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Bulk processing plants have many situations and equipment where staff health and safety can be compromised.
Flexible connections between machinery can be a location for safety issues with potential dust leakage and the possibility of combustible dust explosions being a major concern.
Our BLUEBAND™ flexible connector system provides you with peace of mind that you're improving safety for your staff.
Our team discusses how the BFM® fitting system:
Bulk processing plants often operate 24/7 and are fast-paced, high-pressure environments where workers face numerous daily hazards.
Equipment transitions often pose a significant risk to the hands of process workers as these transitions often use removable flexible connectors.
Learn more about the risks and the ways you can mitigate them with BFM® fitting products.
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Generating electrostatic charge during powder processing is almost inevitable. Wherever you have a high volume of surface contact, separation, and movement – as happens when powder flows through a pipe - static electricity is naturally created.
This generated charge is not generally hazardous unless it is allowed to accumulate, at which point it’s capable of creating a spark discharge that can ignite any flammable gasses or dust in the environment, with potentially disastrous results.
One vulnerable part of a bulk solids processing line is the flexible connections between processing equipment. Product flows through these connections generating electrostatic build-up on the non-conductive material (the connector). That's why it is very important to consider what flexible connector you install - is it going to help dissipate electrostatic charge?
See how BFM® can reduce your electrostatic build-up.
The 100% seal of the BFM® fitting system, paired with static dissipative materials greatly reduces the risk of primary and secondary dust explosions.
BFM®'s unique design and choice of high-quality materials mean our connectors are much stronger and will last longer than traditional clamped connectors.
No tools required for installing standard BFM® connectors, plus less dust escaping into the plant combine to make a healthier and safer environment for staff.
Our wide range of products has been extensively and independently tested to conform to important global safety standards like 3A, FDA, EC and ATEX.
- Hub Knoren
Maintenance Engineering Technician, AkzoNobel Elotes, Geleen
Health and safety are paramount for global chemicals manufacturer AkzoNobel at its Elotex plant in Geleen, the Netherlands, but the construction additives produced at this plant involve fine, abrasive powders which were proving hard to contain.
The resultant dust leakage posed a real explosion risk. After installing a BFM® fitting system on their sifter, AkzoNobel were so impressed with its performance they are gradually replacing all of their connectors with BFM®.
If you are processing toxic or dangerous materials, or you want to reduce your ATEX requirements around certain connector locations, BFM® has a simple yet effective solution: double connectors.
By installing an additional outer BFM® fitting ‘layer’, you are essentially creating a back-up to safeguard against the possibility of an inner-connector failure.
If the inner connector was to fail for any reason, the outer connector would contain and prevent any dust from escaping into the rest of the factory until the inner connector can be replaced.
This simple solution has saved a number of BFM® fitting customers thousands in electrical equipment costs as they weren’t required to install the high-end ATEX-rated equipment.
To help keep hands safe near dangerous moving parts like rotary valves or rotating knives, our Tool Release (TR) option offers added security.
The cuffs on a TR connector are much firmer and virtually impossible to release manually. A specially shaped tool is needed to release the connector by inserting it through a similarly shaped hole in the spigot.
If you are concerned about staff improvising other tools to access a TR hole in a spigot our new TR Lock-Out Safety System is the ideal solution.
A ‘TR Lock-Out’ Tube is welded to the outside of the spigot over the tool release hole in the top ridge of the BFM® fitting Spigot.
A padlock can then be inserted, blocking access to the TR hole. The padlock key can then be held by authorized staff only.
Dust leaking from flexible connections during operation provides the potential for secondary explosions in certain conditions and is a very real and serious health and safety risk.
BFM® fittings are safer because there is no dust leaking into the factory environment and our popular Seeflex 040E fittings have undergone extensive testing and have been proven to contain internal explosions in excess of 60kPa.
Wherever you have a flexible connection in a live production system, if the connector is removed at any time, there is always a potential risk that hands can be placed near dangerous moving parts, such as rotary valves and rotating knives.
Pneumatic Monitoring System's provide an added peace of mind as you can monitor when a BFM® fitting is removed in the areas where these are installed.
AMEDICA uses medical grade silicon nitride ceramic powder to manufacture revolutionary spinal implants, requiring an extremely high level of hygiene.
This fine-as-talc powder infiltrated processing equipment connections and created a consistently powdery atmosphere, threatening the health of...
A leading UK plaster manufacturer was having an issue with the flexible connectors on a vibrating sieve lasting only a week at a time before tearing, causing major dust leakage and requiring significant maintenance downtime.
Safety compliance was an issue as existing sleeves had no ATEX...
BFM® fitting is transforming processing plants globally. Keep updated on news, products, insights and new product developments.
