GE Energy seeks welding fume extraction and aluminum dust collection systems

GE Energy’s 750,000 sq ft manufacturing plant in Salem, Virginia is dedicated to manufacturing turbine components and control equipment for the industrial and power industries. GE required a solution to capture toxic hexavalent chromium fumes generated from their stainless steel welding process. The grinding and deburring of various steel and aluminum components created an airborne aluminum dust hazard which required the use of both dry and wet dust collection equipment to eliminate airborne particulate in the facility. GE’s dedication to workplace safety and a clean environment has ensured that welders and operators are protected from welding smoke and aluminum dust.

Diversitech’s local sales representative visited the facility, and met with the maintenance supervisor in charge of the project. Measurements were taken to determine the correct size of the equipment for the project and all applications were analyzed by Diversitech’s applications engineering group to propose the optimal solutions for GE’s hexavalent chromium and aluminum dust collection requirements.

After careful analysis of GE’s steel grinding and deburring areas, Diversitech proposed four 5′ x 10′ downdraft tables equipped with electronic height adjustment system, able to support 2000 lbs of weight (1000 lbs table and 1000 lbs part). This system allowed operators to work at the best working height depending on the part size and operator height. The table also included a start/stop floor sensor mat to ensure energy efficient usage as the table shuts off when the operator moves away. The Optiflow grating option permitted operators to channel airflow only onto areas where they were working for better suction and a minihelic gauge provides a visual indication for when it is time to clean or replace filter cartridges. The downdraft also included dual high efficiency 99.99% @ .3 micron HEPA after-filters to eliminate all particulate from the air stream.

For the aluminum grinding area, Diversitech devised a wet type dust collection system to protect operators from airborne aluminum dust which can be flammable or explosive when presented with an ignition source. Two 5×5 tables were butted together to create a 5’x10’ ducted downdraft table connected to two 5000CFM wet collectors.

The wet downdraft table included a manual height adjustment system with a 10” range, operated with a manual crank shaft connected to 4 pistons on each table leg. The table also included a start/stop mat to allow seamless operation.

GE controls and power electronics also purchased 4 FRED 01-Ts for their stainless steel welding stations, and a FRED CV6 cartridge dust collector for a spot welding table. In order for GE to weld very large parts, Diversitech designed a 10’ x 10’ x 8’ galvanized welding booth with an eight cartridge environmental booth collector. The booth included fluorescent dust tight light kits, motions sensors and antiflash welding curtain to enclose the booth. Diversitech was able to offer a full line of turnkey air filtration solutions for GE’s welding fume and dust collection needs by custom engineering the correct equipment for their applications.