Friedheim International is offering air purification units made by Hunkeler Systeme, sister company the the web finishing equipment supplier, which remove dust and fibres from production environments that include paper- and textile-based printing operations.

The Hunkeler Compact Air Cleaner HKA is described as a low cost, low footprint solution to the issue of manufacturing dust and fibres emitted by machinery with moving parts and materials of a powdery or fibrous nature, which includes inks and coatings, papers, cardboards and fabrics, as well as some metal and plastic work, and which may cause several serious respiratory ailments as well as skin and eye conditions.

The HKA is a free-standing, portable unit that uses a standard 230V power supply and is offered in a range of four sizes, suitable for small or large manufacturing spaces, and cleans ambient air via a filter system. The filters are certified to ISO16890 and can trap dust, fibres, pollen, smoke, bacteria, viruses and similar allergens, keeping air quality to FFP2-3 standards, with other filtration options available. The system are able to clean up to 10,000 cubic metres of air per hour, but consume only 750W maximum.

In addition to helping compliance with various pieces of UK health and safety legislation, the air cleaner units may help improve product quality, thanks to a cleaner factory and cleaner machinery, which also improves mechanical health and associated costs. Workplace/factory cleaning time is said to be reduced by up to 60%, and energy and HVAC costs can also be reduced due to improved  air circulation.