Case Study for NFPA Compliance.
When dealing with combustible dusts, NFPA protection is imperative
The Explosion
IAS Supplied the explosion Isolation equipment to a Midwest wood manufacturing plant in the Mid 2010’s. This manufacturer is responsible for cutting tarped lumber into the desired side for their end user. A spark was created and was conveyed down the ductwork into the baghouse where it exploded. In early 2024 IAS was called and informed that our customers experienced a violent explosion and needed our assistance.
The client has not experienced a fire event since.
IAS Protection
The explosion vaporized the bag filters, exploded out of the explosion vents, and blew the top cap off of the cyclone, sending it 150 feet across the parking lot. Normally this fireball would travel down the ductwork into the plant potentially injuring/killing employees who are near the ductwork. Because of the IAS supplied explosion Isolation devices the plant and its workers were protected from the explosion.
The Boss one-way flow valve blocked the explosion from traveling down the dirty air line, and the Rodair high speed abort gate directed the air outside rather than down the clean air line. These two devices saved the building from a secondary explosion (similar to imperial sugar) as well as preventing injury/loss of life.
Investigation Findings
In the ensuing investigation staples from the tarped lumber and Carbide teeth were found in the ductwork and the baghouse. These bounced down the ductwork creating sparks as they went. Most of these sparks didn’t trigger an explosion throughout the years, but all it took was one spark to reach the baghouse in the right conditions to explode. The investigation determined that the explosion isolation protection was invaluable and prevented a far worse secondary explosion that would have gone through the entire building injuring/killing employees.
Project Success points
After the explosion the manufacturer was completely shut down because their baghouse was rendered inoperable. IAS called Honeyville Metal to see how quickly they could manufacture a baghouse for this customer. Honeyville responded saying that they had everything in stock, and they were able to produce a baghouse in 3 weeks for the customer. The rapid delivery of the baghouse allowed the customer to get back on track of their production schedule rapidly. Boss expedited a one-way flow valve to the customer and the Rodair abort gate was carefully inspected and deemed safe to return back to service without needing replacement by Rodair. 5 weeks after the explosion, the manufacture was back to full production.
Companies Involved
- Honeyville
- Boss
- Rodair
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