Gardner Denver finds compressor oldies but goldies 25 April 2014

Gardner Denver has announced thw winners of its oldest working compressors competition – a 1963 Hydrovane, entered for the user by distributor Airvane Compressors, and a 1936 CompAir unit, entered for the user by Air Compressors and Blowers North (ACB).

"Our compressors have always been built to last, but even we have been blown away by the age of some of the machines entered, which are still in perfect working order," comments Colin Mander, regional director at Gardner Denver.

"It really is testament to the UK's great engineering heritage that these machines are still going strong after all these years," he continues.

"But it is also because the compressors have been serviced regularly, by factory-trained engineers, using genuine parts and the right maintenance techniques."

The 1936 CompAir Broomwade machine, which is located in an World War Two bunker, has clocked up an incredible 78 years of service, while the younger, 51-year old 1963 Hydrovane compressor is in daily operation at the University of Manchester.

Interestingly, the 1963 Hydrovane is one of around 70 other similar compressors in use across the university, all of which are serviced and maintained regularly by Airvane Compressors.

Meanwhile, the 1936 compressor, which has just passed its annual maintenance inspection with by ACB, has a history that includes serving at a U boat maintenance yard in Germany before making the trip across the channel to be donated to a professor in 1967, when his research facility opened.

The machine still has all its original starters, which are filled with oil and, although this type of starter is no longer in use, it has been preserved.

Brian Tinham

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