While some industrial level sensor applications are functionally no more demanding than a toilet tank or home sump pump, this is far from always the case. Certain applications, like those in the HVAC, chemical processing, waste processing, and oil and gas industries subject their equipment to extremely harsh conditions involving extreme temperatures, caustic chemicals, constant abrasions, and more. When that’s the case, you need sensors that can withstand the harshest and most demanding of environments.
SMD Fluid Controls is a leading designer and manufacturer of float switches, level sensors, temperature sensors, and more for harsh and other specialty environments. Keep reading to learn more about what we can offer.
Stainless Steel Float Switches for Harsh Environments
Available in a number of configurations and mounting positions, SMD Fluid Controls overs a wide array of 316 stainless steel float switches ideal for harsh environments, with maximum operating temperatures as high as 150°C, as with the FS21 vertical float switch. Maximum operating pressure for these switches is as high as 200 PSIG – roughly the pressure exerted by 125 meters of sea depth!
Custom Temperature Sensors for Harsh Environments
Extremely high heat is a frequently found harsh environment in many industrial applications, from the food and beverage industry (where cooking and washdown sterilization are common) to manufacturing and machining.
SMD’s FT20 custom temperature switches are ideally suited for these applications and others, including power plants, engines, compressors, reservoirs, and other potentially harsh 
environments. Custom designs for these units can work on their own, or be utilized along with custom level sensors to combine functions and increase unit efficiency in even the most demanding of applications.
Hydrostatic Pressure & Other Sensors for Harsh Environments
SMD sensors like the FT60 use precise, continuous hydrostatic pressure measurement to measure liquid levels at low depths, and can can also be configured as hydrostatic pressure sensors for environments of as much as 300 PSI.
In harsh environments where point level measurement is needed, but conditions floats or other switches with moving parts, SMD’s optical and ultrasonic level sensors offer a good working solution. For instance the OS150 optical sensor works up to 2500 PSI, and the FL5K ultrasonic unit in pressures as high as 5,000 PSI.