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Too Hot to Handle?

April 23, 2010 by katshin

Guest Blogger: Kelly O’Connor

Have you ever had your leg hairs singed by the heat from your car’s exhaust pipe or while hopping on your Harley? As a kid, do you remember being terrified when you saw smoke leaving the side of your house just to find out it was only from mom doing a load of laundry or cooking up a feast? On a cold winter morning, have you ever warmed the tips of your fingers with the steam of yours freshly brewed cup of coffee? I’m guilty of all of these and could name about twenty other instances of wasted heat that surround me on a daily basis.

Most of the time, heat is viewed as a waste by-product from machines doing their jobs. Heat is used to create these machines, then later produced from that machine’s final product at work, and most often abandoned and left to wreak havoc on the workers in its vicinity (and overwork their sweat glands).  Heat also escapes into our atmosphere and many times, can do more harm than good.

For being such a great conductor of power and energy, we sure do let it go to waste far too often. Compressors are a prime example of a machine that produces heat as a result of doing the job. What is the best way to harness that heat energy and use it for good? Can we power another compressor with it? Or what if it could help power the whole plant? What ideas do you have around using heat ‘waste’ to reenergize other components of our customers’ businesses and how can we make it happen?

Contact Kelly at: kelly_o’connor@irco.com

Posted in Air | 6 Comments »

How “Green” is our Progress?

March 24, 2010 by katshin

Sustainability. The hot buzz word has swept across through the crusts and ends of our planet, raising a tidal wave of “Go Green” efforts to build positive branding and hopefully, bring in some green dollars along for the ride. It’s hard to find a single company multinational corporation whose advertising, branding, and promotions related to sustainability have become the standard, if not generalized stamp of integrity and respect for the universe.

Not only that, the word affects all of our lives, how we do business, who we do business with. Sustainability has changed the rules of the game, adding green wildcards to our monopoly board which can make or break the game for corporations, institutions, the government, and any other organization where brand perception is linked heavily to the bottom line.

The “get green by being green” philosophy has become top of the to-do list for companies to cross off- in fact, companies who have not labeled at least half of their products with some sort of green logo is running far behind the pack of first-movers who have pasted green on anything and everything– their products, production and manufacturing processes, packaging, transportation and logistics, and even their suppliers- many companies have begun refusing to do business with any organization that doesn’t share the same commitment to being BFF with the earth and its inhabitants.

So enough about those who are leading the pack. How can WE, as an industrial diversified company, become more sustainable while ensuring progress in the value we bring customers? What does our commitment to “Progress is Greener” truly mean to us? What are some examples you can share where you’ve seen us truly “walk the talk,” and where we could use a green wildcard?

Posted in Air, Fluids & ARO, Innovation Insights, Material Handling, Tools | 3 Comments »

Sometimes, Less is MORE…

February 24, 2010 by katshin

Going to buy a car doesn’t always turn out like you had imagined. You arrive with the anticipation of being able to cruise out of the dealership in your spiffy new sports car, but typically end up driving out with a “almost new” vehicle with too many cup holders and too little sunroof.

Which gets me thinking- I wish we could pick and choose some of the features on all of the gadgets, machines, and systems we buy, which would allow us to save costs on unimportant features and add ones that actually matter to us such as enhancing features that increase safety for the operator, or even adding that extra control to your air compressor.

 The reasons we buy a car can be very different too- the features in a car which are important for a painter who needs to load and unload heavy tools from his truck are much different than a family with four young children in the back of their minivan, or a retired couple cruising down the beach in their two-door convertible. The value of the load you are carrying in your passenger seat is much different; same goes for the intent of the purchase, and same goes for our customers- each business is unique. It’s often about balancing the requirements of tailor-made solutions against minimizing costs and disruption.

So why not offer the same type of “a la carte” option for our air compressors and tools? What should we get rid of in our air compressors and tools? What additional features should we add, or add one more of? This is your chance to stroll down the buffet line and tell us what needs to fall off the plate and where we should be pointing our forks.

Posted in Innovation Insights | Leave a Comment »

What else can you cut with scissors?

February 16, 2010 by katshin

Sometimes, brilliant innovation does not have to come from new products or technology. Innovation can stem into alternative applications for products- findings new places and people to where our products and services could add value.

Let me give you the most simple example- think about all the different ways we use a pair of scissors today. Did you know that scissors, made of one piece of metal, were most likely invented about 1500 BC in ancient Egypt? Modern cross blade scissors were invented in ancient Rome around 100 AD, and were used by clothes makers and barbers. Numerous additional applications exist for scissors today- which has lead to the evolution of the shapes, designs, and ergonomics of scissors today. Scissors are found in almost every industry just in different form- ranging from cutlery, medical equipment, fabric cutting, arts and crafts, office suppliers, grooming, the possibilities are endless!

What is key to note here are two things: the evolution of innovation and innovation in application… Two unique ways to innovate without having to strain your brain for breakthrough technology.

Which leads me to ask….where else can we apply our products? In new markets? New geographies? To new customers? What other markets which we don’t play in could use our air compressors, tools, hoist, and pumps? What other markets could get value from our products?

This is your chance- our leaders are listening. Speak up! You can drive our next innovation!

Posted in Innovation Insights | 11 Comments »

Can the lubricant in my compressor live longer than I can?

January 26, 2010 by katshin

Driving to work at 7am, the dreaded orange light pops up on my dashboard. It indicates that I need to get an oil change done on my car. I breathe a sigh of frustration, as if my car understands that I don’t have the extra hour to drive to a service center and sit in the waiting room twiddling my thumbs in an awkward room of people whose lives are just too hectic to appreciate the art of waiting.

Sometimes I wish that the oil in my car would last forever. Or at least longer than it does now, so I don’t have to drag myself to the dealership every two months to what now seems like a more time-consuming task than it ought to be.

We know our customers feel the same way with their air compressors- just like oil in our car, the lubricant must be replaced every couple thousand hours, and more than the cost, it’s the time spent to have it serviced it that makes them cringe.

These may be hopeless thoughts for my car, for now anyway, but what if we could introduce a permanent-life lubricant for our customers? An everlasting coolant that customers would never have to switch out; eliminating worries about how many thousand hours they’ve used their lubricant for and not to mention saving the hours to have it serviced. 

Sound too good to be true? Or is a permanent-life lubricant just too long? How many hours would your ideal coolant last before needing to be replaced? Tell us your thoughts and we just might make it happen!

Posted in Air | 10 Comments »

Let it SNOW!

January 26, 2010 by jeffhbaker

Depending on where you live, the first snowfall of the year has probably already hit your area.  Many of us actually look forward to the first blanket of snow, covering trees, lawns, driveways, and the leaves we never got around to raking.  However, after weeks or months of snow, heavy snow, blowing snow, snow blizzards, snowdrifts … your outlook may become a little different.  Enough already!

Did you know in some parts of the United States the average snowfall approaches 10 feet? That’s a lot of snow.  As someone who grew up in Maine, this comes as no surprise.  I’ve shoveled quite a bit of snow in my day.  Even though Dad had a snow blower, I wasn’t allowed to use it, and I had to have the driveway and steps cleared by the time he came home from work.  My back hurts just thinking about it. 

If you lift an average shovel, loaded with 16 pounds of snow, about 12 times a minute, you will have moved 192 pounds of snow.  Keep this up for 10 minutes, and you’ve just lifted almost 1 TON of snow!  It’s not surprising to learn that almost half of the winter back injuries are related to shoveling snow.

It’s almost impossible to go into a hardware, grocery, or department store without seeing the latest display of new ergonomic shovels, designed to make the manual process of snow removal easier on the masses.  The snow shovel marketers have done a good job of educating us on proper equipment and procedures for snow removal.

What IS surprising is the fact that many companies still expect employees to manually lift boxes, parts, containers, and totes, often weighing up to 50 pounds, on a repetitive schedule.  Even the lightest of loads, if lifted improperly or awkwardly, over time can cause fatigue, lost productivity, and ultimately lead to muscle and back strain.  Manual lifting is identified as the cause in over 30% of all workplace injuries.

So why is it that we expect the assistance of ergonomic lifting tools in some applications like shoveling snow, but will use our bare hands and fragile bodies to lift a 50 pound box, as if we have no other choice? How can we get customers to realize that they don’t have to accept the strains, cramps, and tension in their backs as if there was no better way?

Now that I have my own snow blower, I definitely plan to teach my kids how to safely use it when they’re a little older.  They can still shovel the steps though.

Do you share OSHA statistics, medical research, or just best practices from other solutions you’ve used before?  Do you use calculations to analyze manual lifting operations?  Would you find these reference materials valuable as an educational tool? Please share your thoughts with us!

Posted in Material Handling | 1 Comment »

You want to PUMP what?!

January 26, 2010 by sam j

With almost an 80 year history, it’s no surprise that Ingersoll Rand’s ARO Fluid Products Group introduced a plethora of innovative products to the fluid handling world. Products such as the Pro Series and EXP diaphragm pumps can be found all over the world while the versatility of our piston pumps make them a perfect fit for viscous fluids. Having spent time in the Technical Support group, I’ve heard a number of applications for our pumps including water, grease, adhesives, shampoo, peanut butter, and so on…

With all this considered though, there is no doubt in my mind that the application needs of masses far exceeds our product offering which ultimately brings me to my main point.

What is it that you want to pump?

Are you looking to pump water? Mud? Paste? Oil? Beer? Chicken gizzards??  

I’m not suggesting these things to be absurd, but rather to provoke thoughts and ideas. It’s my opinion that often the best solutions require me to reach beyond my limits. Think of it this way, man would have never landed on the moon if he would have ever accepted the fact that he can’t fly.

 So, what better way is there to provide a solution than to ask those that have a need? I can’t promise that we’ll be introducing a chicken gizzard pump next month, but what I can promise is that your opinion matters and that your voice will be heard.

Posted in Fluids & ARO | 2 Comments »

What the heck is a foot-pound?

January 20, 2010 by Justin

 

I will never forget my first day with Ingersoll Rand, for many reasons. One of the more memorable things about my first day was realizing how little I actually knew about the world of tools and automotive service. During one of my meetings, I remember a discussion about one of our tool’s power output, and a strange word kept being used. Since I’m not one scared to ask questions, I threw out my first one. What is a foot-pound? After a few smiles from some of the engineers, they began to run me through a simple description.

Merriam-Webster dictionary defines a foot-pound as “a unit of work equal to the work done by a force of one pound acting through a distance of one foot in the direction of the force.” Sounds pretty complicated but it’s really a simple concept.

Say you are trying to tighten a nut to 10 ft-lb. The amount of torque required to tighten the fastener is equal to 10 pounds on the end of a 1 foot lever or 1 pound on the end of a 10 foot lever.

Keeping this in mind, the fact that our 2135TiMAX provides 780 ft-lb of torque with a weight of only 3.95 lb is truly amazing. Have you ever found an application that you didn’t have enough power for when using an Impactool? If so, tell us a little more about it and we will see what we can do to help you out…

Posted in Tools | 8 Comments »

Welcome to the Industrial Technologies Product Blog!

January 17, 2010 by dswelch

On behalf of Industrial Technologies, I’d like to welcome you to the first-ever Ingersoll Rand Product Blog!

My name is David Welch and I lead Global Marketing and Innovation for the Industrial Technologies sector. That sounds like a mouthful, but in reality, my job revolves around ways to make our products more safe, reliable, and efficient, and to make sure that we are easy to do business with. We would not be able to do this without understanding your needs and values, and that is why our Industrial Technologies colleagues and customers are extremely important to the foundation of our mission.

We hope you will use this blog as your mouthpiece to share your insights about how we can innovate our products, services, and solutions! Please share with us your unique ideas and tell us a bit more about your customer experiences while you’re at it- we always love to hear about what is being said about our products, company, and brand.

But first, we want to let YOU decide whether this blog will be valuable towards improving communication with our Industrial Technologies colleagues. Will you, as a reader, find this blog interesting, and will you, as a blogger, be willing to respond to our conversations about what our next big innovation should be?

Help us make the decision! Don’t be shy; your opinion matters and you can help make the difference! Speak up; we’re listening!

Posted in Innovation Insights | 36 Comments »