McCrometer Resource
Cross Company’s Process Solutions Group has been successfully working with universities and large campuses of buildings for years to measure how they are using their steam. Here’s a great technical article from one of our partners, McCrometer, which describes what the issues are in measuring steam and how their ExactSteam™ solution can be used in new or retrofit applications.
Confronting the Campus Steam Conundrum
Steam poses a unique challenge for colleges and universities.
Many schools want to accurately track, and then internally bill, for steam usage in each of their buildings as part of a wider effort to improve resource management. However, traditional steam metering technologies tend to be a less than optimal choice.
Most times, it’s necessary to place campus steam meters in the basements of buildings where there isn’t a lot of room for piping. That causes issues because flow meters typically require significant runs of straight pipe upstream and downstream of the meter to work correctly.
School administrators also encounter issues by trying to measure steam usage during the low-demand summer months. Common vortex meters, which contain a shredder bar mounted across the diameter of a pipe to measure flow, work well at higher flows. When it comes to low flows, however, they can stop working completely (i.e., low flow cutoff problems). Differential pressure (DP) flow meters coupled with the proper electronics, by comparison, can push the low flow cutoff value downward. However, most DP meters can’t get around the straight-run requirements.
Are you interested in learning more? Fill out our contact form with some details of your application and we’ll have a specialist get in touch! Also, learn more about the McCrometer products and solutions offered by Cross.
