Idea for filtered area for CNC router or other non-clean equipment

We have a trail of aluminum chips and wood dust from our CNC machine to our print room. Our CNC guy tracks it there whenever he walks around... So while this would help with airborn stuff, it might lead to more consolidated stuff on the floor that will get outside the clean room anyways. One picture does look like it has a vent on the top... so it might work really good, trap the dust particles inside... have an air vent collecting and filtering them out.

We cut a lot of pollyplate on our CNC machine... One day we decided to wrap a vehicle on the other end of the shop. I'm talking 50-60 ft away from the CNC machine - We brought it in at the end of the day..cleaned the car up... everything was spotless. Next day we came in.. and there was a layer of dust particles on the whole vehicle and our floor. we actually have a vent ontop of our CNC machine now to collect whatever it can and spit it outside... but the thought of the curtain divider keeping every little particle confined to a 10 x 10 area, and our CNC guy sitting in the midst of a dust storm made me laugh

 

A good dust collection system will really improve things.

 

Our old cnc operator would sweep all day and didn't tell anyone it was a problem. On e he retired and I learned cnc so I could train someone else... I saw what a problem it was.

We had a dust collector that ran on compressed air. It did something like 75 cfm. We went out and bought a proper dust collector... One that does 1500 cfm, and that solved most of the problems. We 3d printed a new boot that had more coverage and a thicker brush... And that solved all the dust floating in the air.

The only time we get dust/aluminum chips is when the router is cutting at the edge of the table... It flats out faster than the dust collector can suck it up, and since it's at the edge of the table it's impossible to enclose it fully.

You could spend 100k on a system and I doubt it'll ever be completely dust free.

Did you know...CNC operators are required to wear face masks, safety goggles and ear protection at all times? At least in Canada, I'm not sure on American rules... But our multicam operating manual also specifies it, so I imagine it's the same.

Chips still get tracked around. It's just the nature of the business - it's why everyone always says it needs to be in its own room. Then the particles aren't airborne at least. We spent probably $3000 upgrading the dust collection system, it's much better. I wouldn't enclose the space unless you add an exhaust fan though.

Even the lubricant/mist tends to evaporate and go in the air. It's supposed to be green/healthy... But who knows.

 

Or you could do what my previous employer did and never clean it up so you have various substrate particles up to your knees (not exaggerating there) and have to spend a whole day shoveling it up and cleaning out the vacuum system with bags that were overflowing with toxic materials >(

 

It's the 5 micro invisible particles that will kill you. Not the ones you can shovel.