Safety Shower Heater Savings
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"We specified Keltech safety shower
and emergency eyewash heaters for a lot of reasons:
- Minimal cost to operate for the safety value provided
- Price per unit
- Delivery availability and flexibility
- Cost-benefit analysis versus a hot water loop system
- Potential energy tax benefits
- Customer service availability and support
- Engineering support during our plant design.
These were all value-added tasks
that didn't cost my company a thing but all the
while provided a substantial element of efficiency,
comfort and a well thought-out plant-wide tepid water
safety shower system."
— Jason Desler
Health/Safety/Environmental Engineer
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CASE STUDY
Meeting the OSHA Safety Challenge in
a Metal Manufacturing Facility: How Jason Desler — an
Environmental Health and Safety Engineer — Met the OHSA
Standard with an ANSI Z358.1 Compliant Tankless Water Heating
Solution, and Saved His Company $349,000 Annually in Reduced
Energy Costs.
ABOUT KELTECH TANKLESS
WATER HEATERS
Keltech, Inc. provides tankless water heaters for
safety shower systems and emergency eyewash solutions that protect
workers at risk from chemical injury.
Keltech’s tankless
water heaters include patented tepid water control processes
that:
- Reach tepid water temperatures quickly
- Provide injured
workers with an unlimited supply of tepid water (up to 40 gallons
per minute), exceeding the ANSI Z358.1 15 minute drenching
standard
ABOUT
JASON DESLER AND THE METAL MANUFACTURING PROCESS
Jason Desler
is an Environmental Health and Safety Engineer for one of the
world's largest manufacturers of specialty metals and chemicals.
Extensive industry experience has provided Mr. Desler with a
diverse knowledge base of the metal manufacturing process and
the potential hazards it presents to employees.
Caustic chemicals,
extreme furnace heat, and highly corrosive gases are a necessary
part of the metal manufacturing process and pose a serious challenge.
Strict safety standards must be followed. As a health, safety
and environmental engineer, Mr. Desler strives to provide employees
with protection that meets or exceeds OSHA standards (29CFR1910.151)
and corporate expectations.
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INDUSTRY SERVED
Metal Manufacturing. The finished products are
used in a variety of industries including:
- Energy production
- Chemical and mineral processing
- Aerospace
- Medical
- Research and consumer products
PROJECT TYPE
Providing safety shower and emergency eyewash solutions
for multiple metal manufacturing facilities in hazardous and
extreme industrial environments.
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CHALLENGES
Remote Location
The plant’s remote
location makes safety of paramount importance. Situated 70
miles from the nearest emergent care facility, the necessity
for strict safety protocols and incident response equipment
is critical. To protect plant workers, Mr. Desler depends on
engineering controls such as safety equipment, and administrative
controls such as advanced first aid training to prevent and
quickly address on site accidents.
Large Scope and Scale of the Project
The scope and scale of the project
poses power and water distribution challenges as well as utility
cost concerns:
- 13 structures spread over 180 acres of desert
- Safety shower
and eyewash fixtures every 45 to 55 feet throughout the
various facilities
- Providing a continuous supply of tepid water on demand
to over 100 specified fixtures
Extreme Environmental Conditions
Safety shower performance is
affected by the high desert environment where ambient temperature
conditions range from sub-zero to well above tepid water standards.
Initial Investment and Utility Costs
The solution must provide an energy
efficient and cost effective solution without the compromise
of worker safety.
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APPLICABLE STANDARD SUMMARY
OSHA 29CFR1910.151 Safety Standard
regarding Exposure to Injurious Corrosive Materials
Employers
must provide suitable facilities for quick drenching or flushing
of the eyes and body when employees may be exposed to injurious
corrosive materials.
ANSI Z358.1 Safety Standard regarding Supply
and Flow of Tepid Water
Section 4.1 of ANSI Z358.1 specifies that
emergency shower heads shall be capable of delivering tepid water
at a minimum of 75.7 liters per minute (20 GPM) of flushing fluid
to the user for a minimun 15 minute period.
SOLUTION
Keltech’s engineers carefully evaluated
the project requirements and challenges with Mr. Desler. Throughout
this collaborative process, shower and eyewash fixture specifications
were paired with a variety of Keltech CLE (emergency eyewash)
and SN (safety shower) heaters. Standard options were added as
needed to meet location and environmental particulars within
and outside the manufacturing facilities.
Keltech provided over
116 safety shower and emergency eyewash heaters, fixtures, and
integrated systems. Employees have access to a safety shower
system or emergency eyewash station every 45 to 55 feet throughout
the 13 facilities and surrounding environment.
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KEY PROJECT ATTRIBUTES
ADDRESSED:
Compliance with Safety Standards
Keltech’s solution complied
with OSHA standards and exceeded ANSI requirements as well as
other industry and company standards. Keltech’s SN series
safety shower heaters and CLE series emergency eyewash heaters
rapidly heat water safely to the ANSI standard and provide an
unlimited and continuous supply of tepid water (80 ºF).
In
the event of a chemical injury, Keltech’s tepid water
solutions act as a primary source of first aid treatment for
incident victims. In such cases, a continuous flow of tepid water
is critical to worker safety as comfort plays a key roll in compliance
with 15 minute drench requirements. Keltech’s engineered
temperature controls provide a precise and stable tepid water
source, insuring compliance with safety standards.
Additional
Product Safety Features:
- ETL/cETL Listed
- Conforms to UL and CSA standards
- Incoloy 800 sheathed heating elements
- Externally mounted emergency stop button
- Safety only circuits ensure water temperatures do not exceed ANSI standards for tepid water
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Performance in a Hazardous Environment
Keltech CLE and SN Series
heaters are equipped with NEMA 4 enclosures to meet the challenge
of operating in a hazardous environment that included corrosive
chemicals (e.g. hydrochloric acid). NEMA 4 enclosures keep out
water, snow and ice, windblown dust and other airborne contaminants
from internal components and protect the unit from corrosion
and premature failure.
Performance in Extreme Temperatures
Keltech’s solution
considered the varying temperature extremes that many of the
units would face. To overcome these adverse conditions, some
heaters were engineered to include optional freeze protection
packages to perform as needed in sub-zero temperatures as low
a -23 °F with a constant 11 mph wind. To maintain
the proper tepid water range regardless of the ambient temperature,
patented internal controls monitor conditions within the unit
and purge water exceeding tepid standards from the supply system
as conditions dictate.
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Energy Savings and Lower Operating Costs
The cost benefit analysis
was conclusive. Based on an electricity cost of ten cents per
kilowatt/hour and a weekly compliance test of 69 safety systems
(showers, eyewash, and face-wash), an alternative closed-loop
hot water supply system with mixing valves could cost over $352,000
annually to operate. Due to their on-demand nature of energy
consumption, Keltech’s
tankless water heating solution would cost only $2,300 annually.
Keltech’s
tankless water heaters have a built-in energy advantage over
boilers and mixing valves. Boilers must maintain system temperatures
24/7/365 regardless if the supply is ever drawn. By comparison,
Keltech’s tankless water heaters
only heat water when needed. The minimal operational costs incurred
for the Keltech tankless heaters are derived from mandated weekly
functional tests and any emergency use. *
Keltech’s tankless
water heating solution provided an immediate return on investment
through lower operating costs. Keltech safety shower and emergency
eyewash heaters are projected to save Mr. Desler’s employer
over $349,000 per year in energy costs alone.
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RESULTS
Keltech’s safety shower and emergency
eyewash heaters provided a tepid water solution that met a
compliance challenge and provided an immediate return on investment
through lower operating costs. Mr. Desler provided workers
with an exemplary level of safety equipment that meets OSHA
standards and corporate expectations. The organization also
realized tremendous operational savings without sacrificing
employee safety.
HELPFUL LINKS:
US Department of Labor: Occupational Safety
and Health Administration — http://www.osha.gov
Keltech Safety Shower Heaters and Systems
Keltech Emergency Eyewash
Heaters
Keltech Glossary of Terms
Keltech Spec Sheet Library
Extreme Environments
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