At Stelter & Brinck, with over 100 years of expertise in the process heat industry, we specialize in custom process air heaters — direct-fired and indirect-fired — designed specifically for industrial use. Process air heaters provide heated air directly into manufacturing process, optimizing system heat, energy use, and product quality across diverse settings.
Direct Fired Air Heaters
Direct-Fired Process Air Heaters are ideal for applications tolerant of combustion byproducts, offering fuel flexibility (gas, oil, or dual-fuel) and high heat output. They provide maximum efficiency in environments needing rapid heating or high volumes of hot air.
Stelter & Brinck offers:
- Gun Style Direct-Fired Air Heaters: Suited for low-oxygen, dirty process air streams or low emissions, handling challenging inlet conditions while maintaining performance.
- Duct Style and Packaged Air Heaters: Integrated packages for easy installation in ducted systems or modular setups.
Indirect-Fired Air Heaters
Indirect Fired Process Air Heaters are perfect for sensitive or contamination-critical processes, providing pure, clean heated air. Options include recirculating, non-recirculating, straight-through, and USDA-compliant models for food-grade or hygienic needs. Indirect-fired heaters separate products of combustion from the process air via a heat exchanger, ensuring contaminant-free heated air.
Stelter & Brinck offers:
- Recirculating Indirect Air Heaters (can be USDA Dairy Compliant) – Takes advantage of recirculated hot combustion side air to provide high thermal efficiencies in a compact size.
- Non-Recirculating Indirect Fired Air Heaters – Completely packaged systems that offer a medium efficiency, low capital cost solution to indirect heating applications.
- Straight-Through Indirect Air Heaters – Our most compact model, but doesn’t lack in reliability, dependability or efficiency.
(Above: Examples of Stelter & Brinck’s indirect-fired process air heaters in industrial configurations.)
Low emissions are available across all direct and indirect fired models, supporting sustainability goals.
Matching Heaters to Different Manufacturing Environments
Manufacturing varies widely — from abrasive materials to food processing — requiring heaters adapted to specific conditions.
- Abrasive or Dusty Environments (e.g., mining, minerals, garnet powder, milling): Gun-style direct-fired heaters manage dirty inlet air streams without clogging or efficiency loss, providing durable, reliable heat.
- Chemical and Composite Manufacturing (e.g., laminating, curing composites): Indirect-fired heaters deliver clean air to prevent contamination of sensitive materials, ensuring product integrity.
- Food and Dairy Processing: Indirect air heaters supply hygienic, contaminant-free hot air for drying or heating, meeting strict regulatory standards while maintaining efficiency.
- High-Temperature or High-Pressure Processes (e.g., metals preheating, industrial drying): High-temperature gun-style or recirculating indirect models handle extreme conditions with robust construction.
- General Industrial: Packaged or duct-style direct fired heaters offer flexible integration, high efficiency, and low maintenance for consistent performance.
Customers across these sectors praise our heaters for reliable operation in tough conditions.
(Above: Stelter & Brinck indirect-fired straight-through and high-temp gun-style heaters.)
Why Choose Stelter & Brinck?
With a century of innovation, we custom-engineer each heater to your exact specifications — from airflow and temperature to fuel type and emissions. Stelter & Brinck air heaters are test-fired in-house before shipment, and are backed by expert engineering, responsive field service, and comprehensive combustion parts/support.
Whether your manufacturing environment involves harsh particulates, strict cleanliness, or high-output demands, our process air heaters provide the reliable, efficient heat your operations require.
Contact Stelter & Brinck today to discuss your process heating needs. Visit stelterbrinck.com for more details on our full range of process air heaters and services.