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Process Cleaning Magazine
© 2012
AMT-The Association For Manufacturing Technology
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PC FEATURE
Almost all of the furniture components shown here ran through Knoll’s single-stage pretreatment system.
Before the new system could be installed, the old iron phosphating system needed to be cut down to pieces small enough to fit through the dock door.
It only took a week (including weekend work) to tear out the old system and install the new one. Through careful planning, the company was still able to provide 96-percent on-time product delivery during the installation process.
If the wash system is not manufactured with the proper materials, the chemicals can quickly eat it away. The canopy, tank and pumps all should be stainless steel, and piping should be polypropylene.
The single-stage system installed by T&S Enterprises has helped Knoll reduce CO2 emissions by 916 tons per year while providing substantial savings in both money and man-hours.
It’s a common thought among company officials these days: “We need to do our part in finding ways to reduce our carbon footprint.” And what better time to make changes to effect a desired result than when it’s time to replace outdated equipment? Near the end of 2006, Knoll Inc. (East Greenville, Penn.), manufacturer of contract office furniture, was in the market to replace its 25-year-old three-stage iron phosphate system used to process extruded aluminum, hot- and cold-rolled steel, die-cast aluminum, and pre-welded materials. Working under directives established by company managers to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, the company’s engineers searched for a system that would consume less natural gas and electricity. After extensive testing, the company was pleased to adopt a pretreatment method that originally appeared too good to be true.
Environmental Commitment
Founded in 1938, Knoll manufactures innovative and modern office systems, seating, files and storage, tables and desks, wood casegoods, textiles and accessories. With its comprehensive environmental, health and safety plan, the company has an ongoing commitment to incorporating policies and practices designed to protect the biosphere, conserve natural resources and reduce waste. Aligned with a number of third-party certification organizations, including the Greenguard Environmental Institute, the U.S. Green Building Council, and the Forest Stewardship Council, the company continues to reach out to serve its clients through environmentally responsible practices. All four of its North American manufacturing facilities are ISO 14001-certified.
As part of its 2006 commitment to the Clinton Global Initiative, the company adopted an internal campaign in cooperation with the Chicago Climate Exchange, and this move played a significant role in the selection process for the company’s most recent wash system.
At the time, a three-stage iron phosphate system was serving two separate powder coating lines used to finish a large percentage of the components produced at the plant. As this system quickly became obsolete, company management saw its replacement as an opportunity to further work towards annual targets for reducing CO2 emissions. The key was finding an effective replacement that would also consume less natural gas and electricity.
The Search
Because Knoll was familiar with running an iron phosphate system, first consideration was given to a lower-temperature alternative of this technology. This idea was ruled out, though, because the initial savings of the process would be offset by expenses relating to the deionized water rinse that would be required to compensate for the decreased effectiveness of the alkaline cleaner. This lower temperature cleaning method was also not as suitable to the wide assortment of materials with which the company works.
After further research, company engineers were introduced to Plaforization, an organic phosphating technology that is effective at room temperature for degreasing and phosphating metal surfaces. This one-step process seemed too good to be true, so the people at Knoll took it upon themselves to test and re-test in a best-effort attempt to prove it would not work for them.
Linwood Rohrbach, quality assurance engineer, explains, “After five or six rounds of testing, sending parts out to different end users, having them run the parts and send them back, we would powder coat them and send them back out for further product testing such as salt spray, adhesion and impact.” When those tests indicated that the process was effective, Mr. Rohrbach contacted another end user who allowed him to bring fixtures for the parts to that plant, run everything through, and see exactly how the system worked. “That company had been running the system for over a year without ever dumping a tank,” he continues. “We were amazed that all parts still tested wonderfully.”
After nearly two years of testing, doing everything they could think of to force the system to fail, Mr. Rohrbach and Manufacturing Engineer Guy Godschall finally agreed that the new system might actually be their best solution. It was time to sell upper management on the idea.
The Savings
Because of the significant process changes the new system would require, Mr. Rohrbach and Mr. Godschall had to show upper management that not only would the system provide equal or better quality, but that it could also provide real savings, both in time and money. The iron phosphate system had to be dumped every 12 to 15 weeks, which included cleaning the nozzles and getting rid of all the solid waste. That process totaled about $45,000 a year in waste removal on top of the labor involved. According to Mr. Godschall, “With the new system, no water is needed for the rinse cycle, so we could completely eliminate the waste stream and the labor to do the tank dumps. We could also eliminate the gas fire for the heater on the first stage of processing ambient-temperature material.
Mr. Rohrbach added more supporting figures. “Natural gas consumption with the old system was $120,000 a year, but we could cut it to zero,” he says. “Electricity was $20,000 a year, and we cut it to $10,000. Water was about $1,600 a year, and we cut it to zero.” The list continued. Chemical disposal for the three-stage system was about $80,000 per year, but that could be fully eliminated. Equipment maintenance could be reduced from $4,000 a year to $1,500. Total labor savings, including reduction of line gaps and time devoted to maintenance, could be reduced by $130,000 a year, or 4,000 man-hours. The only significant increase in costs (no small number) was from $37,000 a year to $200,000 for chemicals. But the net savings were remarkable, and upper management supported the team and agreed to bring in the new system.
The Installation
Knoll brought in T&S Enterprises (Zephyrhills, Fla.) to design and install the two single-stage washing systems (Knoll uses two industrial washers, each independent of the other). T&S is a full-service provider of turnkey finishing systems specializing in the design, manufacture and installation of pre-treatment systems, drying and cure ovens, wet and powder applications booths, air make-up equipment and product conveying systems. The company bases its installation strategy around its ability to install systems—even some of the biggest in the world—within a four-day (Friday through Monday) window, with minimal interruption to production.
T&S had been heavily involved in Knoll’s review process, and the customer support the company provided played a big role in Knoll’s decision. From his experience, Mr. Rohrbach recommends contacting an equipment supplier such as T&S Enterprises that has proven experience in the single-stage process.
Because of the aggressive production schedule at the plant, Knoll needed the installation to be as quick as possible. But first the old system needed to be removed. Two months of scripting among six different departments at Knoll prepared the company to continue fulfilling customer orders during the installation.
In only seven days, the old 86-foot washers were cut down to manageable pieces and removed and the new system, nearly the same size, was put into place. During that week, deliveries were still 96-percent on time.
Bottom Line
After installation, although thoroughly pleased with the system, Knoll continued to examine ways for even further improvement. Mr. Rohrbach and Mr. Godschall continued to test other chemicals by sending parts to companies that had switched from Plaforization to other chemical processes. About six months later, Knoll made the change to Enviro-Prep, offered by Calvary Industries Inc. Mr. Rohrbach says, “The change brought us even further reduced cost, less odor from the chemical, and improved drainage. We also like dealing with a domestic supplier that provides full lab support.”
Cost savings have fallen in line with Mr. Rohrbach and Mr. Godschall’s original estimates; total savings in the first year were approximately $174,000. When calculating only the equipment and chemical costs versus the savings, that amounts to a quick three-year return on investment. But the real driver for the move to the single-stage system was the need to reduce CO2 tonnage. With the reduction of electricity usage and the elimination of natural gas and water consumption and chemical disposal, the company was able to reduce its CO2 emissions by 916 tons a year. The new system has proven to be a significant boost in the company’s environmental initiatives. PC