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Montreal, May 1, 2007 - Dectron Internationale (TSX: DTL):, a leader in the heating, ventilation and air conditioning, indoor air security and water generation markets, is pleased to announce its financial results for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2007 (in thousands of Canadian dollars) ...
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| Dectron DRY-O-TRON |
June 18, 2001 |
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Productivity Increase With HVAC Technology Is No Fish Story For Dried Cod Supplier.
Fish producer's engineering department and consultant team up to improve the ancient art of fish drying .
Gaspe, Quebec- For centuries, the art of drying fish hasn't changed much on the famed Gaspe Coast in Quebec, Canada, where a handful of fisheries dry their world-renowned North Atlantic cod by sunlight. But that was before a consulting engineer fabricated high tech HVAC technology to improve the productivity, shipment scheduling, and taste of a seafood delicacy that's shipped to the far corners of the globe.
Instead of depending on the unpredictable outdoor drying process that takes a minimum of one week of steady sunshine and no rain, Lelievre, Lelievre & Lemoignan (LLL), Sainte-Therese de Gaspe, Quebec, now uses two custom-manufactured DF-60 Dry-O-TronÒ dehumidifiers by indoor air quality manufacturer, Dectron Internationale, Roswell, Ga. The dehumidifiers, which are modifications of the firm's DA Series, supply dry air to racks of fresh cod in dual custom-fabricated sheet metal drying tunnels inside LLL's 100,000-square-foot headquarters over a 32 to 36-hour period. The 6X6X40-foot-long tunnels, air distribution design, and equipment specification was handled by mechanical designer, Jean-Guy Ferland, partner at Le Groupe Prodapec Inc., a St. Jerome, Quebec-based consultant firm specializing in turnkey dehumidification and drying projects.
"We're fulfilling orders more accurately than we ever have in our 20-year history because we can now depend on the product drying and being ready on a predetermined date," said Rock Lelievre, president of LLL. "The addition of state-of-the-art dehumidification equipment has improved our bottom line."
While product quality is improved, the new high-tech drying process also cuts annual labor costs up to 80 percent that are associated with outdoor drying. Previously, the labor intensive outdoor process required covering the fish every night. During rainy periods, even more labor is required to protect the fish from inclement weather. Flash rains could reduce hundreds of pounds of fish from a potential Class A to Class C product rating, resulting in a 20 to 40-percent reductions in profit margins.
Excess sunlight can lessen product quality as well. If the sun is too hot, the fish can literally cook or develop a moisture-holding skin that prevents even drying. There's no cooking danger with the mechanical process because the drying process is precisely controlled with a low temperature of 68°F. In summer time conditions where outside temperatures surpass 68°F, the dehumidifier can also cool the air.
An alternative to outdoor drying is a standard furnace and tunnel arrangement. Furnaces are inefficient for fish drying because of the large amount of exhaust air that's required. When the airflow absorbs moisture from the fish, half of the return air must be exhausted while the remaining half is mixed with dry outside air that requires additional heating. With foggy or rainy conditions conventional furnaces and tunnels can't operate because of high outdoor air humidity levels.
Using dehumidifiers appears to be the best alternative. The entire process starts with a fish catch. The fish are prepared and split in half before the first stage curing process of soaking the fish in a salt-water solution. The fish are then piled and rotated on pallets for another period during the second curing stage to begin the water elimination process. Finally, the fish are loaded on custom-designed portable racks before they're subjected to the tunnel process.
The dehumidifiers are controlled with Dectron's HT-800 microprocessor to provide three relative humidity stages ranging from 60 percent in the beginning to 25 percent at the end. "Although the energy costs are constantly shifting because of the varying sensible heat ratio of the drier air throughout the cycle," said Ferland, "our calculations tell us that 1-kwhr. is required to remove 4.25-pounds of moisture."
Ferland's dehumidifier specification also came with an additional coil that supplies free hot water for the facility's cleaning needs. Excess heat from the mechanical process is recovered to heat the water that is stored in a custom made, glass-lined, steel tank. "We like to work with Dectron because they have a broad line of equipment, most of which can be adapted to a custom use, such as LLL's fish drying needs," said Ferland. "Instead of custom making something, this system is working reliable because we've modified a proven line of equipment."
The project was a bargain for LLL because its maintenance department provided the labor to install what resembled a kit of tunnels, ductwork and Dectron equipment that Ferland designed and supplied.
"This project was a win-win situation," said Lelievre. "We've dramatically improved our scheduling, our product quality, and operational energy savings versus conventional furnace methods, while still getting an acceptable payback."
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