“We hear leaks, chasing them is useless”

It has become almost common to say that leak detection on a compressed air system can pay off!

Who hasn’t seen those tags indicating the presence of a leak in a system? And then? Well, nothing… because of the lack of a proper action plan. For years, leaks have been detected and finally ignored, due to lack of time, energetic leadership and, above all, lack of communication between departments.

This task, properly executed, taking into account “detection and repair”, should be an absolute priority when we know that leaks “consume” 30 to 40% of the volume of air produced! Despite this alarming fact, which has been known and proven for years, many maintenance departments are burying their heads in the sand, hence the title of this article inspired by the Leonardo DI CAPRIO satirical film “Don’t look up”, in which the society prefers to ignore a scientifically proven large-scale problem rather than deal with it in depth. A planned leak localization strategy contributes directly to the reduction of the carbon footprint and allows considerable money savings. So why, you may ask, is this topic still relevant today? Why don’t things change easily in the field? I think the answer is directly linked to a lack of cohesion and communication between the different actors and departments: from the technician who detects, to the manager who quantifies, to the buyer who reports to management.