Monthly Archives: October 2018

In the 20th century, the industrial boom led to the creation of hundreds, if not thousands of power plants around the world, created in order to deal with our rising demand for power. They have even reached an almost iconic status thanks to their inclusion in the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant in The Simpsons. However, as the decades moved on and engineers found better ways to power our cities, the cooling tower started to become a less common sight around the globe, and as power stations started to close, many towers were simply left open to the elements.

While many towns and cities have made their abandoned cooling towers part of their skyline, with some choosing to light them up at night and pain murals on them, other towns have had no choice but to get ride of them, due to concerns about the safety of the towers, and the discovery that they had become structurally unsound. But demolishing a cooling tower can take a team of engineers several weeks, as these structures are unlike many other buildings. So how exactly does a team of people dismantle a tower? Below is a very, very brief guide that reveals how much work and care goes into the demolition of just five cooling towers.

For up to five cooling towers, a team of up to 25 engineers would begin their work by drilling a series of holes around the base and up the side of each tower.

These holes would then be filled with explosives and the secured with a cover made of either a thick wire mesh of rubber, which is designed to stop debris from being blasted outside of the blast zone during the demolition.

Before the detonation begins, each tower is sprayed with water to minimise the dust cloud that the blast will create, and make it safer for spectators.

The explosives are then detonated in a fixed order; with the explosives at the base being detonated first, which cause the tower to lean to one side. The charges along the side of the tower are then detonated a fraction of a second after the ones at the base, this second blast causes the tower to fold into itself.

The demolition, as you can imagine, leaves a lot of rubble, and this debris can take months to clear, but it can also be used to fill the holes that were once water pools for each tower.

The lack of a cooling tower or two can make a real difference to a town’s horizon, and while some people are really attached to them, the fact is that they are a dying breed. However, as technology has moved on, and more and more people start to view the cooling tower as a relic of a bygone era, perhaps more of them will be saved. Until then, with cooling towers slowly declining across the globe, we can do nothing but sit and wait and see if anything can be done to preserve them.

Cooling towers are an essential element in any large scale industrial activity recently. Due to the growing need of cooling towers around the world and in India in particular, many companies have been set up to meet the demand of such towers in various industrial applications. These companies now manufacture a wide range of such equipment according to specific requirements.

Many companies have now obtained ISO 9001 certification that proves their quality management in accordance with international standards. Industries such as petroleum refining, electricity generation, air conditioning, refrigeration, steel manufacture and processing and many others now require this sort of equipment for their smooth operation. Cooling tower companies in India now possess the requisite technology for manufacturing such equipment.

These towers meet the rigorous demands of various industrial concerns. It is a proud fact that these towers are also being exported to various countries around the world. To ensure that these towers can withstand rigorous usage in various industrial operations, these companies ensure that components utilized in the manufacturing process are tested and utilized after careful scrutiny.

Quality control procedures mandated by the ISO system essentially weed out any defects during the preliminary stages of manufacture. These products are minutely screened for any defect by a qualified team of engineers and technicians to ensure a virtually zero defect product. A variety of cooling towers are now being manufactured depending upon the actual requirements. These days, mechanical draft towers are much in vogue. Depending upon the use and requirements at the actual industrial site different types of towers could be required. Some of the most popular forms of such towers in use at various industrial sites are:

• Round bottle Type
• Rectangular Type
• Cross Flow Type
• Fan less & Fill less Type

The industrial revolution was the starting point for the need of such towers. Due to the massive growth in the industrial capacity of various manufacturing units, the main challenge faced by manufacturers and individuals was the removal of heat from industrial processes. This was compounded in situations where natural water resources were not regularly available. The power industry was one of the first users of these towers.

Thus, many a cooling tower company rushed in to meet the demands created in the situation immediately following the commencement of the industrial revolution. Such towers were initially made from wood, but the newer types of towers include FRP and RCC varieties as well.

Today, most industries utilize these equipments round the clock. These industries consume a significant proportion of energy to run these towers. Many energy conscious towers now utilize fan less and fill less towers for cooling. To summarize, cooling tower companies have now matured to deliver products that are vastly superior and very suitable for present day industry.

One of the biggest revolutions in water skiing came when Correct Craft developed and patented the tower. A tower mounts onto the deck of a boat like a cage that allows the rope to be raised from 3-4 feet off of the water to 7 feet of the water. This upward pull makes a dramatic difference in how wakeboarders, kneeboarders, combo skiers, and barefooters feel when they are on the water.

This upward pull makes skiers feel lighter while having the added bonus of keeping the rope out of the way. The tower also can be accessorized to add racks, speakers, and lights that are the ultimate “pimping” accessories for your ride. All towers are designed to fold down so that a boat can pass under bridges or on highways if you so desire.

If you have one of these towers, you have a brand new option for adding a boom to your boat. Before the tower, the boom could only be attached to the ski pylon or onto the opposite gunnel. A tower boom is the biggest break-through in boom technology by allowing it to be attached to the tower directly.

The benefits of having a tower boom, I will list here;

1. it keeps the boom out of the boat thus freeing up space inside the boat

2. it folds up easily for storage

3. the telescoping extensions that secure it to the tower allow for raising and lowering it

4. it definitely looks cool

5. it puts the skier in a very safe position near the driver and has all the great benefits of dramatically speeding up the learning of any water sport

6. it reduces injuries by adding an upward pull and a stable handle for the skier to hold on to

Tower Booms are designed to fit all types of towers on the market. There are even some suppliers who have gone so far as to guarantee that their tower boom will fit your boat or they will give you your money back. I recommend using one of these suppliers.

The tubing that tower manufacturers use come in different “outer diameters.” Knowing what this measurement is or knowing what year and tower manufacturer you have will be the only information you will need to get the right tower boom.

Setting up the tower boom for the first time is takes about an hour. You will need to mount the boom clamp on the rear leg of the tower as low as possible. In addition, there are two tower boom clamps that are mounted in a triangulated fashion to add an incredible amount of stability to the boom that is unparalleled in other types of booms.

After determining the locations of these clamps that best suit your tower, you simply attach the first boom are to the clamp via a heavy-duty quick release pin. The second solid aluminum piece inside the first piece, and then just adjust the length of the boom cables so that your boom sits securely where you like it.

Your tower boom will definitely be one of the most used pieces of equipment on your boat and it is designed to last forever. It is a big bonus having your ride rigged with the coolest equipment available that also helps you ski or teach like a pro.