British Columbia college benefits from N.R. Murphy’s MK dust collectors

N.R. Murphy helped BCIT improve air quality in two of its classroom complexes.

For more than three-quarters of a century, N.R. Murphy Limited has satisfied customers with top dust collecting equipment. The company’s reputation is the result of numerous success stories in many industries, including education. One example of which N.R. Murphy is still proud involved the British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT) in Burnaby, B.C., which urgently needed a new air-quality solution in the 1990s.

Part of the solution

The largest post-secondary technical teaching institute in the province, BCIT was receiving complaints about the air quality in two adjacent complexes in which carpentry and woodworking classes were taught. These complexes contained relatively small, dated dust collecting equipment, and BCIT had recently acquired new high-tech, high-speed machinery for these environments. A better dust-collection solution was needed.

In 1995, BCIT hired NDL Consultants Ltd. Mechanical Engineers to solve the problem. NDL redesigned the existing system to accommodate two extra baghouses and fans. For the best source of appropriate new equipment, the company identified N.R. Murphy.

Working closely with N.R. Murphy’s western representative, NDL determined that it needed to replace the current five collectors with six new units capable of 135 horsepower. The new equipment required adequate filtration and attenuation to enable recirculation of filtered air, a compact design to minimize space requirements, low equipment noise, user-friendly container removal of waste, an architectural appearance that suited BCIT, and most importantly, cost-effectiveness.

NDL chose to use six N.R. Murphy MK Series intermittent shaker-style baghouses with top-mounted, EA-1, backwards-inclined, radial-tipped fans of various sizes. Additional equipment included shaker mechanisms incorporated into the control panels, custom-designed support structures for waste removal, and custom airtight bin covers from the installing contractor.

Funding limitations delayed the project until 1997. N.R. Murphy’s engineering and production departments cooperated with the rest of the project team to implement the new system without disrupting BCIT’s routine too much. In the end, the new dust collecting equipment proved very successful. The two complexes no longer had any issues with airborne dust and draft. N.R. Murphy helped to provide a long-term solution that met standards for instructor and student safety.

To learn more, contact N.R. Murphy.

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