Blog Tag: 3D Printing

The advent of the new tariffs being applied to a number of countries by the new administration are significantly affecting the US manufacturing complex as many parts, assemblies, products, chemicals, clothing and retail items come from outside the U.S. These additional costs, in many cases, can not be absorbed by the US companies so the extra costs are passed along to the consumer.. These additional costs, along with the current rate of inflation, have proven to be a real burden on the American public. Food prices are also at a all-time high and the rise of imported food products is part of that issue.

For companies like Pure Air Systems, Inc, that manufacturing high end fan powered, HEPA based air filtration systems, the additional cost of importing their HEPA filters and some of the electronic components for their remote controlled systems, has created a challenge. While PAS, is a highly specialized company, their customer base, of which 50% are retail customers, are somewhat hesitant to pay the higher prices for their systems. The commercial customers are still buying but waiting longer to make purchasing decisions. 

The high end, commercial grade HEPA filters are currently coming from Turkey, and they meet the specifications and delivery time for the PAS production process. Going back to a US vendor would delay production as going back to a US supplier would require renegotiating the purchase and delivery time table. 

The other issue, is the length of time these tariffs may be in place. Part of the rationalization for the tariffs is bringing manufacturing back to the US. However, as we have seen, this is very difficult to do and there are few companies with the capabilities to match the in-place production facilities that now exist everywhere in the world.

For more information on the complete product line of Pure Air Systems, please go to our website at:  http://www.pureairsystems.com  or call us on our toll-free number at: 800-869-8025.

Searching for that special tool or clothing article on Amazon you will find hundreds of options with tools and clothes of many styles, materials and designs. One would think that with all those choices that some of those items would be made right here in the USA. While many items do not indicate their country of origin, when your Amazon package is delivered and the product is removed, 99% of the time made in China or some other foreign country is stamped on the label or item itself.

With the exception of most medical equipment, some machinery, autos and airplanes, the majority of everything else we use in our daily lives is made outside the US or with some components from outside the U.S. It has become more expensive and more challenging to compete with products from other countries as they have greatly improved their technologies or developed something we never made in the US. OLED TV’s are an example. All of this technology was developed in South Korea.

The US has lost most of its’ experienced automotive, aerospace and scientists to old age and retirement. The newer generations are much more into the digital markets such as AI, AR and VR headsets, cell phones, computers for gaming, specialized sports equipment and some new automotive technologies.

Pure Air Systems, was started in 1985 selling modified HEPA based air filtration systems for the residential market and over the past 39 years is had added 7 new systems to its line of high end fan powered air filtration systems with 90% of the components being made in the US. Their systems are now sold all over the world and they are one of only 3 companies in the world that currently manufacture these types of systems.

For more information on the complete line of HEPA and Carbon based air filtration systems please go to our website at:  http://www.pureairsystems.com   or call us on our toll-free number at: 800-869-8025.

In essence, the Arrow of Time Theory states that we tend to look at future technology and processes by carrying things from the past and putting them into these future ideas and concepts. This is very limiting as it tends to eliminate advanced or out of the box thinking with the resulting new concepts having parts of our old thinking linked with them. This type of thinking is doomed for failure.

Today, the advancements being made in AI, Robotics, Additive Manufacturing, Electric Cars, and Space Exploration are changing and will change forever the way the world works. These advancements are, in part, designed to minimize or eliminate the use of human labor is areas where the work is dangerous or the ability to significantly reduce the amount of labor needed to do menial tasks. Electric cars area already making major inroads in the global market and AI is now being used in almost every facet of design, marketing, product development , medical and governmental operations. 

While many people worry about the speed of change, these new concepts and technologies will actually speed up both the speed of change but also the adaption of these new technologies. This is necessary for our civilization to thrive and survive.

Pure Air Systems has been making HEPA and Carbon based air filtration systems since 1985 and offers a complete line of fan-powered, metal cased, digitally controlled true HEPA filter systems for the residential, commercial, institutional and medical fields. You can go to their website at:    http:/www.pureairsystems.com  or call them on their toll free number at: 800-869-8025.

There are two main factors that are moving the process of using 3D Printing or Additive manufacturing into the product producing mainstream and replacing the traditional machining, CNC and injection molding processes. First, the number of skilled machinists and manufacturing engineers is rapidly declining and secondly, and most important, the younger generation has little or no interest in working for or with any manufacturing operation. The new generation sees their future in the digital world.

The other major reason is the speed in which additive manufacturing has advanced in every facet of product production. This is especially true in the use of additive manufacturing in producing parts from ferrous and nonferrous materials. The ability to produce a steel part that is one piece versus multiple parts or pieces using traditional machining is now blazing new trails in the ability to make a part in one print cycle that used to take five to eight steps. Also, the ability to quickly prototype a part and then change it and print again for five or more iterations in the span of one reduces prototyping and product development to less that 10% of the time for traditional machining.

Interestingly, the method of designing a part for manufacturing is identical in both traditional and additive manufacturing. The use of advanced CAD software allows for the design of any part and the design files are saved in different file types depending whether the part is made on a CNC machine or 3D Printer. This new generation of young workers already know how to use this software as their understanding computers, software, programming and object design is already in place. So, the 3D Printer is a perfect fit for this new group of workers who most likely will work remotely from the actual manufacturing operation.

Pure Air Systems began its operation in 1985 using hand drawings for the design of its HEPA based air filtration systems and then eventually moved into the CAD era and today is looking at using AI for some of its advanced equipment designs. The world of technology is moving at light speed and Pure Air Systems is keeping pace.

For more information on the complete line of HEPA and Carbon based air filtration systems please go to our website at:  http://www.pureairsystems.com  or call us on our toll free number at: 800-869-8025.

I have been playing around with the new Google AI app, Bard. It is fast, and easy to use. Further more, it will create anything you ask it to create. The more and better the prompt information you input, the better the end result. I have already used it to write some simple contracts. 

In the field of engineering, AI apps are helping entrepreneurs and manufacturing and design companies to both enhance existing designs and fabrication techniques but also developing whole new concepts is product development. And while there are skeptics out there who believe AI is the end of the world as we know it, this technology is growing so fast that in another 3 months it will become ubiquitous in the field of writing and creating everything.

ChatGPT and other AI apps are gaining popularity and there are now more than 15 of these apps out in the market place. Yes, students are using it to write term papers and do math problems, and this can be an issue down the road, but it also ushers in a new way to increase the speed of creating everything and with fewer employees. This concept has not been lost on major corporations who are already looking for individuals with some experience with these new computer models.

Pure Air Systems has been manufacturing commercial grade HEPA based, fan-powered air filtration systems since 1985 and will begin to utilize this new technology for enhancing its product line as well as writing some of its marketing materials.

For more information on our complete product line please go to our website,  http://www.pureairsystems.com  or call us on our toll free number at: 800-869-8025.

3D Printing or Additive Manufacturing as it is called in the commercial market, has moved into almost every facet of manufacturing from small replacement parts and dental fittings up to Aerospace and Military applications. There are very large 3D printers making boats as well as printing houses and large structures and small bridges.

3D printing has a number of advantages including the ability to try the “what if” and prototyping of new design concepts. In addition, the materials available for the metal printers has moved this process in the main stream of manufacturing. 3D Printers take up much less space than traditional CNC machines and other fabrication systems and require fewer people to complete the manufacturing process.

One of the main advantages of using 3D manufacturing is the ability to get younger people to become more involved with manufacturing. The younger generation is very familiar with and is good at using CAD type software for design and 3D printing of parts. In truth, the ability to make things using 3D printing or Additive Manufacturing is not considered manufacturing to the younger generation. This is important as they are not interested in moving into the old type of making things. 

Pure Air Systems, an air filtration company started in 1985, has bee using some 3D printing processes for prototyping new parts for their metal housed HEPA based air filtration systems. This helps them more quickly determine the correct part design and more quickly complete the final design and get into production with minimal cost.

For more information on the complete line of HEPA and Carbon filters please go to our website at: http://www.pureairsystems.com   or call us on our toll free number at: 800-869-8025.

With over 13 years of experience in using FDM and FFF 3D style printers one learns quickly the various quirks in the operation of these printers. While they have improved dramatically since the 2011-2012 introduction of desk top printers, there are still some challenges when printing with various filament types. To be specific, ABS ( Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene ) has been one of the more popular materials with which to print. However, this material off-gasses when printing at 245 Degrees C and above and the odor can be quite significant. In addition, the gases produced along with some of the fine particles released during printing can become a health concern if not properly vented or isolated when printing occurs.

One of the other issues when printing with ABS is the layer separation that can take place if the object being printed cools to rapidly during the printing process. To minimize this issue you need to enclose the printer and keep the cold air drafts from falling on the printer bed. This enclosure can also also double as a mechanism to reduce the entry of the odors and particulate into the room. The use of a fan powered exhaust system attached to a vent in the enclosure along with a carbon media and HEPA filter will allow for continued use of the printer inside any room or enclosed area without compromising the environmental integrity of the room.

Pure Air Systems has been making fan powered HEPA and Carbon medial filters since 1985. These systems are designed to move from 50 CFM up to 2000 CFM with the ability to control the air volume in 1% increments. These metal framed units come in seven different configurations with the addition of a portable unit that is a prefect fit for the enclosures that would be placed over the 3D printers. For more information on the complete line of HEPA and Carbon media filters please go to our website at: http://www.pureairsystems.com      or call us on our toll-free number at: 800-869-8025.

3D Printing or Additive manufacturing is now the eminent player in the 4.0 Industrial Revolution phase. This technology has opened the door to using materials to make almost anything we can think of and creating a technology that has opened the door for the development of new materials that are developed specifically use in 3D Printing.

Many of these materials are produced by either heating up printing nozzles to temperatures reaching 300 degrees C and above, or by using laser systems to melt metal in the new metal printers or jetting systems that use a wide variety of compounds for creating objects.

All of these systems produce either very fine particulate or significant odors or both. Since 3D Printing or Additive manufacturing is still relatively new, there have not been a lot of studies to determine the levels and size ranges of the particulates that are generated by these machines.

Pure Air Systems has been making HEPA and Carbon based fan powered, air filtration systems since 1985. These systems, ranging is air volume from 50 CFM to 2,000 CFM, are made from all metal housings, using commercial grade HEPA filters and variable speed drive ECM motors. The units come in a number of configurations and control options so they can be attached to any HVAC system , used as stand-alone units and the fans can be controlled to run at any speed.

These systems come with a ring panel prefilter, scanned HEPA certified to 99.99% at 0.3 microns and a large Carbon filter for odors and gases.

In a 3D Printing/Additive manufacturing environment the PAS systems could be used as stand-alone units pulling air from one to four machines and removing the fine airborne particulate. Many newer printers are enclosed so it is easy to attach a small duct to the enclosure and pull that air into the PAS HEPA system.

Another option is to attach the PAS system to the main HVAC units in the lab or production area and remove the particulate and odors using the main HVAC ducting system to pull all the contaminated air back to the filtration unit.

The Pure Air Systems HEPA units have been used on almost every application requiring filtration in almost every corner of the world. They have been used in applications where toxic gases and dangerous airborne particulate are present. Their rugged durability and history of high performance over long periods of time are the reason Pure Air Systems has been in business for 33 years.

For more information on our complete product line please go to our website at: http://www.purairsystems.com    or call us on our toll-free number at: 800-869-8025.

In 1985 Pure Air Systems was founded to produce true HEPA filtration systems for the residential, commercial, institutional, medical and industrial markets. The first HEPA system, the model 600H, was 16″ x16″ x 34″ high and weighed 97 lbs. That unit is still made today under the new name 600HS.

Over the years PAS made larger units to handle larger areas and applications and also develoed a smaller portable HEPA unit that is 13″ x  13″ x 21″ long and weighs 30lbs. There are now two versions of that large, portable unit.

In 2018 PAS embarked on an R&D project to develop a small, in-car true HEPA unit that also included a combination prefilter/carbon media wrap. The round HEPA filter is rated at 99.99% at 0.3 microns and will remove particles as small as 0.12 microns. The carbon will remove odors and the prefilter removes the larger particles keeping the HEPA to remove only the sub-micron particulates.

The CAR HEPA prototype is 5.5″ square and 7″ long. It weighs approximately 3 lbs and uses a small, whisper quiet fan that runs off the 12 volt plug ( or USB) in your car. PAS is also in the process of developing a HEPA Holder so you can mount you HEPA in a stratgic location for best air filtration results.

While some very high end cars ( Tesla, Mercedes and some BMW) have high efficiency cabin air filtration, most vehicles have little or none. The CAR HEPA unit will significantly reduce the levels of harmful, sub-micron particulates. These particles include bacteria, airborne allergens and some viruses.

In order to speed up the development process PAS is utilizing 3D Modeling and 3D Printing to create the housing for the unit. The first iteration took just one week to develop and now some tweaking of the housing size is in the works. It may be that the CAR HEPA will be produced on 3D Printers and they could be individualized or personalized with your name and choice of colors.

For more information on this and other HEPA and Carbon based products please go to our website at:  https://www.pureairsystems.com   or call us on our toll-free number at: 800-869-8025.

3D Printing has become a passion of mine. One of my business ventures entails the use of 3D printing to develop prototypes of hard technologies, objects and working parts for entrepreneurs. I also work with schools to help them obtain 3D printers for their classrooms. As all schools have eliminated wood shop, metal shop and any type of mechanical equipment education, the 3D printer can now take the place of any or all of these now defunct instructional classes.

One of the great things about 3D printing is their ability to use over 50 different types of materials for making almost any object. The more typical filaments include ABS ( typical plastic used in Lego’s and most household items, PLA, a plastic made from corn starch and HIPS, high impact polystyrene. Of course you can now print with all types of nylon, carbon fiber, graphene, conductive, magnetic, poly carbonate and stem cells if you prefer.

Of the three most commonly used filaments, ABS has some distinct positives and negatives. It is very durable and has great compression and shear strength and prints fairly easily. The downside is the odor that is generated by the high temperatures required to melt the filament at the extruder head..usually 230 to 240 degrees C. Also, as the layers of ABS cool they tend to shrink a little and if the printer bed is not heated ( usually 110 dgrees C) and if there are cold drafts the print object can actually lift off the build platform.

To both minimize the odor and shrinkage issue, Pure Air Systems has created a prototype housing that will fit over almost all of the 3D printers on the market. The size was based upon the Aleph Objects Companies, Lulzbot TAZ 5 open source 3D printer. This is one of the more popular printers on the market has a fairly good size footprint. The enclosure has four sides including a swing over the top hinged front door for easy access to the entire print surface including the filament and it is all made out of plexiglass. On the top of the unit is a small compartment with a true carbon media filter and a small fan to very gently pull air from around the bottom of the enclosure to remove the odor but maintain the temperature of the interior of the enclosure above ambient by holding in the heat from the build platform. Thus eliminating the odor issue and keeping the ABS objects on the build platform and ending up with a better print.

Pure Air Systems makes a complete line of HEPA and Carbon based air filtration products for every market and is now 32 years old. Their expertise in ventilation, HEPA filtration and odor control will help them produce a product that is both high performing and lost cost. Look for more information on this new 3D Enclosure coming soon.

For more information on Pure Air Systems, please go to their websites at: https://www.pureairsystems.com or call them anytime at: 800-869-8025.