Space-saving designs, high temperature operation and energy efficiency were the hot topics
In early August, the International Woodworking Fair (IWF) took place in Atlanta, Georgia, bringing together woodworking companies of all sizes to promote new and innovative technologies. In all, 26,000 attendees visited with nearly 1,100 exhibitors. Air compressor system companies were in attendance, as their products are widely used to power hand tools or apply spray finishings. Likewise, the top vacuum pump manufacturers were there to talk to OEMs about integrating their products in CNC router boards, and to talk to business owners about upgrading the vacuum pumps that came with their CNC router boards.
Air Compressor Systems
Kaeser Compressors knows woodworking shops appreciate enclosed air compressor packages built with easy serviceability in mind. These models offer easy installation with only one process connection required, and come with a small footprint. That’s why Kaeser talked up its SX, SM and SK AIRCENTER rotary screw compressors, ranging from 3 to 20-hp and including an integrated refrigerated compressed air dryer, condensate drain, receiver tank and optional filtration package. For even greater ease, Kaeser offers its Sigma Air Utility maintenance package, where customers pay a monthly fee based on hours run, then Kaeser handles all monitoring and maintenance. It's a strong option for businesses expecting to expand in the near future, as there’s no air compressor purchase involved. “If someone uses compressed air a modest amount or a lot, it will be more expensive than purchasing the machine, but you’ve got to take into account the added value of us monitoring the machine and doing all service, no questions asked,” said Marketing Services Manager Michael Camber.
Michael Camber of Kaeser Compressors with an SM 10 AIRCENTER.
Atlas Copco Compressors split its IWF booth between air compressors and vacuum pumps. On the air compressor side, it promoted its 15 to 40-horsepower (hp) GA FLX series of dual-speed, oil-injected, load/no load rotary screw air compressors that save money by running at a reduced motor speed when unloaded. The series’ six models deliver maximum pressures between 58 and 191 psig (4-13 bar) and 53-213 cfm, automatically delivering greater flow at lower pressures. The Full Feature version includes a built-in refrigerated compressed air dryer. “They can run at any pressure variant they’re designed for and still operate on those load and unload setpoints,” said Regional Sales Manager Jon Wallace. Owners don’t need to change a gear, pulley or belt set to achieve wide-ranging pressures.
Gavin Green and Jon Wallace of Atlas Copco Compressors (left to right) with a GA FLX air compressor.
Hertz Kompressoren USA now has reciprocating air compressors for the standard 80-200 psi (5.5-14 bar) market, complementing its high pressure (500 psi or 34.5 bar and above) reciprocating air compressors. The company started selling its HPC-E reciprocating line this summer, and found a receptive audience at IWF. The line includes three models at 5, 7.5 and 10-hp, with respective outputs of 19, 31 and 38 cfm at 175 psi (12 bar). The lower two models are mounted to 80 gallon wet storage tanks, while the top model includes a 120 gallon tank. All include four layers of air intake filtration to not only clean the air, but also quiet the air compressor’s operation. “The standard here is a one-year warranty; it’s bumper-to-bumper,” said Ryan Summerlin, Technical Operations Manager, Hertz.
Ryan Summerlin and Walt Pitts of Hertz Kompressoren (left to right) with an HPC-E reciprocating air compressor.
PneuTech shared a booth with longtime partner WSI Machinery. The company showed off its rotary screw units with integrated compressed air dryers, as well as its ability to create custom packages. One model on display was initially created for a customer with challenging warm weather requirements. “This was somebody we worked with in Arizona, where the temperatures are so hot they typically like to double the size of the refrigerated dryer for the output of the air compressor,” said Daniel Schopf, National Account Manager, PneuTech. “Working with them is how we started putting this package together.” The package includes a 20-hp rotary screw air compressor, a refrigerated dryer and an integrated 120 gallon dry storage tank.
Daniel Schopf of PneuTech with an RK 25F rotary screw air compressor with an integrated refrigerated compressed air dryer.
Prevost showed off its variety of compressed air piping systems and quick-connect accessories, inviting woodworkers to step up to durable, high-quality products that can lead to greater efficiency. The company is known for its pushbutton quick-connect couplers, which began replacing older model slideneck couplers in Europe in 1978, arriving in the U.S. several years later. Its couplers are shock-resistant and durable, said Central Region District Sales Manager Jayson Schofield, noting 80% of compressed air system leaks come from connection areas. Prevost now offers larger 4 and 6-inch aluminum pipe size diameters. “We know woodworkers want to create high-quality products. Might as well use high-quality systems to get them there,” Schofield said.
Jayson Schofield of Prevost with compressed air piping systems and quick-connect accessories.
Schulz of America was at IWF to talk to its woodworking-focused distributors about its SRP Compact series of compact rotary screw air compressor systems. The line includes six models running from 7.5 to 40-hp, delivering from 25-150 cfm. Models come with 60, 80 or 120 gallon wet storage tanks. On display was the SRP 3015 Compact 15-hp unit rated for 51 cfm, which has a 60 gallon tank and can come with or without a soundproof cabinet. The company’s SMH line of high-temperature, refrigerated compressed air dryers can accept up to 194°F (90°C) inlet air and operate in 113°F (45°C) ambient conditions. “This dryer is designed to work in harsh environments. This summer, you had temperatures over 110°F (43°C) in Florida, Georgia and Texas. A standard refrigerated compressed air dryer won’t perform,” said Fabio Rosa, North America Sales Manager for Schulz.
Fabio Rosa of Schulz of America with an SRP 3015 Compact air compressor.
Tsunami Compressed Air Solutions showed off its Pure-7 heatless regenerative compressed air dryer, meant to be paired with 7.5-hp air compressors. It is rated for 25 cfm and includes a water separator and an oil coalescing filter, as well as a two-unit molecular sieve desiccant dryer. It provides dew points as low as -80°F (-62°C) when used in a series. This dryer’s fill is in a bag, preventing dust contamination and making swapping in new fill easy. The unit comes with a wall mount. With its compact solutions, Tsunami targets woodworking customer who use paint guns, sanders or other hand tools. The company plans to have a small point-of-use aftercooler ready for the Best Practices EXPO & Conference in October. “Our compressed air dryers are rated for up to 115°F (46°C) inlet temperature,” said Mike Kreklau, National Sales Manager. “We support mobile equipment applications whether they’re on trucks or pulled behind air compressors and the air is super hot, where they’re outside and there’s no control of the temperature. If we can have an aftercooler, it will not only help customer air systems collectively, but will also help our dryers and filter systems perform.”
Mike Kreklau of Tsunami Compressed Air Solutions with a Pure-7 compressed air dryer.
Vacuum Pumps and Systems
Atlas Copco saw two different types of vacuum pump buyers at IWF: smaller workshops and medium-sized companies. Smaller workshops often wanted to upgrade the pumps that came with their CNC router boards. They explored the company’s DZS line of non-contact dry claw vacuum pumps which range from 3 to 30-hp, provide maximum flows of 48-670 acfm, and offer 24-28”Hg. For medium-sized woodworkers that want to run multiple CNC router boards from a central vacuum pump system, the company recommended its GHS VSD+ line of oil-injected rotary screw vacuum pumps. These run from 7.5 to 125-hp, offer a maximum flow of 230 to 2,945 acfm, and all deliver 29.9”Hg. They include variable speed motors capable of 90% turndown. “As you continue to cut and make more leaks, the machine will speed up, creating more flow to maintain a constant pressure,” said Vacuum Business Line Manager Steve Nash. That results in roughly a 50% energy savings, he noted.
Becker Pumps highlighted its VTLF series of oil-less rotary vane vacuum pumps, which includes five models with between 6.4 and 24-hp, outputting 128-336 cfm at between 22”Hg to 27”Hg. Multiple units can be used in parallel for the same level of vacuum but double the cfm. The key selling point is the easy maintainability, letting the owner do much of the work themselves. “If the vanes break, you can take it apart, blow it out and put in a new set of vanes within 20 minutes, as long as you have them on hand,” said Marketing and Expansion Manager Mike Ruff. Buyers can choose to get their VTLF with a variable speed drive for greater energy savings. The VSD recognizes when the pump is already delivering deep suction and automatically slows down.
Mike Ruff of Becker Pumps with a VTLF vacuum pump.
Busch Vacuum Solutions wanted to entice woodworkers to step up from the vacuum pump that came with their CNC router board and switch to its Mink MV 0312 B dry claw vacuum pump. This model has no oil in the pumping chamber, and the twin claws are carefully machined to never touch – meaning there’s less wear on the parts and reduced maintenance. The vacuum pump uses 8.7-hp, delivers 203 acfm flow and offers 26”Hg vacuum pressure. Busch emphasizes its quiet operation (72 dB) as a selling point. “We’ve been having a lot of conversations about the efficiency of the pump. This pump is quieter, it uses less energy and it delivers more capacity at deeper pressures,” said Phil Kaht, Sales Director USA South. “These pumps are also made in the U.S.A., right in Virginia Beach, Virginia.”
Tara Magee of Busch Vacuum Solutions with a Mink MV 0312 B dry claw vacuum pump.
Dekker Vacuum Technologies covered all the bases at IWF by offering both oil-free and oil-flooded units. For lower-flow applications, dry vacuum pumps like its oil-free claw work well. For higher-flow applications, the company displayed the Vmax 553, a 40-hp oil-sealed liquid ring pump offering 550 acfm at 29”Hg. The full Vmax line ranges from 5 to 125-hp. “Often, we use Vmax for centralization,” said Business Line Manager Steve Nash. “If a plant has multiple router tables and they each require a 10-hp pump, maybe we put a larger Vmax unit on there so instead of maintaining three small vacuum pumps, he maintains one larger pump.”
Steve Nash of Dekker Vacuum Technologies with a Vmax 553 liquid ring vacuum pump.
Leybold USA wanted woodworkers to discover its NDk series of oil-less, twin screw, belt driven vacuum pumps capable of delivering 29.9”Hg of pressure. They’re pitched as ideal replacements for the vacuum pumps that come with a CNC routing table. The only maintenance they need is a belt change every 6,000 hours. Models come at 5, 10 or 15-hp, and, thanks to their frictionless design, deliver the same 350 cfm output as vacuum pumps with higher energy requirements. “20-hp versus 15-hp; it gets you the same amount of cfm,” said Brian Glover, Sales Engineer for Leybold USA. The booth showed NDk pumps arranged in a three-rack stacked configuration for redundancy.
Brian Glover of Leybold USA with NDk vacuum pumps in a triple stack configuration.
Quincy Compressor’s booth promoted its QSV-205 oil-sealed rotary screw vacuum pump, the starting model in the company’s QSV lineup. The 205 has a 7.5-hp motor, is capable of 18 to 29.9”Hg and a flow of 250 acfm. According to Ben Cameron, Business Line Manager with Quincy, the line’s 750 model, which has a 30-hp motor and a maximum flow of 814 acfm, is a popular option for woodworkers. “I visited a furniture manufacturer in Michigan two months ago. They had a dozen CNC machines and each of them had a QSV 750 operating under it,” he said. The QSV line offers variable speed drives, inlet filters and discharge separators. Buyers often see them as more energy efficient and easier to service than the vacuum pumps that came with their CNC router boards, Cameron noted.
Scott Stejskal and Ben Cameron of Quincy Compressor (left to right) with a QSV-205 rotary screw vacuum pump.
Republic Manufacturing showed its RCV-250 7.5-hp dry claw vacuum pump, an air-cooled model with no oil in the chamber and only uses oil in the side-mounted gearbox. The company promises low maintenance requirements and parts that don’t wear out since they don’t touch. A built-in silencer keeps the volume down below 85 dB. Set at 7.5-hp, it outputs 166 cfm at 24.0”Hg. “Everything’s made of cast iron so it’s a super heavy-duty machine. As long as you keep those claws clean, this thing will run and run and run for many years,” said Business Development Manager Jeff Joost. It’s part of a line of dry claw pumps that can be duplexed or triplexed for redundancy, or to create a centralized vacuum system.
Jeff Joost of Republic Manufacturing with an RCV-250 dry claw vacuum pump.
IWF will return to Atlanta’s Georgia World Congress Center August 25 to 28, 2026.
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