Article published by Work Truck Magazine. View the article from Work Truck Magazine here.

Vanair®, a Lincoln Electric Company’s Air N Arc® 330 Diesel 60 CFM ALL-IN-ONE Power System® consolidates six power sources into a single 750-pound enclosure driven by one 24.8-horsepower Kubota® diesel engine. Driven by one engine, it replaces the separate welder, compressor, generator, battery boost, battery charger, and EV charger that mobile service trucks often carry.

Construction service operations have long accepted a trade-off, Vanair® said. Carrying machines for welding, air, and electrical power means three engines, three fuel considerations, and three sets of mounting hardware, all consuming bedspace crews need for material and tooling. Carrying fewer machines could mean turning down work in the field. Vanair® said neither answer serves a contractor whose productivity depends on solving whatever the jobsite presents.

 

60 CFM Configuration

What sets the 60 CFM configuration apart is air capacity delivered without a corresponding penalty in size or weight.

The Vanair® rotary screw compressor produces 60 CFM at 150 PSI with maximum pressure to 175 PSI. That’s 50% more air than the 40 CFM configuration, and it does so without requiring an air vessel to operate.

That matters for operations running high-consumption equipment such as sandblasters and heavy-duty grease pumps, for two-technician crews drawing air simultaneously during a machine teardown, and for jobsites where the truck cannot park adjacent to the equipment and long hose runs give away pressure. Electronic inlet control regulates pressure precisely across the range. The compressor is assembled in the USA.

 

Lincoln Electric Chopper Technology®

The welding system reflects the Lincoln Electric engineering that came with Vanair’s integration into the company. The DC multi-process welder uses Lincoln Electric Chopper Technology®, developed to give engine-driven welders the arc control associated with inverter machines, delivering constant current for stick, gouging, and TIG at 35 to 330 amps and constant voltage for MIG and flux-cored arc welding at 14 to 40 volts. A direct-coupled Lincoln Electric AC generator produces 10kW of continuous single-phase output at 120/240 volts with smooth output for minimal distortion.

 

Connecting the Two Systems

Electronic variable speed control ties the system together. The engine adjusts RPM to actual power demand, throttling up when a tool draws load and returning to idle when it does not. This conserves fuel and reduces jobsite noise during most of a shift when full output isn’t required.

 

Key Features of the ALL-IN-ONE Power System®

Key features include:

• 60 CFM rotary screw compressor with 150 PSI with maximum pressure to 175 PSI. No air vessel required for operation. Electronic inlet control for precise pressure regulation. Assembled in the USA
• Lincoln Electric welding and power. DC multi-process welder with Chopper Technology® at 35 to 330 amps CC and 14 to 40 volts CV, paired with a direct-coupled 10kW continuous AC generator
• Battery boost, charge, and chassis charge with 330 amps of 12/24V boost with 50 amps of 12/24V charge back to chassis mode at up to 50 amps. It returns power to the truck’s own starting batteries while the unit runs
• Electronic variable speed control. The machine’s engine RPM tracks power demand rather than running at fixed speed, reducing fuel consumption and noise.
• Remote-mountable control panel. High-visibility LCD display with button controls, selector knob, key switch, dual 120-volt GFCI receptacles and a single 240-volt 50-amp receptacle. Mountable in a body compartment at standing height.
• Built for the upfit. 47.5 by 21.4 by 25.6-inch footprint, 750 pounds dry, 2-point lift bail, top or rear exhaust configurations, integrated chassis fuel system or optional built-on fuel tank, and latched lift-off access panels reaching all major service points.
• EV charging provision. A 240-volt receptacle supports Vanair’s EPEQ® Level 2 EV charger.
• Cold weather and durability. Integrated 12VAC cold weather package, brushless electric cooling fan and powder-coated galvannealed steel shrouding.

 

What These Features Bring to the Jobsite

With all these features and capabilities, what Vanair’s Air N Arc® 330 Diesel 60 CFM brings to the real world includes:

• Six machines become one, eliminating engines, their fuel systems, and their mounting hardware from the truck.
• The compact footprint mounts on top of a side pack rather than on the bed floor, returning bed space to cargo, material, and larger tooling on trucks where that space is perpetually short.
• Remote panel mounting removes the need for operators to climb into and out of the bed to change functions, eliminating a fall exposure repeated dozens of times across a shift.
• The integrated chassis fuel system removes a separate tank, its mounting, and a second daily fill point.
• 50% more air capacity than the 40 CFM configuration allows a single truck to support applications that previously required a second unit or a compromise in tooling.
• Electronic variable speed reduces fuel burn and noise during the substantial portion of a shift when tools are not under full load.
• Latched, lift-off access panels and side panels opening to all major service points keep routine maintenance accessible after the unit is mounted, reducing shop time.

 

Driving Productivity on Jobsites

Mobile mechanics and roadside service operations, construction and heavy equipment fleets, rental yards, mining, agriculture, oil and gas, and utility services can benefit by using the Vanair® Air N Arc® 330 Diesel ALL-IN-ONE Power System®.

Typical applications include field welding and repair, carbon arc gouging, pneumatic tool operation, tire and wheel service, sandblasting, grease and lubrication work, jump-starting and powering 120- and 240-volt tools and equipment at the jobsite.

The consolidation of welding, air and electrical power onto one skid is not new. What the Air N Arc® 330 Diesel does is remove the reason contractors historically declined it – the assumption that an ALL-IN-ONE machine compromises on each function.

This unit delivers Lincoln Electric welding output, a 10kW generator, and 60 CFM of air from a package small enough to leave the bed free and light enough to mount on a side pack.