
GEM™ Steam Traps Retrofitted to Feedwater Heat Exchangers
The site is a major soluble coffee production facility, producing around 11 billion cups of coffee a year and housing a research and development center.
Fitted to feedwater heat exchangers, air heater batteries and distribution lines, the GEM™ venturi orifice steam traps are operating over variable loads with a turndown ratio on the heat exchangers of 3:1. The company raises some 40 tonnes of steam an hour, costing around £6.5 million a year.
Although steam is utilized throughout the site, it is principally used in feedwater heat exchangers feeding the extraction sets. The site operates banks of heat exchangers which handle a total of between 6,000 and 45,000 liters of water per hour.
Conscious that existing mechanical traps were failing, resulting in lost steam and reduced plant performance, the Utilities Manager decided to investigate GEM™ steam traps from Thermal Energy International and asked the company to carry out a site survey.
The report explained that by replacing the existing traps with the venturi orifice design, blocked steam traps could be prevented from impacting production. Moreover, by efficiently returning condensate to the boilers, energy savings would be made.
The site’s Utilities Manager said:
The GEM™ steam traps perform well over a wide range of loads. In addition to saving downtime with maintenance and replacement traps, GEM™ steam traps have provided us with a short-term payback through energy savings from steam wastage.
Explore more case studies
Speak to our team
If failing steam traps are wasting steam or increasing maintenance demands at your coffee production facility, our team can assess your heat exchangers, air heater batteries and distribution lines to identify where GEM™ steam traps could improve condensate drainage under variable loads, reduce maintenance and deliver energy savings.