Static basket filters, which were causing production downtime at Beaulieu International Group, have been successfully replaced with self-cleaning Eco Filters from Russell Finex 

The Beaulieu International Group (B.I.G) has expanded and diversified in recent years, extending its product range to include raw materials, soft flooring, hard flooring and fabrics.  Cushion Vinyl, known under the brand name Beauflor, is a relatively new and fast growing product within the hard flooring industry. The product offers many features such as easy maintenance and sound absorption, and is available in a wide range of colours.

Production process

The production process used to make Cushion Vinyl consists of coating different layers onto a fibre glass film. Firstly, two layers of a PVC base paste are coated onto a fibre glass film. The design and a wear-resistant layer are then applied. Thirdly, an additional PVC coat is put on the back of the fibre glass film. As a finishing touch, a pattern is pressed into the vinyl and a coat of varnish is applied.

Before coating the paste onto the fibre glass film, filters with static baskets were being used to filter out contamination larger than 0.05mm. Because the film is very fragile, a contamination larger than 0.05 mm, could damage the film. However, the static basket filters were letting some contamination through, causing the production line to halt until the filters were cleaned, thus increasing downtime.

Dieter Van Overbeke, product manager at B.I.G, explained: “We were previously using static basket filters, however they were easily damaged and had to be cleaned 8 times a day, resulting in production breaks and a loss in revenue.”

Testing phase

Having dealt with Russell Finex previously, the company approached them for a new filtration system. Russell Finex offered to test their Self-Cleaning Russell Eco Filter at the Cushion Vinyl production plant. After successful testing, B.I.G decided to replace their old filters with 4 new Self-Cleaning Russell Eco Filters.

Van Overbeke said: “The Russell filters take less than half of the space of the previous filters, but still have a large capacity of 1500kg/hour. In addition, the filter media doesn’t get damaged easily and is reusable.”

Reducing wastage

As a result, the company has reduced production downtime as well as product wastage. With its self cleaning design, the Russell Eco Filter requires no stoppages to change filter elements, enabling the company to conduct a visual inspection of the machine twice a week without the need for a weekly clean. “The Russell Eco Filter is a real must – it is more robust and wears less than other filters,” commented Van Overbeke.

Recommendation

He added “We were so impressed with the improvement in production and product quality following the installation of the new filters that we recommended Russell Finex to one of our suppliers.”