1-866-4 JJSTECH(1-866-455-7832)

  1. Home
  2. BW Technologies Newsletter Vol. 1 - Issue 2 - April-July 2007

BW Technologies Newsletter Vol. 1 - Issue 2 - April-July 2007

BW Technologies Newsletter Vol. 1 - Issue 2 - April-July 2007

The BW Technologies Monitor Newsletter Vol. 1 - Issue 2 - April-July 2007

2007 marks BW Technologies? 20th year of operations. Established in 1987 with the pioneering Rig Rat, the world?s first wireless, solar-powered gas detector, BW quickly became the face of innovation in gas detection. We entered into the portable gas detector market and in 1995 BW created both the MiniMax, the first gas detector to have a 5-year battery life, and the ToxyClip, the world?s first disposable detector.

The GasAlert series of portable gas detectors was introduced and redefined personal gas protection, offering cutting edge technology for a fraction of the usual price. BW?s newest products are fortifying the company?s reputation as a cost-BW Technologies? 20th Anniversary effective means of providing userfriendly gas detection.

Both BW and Honeywell share a dedication not only to delivering the newest technologies at the best prices, but more importantly, to creating the safest possible working environments. This similarity of philosophies will ensure BW and Honeywell?s relationship is a success - with access to Honeywell?s world-caliber research and development facilities, formidable buying and distribution power and the opportunity to learn from an extensive breadth of business experience, BW Technologies by Honeywell has the potential to change the way the world thinks about personal gas detection.

Feature Article

Carbon dioxide (CO2) is a serious hazard in food and beverage production. Commonly used in several aspects of the industry, carbon dioxide can displace oxygen, creating a dangerous environment for workers. Used in food and beverage production, created as a by-product of fermentation or used as a refrigerant in the form of dry ice, CO2 hazards can be prevalent.

Carbon dioxide is cost-eff ective and has substantially less environmental eff ects than HFCs, leading to CO2 becoming a popular refrigerant. Carbon dioxide is used in various capacities in the food processing industry including:

  • To increase the shelf life of dairy products
  • Food freezing and chilling
  • Mixer and blender cooling
  • Extraction of chemicals like caff eine and fl avors without using solvents
  • Refrigeration during shipment

The danger during beer and wine-making results from the fermentation process, during which, large amounts of carbon dioxide is produced. Alcoholic fermentation is an anaerobic process during which sugar is converted to carbon dioxide and alcohol. The carbon dioxide that is produced during fermentation can displace the oxygen in and around the vat. Simply leaning over a vat can cause a person to lose consciousness. The enormous fermenting vats used in the beer and wine-making industry are classifi ed as confined spaces and require special precautions when entering, even if they are drained. Wine storage tanks, tunnels, shafts and ducts, open-topped spaces such as pits, wells and trenches are also confined spaces in which CO2 and other dangerous toxic gases can accumulate, reaching hazardous levels.

The Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) defines a confined space with three conditions. The space must be large enough for a worker to enter. Another stipulation is that the area can not be designed for continuous worker occupancy. A confined space also has limited openings for entry and exit. OSHA requires that employers identify confined space hazard areas with signs and prevent entry by unauthorized people. Safety equipment must be provided and established procedure has to be followed to protect employees.

The hazardous condition threshold for oxygen deficiency in most jurisdictions is 19.5%, as set by OSHA. Both The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and OSHA set the TWA level for CO2 at 5,000 ppm, and the IDLH level at 40,000 ppm.

Because O2 constitutes only 20% of the gas in ambient air, it would take 5% CO2 to displace 1% of O2. For the low O2 alarm to be triggered, 1.4% of O2 needs to be displaced if that is due to the introduction of CO2 it would be 5x1.4% or 7% (70,000ppm) or CO2 before the low O2 alarm sounds. This is 14x the TWA of CO2 and almost double the IDLH level.

The standard confined space entry portable gas detector includes sensors to detect changes in oxygen concentration and the presence of toxic gases such as carbon dioxide. With developments in sensor technology, small non-dispersive infrared (NDIR) sensors that detect CO2 are now used in small, handheld portable detectors to protect all workers.

Monitoring for carbon dioxide in the food and beverage industry is an integral part of ensuring worker safety. CO2 is an asphyxiant gas and produces physiological eff ects on the central nervous, respiratory and cardiovascular systems. Carbon dioxide is a primary by-product of bacterial decomposition. As with people, ?aerobic? or oxygen using bacteria produce carbon dioxide as a primary metabolic by-product. In many confined spaces there is a relationship between low concentrations of oxygen and elevated concentrations of CO2.

The bottom line is that if you wait until an oxygen deficiency alarm is activated, and the displacement is due to the presence of CO2, you will have substantially exceeded the toxic exposure limit before leaving the aff ected area. Monitoring CO2 levels in the food and beverage industry is essential for worker safety.

New Products

GasAlertMicro 5 IR

Released to the market in early 2007, the GasAlertMicro 5 IR portable gas detector simultaneously monitors up to five atmospheric hazards including carbon dioxide (CO2), oxygen (O2), combustible gas (%LEL), and a wide selection of individual electrochemical toxic sensors.

Using a non-dispersive infrared (NDIR) sensor, the ultra-compact GasAlertMicro 5 IR is competitively priced for monitoring potentially deadly CO2 levels. Highly configurable to suit a range of applications, the GasAlertMicro 5 IR comes as a diffusion or pumped instrument with either alkaline or NiMH rechargeable hot-swappable battery packs and has optional datalogging capabilities.

The GasAlertMicro 5 IR is ideal for any application requiring confined space entry in industries such as telecom, oil and gas, municipalities, utilities, marine and shipping, refineries, petrochemical facilities, construction, wineries, breweries, beverage manufacturing and farming applications. User-settable features include confidence beep, automatic calibration, full function self-test, and an extended selection of user-settable field options.

Please note that the GasAlertMicro 5 IR firmware is not compatible with the standard GasAlertMicro 5 or GasAlertMicro 5 PID. The GasAlertMicro 5 IR?s battery pack is unique, and cannot be used with the GasAlertMicro 5 or GasAlertMicro 5 PID.

New Sensor Creates New Possibilities

The new MICROpel?75 from City Technology has been released. All GasAlertMicroClips are now shipping with the new sensor. The MICROpel?75 allows the user to calibrate to gases other than methane (for example pentane).

Single Gas LEL GasAlertMicroClip

The GasAlertMicroClip is now available as a single-gas instrument to measure combustible gas hazards. Applications for the single-gas LEL version of the GasAlertMicroClip include industrial landfill sites, compressor buildings and coal-bed methane extraction sites. Please note the firmware shipping with the single-gas LEL version of the GasAlertMicroClip is not compatible with earlier models.

Adding Sensors

If a single-gas (or multi-gas) GasAlertMicroClip is purchased, additional sensors, up to 3, can be added at a later date.

To add an additional sensor, follow this procedure:

1) Buy new sensor 2) Insert sensor into GasAlertMicroClip 3) Using USB Datalink between computer and GasAlertMicroClip, enter SoftTools (BW?s PC interface software for the GasAlertMicroClip) user options and turn on sensor 4) Calibrate GasAlertMicroClip with new sensors 5) Use GasAlertMicroClip

Purchasing Incentive

Through the BW Trade-In and Trade-Up program, customers can save up to 10% on a new GasAlertMicroClip detector when they trade-in their existing GasAlert LEL combustible gas detector or comparable product. Please contact your RSM for more details.

Technical Notes

Firmware Upgrade

GasAlertMicro 5 and GasAlertMicro 5 PID

Upgraded firmware (version 16C) has been released for the GasAlertMicro 5 and PID versions. This firmware is NOT compatible with the GasAlertMicro 5 IR.

A new lithium ion battery pack is being developed as the final solution to the CO sensor?s cross-sensitivity to hydrogen issue during charging. The new battery pack is scheduled to be released later this year.

MicroDock II and GasAlertMicro 5 Module

New firmware for the base station (master module) and the GasAlertMicro 5 slave module that adds compatibility for the GasAlertMicro 5 IR detector has been shipping with units since April 24th, 2007. New gases were added into the gas inlets selection section that can be used with the GasAlertMicro 5 IR detector.

Units that do not have the new firmware need to be upgraded on both the base station and GasAlertMicro 5 module individually to work with the new GasAlertMicro 5 IR. The firmware for the master module is m2bf-02m.md2.

Price List Update

GasPoint 2

The price List has been modified to reflect to following changes. The GasPoint 2 was retired as of January 1st, 2007. The GasPoint is a comparable product with a similar feature set, and is currently available. Contact your local RSM for more details.

RRJ Series

The RRJ series transmitters include H2S, O2, CO and combustible gases. Ammonia (NH3) and sulfur dioxide (SO2) are no longer available. Streamlining our fixed and product lines allows us the opportunity to concentrate key production and improved delivery times.

BW Technologies by Honeywell continually pursues the latest technologies in order to provide our customers with the most advanced gas detection solutions at a low cost of ownership. Focusing on development allows BW Technologies to meet your gas detection needs while incorporating new technologies.

New Auxiliary Filter

The price List will now include the new GasAlertMicro 5 Auxiliary Filter. For use with the:

  • GasAlertMicro 5
  • GasAlertMicro 5 PID
  • GasAlertMicro 5 IR

The new Auxiliary Filter prevents particulate intake and protects the pump. The order numbers are M5-AF-K2 (kit of 5) and M5-AF-K2-100 (kit of 100).

Instrument Care

Following are some recommendations for cleaning portable BW Technologies by Honeywell gas detectors:

  • Clean the exterior with a soft damp cloth. Do not use solvents, citrus, alcohol or silicone based products, soaps, or polishers.
  • For tough cleaning we can recommend the use of a soft cloth and Staticide mat and table top cleaner
  • For dust and particulate a vacuum can be used. Do not use industrial grade instrument air which can contain oil mist.

Cleaning BW gas detectors using other products may be harmful to the detector and the sensors. There are many types of commercial cleaning products available in the marketplace and BW does not assess all products.

BW recommends use of General Purpose Staticide for use with BW Technologies products. Designed for non-porous surfaces, General Purpose Staticide solves static control problems related to the attraction of dirt, dust and bacteria to all environmental surfaces, plastic products and product packaging.

Bump Testing with Multi-Gas Instruments

Workplace environments can be harsh and gas detectors are subjected to all kinds of conditions that can affect the operation of multi-gas instruments. Detectors can be physically damaged, sensor ports can become obstructed by liquid or particulate materials, sensors can be over exposed to gas hazards or damaged by atmospheric poisons and inhibitors.

A sensor can be damaged and the detector is not able to electronically diagnose a problem. The best practice to ensure the safe operation of your multi-gas detector between calibration intervals is to perform a functional bump test before each use.

BW recommends bump testing all sensors in multi-gas instruments prior to each day?s use. Perform a functional bump test by exposing the detector to a test gas containing a known concentration of gas capable of activating the instrument alarms while the detector is in standard operating mode.

Visually verify that the displayed gas values change in response to the target gas being applied, and that the instrument alarms are activated. Bump testing is the only way to verify proper function.

Portable gas detectors are designed to protect workers against potentially life threatening occupational environments. Verifying the proper performance of your multi-gas detector is a integral part of any gas monitoring safety program.

BW Events

LEAN Accomplishments

Training Results

?Lean? is an organization and management tool started by Toyota that focuses on enhancing quality, cost, delivery and people. One of the seven Lean Principles is to continuously improve in the pursuit of excellence. At BW Technologies by Honeywell, we are continually trying to improve the production process. Reducing the time taken to produce a unit also reduces our lead times. Lean is helping us ensure our quality targets are consistently met. Our efficiency aims to serve our customers better.