Gardner Denver Blower Selection Guide

Choosing the wrong blower costs energy, creates noise issues, and shortens equipment life. This guide gives engineers and operators a practical way to compare Gardner Denver blower technologies, size equipment correctly, and match products to real process demands. It focuses on flow, pressure, efficiency, and application fit, with supporting charts and tables in the downloadable PDF.

This page summarizes the guide and highlights how Gardner Denver’s portfolio helps engineers and operators specify fit‑for‑purpose solutions, not one‑size‑fits‑all equipment. The downloadable PDF includes detailed comparison tables, performance charts, and technical references used by EPCs and plant teams every day. 

Blower selection directly impacts energy use, maintenance frequency, uptime, and system stability. Choosing the wrong technology can raise operational costs, increase noise levels, and shorten equipment life.  

Industrial teams face recurring selection issues. This guide helps address the following:

• Under‑sized or over‑sized blowers that waste energy
• Noise complaints in sensitive areas of the plant
• Misapplied technologies in abrasive or corrosive processes
• High lifecycle cost from running older or inefficient models
• Confusion over airflow ratings and pressure terminology

Each section of the guide filters options by actual operating needs rather than only catalog ratings. 

The guide outlines a simple process for defining performance requirements before you pick a model.  

Flow rate and duty cycle

Start with the required flow range in ACFM or m³/h at actual site conditions. Consider: 

• Minimum and maximum flow across operating modes
• Continuous vs intermittent duty
• Future capacity needs that may increase demand

Use ICFM when comparing equipment at the blower inlet, and reserve SCFM for standard condition reference only.  

Pressure or vacuum range

Define the expected discharge pressure or vacuum level, including normal operating points and peaks. The guide shows which Gardner Denver blower families cover:  

• Low pressure air and gas service
• Medium pressure applications up to the ranges listed
• Vacuum levels required by your process

Oversizing pressure capability often leads to higher cost and energy use. Undersizing leads to instability and trips. 

Environmental and chemical conditions

The surrounding environment and process gas composition affect blower life and performance. The guide prompts you to review:

• Ambient temperature and humidity
• Site elevation and its impact on density and capacity
• Presence of corrosive or contaminated gases
• Particulate load in the gas stream

Material selection for housings, seals and coatings matters in chemical and wastewater service. 

Space, noise and service access

Compact layouts, acoustic expectations and maintenance access are often the practical limits in a project. The guide explains how IQ packages and different blower geometries support:  

• Smaller footprint in equipment rooms
• Lower sound levels through design and enclosure
• Easier access for service tasks

This is a frequent source of cost in retrofits, where physical constraints drive technology choice.

The guide aligns blower technologies with the most common industries using positive displacement blowers.  

Key areas include: 

• Wastewater treatment and aeration
• Oil and gas and petrochemical
• Chemical processing
• Pneumatic conveying and dry bulk handling
• Cement and mining
• Aquaculture and environmental markets
• Dairy, food and beverage
• Pulp and paper
• Power generation
• Plastics and packaging