FILTREX is the industry’s leading platform for filtration experts and professionals from across the supply chain to converge on trending topics.
This year, the two-day conference will be held between 8-9 November at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Berlin. It will include sessions hosted by experts sharing their insights in a series of talks, with categories comprising health, technology, sustainability, mobility and testing. Complementing the conference will be a tabletop exhibition, where company representatives and participants can network and share their expertise.
The event is organised by EDANA, which is the leading global association of nonwovens and related industries that utilise high-tech, engineered fabrics made from fibres. The conference includes the FILTREX Innovation Award competition, which is part of EDANA’s broader effort to support and celebrate innovation within its sectors.
During the mobility section, Hengst (formerly Delbag) global product manager Thorsten Stoffel will host his session With Safety and Sustainability Aboard – The First HL3 Certified Bag Filters for Railway Applications, where he will discuss Hengst’s FireTex line.
Fire hazard levels and the railway industry
EN 45545 is the European railroad standard for safety, which is applicable throughout the EU and the UK. It classifies railway vehicles in accordance with the fire hazard level associated with how they operate on a scale of 1 to 3, with HL3 being the highest. Within these vehicles, different products and components are categorised into requirement groups, with R5 covering ventilation, heating and air conditioning filters.
Testing requirements for R5 products include EN ISO 11925-2 for flame spread, ISO 5660-1 for heat release, ISO 5659-2 for smoke density, and ISO 5659-2 for smoke and toxicity.
At this year’s Filtrex, Stoffel will discuss how air filtration solutions are adapted to accommodate fire protection in rail. Hengst’s FireTex line of filters are flame retardant, do not generate smoke and do not drip in the event of a fire, and pass R5 HL3 testing. In addition, the material has been certified for toxicity of smoke according to DIN EN ISO 5659-2. The special treatment of the Hengst’s FireTex products has no impact on the energy balance sheet and dust holding capacity of the different designs of filter elements.
Hengst works with its component providers to ensure that fabric components are non-toxic and non-flammable, and combined this with its filter expertise to ensure that the filters worked efficiently and effectively.
To find out more about Filtrex and to register for the event, visit Edana’s website: https://www.edana.org/events/filtrex/filtrex-europe.
