The air quality in industrial facilities can become very dirty, very quickly. There are a number of different industrial exhaust fans that can move the air in the building, making the facility more comfortable for the employees by ridding the air of dust and other contaminates. An axial fan is one where a propeller is in line to the airflow and enclosed in a tube, these fans are often used for air circulation and to bring the temperature down.
Centrifugal fans are designed differently, the fan wheel is at 90 degrees to the air outlet, these fans are not known for moving volumes of air; they are more often used where air pressure is needed. Industrial exhaust fans can clear huge areas depending on the size and horsepower of the drive motor but other fans are also used including floor mounted fans, wall mounted and ceiling mounted all of which provide air movement in discrete areas.
Ventilation for the entire facility is most often done using centrifugal fans; these fans are mounted into a housing which becomes an integral part of a ducting system. For dust collection systems, motor ventilation and other similar applications a radial fan design is often the better choice as the fan blades are more tolerant to dust.
Ventilation of an industrial building and cooling in the same building are often two different things addressed in two different ways. Cooling fans usually are radial in design as radial fans are designed to move large volumes of air, not at high pressure. Many of these cooling fans are mounted to the wall near the work place although they can also be installed on the ceiling or directly on a machine. Radial fans are available in many different sizes and that which is suitable for the area is normally a commercially available product.
Industrial exhaust fans are used in areas of a manufacturing facility where it is important to rid the area of harmful fumes. These areas can be paint spray booths where the environment is laden with paint and other chemicals, they are also used extensively to draw away the fumes from areas where welding takes place. Rarely is industrial air blown into the atmosphere, once it is pulled from the factory it enters a filter facility where the particulates are removed.
