“Our ECUs, or Environmental Control Units, contain four fans and four motors, and they are variable speed,” said Ken Long, director of North American sales with Jamesway. “The eggs dictate what speed needed for the controlled environment, and the fans are all synchronized.”

Unlike competitors, if one fan should begin to fail or stop working, the others would pick up speed and replace what has been lost from the one that's not operating correctly. Generally, competitor fans have one large motor and one large paddle fan which can’t provide any redundancy if needed.

“The energy efficiency of our machines is very unique in that it provides significant energy savings to the producer,” said Long. “Our next closest competitor requires and additional 20 per cent annualized electric use just to operate the fans to supply the air within the machine. The next closest competitor is over double our energy consumption, and then the last two are four times the energy consumption. So, it's very substantial - in an annual year on an average size hatchery, a 2 million egg set would be anywhere from $5,000 on the lower end up to $100,000 variance.”

The fan system has profiles that dictate what is needed in the environment. An egg’s age and temperature determine how much fan speed should be applied.

How do poultry producers benefit?

The system includes four fans - two run counterclockwise and two run clockwise, providing improved air flow throughout the entire cabinet. Also, the energy savings are economically significant. An alarm system will alert the hatchery manager if there are any problems which offers producers peace of mind.