Compressed Air Cleaning Can Save Time and Money

The use of blasts of compressed air to “dry clean” complex mechanical parts isn’t a new idea. Most people are probably already familiar with it from their own homes and offices, where cans of compressed air are used to clean keyboards, computers, and other sensitive electronic devices. The same basic principle can be put to use in larger-scale mechanical productions to save time, labor, money, and to produce a more consistent result.

At the Cleveland Deburring Machine Company (CDMC), our standard Rubber and Plastic De-flashing Machine comes equipped with compressed air clean-off, which ensures that parts are ready to pack and ship upon exit from the machine. Using compressed air to remove dust and debris from de-flashed, deburred, or other finished parts can be a major cost-saver, and can lead to more consistent production. Compressed air cleaning means that parts have to be handled less, and are ready to pack and ship as soon as the process is completed. And since it’s a dry cleaning process, it’s safe for materials that might be damaged by submersion in water. Furthermore, since all the parts undergo the same process in the same machine, compressed air clean-up can lead to a more consistent finished product than hand-cleaning or other clean-off techniques that may require the parts to be removed from the machine and separated before being packed or shipped.

Some machines use pressurized blasts of air, similar to the previously-mentioned canned air that you might use to clean dust out of your keyboard, while others use more complex systems. Some compressed air systems are sufficiently complex that they involve air jets mounted on a reciprocating manifold that passes through the part itself. Different systems may also have built-in air compressors, while others may use external compressors or cans of compressed air that have to be recharged. What compressed air cleaning system is needed depends upon the parts being machined, as well as the capacity, speed, and other variables of the production.

While compressed air cleaning isn’t necessarily right for every type of production—for machining that produces particularly large or dense chips, for example, other methods of clean-off may be more effective—in many situations, a compressed air cleaning system can provide a significant savings in time and money.

While compressed air clean-off is a standard part of our Rubber and Plastic De-flashing Machine, we at the Cleveland Deburring Machine Company take pride in ensuring that each of our deburring and other material finishing solutions are customized to the finishing needs of our clients. We’re happy to build machines to your specifications, and we’re also happy to offer no-cost evaluations to help you find out just exactly what your needs are. Whatever type of material clean-off may be best for your production, we’ll help make sure that it’s available to you!