BOGE’s C7 Compressor is providing round-the-clock service to maintain conditions at one of the UK’s best-loved visitor attractions. The unit has delivered uninterrupted service for almost 70,000 hours since it was installed at the Eden Project in 2006.
The Eden Project is dominated by two huge enclosures consisting of adjoining domes containing plants that are collected from all around the world. Each enclosure emulates and replicates a natural ‘biome’, or natural environment; one maintaining a tropical environment, the other a Mediterranean one. The domes are instantly recognisable, being constructed from hundreds of hexagonal and pentagonal cells. Mounted in the roof of the biomes are moveable ventilation “petals”, which are controlled using air from the BOGE compressor.
BOGE distributor AddAir, the only BCAS (British Compressed Air Society) member in close proximity to the Eden Project, provided the compressor.
Andrew Geake, Director, AddAir, said: “We installed a C7 in Jan 2006 and it now has over 68,000 hours on the clock. We supplied the BOGE compressor to the Eden Project because we’ve provided them to many other satisfied customers that have required compressed air 24/7. This one is running virtually non-stop to manage the climate within the biomes. Like our other customers, the Eden Project has found BOGE an exceptionally reliable product offering best value for money compared with other machines.”
For decades BOGE Compressors have been synonymous with efficiency and reliability as proven time and again by demanding applications such as the Eden Project. The compact construction of the BOGE C series compressors reduces noise and minimises external pipework and the associated risk of leakage, while at the same time minimising pressure losses.
“We’ve had very good experiences with BOGE for many years,” said Mr Geake, “and have no hesitation in recommending them for the most demanding applications. Although we offer 24/7 callout we much prefer spending the whole night in our own bed. So when we specify equipment for our customers we are looking for consistently reliable operation and that’s what the BOGE C7 delivers.”
The compressor at Eden is housed in an outside cabinet, so AddAir also fitted an alarm system, bringing peace of mind to on-site engineers who are instantly alerted in the unlikely event of failure.
“Another advantage of using BOGE Compressors is that the control box of the compressor is already configured to take remote control and alarm systems. BOGE offers a standard relay module that quickly plugs in to the existing unit,” said Mr Geake.
“We fitted the compressor with a remote monitoring device and rigged an external alarm to warn if the compressor needs attention. We had already provided this facility for BOGE Compressors at a coal processing plant in Siberia; there were no workers near the unit so it was important to ensure that engineers would be alerted if there was any malfunction of the compressor. One failure mode could easily be loss of power so we even provided a battery back-up to the alarm.
"The Russians were so pleased with the compressors and the alarm features that we fitted that they kept coming back for more and so we knew the solution would work well for the Eden Project. We’re also winning repeat business at the Eden Project with BOGE Compressors. Because the BOGE Compressor unit installed to activate the ventilation 'petals' on the biomes was so successful, the Eden Project returned to us for another BOGE Compressor when preparing an animatronics dinosaur in the visitors centre.”
John Oxenham, Facilities Manager, Eden Project, said: “It’s vital that we maintain the right conditions for the biomes and that requires compressor availability around the clock. We’re very happy with the BOGE Compressor because it gives us value for money, uninterrupted service and peace of mind to get on with other tasks, knowing that we can depend on an extremely reliable compressor.”