Factory Cooling Solutions

Environmental control is an essential part of maintaining an industrial workplace. Regardless of the company’s specific focus, whether food or medical production or metal and plastic manufacturing, all facilities need to control their internal temperature for their workers and products sufficiently.

Most industrial sites will create significant heat during operation, which is increased during the summer. Fortunately, innovations such as evaporative cooling provide excellent control over internal factory temperatures. Read on to learn about these superb factory cooling solutions.

Different Methods of Evaporative Cooling

There are two methods of evaporative cooling, direct and indirect. The main difference between these two relates to how they handle humidity, which will significantly differ depending on the work you conduct at your facility.

Direct Evaporative Cooling

As the name implies, this cooling system uses direct water evaporation into the internal air stream to reduce its temperature, but this has the added side effect of increasing humidity. The hot, dry air will be drawn through wet, cold filters to create evaporation and reduce the temperature by as much as 11°C but will simultaneously increase humidity. Low humidity can benefit dry work climates, but factories working with organic manufacturing will wish to avoid it. This is where indirect cooling is the better choice.

Indirect Evaporative Cooling

This cooling system passes the air through a heat exchanger without the air and water interacting. This has the same beneficial reduction in the expelled air’s temperature without the increased humidity. Additionally, this system can reduce the temperature even further to roughly 17°C.

Is Evaporative Cooling Better Than Air Conditioning?

Industrial air conditioning systems are more suited to close-control applications requiring a specific combination of temperature, humidity or both. Additionally, air conditioning units rely on refrigerant chemicals expelled as exhaust, which creates additional complications for installation and harm to the environment. Whilst air conditioners can be programmed to reduce temperature and humidity, their effectiveness will be limited compared to evaporative coolers. Additionally, after installation, regular air conditioning system maintenance is a priority as the performance of these high-energy systems will drop dramatically when not in peak condition.

Our evaporative cooling systems are extremely cost-effective from capital outlay and energy usage. From a capital outlay, an evaporative cooling system could be around 50% more cost-effective, with energy usage being even more effective by around 80% more efficient.

Evaporative cooling also offers additional benefits in the UK climate, of offering ‘free cooling’ during the summer months. This is due to the external temperatures being low, therefore is no requirement for evaporative cooling, and the system will operate in ventilation mode and bring fresh cool air into the application.

Where are Evaporative Coolers Most Used?

Plastic moulding and manufacturing is a high-energy-intensive process that creates significant heat as a by-product. Installing an evaporative cooling system will significantly reduce the temperature around the machinery and prevent your workers from suffering from excessive heat.

Data centres are increasingly important as more companies rely on their cloud-based software and secure data backups at these facilities. The complex servers in these buildings must operate in a cool environment to prevent the electronics from being damaged due to increased heat.

Food processing facilities such as bakeries will struggle to control excessive heat generated during production. However, as mentioned previously, in plastics manufacturing, the immense heat required for food manufacturing can be held in check with an evaporative cooling system. This will create a workspace catered to your team. Additionally, evaporative cooling will help you maintain the required temperatures all year round and eliminate the risk of spoiled products for cold food production.

Pharmaceutical companies rely on precise temperature control for their products as well as their teams. Environmental control must be absolute when working with medicines and other chemicals, so evaporative cooling in this environment will provide that control to ensure the integrity of the products being made.

The Importance of Workplace Temperature Control

As an experienced HVAC company, we understand the importance of having increased control over your workplace temperature and the benefits it provides businesses.

Improved employee productivity and safety: Elevated temperatures in factories will lead to employee discomfort, fatigue, and heat stress, which can negatively impact productivity and safety. Effective cooling systems can maintain a comfortable working environment, reducing the risk of heat-related illnesses and injuries and improving employee productivity.

Longer equipment lifespan: Consistently high temperatures will cause damage to equipment and machinery, leading to increased repair and replacement costs. Industrial cooling systems will prevent overheating and extend the lifespan of equipment, reducing maintenance costs and downtime.

Lower energy costs: Our effective evaporative cooling systems can reduce the need for energy-intensive fans or other less efficient cooling, leading to lower energy consumption and costs. For example, evaporative cooling is 80% more economical than alternatives such as air conditioning.

Compliance with regulatory requirements: Many industries are subject to indoor air quality, temperature, and ventilation regulations. Evaporative cooling systems help factories comply with these regulations, avoiding potential penalties and ensuring a safe and healthy working environment for employees. Our evaporative coolers are also excellent for pursuing a more sustainable facility. They use 100% fresh air and water that has not been recirculated and avoid using harsh chemical refrigerants.

Improved product quality: Some products require specific temperature and humidity conditions during manufacturing or storage. Factory cooling systems can maintain these conditions, ensuring consistent product quality and reducing the risk of spoilage or defects. This is especially important for food and medicine manufacturing companies where inappropriate conditions will easily spoil their products.

Reliable Evaporative Cooling From Inergy

The key advantage of direct evaporative cooling is its high energy efficiency and low operating cost. On the other hand, the primary benefit of indirect evaporative cooling is that it does not add moisture to the air, making it suitable for use in humid climates or in humid climates applications where humidity control is critical.

The choice between direct and indirect evaporative cooling ultimately depends on several factors, including climate, humidity levels, desired indoor air quality, and specific application requirements.

At Inergy, we have supplied custom evaporative cooling systems to a broad range of companies across the UK, assisting them with their temperature control needs. Our expert team of engineers and technicians will find the perfect solution for your facility’s needs. Contact us to discuss how our HVAC service, including custom designs, installation and sequential maintenance plans, will help your business with its cooling needs.

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