Air Handling Fans

By Author: Oleg Tchetchel
Total Articles: 30
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Air Handling Units (AHU) combine a fan (or several fans) with other components such as heating and/or cooling elements, filters, and dampers as a means to collectively condition the air in a building. AHU is a general term comprised of many specific types of air handlers including: Make-Up Air Units (MAU), Packaged Units (PU), Rooftop Units (RTU), and Energy Recovery Units (ERU). Air handlers range from very small, low CFM light-duty construction to very large, high CFM heavy-duty construction, and are used in many types of buildings that require air conditioning such as office buildings, hospitals, universities, schools, manufacturing facilities, and data centers. Typically, air passing through an AHU is clean and varies in temperature depending on the specific application. Energy consumption and noise are often important considerations when selecting a fan for an AHU. Plenum fans and DWDI fans are commonly found in these units, but are not used exclusively. To accommodate the various applications these units are used for, Buffalo Blower offers the most diverse and efficient fans in the industry to meet the need of any air ...
... handling unit.

Building elevator shafts require proper air moving equipment to provide smoke control in the event of a fire. Pressurization is used to prevent smoke from migrating through elevator shafts to other floors, similar to how fans are used to control smoke in stairwells. Today’s elevator pressurization systems are designed to allow elevators to be used by firefighting teams. However, some systems are designed for the evacuation of handicapped individuals. While small amounts of smoke in an elevator may be tolerated by firefighters, smoke in an elevator and its entry and exit paths is unacceptable. Buffalo Blower’s complete offering of smoke and heat exhaust fans are relied upon for elevator shaft exhaust/pressurization in emergency situations.

Electrical bus systems are used for conveying large volumes of energy within power generation facilities. The efficiency of an electrical bus is a function of temperature. The cooler you are able to keep the bus the more efficient it will operate. Power plants utilize large electrical buses and Buffalo Blower provides fans for cooling these systems. Typically this involves clean air which is circulated through a closed loop system.

Air supply and filter houses provide the clean supply air for large scale paint booth applications. The supply air is conditioned and filtered to the precise temp and humidity for the given paint system. This supply air is sent to the main paint booths, curing ovens, electro polishing rooms and pre-treatment areas. Buffalo Blower offers a variety of efficient airfoil fans to meet the stringent requirements of any customer.

Since July 1, 2003, equipment manufactured for operation in potentially explosive environments has been required to comply with the European Directive 94/9/EC. This directive, commonly referred to as the ATEX Directive, applies to all countries in the European Union (EU) and the European Economic Area (EEA). The ATEX Directive is a collection of EU directives outlining equipment installed and operated in potentially explosive atmospheres. The ATEX directive coordinates various technical and legal conditions throughout Europe to ensure a high level of safety for the end-user by reducing the explosion risk through established design methods. The European Committee for Standardization (CEN) published EN 14986 as a standard specifically for the manufacture of fans for use in hazardous areas. This standard is a guide specifically for fan manufacturers to comply with the ATEX Directive.

Emergency smoke exhaust systems are designed to remove smoke and heat from buildings in the event of a fire. These systems play a crucial role in increasing occupant safety and allowing rescue personnel to safely enter burning buildings. Twin City Fan offers a full line of smoke and heat fans capable of withstanding a minimum temperature of 500°F for four hours or 1,000°F for 15 minutes. Our inline smoke and heat fans are also available in a vertical roof mount configuration featuring a discharge cap with butterfly dampers and an optional fusible link designed to stay open in the event of a fire.

Energy recovery systems have become a popular way to heat and cool homes as well as commercial buildings. Energy recovery applications typically use two fans that provide air through a heat exchanger that “treats” the air by heating or cooling it before it enters the building. Buffalo Blower’s plenum and forward curved fans are typically used for energy recovery applications and offer a wide range of performance and flexibility.

Generator rooms require a wide range of fans to optimize the performance of generators and other equipment. Exhaust fans are used to prevent heat buildup within the generator room, while supply fans are used to provide fresh air for combustion and efficient generator performance. Room size, space limitations, and mounting capabilities will determine the exact type of fan needed for each specific application. As a leading manufacturer of air moving equipment, Buffalo Blower offers numerous fan types for meeting any generator room specification.

For additional information please refer to http://buffaloblower.com/blowers/index.html.

Oleg Tchetchel
Fan and Blower Design Engineer
Buffalo Blower Co.
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