ELGi’s EG Series Air Compressor Proves Perfect for Aerospace Manufacturing

Legacy Industries is a Michigan-based manufacturer that produces mechanical parts, robots, and tools for “the big three” aircraft manufacturers. The company must use the cleanest air compression technology available to meet its quality production standards.

“Compressed air is the heartbeat of our operations, and we cannot afford to compromise our product quality with unreliable compressed air,” said Mark Gabbard, Facility Manager at Legacy Industries.

Compressed air quality is crucial for aerospace manufacturing, as aircraft components and tools must be of the highest quality and precision. This demanding standard for component quality urges aerospace manufacturers to use compressed air with specific requirements. The air must be clean and dry and not vary under pressure. If the air becomes dirty, moist or varies in pressure, it can disrupt operations, hinder product quality, damage equipment assets, and decrease efficiency and uptime.

Another crucial factor for the aerospace manufacturer to consider is air pressure. As components and tools for aircraft are highly delicate, constant air pressure can ensure the precision of the manufacturing process and significantly lower the error rate.

“To avoid production losses from factory shutdowns, we used to have two backup air compressors for full redundancy,” Gabbard said. “Our two backup air compressors, one with 30 hp and the other with 50 hp, were experiencing deteriorating performance, and we needed to find replacement options.”

Eight years ago, the company began working with ELGi at its Auburn Hills facility in Michigan. Legacy Industries installed an ELGi EG 75V, a 100 hp variable speed rotary screw air compressor, reputed for ensuring low oil carryover with its unique Oil Separation by Impact and Centrifugal action (OSBIC) process design. This design enables efficient separation of air and oil in three stages, delivering consistently superior quality compressed air with minimum pressure drop.

“Our ELGi EG 75V has served us well in the past eight years without any issues. Since we were happy with its performance, we decided to install another 100 hp ELGi EG 75V air compressor as our backup air compressor. We have relied on the ELGi EG compressor for the past eight years, and it has never let us down,” Gabbard said.

“We've never encountered any issues with oil contamination or moisture issues. The quality air provided by ELGi enables us to produce the most precise aircraft parts and tools.”

Impressed by ELGi's quality and reliability, the aerospace manufacturer has decided to proactively install a new ELGi EG 75V air compressor to ensure complete redundancy and avoid production downtime.

ELGi's EG Series air compressors come equipped with eta-V profile rotors with a 4/5 lobe combination. This unique air end design reduces pressure losses and increases stage efficiencies, leading to an optimized compressed air system. In addition, the ELGi EG Series compressor is designed with an oversized cooling system. This avoids air compressor overheating and enables the equipment to maintain peak performance for years.

With utter confidence in the compressor quality and reliability, ELGi offers its customers an industrial-leading warranty program with a five-year compressor warranty and lifetime air end coverage.

“ELGi's reliability and excellent performance have provided me peace of mind. You know you can always count on ELGi to provide the high-quality compressed air we need,” Gabbard said.

Legacy Industry is supported by Michigan Air Solution, an ELGi distributor that has worked closely with the company and built a solid relationship. Gabbard is especially pleased with Michigan Air Solutions' extensive service fleet that always provides timely services. “We aim to become the number one service provider for compressed air in Michigan, and ELGi has provided a lot of support for us to march toward that goal,” said David Bartlett, Sales Engineer at Michigan Air Solutions.

“ELGi is very responsive in providing support when we encounter issues, whether it's sending over new parts or providing technical support. They also offer essential training for us to provide the best service for our customers. It has been a fruitful partnership between ELGi and Michigan Air Solutions.”