Mark Rhodes (Dehum) – Episode 21

Providing industrial humidification solutions may seem like a niche industry, but with billion-pound businesses involved, it’s crucial for a lot of the products and produce we use every day.

On this episode on the MCR SEO Podcast , Mark Rhodes, Director at DEHUM, explains why dehumidification is so important for so many unique applications, and how desiccant dehumidifiers are the future of efficient humidity control.

Watch the Episode here: https://youtu.be/w6AFmy56rF8?si=X6XU280X60YTmJGp 

The Diversity of Humidity Control Applications

After a brief introduction, Mark and James dive straight into the world of dehumidifiers.

DEHUM are an engineering company first and foremost, specialising in humidity control and product drying. They don’t provide off-the-shelf solutions and are fully application focused.

With some of the best engineers in the business, Mark and his team solve problems faced by a range of companies, from frozen produce to the manufacturing of aeroplanes.

In most cases they are approached by a company that needs their help with something humidity related. This could be as simple as confectionary not drying properly or something more specific – like keeping lithium free from moisture when batteries are being produced or ensuring the safe transport of a plane wing between hangars.

In Mark’s words ‘every day is a new opportunity’, and he stresses how the diversity of his client base and their needs makes his job much more enjoyable than other engineering roles.

But no matter what challenge the client faces, DEHUM always has the right solution.

 

Desiccant Dehumidifiers are the Way Forward

Mark explains how desiccant dehumidifiers (that use a silica gel to trap moisture in the rotor) are far more effective than the type you’d use domestically. Simply scaling up a regular dehumidifier for a large application is not only less effective at controlling humidity but is also far less efficient.

On the other hand, there is no limit to the scalability of desiccant rotors, meaning that DEHUM can handle jobs of any size. Thanks to their incredible efficiency, energy costs are much lower for desiccant dehumidifiers, meaning a faster ROI for clients.

Mark says that he can promise an ROI within 12 months, a claim that would seem ludicrous from anyone else. But with over 3 decades of experience and hundreds of successful case studies to call upon, Mark knows what DEHUM can achieve.

 
The Importance of Humidity Control

Controlling humidity is crucial across the manufacturing, storage, and development sectors, and an important consideration for dozens of others.

To make it easier to understand, Mark explains how humidity affects us compared to other materials. Humans are sensitive to temperature; we walk into a room and the first thing we notice is how warm/cold it is. What we aren’t sensitive to is humidity.

The opposite is true for classic cars. The steel, wood, and leather can all be ruined by excess moisture in the air but can be stored at a wide range of temperatures without any issue.

This knowledge of the science behind humidity is what makes Mark such an authority on humidity control. Understanding the engineering is one thing, but knowing what the goal is makes meeting with clients much easier.

‘A large portion of what we do is an education process. We want people to understand it, we want them to understand the impact of humidity on them, the environment, the business.’

 

The Business of Dehumidification

Working with such a diverse range of clients does come with its own issues. Mark and co. solve this by developing an understanding of the clients’ industry.

If it’s confectionery, they’ll take the time to learn about the entire process and build a solution around that. When they understand how the product is made, the way forward becomes a lot clearer, and there are no surprises during design or installation.

The goal isn’t always to fix an issue either. Desiccant dehumidifiers can improve the quality of products and ensure a higher average success rate of batches. One out of ten batches being less than perfect may not seem major, but factor in the hundreds made every week, this has a much bigger impact. Mark’s solutions ensure quality every time, whilst also saving on energy in the long run.

Faster drying is also something they specialise in. When a production line isn’t being slowed by drying times, more products can be made every day. No matter the application, this is a benefit any business owner can see from the moment the new systems are installed.

With such clear benefits, it’s hard to imagine why any business that needs humidity control wouldn’t pick up the phone and ask Mark to help them out. Better efficiency, lower energy costs, and a fantastic ROI for machines designed to last for decades, it’s a no-brainer!

But these results are only possible thanks to the incredible work being done by Mark and the team at DEHUM, and their unique approach that makes them one of the best in the world.