or words has gone through some sort of printing process.
Here are a few of the main types of printing processes used today.

• offset lithography – printing is “offset” from a metal plate to rubber, then to the printing surface
• engraving – imposes ink onto paper using pressure
• thermography – heat and powder are used to create raised text
• reprographics – reproduction of graphics and images by mechanical or electrical means
• digital printing – inkjet or laser printers
• screen - mostly used in fabric printing; implements forced ink jets through stencils onto fabric
• flexography – use flexible plates with raised type or images. This type of printing is mostly used for labels
• gravure – employs impression rolls and is used for large runs of magazines and catalogs

When one thinks of a printing process, combustion probably does not come to mind. However, combustion is used in many printing processes; offset lithography, the most widely used form of printing, is the example we will explore below.
During offset lithography ink is distributed onto a metal plate through rollers. The metal plate is dampened by water rollers and then by ink rollers. The perfect balance of ink and water is distributed to the plate, which has previously had the image or text to be printed transferred on to it. The plate then transfers its image to a rubber blanket, which in turn transfers the image to the paper.

Because the ink is still damp after going through the offset lithography process, there is a risk of the ink smudging. This is where combustion comes into play - in order to avoid smudges and dry the ink, the paper passes through an oven. The oven, gas fired by combustion burners, is operated between 300 and 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  After going through the oven, the paper is then sent over chill rollers in order to be cooled down before going through quality control and slicing.
Because printing equipment moves at such a rapid pace it is important to keep all of the printing equipment, including the combustion equipment, well maintained in order to keep your process running smoothly, efficiently and effectively.  Stelter & Brinck is one company that can help keep your combustion burners tuned and well maintained. For more information on Stelter & Brinck’s combustion field services and how they can help you maintain the burners in your printing process please call  513-367-9300 or visit    http://www.stelterbrinck.com/combustion_burner_field_services.htm

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Now is the Time to Switch from Electric to Natural Gas!

May 2012
Last month, Stelter & Brinck put out this post: http://stelterbrinck.posterous.com/convert-your-equipment-from-electric-to-natur
Today, we're sharing more information about the low cost of natural gas, as well as an Stelter & Brinck conversoin example.
Below are a few recent headlines, to support the fact that switching your equipment's energy source from electric to natural gas is a good decision:
"Natural Gas: Fuel of the Future" - CNN Money
"Natural Gas Sinks Beneath $2 Level" - The Wall Street Journal
Below is a chart, to exemplify how low natural gas prices have fallen in the last few years. This chart also shows that even if natural gas prices do rise, it is predicted the price will not increase by much.

Finally, here is an example of a conversion from electric to natural gas done by Stelter & Brinck:

"A company that heat treats steel mill rolls relied on Stelter & Brinck to convert their electric furnace to natural gas. S&B provided a turn-key conversion- they designed, manufactured, installed and commissioned a radiant tube/recuperative burner system for the customer's tilt style furnace.  Since the conversion, the customer has experienced faster heat-up time and energy savings!"

For more information about converting your process equipment from electric to natural gas, or about Stelter & Brinck, please visit http://www.stelterbrinck.com/specialty.htm

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RFQ Page Changes Make it Easier for Customers!

Stelter & Brinck have changed their RFQ pages to make it easier for customers who are in a hurry. The RFQ pages changed include Stelter & Brinck's indirect fired air heaters, direct fired air heaters, thermal and catalytic oxidizers, combustion field services and replacement parts. The pages now have a link on the left hand side for customers who are short on time; they can now request Stelter & Brinck call them regarding their RFQ. A representative stated that, "Because we design and manufacture complex equipment, our RFQ pages have multiple fields that require detailed information- if a customer is short on time and can't fill out the RFQ page at that moment they can now request a call. These changes have been made in order to make the life of the customer easier and we're constantly improving our website and other aspects of our business in order to continue making their lives easier!"


For more information on Stelter & Brinck, please visit www.stelterbrinck.com

Convert your Equipment from Electric to Natural Gas and Save!

 

                                                April, 2012

Convert your Equipment from Electric to Natural Gas!

According to the Department of Energy, in the United States “natural gas reserves are now at their highest level since EIA began reporting them in 1977”. Because of the abundance of natural gas, the price has significantly dropped in the United States. Fortunately for Americans, the outlook is positive; the DOE predicts that the natural gas prices will remain the same until at least 2035.

So how much is natural gas? On average, natural gas is $2.75/ million btu/ hour.

Cost of electric? The average electric price for 100 KW load/hour of electricity is $11.43.

So how much will I save? Savings depends on a number of factors, including hours of production, temperatures, ect. Call Stelter & Brinck 513-367-9300 for a free energy savings and ROI estimate today!

For more information on energy conversions visit http://www.stelterbrinck.com/specialty.htm

Indirect and Direct Air Heaters

Stelter & Brinck, Ltd. designs and manufactures process heat & environmental equipment and provides combustion burner services and parts. This article provides an overview of just 2 of the process heat equipment product lines Stelter & Brinck provides industry: indirect and direct fired process air heaters. No matter your process, S&B has an air heater to fit your needs.
PBB: Packaged Air Heaters
Our PBB air heaters are complete with burner, blower, flame safety controls, process temperature controls, and motor starters. Each heater is prepiped, prewired and test fired at design capacity; the user need only set the equipment in place and connect utilities at the single connection point and it is ready for startup.
IAH: Indirect Air Heaters
Our indirect fired air heaters are used where no contamination of the process stream by the products of combustion is desired. Available in medium or high efficiencies, the IAH is a prepiped, prewired, packaged unit complete with hot side blowers, burner, integral heat exchanger, and process controls.
AHD: Duct Type Air Heater
The AHD offers the most cost effective solution to your process air heating needs. Designed to fit in the process ductwork, the AHD uses the process air stream for combustion air. This feature precludes the need for a separate combustion air blower saving both capital and operating costs.
AHD-R: Duct Type Air Heater
Similar in design to the AHD air heater, the AHD-R is also designed to fit in the process ductwork; however, the AHD-R uses an external combustion blower for combustion air. The external combustion air blower allows a duct mounted type burner to be used in a recirculated or low oxygen air stream.
AHG: Gun Style Air Heater
Our gun style air heaters are in excellent choice for heating recirculated or dirty airstreams. Gun style units utilize an external combustion blower providing a source of fresh combustion air and the flexibility of a wide turndown. The AGH air heaters are offered in a variety of trim levels ranging from a basic combustion system to a fully packaged process air heater.

For more information on Stelter & Brinck’s indirect or direct fired air heaters, please call 513-367-9300 or visit http://www.stelterbrinck.com/process-air-heaters.htm

Stelter & Brinck Celebrates 90 Years!

2012 marks 90 years for Stelter & Brinck! The company began in 1922, as a manufacturer’s representative selling combustion components to industry.
Over the years, Henry Stelter and Larry Brinck developed a reputation for their excellence in engineering, providing quality combustion products and customer service. Their many customers began to rely on them not only for their engineering expertise, but eventually for complete packaged combustion systems. Thus began S&B's transformation from representative agency to equipment manufacturer.
Today, S&B’s products include, but are not limited to:
- Indirect Fired Air Heaters
- Direct Fired Air Heaters
- Thermal & Catalytic Oxidizers, Afterburners
- Integrated Packaged Process Systems
- Ladle and Tundish Dryers and Preheaters, and Scrap Preheaters
- Aluminum Sow Dryers, Crucible Ovens and Furnaces
- Specialty Ovens and Furnaces
- In-House Equipment Test-Firing
- Combustion Field Services and Parts for Industrial Burners
From the pharmaceutical and chemical industries to the food and agricultural industries, S&B’s repertoire of process heat equipment can be found in virtually every industry throughout the world.
S&B is proud of their past and is looking forward to the many years to come! Although the company has changed significantly throughout its 90 years, S&B has always held true to their motto: Treat The Customer As You Would Be Treated.

 

 

For more information on Stelter & Brinck, visit www.stelterbrinck.com
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Three Ways to Overcome the Manufacturing Skills Gap

The following originally appeared on SoftwareAdvice.com.
A recent Deloitte report estimated that as many as 600,000 jobs U.S. manufacturing jobs are unfilled. Why? There’s a skills mismatch in the manufacturing industry. With unemployment sitting at 8.3 percent, this is cause for concern.
Much of the recent coverage around the manufacturing skills gap has focused on its root causes, which are by now familiar: baby boomers are retiring, shop floor automation is increasing the technical skills required in manufacturing jobs, and youth are disinterested in pursuing a manufacturing career.
Whatever the causes, we now need to work together as a nation to overcome the skills deficit. I see three ways to achieve this:

1. Strengthen educational partnerships;
2. Invest in corporate in-house training programs; and,
3. Energize the workforce of tomorrow.

The first two strategies will help manufacturers overcome the problem of hiring a capable workforce in the near-term. Meanwhile, energizing youth about pursuing a manufacturing career will help create a supply of workers for the long-term.

Strengthen Educational Partnerships

Technical colleges (and other parts of academia) are perfectly positioned to equip a new manufacturing workforce with the right skills. There is already an extensive network of schools that partner with manufacturers to teach relevant skills. These partnerships need to be strengthened.
One such partnership is the Society of Manufacturing Engineers’ collaboration with Tooling U–an online training program that provides curricula for everything from CNC machining to welding. Tooling U partners with colleges, trade associations, media groups and industry to develop training programs that align with the skills manufacturers need.
Since its inception, Tooling U has helped 100,000 individuals revamp their skill set to find jobs at roughly 1,200 companies.
Partnerships like those developed at Tooling U need to grow in number and size because they are proven models for workforce development that can have an immediate impact on the skills deficit.

Invest in In-House Training Programs

The success of programs such as Tooling U prove that manufacturers can make a difference when they get involved in workforce training. Manufacturers that are serious about hiring the right people should implement their own skills training programs.
We have a model that shows that training in-house is highly effective: the Training Within Industry program. Hugh Alley, President of First Line Training, pointed out in a recent conversation that this program helped train two million women and eight million men after WWII.
According to Alley, firms that use this program usually achieve close to a 25 percent reduction in the time it takes to train an employee.
Over the last three decades, however, in-house training and apprenticeship programs have steadily declined across the industry. Many of these programs were cut for budgetary reasons. A recent study of UK manufacturers suggests that domestic manufacturers should bring these programs back.
Semta–a UK manufacturing association–analyzed the value of apprenticeship programs to manufacturers. Roughly 80 percent of surveyed UK manufacturers said that their apprenticeship program makes them more productive. Furthermore, 83 percent stated that they will rely on apprenticeships to fill future work needs.
While it may be difficult to find workers with the exact skills to match job openings, manufacturers can train people with the right aptitude. Investing in a talented individual can limit staffing problems and pay substantial dividends for manufacturing productivity.

Energize the Workforce of Tomorrow

Solving the workforce needs of today does little good if the next generation is disinterested in working in manufacturing. In the longer-term, manufacturers will need to get youth interested in manufacturing by exposing them to it in a fun, engaging way.
One example of this is a Tampa Bay program called STEM Goes to Work. The program takes students on manufacturing facility tours. While there, students get to talk with manufacturing employees, management and CEOs. They learn about manufacturing careers and what it takes to land one of those jobs.
According to Janet Bryant, Director of Corporate Development at iDatix, the tours also incorporate a fun element. For instance, when students visited a gear manufacturer, they were given a challenge to build workable gears out of Styrofoam.
Here in Austin, National Instruments gets young people interested in manufacturing and engineering through their Lego Mindstorms project. Lego Mindstorms features a combination of lessons and competitions where students are tasked to build simple robotics.
While these kinds of projects don’t develop manufacturing-specific skills directly, Reut Schwartz-Hebron of Key Change Institute notes that they “help foster critical thinking ability, which ultimately makes it much easier to learn manufacturing skills later in life.”
This article was found at:
http://economyincrisis.org/content/three-ways-to-overcome-the-manufacturing-skills-gap

Stelter & Brinck, of Harrison, Ohio is one manufacturer that is hiring. While S&B has found employees by implementing a few of the practices above into their candidate search, Stelter & Brinck is still hiring Welders, Combustion Feld Service Technicians, CAD Designers and a Project Engineer. Stelter & Brinck manufacturers process heat equipment, such as indirect fired air heaters, direct fired air heaters, thermal oxidizers, catalytic oxidizers, steel and aluminum mill equipment, specialty ovens and furnaces, ect. S&B also provides combustion burner services. If you’re interested in these positions, please apply online at www.stelterbrinck.com/combustion_jobs.htm.

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