Manufacturer has employees that work on lines near the loading dock. During the winter months, cold wind comes flooding in when the dock doors are opened making the area unpleasant to work in and driving down productivity.

Zoneworks installed our SCL non-insulated curtain wall, which hangs from the ceiling using threaded rod. The curtain wall acts as a wind barrier, preventing the cold wind from reaching the workers and, slides on a sturdy track and trolley system for easy opening and closing when desired.

Production employees were immediately able to feel the results of the curtain wall and are very happy to have it there. Moreover, the manufacturer has the ability to take down or relocate the wall easily in the future, if needed.

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Methods of fume control

There are relatively few methods used to keep process fume generation under control, but all rely on moving a volume of air containing the fumes or vapors and these include:

• Local exhaust – a high velocity airflow stream captures fumes/vapors at the point they are generated and carries them away
• Fume separation/removal – necessitates the incorporation of chemical scrubbers or activated carbon filters in the exhaust stream
• Vapor recovery and reintroduction – typically a condensing system to convert vapor to liquid and return it to the process stream

Because of the volatile and diffusive nature of fumes and vapors, local exhaust with fume hoods represent the most common approach in accomplishing this.

How curtain walls help with fume control

The smaller the space can be made, the smaller and more efficient the exhaust equipment can be. Curtain walls are a very effective way to accomplish this. Reduced volume of the space to be exhausted means lower volume air flow needed, and better fume capture due to less turbulent airflow.

Curtain walls can be single layer fabric or multi-layer insulated. They can easily be fitted with clear vision panels for visual communication between spaces. They are by nature flexible yet very durable, and can withstand contact from machinery or product, and simply “bend without breaking”, in contrast to a hard permanent wall. They are available as stationary as well as sliding (suspended from roller track), and can be fitted with strip curtains, personnel doors, or high speed industrial doors for full range of access to the space.

Curtain walls are easily installed, can be simply trimmed around conduit, piping, ductwork, etc., and can be anchored to the floor to withstand pressure differential across them. They are also relatively easy to re-configure, if a space needs to be enlarged or reduced, or the shape of the space footprint needs to change. No “de-construction” is required. Depending on the application, a curtain wall can be suspended from the room ceiling, or they can be supplied with a stand-alone framework to hang from.

A final word of caution

Applications involving volatile, flammable liquids and their vapors present a special hazard.  Care must be taken to eliminate potential sources of ignition within any fume control system in these applications. Curtain walls, whether sliding or stationary, should be of a design to prevent static electricity build-up and electrostatic discharge. Track, hangers, trolleys, and curtains need adequate grounding and continuity. Electro-mechanical components of any volatile fume control system must be designed and constructed as explosion proof (explosion proof motors/blowers, sealed conduit, explosion proof junction and control boxes, etc.).

Food processor blends together ingredients before sending the mix on to another party for packaging. These powdered ingredients, by nature, like to drift and migrate anywhere air will take them. If not contained, this dust will cause a real mess on equipment, packaging, HVAC systems, etc. There are also potential safety hazards with slippery floors and dust inhalation.

Zoneworks went in and recommended a four-sided enclosure to contain the dust to the production area and prevent it from migrating out into the warehouse. The customer also wanted to have twin production lines (same process, but run different mixes at a time) and be able to keep these ingredients separated during the entire production process.

Since they were renovating an older building, they championed the idea of saving costs where they could and elected to construct an enclosure of industrial curtain walls instead of using traditional wall materials that are too permanent for the rapid growth the customer is experiencing. The wash-down curtain walls meet AIB/FDA/USDA protocols for harborage and housekeeping issues just like traditional walls used in this environment.

Additionally, the customer opted to add a center demising curtain to create two rooms within the larger rectangle. This allows production to run different mixes at the same time or two lines of the same mix at one time. It also gives employees the ability to clean the equipment on one side while production runs in the other (and vice versa). This is critical to allowing production to continue while maintaining cleaning protocols.

The project cost was less than using traditional wall products and ended up giving the customer the best of both worlds – powder containment and an easily removable or reconfigurable production room right in the middle of the warehouse.

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Cleaning
Occasional cleaning of your curtain walls will keep them looking good for a long time. Just be sure you follow these guidelines for proper cleaning:

• If the curtain wall fabric incorporates a waterproof outer coating like vinyl, simply wash the curtain surface gently with a mild detergent and water mixture. Then, rinse off using low pressure water from a hose. (This applies to insulated and non-insulated curtain walls in either a stationary or sliding configuration.)
• Insulated curtain walls covered in uncoated fabric should be brushed or vacuumed and not sprayed with water or cleaning agents.

Maintenance and Repairs
When it comes to maintenance, the key is to occasionally inspect your curtain walls for wear or damage, and make necessary repairs early on before they become larger ones. Here are a few additional curtain wall maintenance tips:

• Blow out sliding curtain wall tracks using compressed air as needed to keep curtain rollers operating smoothly.
• Never lubricate curtain wall roller trolleys – lubricant will attract and hold airborne dust and debris, eventually interfering with free wheeling. The roller trolleys are designed to be operated without lubricant applied.
• Replace damaged or missing sliding curtain wall trolleys and damaged roller track as quickly as possible. This will minimize additional damage to the curtain wall body itself due to increased pulling stress during opening and closing.
• Make sure all trolleys supporting a sliding curtain wall remain attached to the curtain wall through the supplied grommets. Re-attach any that may have come loose.
• Replace torn or missing curtain wall bottom sweep panels as needed to maintain maximum zone separation integrity.
• Replace torn or worn curtain wall panels, or patch tears using the manufacturer’s recommended repair tape in either clear or matching color.

Thanks for reading this blog post. Now sit back and just enjoy your low-hassle industrial curtain wall.

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1. Noise Control
Whether you need to isolate a single machine or separate an entire area, curtain walls can reduce noise levels by up to 22-25 dBs, depending on frequency and sound power.

Read about an auto parts recycler that reduced noise levels by 20 percent using curtain walls.

2. Dust and Debris Containment
Industrial curtain walls act as a very effective physical barrier, blocking transfer of dust particles or debris from space to space.

3. Fume Control
By themselves, curtain walls (just like permanent hard walls) may not be sufficient for fume control applications. Fumes cannot be allowed to build up in concentration, and therefore some active method of removal must be incorporated. How curtain walls can help, however, is by shrinking the size of the space that needs to be exhausted, which helps make the exhaust equipment more efficient. Reducing the volume of the space to be exhausted means lower volume air flow needed, and better fume capture due to less turbulent airflow.

4. Heat Containment
When machines generate high temperatures that affect the environment, including employees in adjacent areas, insulated fabric curtain walls can be constructed to contain the equipment and the heat being produced.

Read how a furniture manufacturer used reconfigurable curtain walls to manage temperatures and humidity in its laminating area.

5. Zoning
An industrial fabric curtain wall can be used in place of a conventional rigid wall in virtually any non-load-bearing application, providing a high degree of flexibility. As such, curtain walls can be quickly and easily installed, dismantled, and re-installed giving you a great way to manage your physical space.

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Customer owns the building but leases out space to several tenants. They wanted to divide off their specific area from their tenant’s areas and use something aesthetically pleasing that isn’t permanent. Additionally, they wanted the ability to control temperatures so they aren’t paying HVAC costs associated with the space leased by the tenants.

The customer chose to use curtain walls because of the flexibility they offer. As a growing company, fabric curtain walls allow them to easily modify, relocate, or remove the walls for any future changes. Also, using an insulated curtain wall allowed them to gain control over the temperatures in their area. The results of using insulated curtain walls are big savings for them in regards to energy expenditures and having the separation they desired.

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In many facilities, one foreseeable problem is related to the need for additional floor space.

Imagine that your company introduces a new product that wildly exceeds initial projections, but there is not enough floor space to stock adequate inventory levels, finished goods, or manufacturing space. Picture having signed on a new customer that experiences greater growth than expected but you lack the floor space to support this growth. What if part of your business is seasonal and your space requirements have expanded this year?

In a winner’s mind, all of these are examples of “good” problems. The challenge is now to find the right solution quickly to take advantage of the situation before it becomes an unrealized opportunity.

Surprisingly, you may have more space than you think. By simply reconfiguring existing space with the use of industrial curtain walls you can create the needed space quickly and economically. Even better yet, you maintain the flexibility to easily reconfigure your existing space in the future.  Additionally, fabric curtain walls can be used for a wide variety of purposes including temperature separation, wash down applications, containing heat, providing sound attenuation, controlling humidity, dust, and fumes, enclosing open loading docks, and many other applications.

So when it comes to floor space, how will you look at things? Will you take the winner’s perspective and view it as a “good” problem? You know the right solution now so go out and take advantage of that opportunity!

Cradles to Crayons (C2C) is a non-profit organization helping homeless and low-income children in Boston and Philadelphia get the essentials they need to feel safe, warm, valued and ready to learn. In 2010, C2C Boston relocated its “Giving Factory” warehouse and operations center to a new building. While the move was needed and welcome, it wasn’t without challenges – starting with the loading dock area. Used for truck deliveries and customer drop-offs, the loading dock was open to the rest of the Giving Factory warehouse, creating weather and temperature problems.

In the Giving Factory warehouse, volunteers and staff inspect, sort and package all the donated materials. In order to keep workers comfortable and productive during the long Boston winter, C2C wanted to enclose their loading dock area to help keep the snow, sleet and cold temperatures out. However, C2C also wanted the flexibility to open the area when the weather was nice.

Insulated Curtain Walls Chosen

Working with Zoneworks and facilities consultants The Beacon Group, C2C installed a Zoneworks TZD Loading Dock Enclosure, making a two-wall enclosure (L-shape) of the dock area and several loading dock positions. This unit was particularly applicable for C2C Boston, since sections of the insulated curtains could be slid into an open position during nice spring, summer, and fall days; or into a closed position during bad weather.  In addition, a portion of the enclosure includes semi-permanent traffic doors that provide access for pedestrians, push-carts and fork-lifts. The curtain wall has helped C2C keep its volunteers and staff comfortable year round.

“We like our cool purple curtain wall more than a traditional wall because it gives us the flexibility to close off the loading dock area during really cold or really hot days, but also allows us to open the warehouse for the beautiful weather days of spring, summer, and fall, which is great since our warehouse doesn’t have air conditioning. The insulated curtain wall does an excellent job and provides a noticeable temperature difference. It has helped us to save on winter heating costs and keeps our volunteers comfortable.” Sally Sharp Lehman, Director of Operations, C2C

Photos: C2C Purple Curtain Wall Loading Dock Enclosure

Learn More about Cradles to Crayons

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