When industries innovate and improve their processes, it’s an example of evolution in action. Blackwell’s, Inc.’s new abrasive media blasting facility, housed in a building that once served as a cotton oil seed house in the early 1900s, is a prime example of this evolutionary process.

Blasting Techniques and Their Evolution

Like most things, blasting has evolved over time.

Abrasive blasting, in one form or another (e.g., sandblasting), has been around for decades. If we include the blasting effect of nature’s windblown sand, then it’s been around forever. But like most things, blasting has evolved over time.

A Shift in Media: From Sand to Innovation

Using compressed air to blast with sand began in the early 1900s. It’s used to clean or profile surfaces for coatings. But abrasive blasting with sand is quickly being replaced with other types of abrasive grit because of the danger it presents to the health of workers exposed to the tiny pieces of silica dust created during the blasting. Not only is the dust harmful to the workers but it’s bad for the environment.

Abrasive blasting can be done outside but the dust and noise it creates can make for some unhappy neighbors.

In states like Georgia, where environmental standards are prioritized, CO2 blasting and dry ice blasting are emerging as safer, eco-friendly alternatives.

Many different blasting materials

The completely enclosed and sound insulated blast room in the new abrasive blasting facility

Even though sand is still available, it’s not the preferred blasting media anymore. Now there are many different blasting materials such as steel shot, glass beads, garnet, and aluminum oxide, walnut shells, corn cobs, soda ash, and even sponges. And, instead of dry abrasive blasting compressed air, wet abrasive blasting systems, using a mixture of abrasive and water propelled by compressed air, substantially lowering dust, are now available.

But some things about blasting have not evolved—it’s still dirty, and it’s still extremely noisy.

For specialized applications, CO2 industrial cleaning and dry ice blasting are also gaining traction, especially in enclosed spaces like Blackwell’s abrasive media blasting facility in Georgia.

Addressing these blasting issues

Blackwell’s, Inc. is addressing these blasting issues by using different abrasive blasting materials instead of sand, ensuring the reduction of dust emissions from abrasive blasting, and by reclaiming and recycling abrasive blast materials.  We can do this in our newly constructed and fully enclosed abrasive blasting and finish coating facility we have named “Casa Lámina” or “House of Tin”.

A cotton gin from 1910 to 1925

Originally a building used by Farmers Cotton Oil Company for cotton seed

The original Farmers Cotton Oil Company seed house before restoration

combing from 1910 to 1925 to retrieve cotton lint and manufacture cotton seed oil, cotton meal, and other cotton by-products, “Casa Lámina” is the center building of the new facility. The exterior of the building was covered completely with tin, hence the translated name, “House of Tin”. This section of the facility houses material storage, powder coating booth and oven, office, and restrooms.

Casa Lámina is fully operational now

The new abrasive blasting facility, on the south side of the original building, is a completely enclosed and sound insulated abrasive blast room, with a 16,000-cfm dust filtration unit, and an abrasive blast media recovery system.

This automated system allows for recycling/re-use of the steel blast media and other specialized blast media.

On the north side of the original building, is a new coating and curing facility with a 2000 sf coating room, with an integrated paint kitchen and a 40,000 Btu heat curing booth. This will allow us to utilize plural component pneumatic/electric spray units, in an enclosed facility for quality control.

https://www.blackwells-inc.com/media-blasting/media-blasting/