Medical Gas Cylinder Fill Racks Must Be Flexible and Have the Capability to Be Expanded

VCE (Veite Cryogenic Equipment and Service) manufactures a complete line of medical oxygen fill systems that are ideal for small independent distributors just getting into the medical gas business. The wide variety of options offered also meet the needs of the major gas suppliers that fill cylinder batches of 300 D and E sizes of medical oxygen cylinders.

• Two very important factors must be considered when planning a medical oxygen fill system:
• The number of cylinders that need to be filled each day, each week, or each month?
• The availability of space to install manifolds.

Maximum Capacity can be Achieved Only if Space is Available

Maximum production can be best achieved when space is not a limiting factor. Under this condition, a single-tier manifold is most beneficial. The fill process begins with the operator loading the cylinders into the rack. While the cylinders are in the rack, the operator can scrape, label, and prep them. The operator works most efficiently on a single-tier manifold because there is no interference from a row of cylinders above or below it. Under this condition, the entire fill process is accelerated.

Two components make up the VCE oxygen manifold system:

• The control panel manifolds.
• The charging fill manifolds.

 Control Panels

The control panel manifold is used to distribute gas to all connected cylinder charging manifolds. Two types of control panel manifolds are offered:

• The HP-GP-540 medical oxygen gauge panel—a simplex manifold that manages vent, vacuum, and filling functions on all connected charging manifolds. The manifold is deliveredcomplete with three high-pressure master valves, a six-inch, 5,000 psi test gauge and a 4-1/2-inch compound vacuum gauge.
• The HP-CTR-540 Medical oxygen center control section, which is geared to high-production plants. The HPCTR- 540 is a dual function, center section control manifold. This manifold is delivered complete with six highpressure master valves, a six-inch, 5,000 psi test gauge and a 4-1/2-inch compound vacuum gauge. Special dual controls give the operator the ability to fill cylinders on one charging rack while pulling a vacuum and exhausting others simultaneously. This effectively doubles cylinder filling production.

 The control panel can be mounted directly above the charging manifold or separately on a wall-, floor-, or ceiling-mount.

Both control manifolds are constructed with high pressure brass pipe and monel type 400 tubing. The manifolds are panelmounted in a brushed aluminum frame. Both manifolds incorporate external venting, to vent gas outside of the building, and a low-temperature cut-off switch to shut down the system if the incoming gas temperature is too low.

Charging manifolds

VCE offers a complete line of oxygen charging manifolds for filling and evacuating CGA 540, medical D size and E size.

To maximize floor space utilization, manifolds are offered in single-, double-, and triple-tier configurations: grab and go, and other small cylinders. The manifolds are configured to make the best use of the floor space available. To maximize floor space utilization, the manifolds are offered in either single, double-, or triple-tier configurations: HPMED-25 single-tier design; HPMED- 50 double-tier design; and HPMED-75 triple-tier design.

The HPMED charging manifolds are constructed using high-pressure brass pipe; the framework is constructed of heavy duty steel. All the manifolds are inverted style, and are stainless steel armor guard pigtails with swivel ends are standard.

All VCE medical manifolds are hydro- tested at 1-1/2 times working pressure, then oxygen-cleaned to the CGA 3.8 standard.

Double- and triple-tier designs are recommended for facilities where space is limited. By adding a second or third row (tier), production can be doubled or tripled without sacrificing valuable floor space.

Each manifold tier includes a high-pressure master valve to isolate that row so that one row can billed at a time, or all rows can be filled simultaneously. This gives the operator the flexibility to control each tier independently.

The most desirable features in these manifold systems are their flexibility and adaptability, which permit expansion to meet demands in growth potential. Additional charging racks can be easily accommodated in future growth years.

Increased cylinder production demands can be met by upgrading to FasTest quick connects for CGA 540 and CGA 870 connections. This is the single best upgrade a distributor can make to maximize profits by increasing production. Operator ergonomics are also a safety consideration in their design.

Veite Cryogenic Equipment and Service; 34435 Mills Road; North Ridgeville, Ohio 44039; Tel: 440/327-2492; 440/327-0163 Fax; www.veitecryogenic.com; e-mail: sales@veitecryogenic.com Specialty Gas Report FOURTH QUARTER 2007 //