As part of a trial to substantiate the industrial savings potential of Vert’s products, DMI installed 10 Vert A100 compressors to run equipment throughout its shop. When the switch-over took place in October, DMI managing director David Black and his workshop staff immediately noticed the benefit of Vert’s patented compressor technology: a substantially calmer environment.
“Our business is, by its nature, a noisy one,” says Black, “so anything we can do to cut down on the threat of long-term hearing damage to our staff is welcome. As well as making it easier to communicate, a quieter workplace also makes it easier to concentrate, which is an important consideration for the skilled work that we undertake. Although we run a modern compressor system, the reduction in constant background noise when switching to the Vert system made the working environment a lot more pleasant.”
Running solely off the Vert A100 compressors, the factory registered a noise level of 68 dBA, which was a significant drop of 6 dBA from the existing air system in operation. As noise is measured on a logarithmic scale, instead of a standard linear scale, every 3 dBA reduction represents the sound energy level being halved.
The project arrived after Edinburgh-based Vert was selected in June 2019 to receive a funding award of £410,000 from the UK Government’s Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS).
“Providing air at point-of-use opens up opportunities to make noise improvements in a factory environment that have a positive impact on employees,” says Vert sales engineer John McNeil, who worked with DMI on the project. “With 80% of UK manufacturers using compressed air, there is a significant opportunity to reduce the risks of long-term hearing damage for workers.”
