Cost Effective Industrial Insulation
Cost effective industrial insulation is about more than saving money. It is about saving energy, reducing inefficiency, demonstrating clear environmental benefits and therefore helping boost industry reputations too.
Sometimes cost effectiveness is very direct, such as the savings the right kind of industrial insulation can offer the foundry and steel industry by helping it optimise its processes.
However, when we think of cost effectiveness, it also has wider implications. It is a cornerstone of the market in consumer appliances, for instance. For these things to be competitive, they must market themselves as advanced, but they must then back this up with their performance.
Where these items contain sensitive electronic components, they require cost-effective industrial insulation to ensure they are reliable and therefore marketable.
Here, we look at the various sectors dependent on cost effective industrial insulation. We also look at the kinds of materials that can provide this sought-after solution.
Innovation and Cost Effective Insulation
The drive to innovate is part of the drive to compete, but to do this in a mass market, companies must also find a way to control costs.
In the automotive industry, the major manufacturers are busy electrifying their model ranges. For the customer, though, changing over from a traditional car to an electric vehicle (EV) still is a big step.
For electric vehicles to gain a greater market foothold with more adoption requires that they become more efficient as an alternative.
This requires that their operational efficiency continues to improve, and key to this is cost effective industrial insulation.
Electric vehicles contain sophisticated, sensitive electronics which, nevertheless, must run reliably, even when their sophisticated circuitry generates high operating temperatures.
As part of their built-in efficiency, the latest electric motors will cut out if they reach potentially damaging temperatures. Consequently, the right kind of insulation helps ensure that this will not happen.
To be cost-effective, insulation in modern electric vehicles must be lightweight. This way, it will not have a detrimental effect on performance.
The same is broadly true in the aerospace industry, for obvious reasons. With flying, weight is always a critical factor.
For both industries, the imperative is to reduce their environmental impact.
Optimising Processes through Insulation
Industrial insulation is essential not just in products, but also in optimising processes.
For the foundry and steel industry, processing at extreme heat is routine but central to operations. Industrial insulation ensures the cost effectiveness of furnaces. It does this by helping minimise downtime and increasing furnace capacity.
Furnaces require a reliable relining material that is lightweight, durable and minimises thermal transfer.
Elmelin provides the foundry and steel, and many other industries, with specialist industrial insulation materials. These are highly adaptable, superior in function, and cost effective.
Mica for Industrial Insulation
Mica is an effective industrial insulation material in a broad range of applications. It provides a cost effective solution across a wide spectrum of sectors.
As a mineral, mica has certain inherent properties which make it an ideal material for these various purposes. It naturally cleaves into thin sheets, but retains its strength and stability when exposed to high temperatures and electricity.
Once processed into thin laminates, tubes, rolls or rigid sheets, mica proves itself as an ideal insulation material.
Mica laminates come as either pure mica, or a combination of mica with another material such as resin or woven glass. They are flexible and thin, but retain their strength and their heat resistant qualities.
In the foundry and steel industry, this makes mica a popular choice as a cost effective means of lining furnaces which smelt iron or aluminium. Also, in rigid sheet form, mica is used to line furnace walls and floor areas.
Rigid mica tubes and sheets provide essential insulation and components for electrical devices and consumer appliances. Mica also works in various tooling applications for machine processes, as well as providing elements for widely-used devices such as heat guns.
Microporous Insulation Material
In addition to mica products, microporous insulation sheets provide lightweight, space-saving, high temperature insulation.
These sheets incorporate small particles of silica which create micro-pores in the material, minimising energy transfer and therefore reducing conductivity. Along with reducing conductive heat, these sheets also work to reduce convective and radiant heat.
Elmelin’s microporous insulation sheet, Elmtherm, can help improve the capacity of ladles used in foundries, increasing their volume by 10% and offering around significant improvements in energy efficiency.
For aluminium launder systems, Elmtherm ensures the best possible movement of molten aluminium from the smelting to the casting process, while minimising heat loss. It also provides a cost effective solution because it reduces the need to superheat the metal, making the whole process more energy efficient.
In the petrochemical, glass and cement industries, where safety is as important as process optmisation, insulation of tubes and pipes is essential. Here too, Elmtherm proves itself effective due to its lightweight nature, combined with its durability.
Is Your Industrial Insulation Cost Effective?
We provide cost effective industrial insulation and thermal management solutions across many sectors. We also prototype new products and processes in preparation for bringing them to market.
For more information, please call us on +44 20 8520 2248. You can also email sales@elmelin.com, or complete our online enquiry form. We’ll get back to you as soon as possible.