Nutsche Filter Refurbishment due to a Change in Production

The Challenge

Due to market trends, production in the fine chemical and pharmaceutical industries can change quickly. We’ve seen schedules and products change constantly. The ability to quickly adapt existing plants to meet new market requirements is a competitive advantage. It involves internal project management skills and suppliers’ abilities.

In 2002 Delta delivered a Nutsche filter dryer designed for agricultural intermediates, according to the customer’s specs.

The customer stopped the entire production line and put the machine on standby in 2014. By the end of 2020, production shifted to API due to market needs, and the customer asked us to refurbish the machine accordingly.

Our Solution

After receiving the Nutsche filter dryer at its workshop, the Delta team assessed the machine’s status to determine the modifications needed to put it into production for APIs. This assessment included a check of the original documentation for the filter dryer.

Assessment

The physical assessment of the machine first involved a visual test in checking for macro deformation or damage. Technicians needed to conduct a thickness test to check for reduced thickness due to years of operation or corrosion. Finally, technicians conducted operations tests to assess the machine’s movement, such as agitator rotation, agitator lifting and lowering, and discharge valve opening and closing.

The documental check revealed that the filter dryer was designed for a safe area, but the new installation room would be classified as explosive.

Results

The physical assessment found that the agitator impeller was deformed. The product that remained inside the vessel after the last production broke and corroded the filtering sheet in many places. Furthermore, the failure of old gaskets affected the tightness of the pressure vessel and caused damage to the oleo-dynamic system, making it impossible to operate the machine.

Action Plan

Delta proposed the following actions to put the machine into service for API production:

Total surface polishing to attain pharma-grade.
Replacement of all gaskets with those suitable for API production.
Substitution of damaged parts (mainly the oleodynamic system and filtering sheet).
Replacement of the agitator seal with one for a pharma design (a double mechanical seal dry type was selected and installed).
To address the issue of the new explosive area in which the equipment has to be installed, Delta replaced all components that could pose a risk of explosion. They replaced all agitator driving systems, instruments, and sensors with compliant ones to obtain a new certificate.

The Results

Due to market trends, production in the fine chemical and pharmaceutical industries can change quickly: schedules and products change constantly. The ability to quickly adapt existing plants to meet new market requirements is a competitive advantage that combines internal project management skills and suppliers’ abilities.