Filter Housings Boost Performance Support Sustainability for Beverage Maker

The maintenance and operations teams of any industrial facility or commercial manufacturer always appreciate an opportunity to reduce costs and save time. It is natural to look to the marketplace for innovations that offer value along with real solutions to new or longstanding challenges. Sometimes a simple change in filter housings can uncover significant cost and time savings, increased filtration performance, and reduced floor space requirements. For the water industry, these are crucial benefits.

That was the case with one national bottled water and sports drink company that relies on high-speed manufacturing at production facilities throughout the United States. As it needed to meet increasing consumer demand, the company looked for ways to maximize its existing capabilities. The company, which offers purified bottled water as well as carbonated water, vitamin-­enhanced water, and sports drinks, demands a high-quality filtration system as the starting point to its entire production process.

A single 60-inch high-flow horizontal housing, such as this one from Shelco, can handle almost 500 gallons per minute — doing the work of 100 10-inch cartridge equivalents, or 5-6 bags.

To achieve its taste and quality demands, as well as meet and surpass FDA, EPA and HACCP standards, the company utilizes state-of-the-art reverse osmosis (RO), microfiltration and ozone technologies. To reach these goals, the company taps into various housing and cartridge systems used at its production sites and laboratories, and during automated digital inspections. Some of these systems are quite large, taking up valuable production floor space, and others require somewhat significant downtime during filter changes.

For these reasons, the company was drawn to Shelco’s High-Flow Horizontal Housings. Designed to meet the demands of today’s commercial and industrial needs, this system reduces filter costs and maintenance requirements, delivering time-­saving value across many applications. Available in horizontal or vertical layouts, these flexible housings can accommodate single or multi-cartridges and can handle the same amount of water in a much smaller space. For example, a single 60-inch high-flow horizontal housing can handle almost 500 gallons per minute — doing the work of 100 10-inch cartridge equivalents, or 5-6 bags. This means manufacturers gain floor space in addition to cost savings while increasing output.

Shelco’s high-flow horizontal housings, pictured here, are designed to easily work with pre-existing configurations, and replacing cartridges takes only a few minutes.

Despite their smaller size, the high-flow housings were easy to integrate into the water company’s existing filtration configuration. Because the housings follow ASME “U” code design, they were compatible with the company’s system, enabling the manufacturer to order the exact sizes necessary. But had the manufacturer needed customization, that option would have been available, allowing the housings to work within the parameters of any industrial or commercial layout. It was important to the bottled water company that the housings be made using heavy-duty stainless steel to deliver maximum durability and corrosion resistance. The use of standard gauge ports also added to the ease of switching over to the new housing system.

Installation of the high-flow horizontal housings was smooth, and replacement cartridges have proven to be quick and easy to change out, primarily because of the swing bolt closures. Because cartridges can be changed in just a few minutes, the housings are virtually maintenance-free — a vast improvement over the nearly hour-long process necessary with other filter systems. Additionally, contaminants are retained during the change-out process as a result of the inside-out flow feature, which translates to seamless quality control for the bottled water company.

In addition to water and other food and beverage filtration, the high-flow housings are designed for use with desalination, pre-RO systems, chemicals, coolants, electronics, power, oil and gas, as well as pulp and paper. They are compatible with Shelco’s high-flow cartridges for a comprehensive filtration solution.

Using these filters also supports manufacturers’ environmental and sustainability efforts as they process more water with less materials. This was important to the national bottled water and sports drink company, which has looked for ways to consistently upgrade and refine its production and engineering methods (along with making important improvements to its packaging). Since the high-flow housing system reflected the manufacturer’s ongoing sustainability efforts, it was a natural decision to migrate to the new housings.

By being able to filter a larger volume of water faster and more efficiently, and greatly reducing maintenance time and costs, the high-flow horizontal housings are paying off for one of America’s best-selling bottled water companies. IWW

About the Author: Robert LeConche is president of Shelco Filters (www.shelco.com), manufacturers of one of the most extensive lines of filters and cartridges, distributed and sold throughout the world.