same: oct 2010

THE SOUTH AFRICAN MECHANICAL ENGINEER VOL 63 October 2010 1

2 THE SOUTH AFRICAN MECHANICAL ENGINEER VOL 63 October 2010


AN ENGINEER’S VIEW

Chris ReayChairman of the Working

Committee: Communications(SA Institution of Mechanical

Engineering)

Skills shortages’ is an amorphous concept that encapsulates many specific components, but at the heart of the matter is the idea that

the demand for certain skills exceeds supply. Instead of elaborating on the past and all the reasons that we have a degree of skills shortages, it serves us better to contemplate how to move forward.

If we look ahead and assemble some sort of connect between the demand status and the supply, this must include that which we experience at present ie, the day to day difficulties in locating suitable skills as well as the estimated demand that would arise from future growth policy.

It should not be beyond us to intuitively identify the type of skills we will need to

support an industrial or social development policy, or one that in our case should be implemented to reduce the current high levels of unemployment and its looming deterioration.

Could get worse, not betterGovernment has via its usual unsupported spin decreed that unemployment will be halved by 2014. The problem with that statement is that is has no rational change model to convince me that it will happen. In fact, unless there are some radical interventions in education and skills development, I predict that unemployment will in fact get worse, not better.

A major, if not the major, constraint on enabling the-fast-track scale up of all technical skills is the lack of the redeployment of the large number of retired, retrenched, emigrated and disillusioned engineering resources. Via structured and NSF and private sector remunerated programmes we would not only add to the line roles in deficient organisations battling with the location of the perfect candidate, but provide mentorship to the younger resources taken on in a trainee capacity. Here we talk of the proven need for experiential skills transfer.

Too oldI experience on a regular basis the rejection by cli-ents of the recommendation to consider an Engineer, Technologist or Technician on the basis that they are “too old” at, for example, the age of 61! Not only is this ridiculous from the perspective of experience and

Using Available Skilled Capacity

An extensive and well researched paper un-dertaken by the School of Economics at UCT demonstrated that Government departments have different views concerning the defini-

tion of skills shortages. This is largely due to the omission in any official government lit-erature of tying the concept of “skills short-

ages” to productivity.

the relevant qualifications, but it begs the question as to who makes this call? Well, Mr Perfect is not, even in the existing less active times, standing on the street corner awaiting your call. He has got a good job, and even if not busy, the smart employer is holding on to them because when the music really starts again, they will not be available. Most good resources only move to better positions. With acute shortages, this can become a sort of revolving door process that rapidly escalates pay levels.

If one needs some evidence that the retired genera-tion are well equipped to enhance skills develop-ment and in effect help to reduce unemployment, then do no more than study the success that the SAICE Projects team has achieved in providing retired Engineers including Septuagenarians and in some cases Octogenarians to the functions in local government and municipalities to mentor the Civil Technicians and provide line roles.

If we fail to implement this process across all engi-neering disciplines, then consider this. Time does not stand still. The demographics show a serious dip in well experienced and qualified engineering resources in the 30 to 50 age group. Then consider the numbers of candidate engineering resources emerging at the age 20 to 25. Who is going to mentor those academically qualified candidates who lack experience in the trenches? In the quali-fied artisan ranks, the average age is about 53. Studies estimate that some 20% of artisans are less than 40 years old. The same profile exists across most disciplines.

Paradigm shiftSo to those who live with the blinkered view that 60 plus year old Engineers are “too old”, consider that in most developed countries now the retire-ment age is being raised, not only to extend the use of skills, but also on the grounds that prescribed benefit pension systems have disappeared and working life has had to been extended. The para-digm has shifted.

Most good resources only move to better positions

� THE SOUTH AFRICAN MECHANICAL ENGINEER VOL 63 October 2010

THE SOUTH AFRICAN MECHANICAL ENGINEER VOL 63 October 2010 �

Monthly Column8 Surviving a Sinking Ship

Cover Story11 Enhanced Strength and Reliability

Computers in Engineering13 Computers for Machines15 Next Generation

Pipes, Pumps & Valves17 Pumping the Thick Stuff19 Which Pump to Choose?

POWER GENERATION TODAY23 Harnessing Natural Forces26 Power Generation News

Produced by:PROMECH PUBLISHING,P O Box 373, Pinegowrie, 2123Republic of South AfricaTel: (011) 781-1401, Fax: (011) 781-1403Email: [email protected]: www.promech.co.zaManaging Editor Susan CustersEditor Kowie HammanAdvertising Susan CustersCirculation Catherine MacdivaDTP Zinobia Docrat/Sean BacherDisclaimerPROMECH Publishing and The South African Institution of Mechanical Engineering as well as any other body do not take responsibility for the opinions expressed by individuals.Printed by: Typo Colour Printing, Tel: (011) 402-3468/9

Official Publication ofTHE SA INSTITUTION OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERINGand endorsed by:

CORROSION INSTITUTE OF SA SA PUMP MANUFACTURERS ASSOCIATION SA VALVE AND ACTUATORS MANUFACTURERS ASSOCIATION THE SA INSTITUTE OF TRIBOLOGY NUCLEAR INSTITUTE SA INSTITUTE FOR NON-DESTRUCTIVE TESTING NATIONAL SOCIETY OF BLACK ENGINEERS INSTITUTE FOR CERTIFICATED MECHANICAL AND ELECTRICAL ENGINEERS SOUTH AFRICAN ASSOCIATION OF CONSULTING ENGINEERS ASSOCIATION OF SOCIETIES FOR OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH

Power Transmission29 Geared for Quality32 What’s in a Gearbox?

Regulars3 An Engineer’s View

6 Institution News

22 SAIT

22 SAINT

28 Nuclear Institute (SA Branch)

35 Market Forum

42 On the Move

Contents

The monthly circulation is 4 242

CopyrightAll rights reserved. No editorial matter published in “SA Mechani-cal Engineer” may be reproduced in any form or language without written permission of the publish-ers. While every effort is made to ensure accurate reproduction, the editor, authors, publishers and their employees or agents shall not be responsible or in any way liable for any errors, omissions or inaccuracies in the publication, whether arising from negligence or otherwise or for any consequences arising therefrom. The inclusion or exclusion of any product does not mean that the publisher or editorial board advocates or rejects its use either generally or in any particular field or fields.

October 2010 VOLUME 63 NUMBER 10

Featured on the cover:

BMGs Chain DivisionTel: (031) 576 6200

Fax: (031) 576 6582

Email: [email protected]

Web: www.bmgworld.net


Council 2010/2011

Office BearersPresident .......................... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . G Barbic (George)President Elect ........................... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... D Findeis (Dirk)National Treasurer ................................. K Nyangoni (Kudzai)

Branch ChairpersonsCentral ..................................... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . M Cramer (Mike)Eastern Cape ................................................ W Rall (William)KwaZulu/Natal ........................................... AG Fileczki (Alex)Western Cape ........ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Prof B Collier-Reed (Brandon)

Portfolios:Communications .............................................. CD Reay (Chris)Education - Universities................... Prof JL van Niekerk (Wikus)Education: Universities of Technology............... E Zawilska (Ewa)Membership .................................................... E Zawilska (Ewa)Seminars and Workshops.................................. D Findeis (Dirk)Technology Programme ................................. SZ Hrabar (Steve)

Chief Executive Officer: Vaughan Rimbault

National Office Manager: Anisa Nanabhay

PO Box �11, Bruma, 2026

Tel: (011) 61�-�660, Fax: (011) 388-�3�6

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.saimeche.org.za

Membership: Central, Eastern Cape & KZN:

[email protected]

Membership: Western Cape: [email protected]

Company Affiliates

Alstom Power Service SA

Babcock Africa Limited

Bateman Engineered Technologies

Bosch Projects

Fluor SA

GEA Air-cooled Systems

Hansen Transmissions SA

Hatch Africa

Howden Power

Howden Projects

Industrial Water Cooling

MBE Minerals (SA) (Pty) Ltd (previously KHD Humboldt Wedag SA

Megchem Eng & Drafting Services

THE SA INSTITUTION OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING

Osborn Engineered Products SA

Rotek Engineering

RSD a division of DCD-Dorbyl

S.A.M.E Water

Sasol Technologies

SEW Eurodrive

Siemens

SNC-Lavalin SA

Spicer Axle SA

Spirax Sarco SA

Thyssenkrupp Engineering

Transvaal Pressed Nuts & Bolts

Ultra-Flow Engineering Services

Vital Engineering

Weir Minerals Africa

Winder Controls

A new lease on life“SAIMechE’s Events Department has a new lease on life having taken occupation of its new offices in Kloof, just outside of Durban. The compact office is located in the San-yati office development adjacent to the Kloof Country Club. With masses of parking, the new location is ideally suited for both staff and visitors. 24-hour security and an on-site standby diesel generator added to the attrac-tiveness of the offer.

The SAIMechE Training Events Calendar: Mid-Oct to Nov 2010

Whilst every effort is made to ensure that events take place as scheduled, SAIMechE reserves the right to

change the schedule as circumstances dictate. A reg-istration form and full terms and conditions may be

obtained from Carey Evans on email: [email protected] or call (031) 764-7136. Also, detailed individual

event programmes are available from Carey. Corpora-tions wishing to book In-House Workshops may contact

Linda Robinson on email: [email protected] or call (031) 764-7136.

E v e n t Code

Workshop & Seminar Names

Dates Region

E4610 Value Engineering & Value Management

17-Nov-10 East Rand

CPS10 Piping Seminar 19-Nov-10 Cape Town

ELL10 Key Labour Legisla-tion

19-Nov-10 East Rand

A3610 Project Management - A Review of Es-sentials

24-Nov-10 Durban

E1310 Structured Problem Solving Techniques

24-Nov-10 East Rand

A4710 Capital Budgeting for Projects

25-Nov-10 Durban

ALL10 Key Labour Legisla-tion

30-Nov-10 Durban

News!


THE SA INSTITUTION OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING


MONTHLY COLUMN

Unlike in the mov-ies, a ship sinks very quickly, so the deployment

of lifeboats has to be quick and faultless, independent of electrical mechanisms that may not function because the electricity supply on the ship has died. Hence the davits on which lifeboats are secured are usually mechanically activated to lower the boats into the water. These mechanical systems have to be maintained on a regular basis to ensure a smooth rapid launch at any time.

Special skills“SA Mechanical Engineer” visits Bosss Marine Services in Durban, a company that specialises in service and maintenance of lifeboats and safety equipment on vessels. “Bosss is the first approved lifeboat and davit service in Africa, currently holding fifteen major agencies for lifeboat and davit systems,” says Karl Engelbrecht of the Lifeboats and Safety Equipment division of the company.

“Our highly skilled technicians are certified with the various major European, Japanese, Chinese and Korean ship manufacturers and we have SAMSA (South African Maritime Safety Authority) as well as all major classification society approvals, allowing us to cover all the major ports in Africa.”

Surviving a Sinking Ship

A vessel out at sea functions as an island for the crew for days on end. But it’s also a vulnerable island prone to rough seas that

can cause even a large vessel to sink to the bottom of the ocean in minutes. The only

life-line are the lifeboats. These rugged self-contained little boats dangling on cranes off the side are as much part of the ship as the

chimney.

New lawBecause lifeboats are fitted in place and ‘forgotten’ about until there is an emergency, there have been many incidents over the years where the release systems have failed which people have paid for with their lives because the boats could not be launched. “The law governing issues around lifeboats is only about four years old,” says Karl. “One of the main reasons the law came about is due to many people dying just in lifeboat practice drills, never mind a real emergency.

“This is mainly due to the lack of maintenance on the mechanical equipment which holds the lifeboat in place such as the lifting hooks that operate on the on-load release principle,” elaborates Karl. “If not maintained properly or the crew are not trained in using the system, there is going to be an ac-cident. What often happens is that one hook will open but the other doesn’t and the lifeboat pivots on one end, hitting into people waiting to get into the boat. Generally such an accident results in fatalities.”

Lifeboat maintenanceThe manufacturers of lifeboats, life rafts and safety

The deployment of lifeboats has to be quick, faultless and independent of a ship’s electrical mechanisms

Karl Engelbrecht


equipment have to ensure that training service companies like Bosss carry out operational train-ing for the crew as well as doing the inspection and maintenance work on the equipment at the required intervals. “In essence, the new law means only companies like us are allowed to work on the equipment and not just any general engineering company or the ship’s crew,” Karl says. “We’ve come across some hair-raising alterations that crews make to davits and hook systems over the years. Then they forget all about them and the systems never get fixed properly.

“A good example is the North Sea incident a couple of years ago where 140 people died, entirely due to a winch failing and the hooks on the lifeboats not opening. In contrast, during a recent oil rig disas-ter in the Gulf, everything on the lifeboat systems worked like clockwork and thirty-odd people got off the rig without a single problem.”

The equipmentShip-launched lifeboats are lowered from davits on the deck and cannot be sunk in normal cir-cumstances. In situ, the boat is usually covered with a heavy duty cover serving as protection from sun, wind and rain. The cover, which is normally made of a reflective or fluorescent material that is highly-visible, can also be used to collect rainwater when in operation. Lifeboats have oars, flares and mirrors for signalling, first-aid supplies and are stocked up with rations of food and water. Certain lifeboats are more capably equipped to permit self-rescue operations and will contain supplies such as a radio, an engine and a sail, heaters, navigational equipment, solar water stills, rainwater catchments and fishing equipment.

Some ships and oil rigs have freefall lifeboats, stored on a downward sloping slipway from where they drop into the water as a holdback is released. These lifeboats are considerably heavier in order to withstand the impact of the water as they fall anything from ten to a hundred metres on an oil rig. Freefall lifeboats launch nearly instantly and are highly reliable. Since 2006, freefall lifeboats are required on bulk carriers that are in danger of sinking too rapidly for conventional lifeboats to be released in time.

Covering Africa“We prefer to carry out inspections and tests offshore so that the lifeboats can be dropped all the way as opposed to just some of the way on one side when the vessel is alongside at the dock,” says Karl. “In Durban we handle about forty vessels a month, but we also travel into Africa to service customer’s ships that don’t necessarily come down here.

“Although our core business is servicing lifeboats and training crews on how to operate the launching systems, we’ve also become involved in other safety aspects over the years,” Karl says in conclusion. “Life rafts and fire systems form part of our service

offering and we also work on oil rigs. Generally, our technicians must have a feel for engineering before they are trained in the finer detail of the product by the manufacturer of the equipment.”

Contact: Karl Engelbrecht, Bosss, Tel: (031) 205-5565, Email: [email protected]

One of the main reasons the law came about is due to many people dying just in lifeboat practice drills

Lifeboats are Voyager’s link to the rest of the world

Life rafts come in various sizes and can contain emergency equipment like radios and flares

A typical life raft in it’s container on deck

MONTHLY COLUMN


COVER STORY

The new fourth generation Tsubaki BS/DIN RS roller chain, the Tsubaki GT4 Winner series, boasts new manufacturing and ma-terial developments and the precision and

strength of the components of this series far exceed other chains on the market,” says Scott Larson, general manager for BMG’s chain division. “Four key features of this range include lube grooves, a seamless bush which is perfectly cylindrical, a centre sink rivet and a Tsubaki’s patented ring coined connecting link.”

Precision componentsTsubaki lube groove seamless bushes are precision components that hold oil at the point of contact where the chain needs it most, providing an internal reservoir for the lubricant. The result is a chain that lasts longer, with lower maintenance costs. The Tsu-baki GT4 Winner chain has a surface finishing that improves surface contact between the pin and bush, which means enhanced lubricant retention.

Chain designThe design of the rivet heads of this series enables easy disassembly, and in the event of the chain be-ing overloaded, markings on the rivet head clearly identify pin rotation. In addition, the ring coined connecting link allows the chain to be specified up to its full kW rating.

Furthermore, Tsubaki’s ring coined technology has overcome the problem of typical standard slip-fit connecting links which are usually much weaker than other links. The Tsubaki GT4 Winner chain is available from BMG in sizes 06B to 48B as stan-dard, with larger sizes on request. Single, double and triple strands are also offered.

ClutchesAlso new are Tsubaki’s back stop cam clutches, which are designed for high-speed, high-performance applications and have many critical features not found in conventional models.

The new BS-HS series has an upgraded cam cage and bearing supported design which provides a higher torque/speed capacity than other cam clutches. Other advantages include the use of a smaller clutch which provides cost-savings, and the

Enhanced Strength and Reliability BMG’s power transmission division has

announced the availability of a new range of Tsubaki high performance chains and clutches.

The result is a chain that lasts longer, with lower maintenance costs

Tsubaki lubrication-free free roller chain is designed for high power transmis-sion efficiency and reduced downtime in diverse industrial applications


COVER STORY

use of high-quality clutch component parts made from heat-treated alloy steel means better wear resistance and an extended life performance.

Selection of the proper cam clutch for each ap-plication and appropriate installation and usage is critical for optimum performance. For enhanced service life, correct lubrication methods and dust prevention care are also critical.

These back stop cam clutches also have an anti-rollover cam design that ensures durability against a heavy shock load in back stopping. The dust-proof construction of this series, with the combination of a double-lip oil seal and dust protective plate, keeps grease in and dust out.

Another important feature of the BS-HS series is

High-quality clutch component parts made from heat-treated alloy steel means better wear resistance

Tsubaki back stop cam clutches, designed for high speed, high performance applications, have many critical features not found in conventional models

reduced maintenance. Because heat resistant grease is packed into the unit as standard, only minimal maintenance for the lubricant is required.

These back stop cam clutches are designed for use in applications that include belt conveyors for min-ing, metals, timber, pulp and wood chip, as-well-as for bucket elevators for cement and grain. These units are also installed to enhance performance of large drift conveyors and screw pumps.

Lubrication-freeTsubaki has also announced its new lubrication-free roller chains which are designed for high power transmission efficiency and reduced downtime in diverse industrial applications.

The new lubrication-free Lambda chain series with enhanced wear resistant performance is suitable for use in environments which need to be clean, for example, in food processing, pharmaceutical and electronics manufacturing, where product contamination cannot be tolerated.

The easy disassembly design of the Lambda series retains full chain strength in the connecting links and also includes better wear life. This extended life service is achieved because of superior sinter-ing, bushing and an improved bushing-lubricant combination.

The chains operate efficiently in a wide ambient temperature range of between -10°C and +150°C and make use of shot-peened parts for higher fatigue strength. The surfaces of the outer and inner link plates are Fe403 blackened for better corrosion resistance and the durable roller offers a smoother engagement with the sprocket and less wear on the sprocket teeth.

There is also a significant reduction in the risk of chain breakage because a specially selected steel alloy has undergone effective heat-treatment.

BMG’s national branch network offers a technical advisory service on correct chain selection. BMGs Chain Division, Scott Larson, Tel: (031) 576 6200, Fax: (031) 576 6582, Email: [email protected] Web: www.bmgworld.net


One of the emerging technologies in the field is HMI (Human-Machine In-terface) systems where software and hardware components are combined

into an interface to make human interaction with machines much easier and a lot more pleasant than in the past. HMI’s vary widely, from control panels for nuclear power plants to the screen and input buttons on a cellphone. Designing such interfaces is challenging, requiring a great deal of work to make the interface functional, accessible, pleasant to use, and logical.

The interfaceTwo main components are needed in a human machine interface. The first is an input where the human user needs some way to tell the machine what to do, to make requests from the machine, or to adjust the machine. Examples of input de-vices include keyboards, toggles, switches, touch screens, joysticks, and mice. The interface also requires an output, which allows the machine to keep the human user updated on the progress of commands, or to execute commands in physical space. To simplify the use of this interface, espe-cially in the industrial machine context, it usually is a graphical representation of the plant, lately even including animated graphics to show that a fan, for example, is actually turning.

To catch up on trends and developments in HMI technology “SA Mechanical Engineer” visits Micro-power in Kya-Sands near Johannesburg to talk to

COMPUTERS IN ENGINEERING

Computersfor Machines

The world’s skills shortages have had many negative influences on industry in terms

of costs, but on the positive side they have also had a direct influence on technological developments aimed specifically at filling the vacuum left by the lack of skilled per-

sonnel who used to look after machines on a plant. As there are no longer engineers and artisans who faff and tinker around a plant all day to ensure the machines are healthy, failures have increased dramatically, costing

plant owners dearly.

Vaughn Venter

project manager, Vaughn Venter. “The use of HMIs has risen sharply over the past couple of years, spreading across all industries in a number of dif-ferent applications,” he says. “In South Africa, for example, many people use an HMI system purely to monitor production line efficiency on a plant.

Live data“One specific client was considering a new pro-duction line in order to handle higher production throughput, but after installing an HMI system that provided complete live data on downtime and efficiency on the line while running, they could ad-dress the problem immediately and it turned out that they did not need a whole new production line after all,” Vaughn says.

“We designed the system to display current plant running efficiency on a huge display on the factory floor which provides the means to react imme-diately when something goes wrong. Previously, data was monitored manually by a person walking the floor with a checklist which meant that data only became available at the end of an inspection round and the problem was then addressed. This application of HMI technology has become very popular locally.

The ideal world“In an ideal world, all your devices, equipment and process should seamlessly communicate with each other, sharing, collecting and displaying process data in a centralised portal,” explains Vaughn. “It

In an ideal world, all your devices, equipment andprocess should seamlessly communicate with each other

1� THE SOUTH AFRICAN MECHANICAL ENGINEER VOL 63 October 2010


that seamlessly relays data between all makes of devices including PLCs, drives, PID controllers and serial peripherals from all vendors. The G3 Series HMIs move data freely across over 170 different industrial protocols including DeviceNet, Profibus and CANopen/J1939.

Protocols“Not all makes of HMI systems have the feature of protocol conversion and data acquisition tools that can transparently capture and refine the data you need to trend and monitor in order to control processes efficiently,” adds Vaughn. “Yet, with this level of sophistication, the G3 Series is eas-ily configured with free software featuring drag-and-drop data mapping and extensive libraries of pre-configured device drivers as well as graphical interface elements.”

Micropower supplies system integrators with the hardware and software for these systems but often also gets involved directly in the customisation of a system for specific out-of-the-ordinary applications. “Each system is purpose built for each application,” says Vaughn.

“Being software driven, it’s a matter of programming exactly what the client wants out of the HMI system including the extent of the graphic representation of his or her plant components on the screen. We have extensive graphic libraries of standard machine components, but we often have to create the graphic of a machine or component so that it looks exactly like the one installed in the plant.”

AutomationHMIs are set to become as much a part of future industrial plants as the machines themselves. “I foresee that HMIs will play a bigger role in the future besides the monitoring and alert functions of today,” Vaughn says in conclusion. “They are already beginning to play an important role in managing automation processes such as controlling the mixing of ingredients that go into processes. This role is bound to be extended to control an entire plant, no only in terms of machine health, but also in running the processes carried out by the plant as a whole.”

Vaughn Venter, Micropower, Tel: (011) 462-1106, Email: [email protected]

should create a window providing a continuous view of all processes and be the hub connecting multiple device types while converting the diverse languages of industry to Ethernet.

“It should be an agent consolidating vital data into universal business platforms, revealing valuable insight through a scheduled daily e-mail, dynamic web pages or FTP downloads and should also be a sentry, continually monitoring processes for potential problems and delivering alerts via text message or e-mail to a mobile device.

Really existsToday this ‘ideal’ world exists and it’s brought to-gether by an HMI system through a series of input and output (IO) ports connected to PLCs, sensors and control components on machinery throughout a plant. “We have a system, the G3 Series HMIs from Red Lion in the United States that contains all the elements to achieve such an ideal configura-tion,” says Vaughn.

“It incorporates communications, data manage-ment and remote access into a single product

Many people use an HMI system purely to monitor production line efficiency on a plant

THE SOUTH AFRICAN MECHANICAL ENGINEER VOL 63 October 2010 1�

There’s been a lot of discussion about the rise of Direct Modelling in the pages of DEVEL-OP3D this past year. Ever since Siemens launched Synchronous Technology in the

summer of 2008, there’s been a renewed interest in non-history based modeling methodologies all across the industry.

IronCAD has been there from the very Tri-Spectives a decade ago and the system has proved that there is a viable alternative to history-based processes. Its flexible modelling technology allows users to define design intent with ease and use feature-based modelling to great benefit. The product has evolved over the last few releases to grow into an impressive modelling system.

Highly interactiveIts approach has always been highly interactive, using a combination of direct manipulation of ge-ometry, standard forms and user defined features to enable users to get their thoughts down digitally in the shortest time possible. The fact that IronCAD contains not one, but two modelling kernels has

Next GenerationIronCAD has been a leader in direct modelling methodologies for many years, but the latest release sees this enhanced with more traditional history-based design tool. We take a look at what’s new and how it works.

also set it apart. The use of both ACIS and Para-solid within a single application is still something unique to IronCAD.

This can bring benefits in problem modeling situa-tions. If one can’t build the geometry, the chances are the other can. With ACIS and Parasolid under the hood, plus PTC’s GraniteOne technology, the other huge benefit is that IronCAD has a very rich native data translation capability, allowing users to work with geometry from a much wider set of systems and with a much reduced chance of error.

Historically, IronCAD hasn’t seen the mainstream success of the modeling system-but this has begun to change somewhat in the last few years. IronCAD is now part-owned by Chinese software solution power house CAXA and the system has begun growing in adoption in the company’s home market. This has led to increase development resources and funding and the next release looks to bring the company from one of the also rans’ to perhaps achieve a bigger place in the grand scheme of things.

The irony is that this release sees a new direction for IronCAD.

While IronCAD has been distinctly non-history-based for years, the next release entitled IronCAD Next

Generation sees the introduction of a history-based modeling ap-proach for the first time. Alongside this there’s been an overhaul of the interface and extensive work done to bring greater tools for downstream processes, such as drawing and annotation. So let’s dive in and have a look.

A new lookThe first thing that’s noticeable is that adoption of the windows rib-bon interface scheme. While there are still the IronCAD favourites, such as the catalogues to the right hand side of the screen for standard features, parts, and rendering materials, the system now looks much fresher and more modern. Commands are segregated into panels for sketching, features, surfaces, assemblies, visualization (for display states and rendering), annotation and add-ins. Each is logically ordered and you’ll find

The fact that the programme contains not one, but two modelling kernels has also set it apart




that you adapt to the ribbon with ease.

Adding history With the introduction of the new history plus fea-ture-based approach, users now have to make a decision when starting work-whether the part lends itself to a feature history based approach, where action is recorded and available for editing, or is suited to the world of direct modelling.

This decision depends on the form of geometry and the experience of the user, but as a rule of thumb, complex shapes lend themselves to a history-based approach (where feature shape may become obscured, meaning editing may be problematic), whereas more prismatic parts, where feature forms are maintained lend themselves to direct model-ling method.

Whichever route is chosen, the user still has the same highly dynamic method of dragging and dropping geometry features, faces and edges that IronCAD mastered some years ago. And if the sketch/build feature/repeat method is preferred, the two can be mixed and matched within the same design environment.

New draughting toolsAlongside to huge change to how part and assembly geometry can be constructed, this release also sees a change in how IronCAD handles drawing produc-tion. In previous releases it used some home-brewed technology to build up a drawing environment.

While it was perfectly capable of producing produc-

tion-ready drawings, with all of the annotation and documentation required, the deal with CAXA gave IronCAD a more advanced tool that sold very well in the Far East. CAXA is known for its CAXA Draft application that brings a complete and extensive set of draughting tools, working as you would expect from any modern 2D CAD systems.

The IronCAD team has integrated this application directly within the IronCad interface making that rich set of tools available to its users. This provides a fully-integrated, bullet proof drawing system that allows 3D parts and assembly geometry to be used for the creation of documentation required to move a product into production. It follows a similar user interface style to many of the leading 2D design tools on the market today. Alongside this integrated 3D/2D approach, adoption now offer it as a standalone application, for those looking to maintain separate 3D and drawing seats within their design office.

ConclusionIronCAD will also provide an additional license of CAXA Draft free of charge that can be used alongside it (or installed on a different machine as its not tied to the host IronCAD license). There is a much lower cost version of IronCAD, called innovate, and this is a pure modeling system costing $1,295, which represents great value for money.

So what does the introduction of history-based modeling mean for users? There’s a huge resurgence of interest in direct model-ling at present and almost every vendor is jumping in with its answer. Autodesk has its fusion technology preview, Siemens has Synchronous technology, PTC acquired CoCreate and you’re seeing the filtering of direct modeling, History-less modeling introduced into Pro/E. Finally rumors have it that the next release of solidworks will have more direct modelling tools. I’m convinced that a combination of Direct and History-based modelling represents the future of 3D design.

The two, seemingly disparate approaches will merge over the coming years in release cycle from every vendor. What’s more interesting is that IronCAD started from the opposite end to most. It has mastered direct modelling and the introduction of history-based modelling can only serve its users better, giving them the freedom to work how they want. If you are looking at direct modelling as a potential weapon in your armoury, then IronCAD certainly has impressive wealth of tools at your disposal. There will be a trial version of IronCAD Next Generation available on www.ironcad.com and I’d encourage you to take a look.

Article provided by Develop3D, www.develop3d.com

While it may have been considered one of the minor players


Daan Louw

PIPES PUMPS & VALVES

In the process of treating waste water, lime and other chemicals are used to rectify the pH levels of used water. The high viscosity of lime, for example, often causes pumps to clog

up, resulting in elevated maintenance costs. To examine solutions for this problem “SA Mechanical Engineer” speaks to Daan Louw, sales engineer at Verder Pumps SA (VPSA).

No build up“VPSA can help with this problem in that our Verder-flex range of peristaltic pumps uses the process of peristalsis to pump products through a hose in the same way blood, food and oxygen is pumped around the body,” says Daan. “The pulsation ef-fect means that solids are kept in suspension and no build up can take place. Build up in the hoses are eliminated by using rubber Verderflex hoses that are designed to maximise life expectancy and performance.

“These hose pumps are designed to handle tough operating conditions, they reduce downtime, minimise maintenance costs and provide easy to operate and reliable solutions in difficult pumping environments,” Daan adds. “You only need two Al-len keys to dismantle the pump on site and attend to the problem there and then.”

The current focus on the environmental impact of

Pumping the Thick Stuff

Access to water is one of the

most important issues for any

mining process in South

Africa today. Natural

resources are becoming

scarcer and legislation is

forcing all industries to take

a closer look at the impact

of their processes on the

environment, especially the

mining companies who are

forced to look at ways of

optimising processes in order

to recycle and reuse water.

waste water and water quality makes it essential for mines to invest in pilot plants where tests can be conducted on a smaller scale and this is where Verderflex tube pumps come into play. “These chemi-cal dosing pumps accurately and repeatedly deliver a wide range of chemicals while performing under the same tough conditions to provide a reliable and controllable pumping solution,” says Daan.

IndustriesThe company provides a wide range of pumps and accessories on the basis of application and need, covering a wide range of industries including min-ing, water treatment, chemicals and paints and coatings. It also supplies pumps to the textile, ceramic, paper and pulp and cosmetics industries and is involved in recycling and remediation, food and beverage and agriculture.

“Providing solutions in pumping technology is what we strive for,” says Daan. “We aim to source the best possible solution to suit the application, providing customers with the best products, solu-tions and support available. In addition, we offer extensive consultation services to discuss pumping difficulties with clients.”

New seriesAt the recent Electra Mining show VPSA also pro-moted a comprehensive new series of Verderair diaphragm pumps. “The new VA25 series, based on the established and reliable Verderair concept is easy to repair and boasts features like less air consumption, higher fluid output and lower pul-

The new model offers 30% higher air efficiency than other AODD pumps, and a 20% flow increase


“The new polytetra-fluoroethylene (PTFE) dia-phragms are over-moulded and last up to 5 times longer than previous diaphragms, resulting in less maintenance downtime,” adds Daan. “The excel-lent material strength and more efficient, leak-free operation, makes the use of the Verderair VA25 diaphragm pump ideal in applications such as drum fluid transfer, unloading fluids, chemical evacuation, ceramic glaze supply, dewatering and sump evacuation and repackaging of fluids from an original container to smaller receptacles.

Features“The new model is easy to install, with up to eight ports on the new aluminium models and the option of flanges or threaded connections on the polypropylene models, it offers maximum instal-lation flexibility to suit any application,” explains Daan. “We provide a wide range of pumps and accessories on the basis of application and need, and are a trusted supplier to the mining, water treatment, chemicals, process and food and bev-erage industries.”

“The new model is designed with additional fea-tures for optimal performance, including a stall-free modular air valve for low pulsation and a smooth changeover,” says Daan.

“We are committed to ensuring that the best suited pump is selected for the right application,” Daan says in conclusion. “As energy efficiency and lower operating costs dominate the agenda during the current global economic downturn, we remain determined to provide the most efficient and cost effective pumping solutions.”

Laetitia Möller, Verder Pumps SA, Tel: (011) 704-7500, Email: [email protected]


sation,” says Daan. “The new model offers 30% higher air efficiency than other AODD pumps, and a 20% flow increase. “It is designed with addi-tional features for optimal performance, including a stall-free modular air valve for low pulsation and a smooth changeover.

You only need two allen keys to dismantle the pump on site

Pumping the thick stuff

The new polytetra-fluoroethylene (PTFE) diaphragms are over-moulded and last up to 5 times longer than previous diaphragms



There are reciprocating or positive displace-ment pumps, centrifugal or hydrodynamic pumps, slurry pumps, sump pumps, peristaltic pumps, spindle pumps, diaphragm pumps

which all come in different configurations, mak-ing it nearly impossible to make a choice if you’re not a pump expert. This is probably why there’s a high likelihood of ending up with the wrong pump being used in some applications, which is even more reason to consult an expert when having to make a choice.

To talk to such an expert “SA Mechanical Engineer” visits Predator Pumps in Lonehill near Johannes-burg where Neville Kurz tells us more about pump selection. “Being a pump supplier who can choose from any one of the pumps OEMs manufacturer makes our lives a lot easier in the first place. We then use our experience to narrow the field and eventually select the correct pump for the applica-tion,” he says.

Selecting a pumpThe function of a pump is to transfer a liquid/product from one point to another by converting mechani-cal energy from a rotating impeller/gear/rotor/lobe etc into pressure energy, or head. The pressure applied to the liquid forces the fluid to flow at the required rate and to overcome the system head, which includes the losses in the piping, valves, fittings and process equipment.

Therefore the pumping system designer must consider fluid properties, determine end user requirements and understand environmental conditions. In addition, pumping applications include constant or variable flow rate requirements, serving single or networked

Which Pump to Choose?Selecting the right pump for a specific job can be a harrowing task. Not only

is there a vast range and types of pumps available, but there are many manufacturers who each have dedicated pump ranges for a particular

application. To top it all, they all come in many different sizes and variants.

loads, and consisting of open loops or closed loops.

SoftwareWhen selecting and sizing a pump Neville relies on the experience he has gained in his 16 years in the local pump industry working for several pump OEMs and re-sellers before starting his own business two years ago. “We make extensive use of the OEM’s software to narrow the selection of the right pump for a specific duty,” he says.

“However if there is even the slightest doubt, we use independent software packages just to confirm the calculations, and in a lot of applications, specifically if they are challenging, we often revert back to basics by sizing and selecting everything manually, in spite of it being tedious and much more time-consuming than using the available software,” says Neville. “I like doing this because it gives you an opportunity to almost visualise what will be happening in the system as opposed to just entering numbers on a computer and getting the results.”

“In order to achieve maximum efficiency, you have to collect as much information about the pumping system as possible, and what the client wants to achieve with it,” explains Neville. “To size the pump, pipeline and system correctly you have to sit down with the client, not only to get all the necessary information, but also to ensure that both parties understand and agree to all the dynamics behind sizing the system correctly.

We like to get involved right from the beginning and then systematically go through the design with the client to ensure that the pumps we eventually specify fit into the layout and meet the requirements and purposes of what they were wanting to achieve.

Suction problemsThis is a tall order in any engineer’s book and

Neville Kurz

The pumping system designer must consider fluidproperties, end user requirements and environmental conditions



line requirements as well as NPSH, only looking at the delivery requirements and then blaming the pump if the system is not operating correctly. Generally, if you can get the product into the pump and the system has been calculated properly, then the pump will get the product through the system, but if it doesn’t get into the pump, it doesn’t stand a chance.”

“If, for instance, I get a client who is ada-mant about the type and size of pump he wants to install and I know it’s wrong for the application, I’d rather walk away than risk our good reputation,” Neville says. “Es-pecially as the majority of the OEMs see us an independent extension of their business and we have their full support in terms of guarantees and technical support. Such a relationship has to be maintained by deliver-ing good design and quality workmanship continuously.”

Personal touchBesides having the flexibility to select and supply pumps from any of the wide number of brands avail-able on the market and having the support of these OEMs, Neville is a hands-on man who likes to be on site whenever he can to make sure subcontractors fulfil Predator’s promise to the client. “Although we don’t do installations ourselves, we like to be involved throughout the installation and have a good understanding with the subcontractors we use in terms of overseeing the work,” he says.

“If there are any hitches afterwards I personally sort them out, but so far we haven’t had a major problem with any of the our installations and we have never needed to change out any pump that we have selected and supplied. This is purely due to our philosophy of doing our homework properly in the first place.

“Business wise, we live by our promise that we are able to engineer solutions for every pumping application in the mining, industrial and agriculture sectors as well as provide all spares and acces-sories with peace-of-mind in terms of after-sales backup and service,” he says in conclusion. “With confidence, we undertake to honour our agreements and foster a relationship of loyalty and trust with both our suppliers and clients.”

Contact: Neville Kurz, Predator Pumps. Tel: 082-773-2672, Email: [email protected]

A pump assembly ready for delivery

In order to achieve maximum efficiency, you have to collect as much information about the pumping system as possible

even more reason why pump selection is more of a science than just picking one off a catalogue. “Ninety percent of pumping problems occur on the suction side of the pump,” says Neville. “There is a tendency to miscalculate or overlook the suction


Today, maintenance is not only a high priority among plant owners around the world, it has been extended with sophisticated monitoring and control technologies to carry out predictive maintenance to achieve reliable

enhancements and life extension of plant and equipment while optimising maintenance budgets.

Predictive maintenance is made possible by a host of in-novative new technologies which can forecast the future condition of plant. A conference aimed at promoting these technologies was recently held at ABB headquarters in Longmeadow near Johannesburg. ABB, the leading power and automation technology group and Martec, a specialist reliability enhancement company, co-hosted South Africa’s first predictive maintenance and reliability engineering-based maintenance (PdMSA) conference, with “SA Mechanical Engineer” as a media partner.

Local event“Martec’s managing director and organiser of the conference, Mario Kuisis, tells “SA Mechanical Engineer” during a tea break. “Conferences like this are held elsewhere in the world on a regular basis, but not much is happening in South Africa on this front. We felt that the time had come to stage such a conference locally to encourage awareness and the adoption of predictive maintenance technologies.

“We’ve included a wide spectrum of the disciplines involved,” Mario adds. “We therefore have three streams over two days covering a broad range of topics on predictive maintenance technologies and systems across all industries.”

Pick and chooseThe eighty-plus delegates were addressed by 13 international speakers and forty-five presentations and case studies were showcased at the event, with delegates from over 25 com-panies participating, including the CSIR, Eskom, forensic engineering specialist Innopro, paper producer Sappi, insur-ance broker Marsh, Martec, ABB and engineering company Rotek Engineering.

“Based on the interest and support we’ve had this year, this should become an an-nual event because there is a lot more that can and needs to be said in terms of predictive maintenance,” says Mario. “Our delegate profile covered attendees from medium to large size organisations including city councils, each with their own specific interests, be it electri-cal or mechanical, large plant or small and even individual plant requirements.

We walked through the exhibi-tion area where companies displayed the latest in monitoring systems, cameras, control panels, testing equipment and all sorts of goodies to make any maintenance engineer’s life a lot easier. Most delegates we spoke to were satisfied with what they had learned and judging by the number of questions in presentation we sat in on, they were hungry for more information.

Meat on the boneThe only criticism we heard was from one engineer from the petrochemical industry who wanted more practical informa-tion on how problems were solved on the ground rather than the presenter purely advertising a specific product. “It is very costly to come here just to learn about what certain products can do - that I can get on the internet,” he says.

“To get value for our money we need to walk away with more knowledge from case studies in how they identified a problem, solved it and what benefits were achieved. Understandably, certain problems can’t be solved without the right equipment, but we need more meat on the bone.”

Mario Kuisis, Martec, Tel: (011) 326-2708, Email: [email protected]

Info for All EngineersThe maintenance of industrial plant is no longer a case of slogging around with an oil can in hand to ‘listen’ to the drone of a machine and then either applying a few drops of oil to get rid of the ‘knock’ in the bearing, or tapping it with a

hammer to get it ‘aligned’ and humming smoothly again.

Mario Kuisis


The main aim of the Conference is to provide partici-pants with an opportunity to present their work and to exchange ideas and results, and to meet people with similar tribological interests.

Guest speakersOur plenary guest speakers are Professor Bharat Bhushan, Director, Nanoprobe Laboratory for Bio- & Nanotechnology and Biomimetics, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Ohio State University, and Professor Kristian Tonder, of the Faculty of Engineering Science and Technology at NTNU, Trondheim, Norway.

TopicsExperimental, theoretical and case studies on the following topics can be submitted:

Industrial Tribology - Problems and solutions.Lubricants Testing and Condition MonitoringWear Processes and Tribology of MaterialsEHD, Boundary and Fluid Film Lubrication Biotribological applications Tribology and the environment.

SAIT, Tel: (011) 802-5145/6/7/8, Fax: (011) 804-4972, Email: [email protected], Website: www.sait.org.za

••••••

“Tribology 2011”First Announcement & Call For Papers

10th International Tribology Conference5-7 April 2011, University of Pretoria

Tribute

Too many times we wait until a friend and colleague has died to tell the world what they meant to us. Like most of you, I too am guilty of this. It was with great sadness that I heard of Pauline’s passing and I would like to pay tribute to what a gifted woman she was. As a colleague I dealt with Pauline for over eleven years and during this time grew to know her as a dedicated and committed professional. She was always willing to go the extra mile for her clients, irrespective of whether it would bring her a monetary reward.

Pauline had the uncanny knack of being able to see what lay beneath and she developed strong ties with many of her clients through her caring and thoughtful approach. She had a kind word for everyone and understood what true friendship is. Pauline’s untimely death is a great loss not only to the business to business publishing industry, but also to those of us to whom she was a friend and confidante. She was an inspiration to all whose paths she crossed, and I, like many of you, will remember her for touching my life.Coral Fraser, Coralynne & Associates cc

Pauline Bouwer


POWER GENERATION

Produced by:

PROMECH PUBLISHING,P O Box 373, Pinegowrie, 2123Republic of South AfricaTel: (011) 781-1401Fax: (011) 781-1403Email: [email protected]: www.promech.co.za

Managing Editor Susan CustersEditor Kowie HammanAdvertising Pauline BouwerCirculation Catherine MacdivaDTP Zinobia Docrat/Sean Bacher

DisclaimerPROMECH Publishing does not take responsibility for the opinions expressed by individuals.

Printed by: Typo Colour PrintingTel: (011) 402-3468/9

CopyrightAll rights reserved. No edi-torial matter published in “Power Generation Today” may be reproduced in any form or language without written permission of the publishers. While every effort is made to ensure accurate reproduction, the editor, au-thors, publishers and their employees or agents shall not be responsible or in any way liable for any errors, omissions or inaccuracies in the publication, whether arising from negligence or otherwise or for any conse-quences arising therefrom. The inclusion or exclusion of any product does not mean that the publisher or editorial board advocates or rejects its use either generally or in any particular field or fields.

This principle has been used by design engineers the world over in their ongoing search for alternative ways of utilising available energy forces to generate electricity. Many designs of

‘kites’ and similar devices ‘flying’ in the wind have seen the light to date. From large balloons with fins that make the balloon rotate to drive a generator, to ‘ladder mills’ configured to power a generator and even a kite-driven merry-go-round system turning a generator, are some pioneering designs.

Launched and retrievedHowever, some ideas work and some just don’t, but in principle, the idea of a winged craft driven by natural winds holds a huge promise as an alternative method of power generation. One of the more successful designs in this respect is where the winged craft has genera-tors mounted on the wings. These are driven by pro-pellers as the craft flies in circles on a tether fixed to the ground. How-ever, there still are quite a few problems with this system, called the Airborne Wind Tur-bine (AWT), as the craft has to be launched and

HarnessingNatural Forces

Anyone who has ever flown an ordinary old-fashioned four-cornered kite on a piece of string will know that the string needs to be strong, especially as the kite gains height catching the strong air-streams further up. You’ll also remember having to put a tail on

the kite to keep it upright otherwise it tends to go into a spinning dive as the forces up there

play havoc on the surface of your winged craft.

What the flying wing or kite will look like

Anton Cordier

Becker van Niekerk


POWER GENERATION

retrieved as winds come up and die down.

A South African design company has now come up with a huge improvement on the basic principle of the AWT, not only eliminating the need to launch

and retrieve the winged craft or kite, but the system can also be utilised under water to harness the enormous energy of sea currents to generate electricity on a large scale. “SA Mechanical Engineer” speaks to Anton Cordier, founder and director for engineering and design at Design Thinking Solutions (DTS) based near Pretoria.

Horizontal“In a major step forward in the search for sustainable renewable energy sources, we have now found a solution for the design and construction of large sea current and wind driven turbines, which when used in combination, will provide a large base load and peak power avail-ability,” he says. “This design allows us to manage the load bearing parts

effectively,” adds Anton. “It enables us to design and build very large wind turbines that are less complicated to run and require a smaller capital investment to manufacture.”

The underwater ‘kite

The untis can be used under water to harness the energy of sea currents


The kite design with generators fitted on the wings to generate power

POWER GENERATION

Anton has coined the design as being a ‘HAWT Kite’, a Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine Kite. “Cur-rent commercially available HAWT designs reach cost and construction limitations from about 3 MW upwards,” he says. “By removing these restrictions we believe there could be much larger cost effective HAWT’s on the market. As of 2010, the maximum power capacity of a HAWT design is 7 MW based on very high wind speeds.

Sea turbinesAnton conceived the HAWT Kite concept and, jointly with Dr Becker van Niekerk, developed the DTS wind and sea current turbines. Becker shows the mathematics and equations he’s worked through to compare their design with the rigid wind turbine mounted on a tower that has become a familiar sight on wind-swept horizontals all over the world. “Our constrained flying wing HAWT Kite can sweep through a larger sky area and generate more power per unit of time than static ground-based three blade wind turbines,” he says. “Our design will comfortably handle 20MW at 40 kilometres per hour wind for the HAWT Kite and 400MW for the Sea Current Turbines (SCT) Kite at a sea current design flow speed of approximately 7 kilometres per hour.”

The difference between the DTS HAWT Kite and those currently in operation is the use of multiple propeller-driven generators mounted on the leading and trailing edges of one or more free pitching wings, which are supported on aerofoil blades. “The blades in turn are connected to a centrally-mounted idler shaft capable of pivoting around a support tower,” explains Anton. “All the thrust loads generated by the wings and blades during operation are transmit-ted to the ground through a tether connected to a mobile-mounted anchor point on the ground. This, in turn, travels in a circle around the wind turbine in order to follow the wind direction.”

Control tailThe design obviates the need to control rotational speed of the main rotor assembly to ensure a constant alternating current frequency of RSA 50 Hz. “It is also not necessary to use variable pitch controlled propeller blades to maintain electricity supply frequency as is the case in a fixed tower, three-blade wind turbine,” says Anton. “The con-trol tail fitted to the wings ensures a lift to drag ratio designed for optimum electricity generation. Electricity is then transmitted via cables to a sup-ply substation.”

The company further proposes that by utilising pumped storage schemes in combination with their solutions, it would be possible to store the extra energy available in the integrated system to adequately power peak demand in the grid at all times.

Running steady“We’re presently developing additional types of

A model of the system designed

by DTS

Being submerged in the sea, power is available on a continuous basis unlike wind turbines

SCT Kites, all of which fly similarly to a wind kite, but are mounted in ocean currents running steady at around two metres per sec-ond with a tether anchoring the system to the sea bed,” says Anton excitedly about two of these designs. “One option ‘flies’ from side-to-side in the current, while the other remains stationary as prop-on wing turbine genera-tors rotate around an idler spindle. In all instances, large power outputs are possible. Being mounted in the sea current off-shore and submerged, power is available on a continuous basis, and not prone to the non-availability of wind supply problems associated with HAWT farms.

“The designs will not harm

any sea life at this stage as they are deemed as appropriate as ship propellers,” he adds in con-clusion.

Anton Cordier, Tel: 083 384-1116, Email: [email protected] or Dr Becker van Niekerk, Tel: 083 458-0021, Email: [email protected]


POWER GENERATION NEWS

Increasing productivityIncledon has obtained exclusive distributorship of USA-based ValvTechnologies, a global leader in the design and manufac-ture of severe-service ball valves, parallel slide gate valves

First column deliveredDSE seemed an obvious choice for the fabrication of the columns for the new Kusile Power Station since it has been involved in the construction of some 90% of all power stations in South Africa. However, as Kobus Marais of Grinaker-LTA points out, the last time any power station was built was some 15 to 20 years ago so, a steep learning curve was still part of the equation.

Fast, easy and safeTo respond to the basic power demands of the markets outside Europe and North-America, Atlas Copco has launched an extra variant of QAS gen-erators with basic standard specifications. This new version of QAS generators, the QAS flx, is ideal for all kinds of heavy duty applications like rental, construction, mining and shipyards. It will be available in 50 and 60 Hz.

The QAS range has been designed for fast, easy and safe transportation and on-site handling on virtually any unprepared surface.

The actual QAS range has a proven track-record and already comprises a wide variety of models rated between 14 – 571 kVA. The standard specifications of the QAS flx variant are more basic than those of the actual QAS range. Starting from these standard configurations, the end-user can however further complete this with a wide list of options to meet his or her power demand. This new variant of QAS generators will first come in the models from 13 to 45 kVA. Later more models will be added.

Housed in a noise-attenuated enclosure made from zinc plated steel and painted with powder coating paint, the QAS range is ideally suited for applications in noise sensitive areas.

The enclosure also provides optimum resistance against corrosion ensuring that it remains in good condition and retains an improved resale value.

Atlas Copco, David Stanford, Tel: (011) 821 9000, Fax: (011) 821 9106, www.atlascopco.com

The QAS flx, is ideal for all kinds of heavy dutyapplications

“Not only have there been advances in technology,” he says, “but the sheer size and weight of the columns involved meant that no existing facility could handle the project. We had to expand and upgrade our facility substantially to deal with the width and weight of these columns.”

The new revamped facility at Vanderbijlpark was designed with an extra-heavy bay so that DSE could undertake the contract successfully within the tolerances required.

“Because of the challenges involved and the new processes which we had to master and implement, it was generally predicted that we would overrun the delivery of this contract by four to five months,” Kobus continues. “However, thanks to our commitment, and I believe the expertise and profes-sionalism of each individual member of the team we were able to deliver the first column to the Kusile site during the first week in May – five days ahead of schedule.”

“The column supports the actual boiler,” Kobus explains. “So delivery of this first one was crucial in enabling the project to get underway. The columns rise 120 metres into the air and support the boiler and pressure parts, so structurally for the project they represent the critical path. If the structural steel is not supplied timeously, construction of the boilers and the pressure parts cannot be started on time.”

This is the first of some 40 columns which must be delivered over the duration of the contract which amounts to about R900 million.

Kobus Marais, DSE (a division of Grinaker-LTA Mechanical & Elec-trical), Tel: (011) 871 4111, Fax: (011) 871 4141

The first column ready for dispatch


and control valves. The products are manu-

factured from specialised ma-terials, includ-ing chrome molly – a

durable, low-alloy steel that

can withstand high-temperatures

and high-pressure applications of up to 4

500 bar.

Incledon VTR control valves managing director, Alli Alberts, explains,

“These valves are best suited to power stations and petrochemical plants, and can be applied to high-pressure and high-temperature applications in the power market, such as steam applications, and steam and catalyst applications in petrochemical plants. The major advantage of this technol-ogy is in its energy saving capability, as ValvTechnologies offers a 4 year ‘zero-leakage’ guarantee on steam applications the only product in South Africa that provides this type of guarantee.”

Alli points out that internationally-recognised ‘integral seat terminology’ is what sets ValvTechnologies apart from its competitors. “Integral seat termi-nology differs from traditional floating and trunnion-mounted designs, as the seat is an integral part of the body and; therefore, has no cavity areas.

Valves range from ½ inch to 36-inches in size and are rated Ansi 150# to Ansi 4500#; however, Alli notes that any size valves can be custom-made to suit customers technical requirements. He points out that Incledon now has the largest stockholding of severe-service ball valves in South Africa, with stock

POWER GENERATION NEWS

currently standing at around 250 units.

Alli says that as the South African power grid continues to expand, ValvTechnologies’ ball valves will become increas-ingly-recognised as the safest and most cost-effective industry option, as all products are SIL 3 and SIL4 (Safety Integrity Level )certified – the highest safety certification and require-ment for industrial plants.

Incledon, Alli Alberts, Tel: (011) 323 0800, Email: [email protected], www.incledon.co.za


NUCLEAR INSTITUTE (SA BRANCH)

During the investigation into TMI it trans-pired that a very similar incident had occurred a few months earlier in the USA at the Davis-Besse nuclear power

station, which is of a similar design to TMI. There they also boiled all their steam generators dry but were able to restore core cooling before there was fuel damage. Had personnel at TMI been aware of this precursor incident, TMI would probably never have happened.

The American response to all this was to create an industry-wide watchdog organisation called the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations. INPO assumed the responsibility for disseminating op-erating experience and for setting standards for excellence throughout the industry. All American nuclear utilities participated.

INPO influence rapidly spread throughout the western world, including South Africa, but unfor-tunately evidently didn’t reach the Eastern Block and the then USSR.

Death knellThen, in 1986, we experienced the Chernobyl di-saster which almost rang the death knell for nuclear power for ever. The nuclear industry response to this was to form the World Association of Nuclear Operators (WANO) with similar goals and ideals to INPO but with a totally global approach. All nuclear utilities worldwide duly joined. Both bodies now set standards, disseminate operating experience and carry out peer reviews in order to increase safety standards throughout the industry.

There are surely lessons in all this for other major industries. The petrochemical industry, for ex-ample, has experienced its share of disasters over

the years.

The Exxon-Valdez Tanker spill in 1989 created an environmental disaster while the Bombay High North fire in 2005 cost thirteen lives. The recent oil pipeline burst in the Yellow Sea in China is an environmental disaster with oil spreading over 180 square miles of the ocean.

The current Deep Water Horizon disaster in which eleven people died can be considered the petro-chemical Chernobyl. The effects on the environment of both accidents will be long and far reaching

The questions therefore to be asked are “who is carrying out the watchdog function performed for the nuclear industry by INPO and WANO? Who is acting as the conscience of the petrochemical industry as a whole?”

The oil companies themselves have their own monitoring organizations and BP carries out internal peer reviews, but nuclear experience suggests that there has to be independence.

In Britain the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) perform the regulatory function and in America it is Minerals Management Service (MMS) but this oversight function appears to be minimal.

Blaming cultureThe current situation with the Deep Water Horizon accident seems to have become a blaming cul-ture with the companies pointing fingers at each other. This is typical after such an event. The four companies directly involved are BP, Transocean, Halliburton and Schlumberger.

Initial indications with respect to the “root cause” seem to indicate a culture of taking short cuts to meet production deadlines in order to placate top management. This was more or less the same root cause for the Chernobyl accident for which two people spent a long time in jail.

The overall message is that accidents can happen to the best. The enemy is complacency. That is why a WANO-like Big Brother is necessary in every high risk industry!

Tug Wilson

The Need for IndependenceThe Nuclear Industry experienced a complete catharsis during the 1980’s as a result of the accidents at Three Mile Island

(1979) and Chernobyl (1986). Prior to TMI the monitoring of safety standards at American stations was carried out solely by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). Furthermore,

there was only one international body monitoring nuclear power operation and producing standards — the International

Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

Culture of taking short cuts to meet production deadlines in order to placate top management


POWER TRAMISSION

When “SA Mechanical Engineer” arrived for an interview, it was therefore a refresh-

ing surprise to find that one of the owners of SKS Gear Specialists in Benoni was a hands-on lady who didn’t shy away from the technical side of the business. “It was a fam-ily business which my grandfather started forty-five years ago,” says director, Sandra Law. “My father, Charles Saville, is now the MD and when he asked me to join the busi-ness over a decade ago, it was all very new to me,” she says.

The female touch“To familiarise myself with this very technical environment I went off to college to do engineering drawing as well as fitting and turning, end-ing up as the only female in a class full of young men,” she adds with a chuckle. “It was all a bit shocking in the beginning to be called ‘tannie’ by my class mates at the college, but I quickly overcame that.

“These courses provided me with basic engineering knowledge, the rest I am learning here on the workshop floor of our facility. In the beginning it was a steep learning curve, but it never stops, you learn more every single day.”

Geared for Quality

Gear cutting, especially on heavy industrial gears, is a messy business usually associ-ated with burly sweaty men in overhauls

intently stooped over huge lathes and grind-ing machines with metal shavings scattered all over the place while milky oil pours over their creations in a constant stream. At the same time, it’s a fine art which takes the

craftsman many years to perfect as he works his way up the ranks from artisanship to a specialist who can cut a gear out of solid

metal to within the finest tolerances.

Sandra Law

Gonnie Padayachee

Charles Saville

Hall of fameSandra’s father, Charles, concentrates on the technical design and the solving of uncommon challenges in terms of gear cutting technology and gearbox as-sembly. This we witnessed first hand as he took us through the boardroom where photos and samples of gears were neatly exhibited in a hall-of-fame style, each with its own unique story.

This tour confirmed that Charles gained his engineer-ing experience and design wisdom by not shying away from the challenges that have crossed his path during a lifetime in the gearing business.

Quality controlThe third director of the company, Gonnie Paday-achee, manages production execution and oversees the stringent quality control systems they have in place at SKS. “I joined the company as a young man and now, thirty-one years later, no-one can pull the wool over my eyes when it comes to manufacturing quality gears to the highest specifications,” Gonnie says, smiling proudly. “From just a handful of people we have grown to the forty people who now work in a facility that just kept on growing and expanding over the years as the need dictated.”

Quality control is paramount in our book, that’s what has kept us inbusiness for forty-five years


POWER TRAMISSION

“Our staff complement is relatively small but we’re all hands-on and we all get involved,” adds Sandra. “Most of the staff has been here for years and are very loyal. We don’t have industrial action problems and the like, making our business stable and trust-worthy.”

As we strolled through the workshop divisions behind the office block we walked through a new section under construction. Charles explained that they are building a bigger tool room where the tools for the cutting, grinding machines and lathes will be kept under lock and key. This facility will also house a department that makes the most of the tooling they use. “Most of the tooling for our single point cutting machines is made in-house,” Charles explains. “Imported cutting tools are expensive and not having huge volumes of the same cut, we can make and customise certain cutting tools cost-effectively.”

‘Old’ machinesAlthough there are several new modern CNC machines, gear cutters and grinding machines throughout the plant, some machines we passed seemed to be very

Modern CNC machines lined up in the SKS workshop

Gear cutting at SKS

We can make and customise certain cutting tools cost-effectively


One of the old machine in the the SKS museum

old and when we asked about this, Charles took us to the oldest machine in the workshop. Like many others in the workshop, Charles has modified the internal mechanical workings of this one to function within the fine tolerances required for the precision gear cutting of today.

“This is the first machine my father bought and with just a few refinements over the years it can do what any modern machine can do,” he explains with a glint in his eye. “Similarly, I’ve often made simple design adaptations in gearboxes to change an old imperial gearbox for a mining application, for example, to a metric one for which spares and bearing are then more readily available.”

Reverse engineeringIn sharp contrast we walked through the gear testing section where it was not only super-clean and tidy, but we could see that the machines used to measure tooth gear tolerances were new and computerised with outputs that showed tolerances on the gear teeth being tested within sub-micron precision measurements. “Besides our very strong capability to reverse engineer gearboxes, quality control has become our forte,” Gonnie says in conclusion.

“We even go as far as analysing the material to ensure that material specification is the same as the original and that the correct heat treatment will

POWER TRAMISSION

be used when the gears are made. Our informal manufacturing procedure entails full documentation that allows full control of traceability of every part that is made here. Quality control is paramount in our book, that’s what has kept us in business for forty-five years.”

Sandra Law, SKS Gear Specialists, Tel: (011) 845-2670, Email: [email protected]


But it actually starts long before this. The design of the gear tooth often has subtle refinements that

differ from one manufacturer to the next, in an effort to arrive at the optimum meshing of gears which in turn provides optimum transfer of power without wasting energy in the process. A slight curve, literally sub-microns wide and undetectable

to the naked eye, makes all the difference in achiev-ing the optimum transfer of energy when one gear meshes with another to transfer energy.

On a visit to Eickhoff ’s manufacturing facility in Wadeville near Johannesburg, “SA Mechanical Engineer” witnessed such a high precision gear manufacturing process first hand. “The success of a good gearbox lies in the detail,” says managing

What’s In a Gearbox?The performance and durability of a gearbox is determined by the precision

with which each individual gear is made. In turn, the precision of each gear is determined by the accurate cutting and grinding of every single tooth on ev-ery gear, including the heat treatment the gear goes through in the process.

director, Reinhard Jahn while showing us gear profile graphs on a test bench in the factory. “If you walk up to a gearbox and you feel heat radiation, you just know energy is being wasted. With an Eickhoff gearbox you won’t feel such radiation because our gears are designed for energy optimisation resulting in very little wastage in the form of heat.

Energy transferTo achieve optimum energy transfer with very little losses, the company strictly follows high precision manufacturing and quality control procedures. In addition, it follows European gear design standards which generally call for more metal in a gear than other international standards. “The European gear profile design standard is completely different from the American standard, for example,” says Reinhard. “Apart from the fact that the European design results in a much stronger gear because it has more metal in it than the equivalent American gear, the profile is cut differently as well.

Eickhoff has made its mark in the mining indus-

Reinhard Jahn

A test rig for gearboxes in the Eickhoff’s facilityMeasuring tolerances during the cutting process

If you walk up to a gearbox and you feel heat radiation, energy is being wasted

POWER TRAMISSION


The continuous miner technology was used to solve other gearbox problems

try in South Africa over the last couple of years with the continuous mining machines it is now manufacturing in Wadeville. “With our machines, for instance, we make use of spiral bevel gear technology as opposed to the straight bevel method,” Reinhard adds. “This means that for the same size bevel, you can transfer a lot more energy because the tooth in the spiral bevel is longer and therefore presents a larger contact surface for better energy transfer between the gears.”

Wind turbinesThe production of high-performance planetary gearboxes has made Eickhoff one of the leading suppliers of gearboxes specifically for wind turbines. “Highly-specialised gearbox technology developed over the years for wind turbine applications is now permeating through to our industrial gearboxes as well,” says Reinhard. “At the core of a wind turbine’s function of converting kinetic energy into mechanical energy, is the dedicated gearbox that’s responsible for transferring huge amounts of mechanical energy in a relatively small space. These gearboxes are so specialised that we only manufacture them at the main plant in Germany.”

Reinhard is a hands-on mechanical engineer with a long history of working with all types of mechani-cal equipment in the mining industry, so when it comes to gearbox problems he welcomes a new challenge.

Solving problems“Because we more often than not manufacture purpose-built gearboxes for specific applications, we’re constantly facing new challenges, but we have the facilities and the expertise right here in South Africa to always find a solution,” he says with a touch of pride. “A mining company recently came to us with a leaking gearbox that no-one could fix in spite of the double seal arrangement they had on the shafts.

“On our continuous mining machine, the cutterheads are in fact planetary gearboxes on a shaft and for this we’ve developed a toric seal arrangement that just does not leak,” explains Reinhard. “The mine’s leaking gear-box works more or less on the same principle and we suggested a design change using our toric seal arrange-ment on their gearbox. Even though it cost considerably more because it is expensive technology, it solved the problem and they haven’t had an oil leak since.”

Standard boxesApart from building customised gearbox solutions for unique applications, Eickhoff also makes a range of standard gearboxes for a wide variety of industrial applications. “At just one of the power stations in South Africa, for example, there are 140 of our gearboxes running and we have to keep spares of all the gears for installations like that,” says Reinhard. “We promise our clients prompt service around the clock on repairs and overhauls, necessitating a large stockholding on our part.

“From a mechanical engineering point of view, the gearbox industry is a highly challenging field, es-pecially if we start delving into the reasons behind gearbox failures,” Reinhard says in conclusion. “We’ve gained so much experience over time in terms of the root causes of gearbox failures that we can confidently tackle and solve even the most complex problems that come our way. As far as technology is concerned, we strive to utilise the latest methods available to test quality and analyse vibration before a gearbox leaves our facility.”

Reinhard Jahn, Eickhoff, Tel: (011) 902-5630, Email: [email protected]

Cut gears ready for delivery

POWER TRAMISSION

Can confidently tackle and solve even the most complex problems


13 leading international trade shows at one venue, will be happening in Hanover, Germany, from 4 to 8 April 2011.

Technology is shaping tomorrow’s world today! As a driving force behind future technological de-velopments, Hannover Messe sends out decisive signals and offers exten-sive scope for showcas-ing your products and services all along the industrial value chain.

Hannover Messe 2011 will be at full strength and will underline its global importance as a showcase for tomorrow’s technologies and ideas. No other event presents as many ground-breaking innovations and inte-grated solutions.

By attracting exhibitors and visitors from all over the globe, the show will provide the perfect platform for presenting technical innovations and visions. In Hanover, visitors will encounter top decision-makers from all over the globe and benefit from the role of the show as an accurate economic barometer.

Hannover Messe, www.hannovermesse.com

At Full Strength


Market ForumImportant featuresGoscor Power Products (GPP), part of the Goscor group of companies has launched the PTX series of Subaru pumps. The newly-launched range includes the PTX 220 two-inch pump and the PTX 320 three-inch pump.

According to GPP national sales manager Mark Bester, there are several important features in this new pump series. First, it will come standard with an oil sensor. “This is a low-level cut out mechanism preventing the engine from seizing,” he says.

Second, the crank case, being ribbed inside and out, transfers the heat from inside the engine to the outside. “As a result this engine runs 30% cooler than any of its competitors. This maintains the protective integrity of the oil for much longer periods, significantly lengthening the engine’s lifespan,” says Mark, adding that another feature that helps in the cooling of the engine is a specially constructed cover over the flywheel.

Third, the entire lubrication system on the PTX engine series is superior because of the new L shaped conrod oil pickup, which lubricates the timing chain, which, in turn, lubricates the valves and the upper part of the engine. “This system is a patented design and unique to the Subaru OHC system,” says Bester.

Fourth, the PTX 2” (220) has a 4,5hp pump as opposed to the 3,5hp of its competitors and the 3” (320) has a 6hp engine compared with the 5hp of its competitors.

Goscor Power Products, Mark Bester, Tel: 0861 (467 267), Fax: (011) 483 2194, E.Mail: [email protected], www.goscor-power-products.co.za

The crank case on the new Subaru PTX series is ribbed inside and out helping to keep the engine 30% cooler than any of its competitors

Ideally suitedBMG Hydraulics, formerly Goldquest and now part of BMG (Bearing Man Group) has increased its operations by approximately 70% in the last 18 months.

The division has extended its range of Vickers products to include the latest vane pumps, designed for high pressure applications. These pumps are ideally suited for use in smelter operations and are also used extensively on mobile trackless mining equipment in fiery mines.

“Eaton has recently upgraded the pressure ratings of its water-glycol Vickers V-series industrial vane pumps from 125 bar to 180 bar, to match the current pressure rating for

mineral oils,” says Mark Johnson, national sales manager for BMG Hydraulics. “As pressures in fire hazardous applications have increased, the need for higher pressures from hydraulic components has become more critical.

“Eaton’s Vickers V-series vane pumps, the only vane pump available with full ratings for water glycol, is set to further penetrate the primary metals and die casting sectors. The company is also planning to soon announce ATEX certifica-tion of the complete Vickers range, for reliable and safe use in hazardous applications.”

BMG Hydraulics, Mark Johnson, Tel: (011) 614 2004, Email: [email protected], www.bmghydraulics.net

Adding ValueCiti Bearings and Seals based in Vereeniging,

one of SKF South Africa’s leading Authorised Dis-tributors, received a repeat order for SKF Planetary

Roller Screws one of South Africa’s largest metal manufacturing plants.

“The Tundish Car Screw Jack Application at the customer’s Vanderbijl plant, can pose a high fire risk due to hydraulic

fluids mixing with molten steel,” explains Neil Logue, sales manager, Citi Bearings and Seals. “The application required

an immediate solution for reducing the serious potential fire hazard and we recommended SKF planetary roller screws


for the screw jacks in order to eliminate the chances of fire in the application,” remarks Neil.

This is Citi Bearings and Seals’ second order for SKF roller screws from the metal manufac-turer and Neil says that he has no doubt that the first order for SRC roller screws proved that the product delivered excep-tional value to the customer’s application.

Installation of SKF Planetary Roller Screws has largely eliminated fire hazards in the Tundish Car application and the metal manufacturing plant has recorded increased machine efficiency and reduced main-tenance requirements.

SKF South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Samantha Joubert, Tel: (011) 821 3500, Fax: (011) 821 3501, Email: [email protected], www.skf.co.za From left to right: Marc Fritsch, Bronwyn Smit and Neil Logue

Market Forum


Drastically reducedEcochem Pumps is to launch a well-known range of cen-trifugal slurry pump products and spare parts, distributing them to South African mines via Becker Engineering.

The two companies signed the distribution agreement on September 10.

Ecochem’s new pumps will utilise existing productive capacity in China, where a company sub-contracted to manufacture by a well known North American firm, has had its agreement terminated because of decreased global demand. The Chinese have been manufacturing the North American products since 1990. There are no ap-plicable patents in effect.

Ecochem Pumps’ managing director Ed Lemke describes the new range as identical in all respects to centrifugal slurry pump models installed at many mines across South Africa.

“We have dovetailed the local need for shorter delivery times

The Ecochem centrifugal slurry pump

with a glut of spare productive capacity in China,” Ed adds. “This allows us to quickly channel one of the world’s most comprehensive ranges of centrifugal slurry pumps directly into South African mines. “This is an excel-lent product backed by the entire line of spare parts, at pric-es comparable with those of commonly available equivalent slurry pumps. “De-livery times will be drastically reduced.”

“We will be able to supply any part that the customer wants within ten weeks of

order, even for parts we do not hold in stock,” claimed Lemke.

Ecochem Pumps, Ed Lemke, Tel: (011) 455 5710, Fax: (011) 455 5842, E-mail: [email protected]

Market Forum

A Vital linkAir Products is involved with yet another application of bulk gas in the mining industry – again with positive re-sults for the environment. The company has had a great deal of success with the use of ozone in the destruction of cyanide in gold tailings slurry.

By adding ozone, the cyanide in the slurry is effectively broken down, allowing the tailings to be safely re-intro-duced underground to be used as backfill.

This has significant benefits to the mine in terms of re-ducing the quantity of tailings sent to surface dumps and allowing water draining from the talings to be recycled back into the mine’s system. The overall benefit is the minimising of the release of heavy metals and cyanide compounds into the environment.

Sachin Kulkarni, Air Products’ National Sales Manager for Bulk Gases, explains that when it comes to dealing with cyanide tailings, Air Products offers a complete solution for its customers. While the process is operated by the customer, the system is owned and maintained by Air Products.

“This is a tailored, value-add to our customers: we look after the system and maintain it, making it easy for the customer and giving him complete peace of mind,” he adds.

Air Products South Africa, Sachin Kulkarni, Tel: (011) 977 6498, Fax: (011) 392 1637, www.airproducts.co.za

Local manufactureDynamic Fluid Control has fol-lowed up its March purchase of USA-based RF Technologies by initiating local manufacture of key RF valve components at the company’s Benoni works.

First steps comprise a re-design of valve bodies to reduce weight, and the production of initial sleeve samples from locally made moulds. These samples are currently under test.

DFC Mining director Tony Roberts explaines that finite element analysis of the re-designed valve bodies in the range up to 16 bar is now complete.“We will manufac-ture to DIN specifications for the European market and ASME specifications for the American market,” he says. “Manufacture of the sister aiRFlex valve will be rolled out as a second phase of the programme.

“With regard to sleeves (or tubes in USA parlance), we will manufacture locally in sizes 50 to 400mm. Larger sleeves will initially be imported.“Ultimately, we aim to achieve 100% South African manufacture of these pinch valves for the local market, while supplying components to subsidiary factories abroad.”

Dynamic Fluid Control (Pty) Ltd, Henry Smith, Tel: (011) 748 0200, Fax: (011) 421 2749, E-mail: [email protected]

Tony Roberts


sections per day, with each section put through strict quality inspection and verification after lining, including numbering and recording of each pipe in the tailings line.

Market Forum20 yearsUrethane Moulded Products has begun lining fabricated pipe sec-tions for phase two of the Konkola Deep Mining Project, this time for the process tailings line. The new, R4-million order placed on UMP follows the successful lining by the specialist polyurethanes company of seven kilometres of pipe for the backfill tailings installation during the first phase of the project.

Phase two’s pipelining comprises 5 526 metres of straight and bent pipe in nominal bores of 80mm, 100mm and 125mm. Section lengths vary between 1m and 9,144m.

As with phase one, the lining me-dium is UMP’s proprietary Redline polyurethane formulation, designed to deliver a minimum pipe life of ten years. The low coefficient of friction of Redline lowers the cost of pumping the tailings. It also reduces energy consumption and lowers the cost per tonne of mined ore.

UMP uses two pipe-spinning ovens to line a maximum of 30

Pipe section lined with Redline polyurethane formulation


Market ForumUMP was the first company in South Africa to successfully line backfill pipes when work was completed for the President Steyn Mine in the Free State in 1980.

This lead to several subsequent orders for backfill pipe-lin-ing at other mines, including Vaal Reefs, where pipes lined with Redline in 1990 are only now beginning to show signs of wear after 20 years.

Urethane Moulded Products (Pty) Ltd , Trevor Carolin, Tel: (011) 452 1000, Fax: (011) 609-6477, E-mail: [email protected]

Massive turnaroundsEngen Refinery has taken a giant step up in terms of im-proved environmental performance by completing a full year without having a single attributable sulphur dioxide (SO2) exceedance.

This is a massive turnaround over the

past five years com-ing from a situation

where the refinery ini-tially struggled to operate

within the limits set in its schedule trade permit.

Although the refinery, which operates under some of the

strictest environmental con-straints and closest monitoring in South Africa, may have up to 35 ten-minute exceed-ances (higher than permitted concentrations (191ppb) of SO2 for more than ten minutes) without penalty, not a single SO2 exceedance at any of the many Durban South Basin monitoring stations was attributed to Engen during 2009.

“This was achieved through a combination of intensive capital investment in technology and improved operating proce-dures. It was implemented in line with Engen’s policy of being industry leaders in terms of environmental per-formance,” says refinery general manager, Willem Oosthuizen.

The Refinery has also forged ahead in other areas aimed at re-ducing its environ-mental footprint

through proj-ects such as

the imple-mentation of an in-tegrated

w a s t e management plan which is now regarded as a benchmark for the rest of Engen.

Engen Petroleum, Willem Oosthuizen, Tel: (031) 460 3103, Fax: (031) 468 8797, Email: [email protected], www.engen.co.za

This drive solution is particularly suited to the energy-efficient operation of horizontal materials handling systems

Simply Good Movigear is SEW-Eurodrive’s answer to an innovative, decentralised mecha-tronic drive system. This system sets itself apart through its excellent networking features, support for independent monitoring and maintenance tasks and its ability to reduce startup times. SEW-Eurodrive has recently expanded the product series to include two new variants Movigear binary for stand-alone applications and Movigear AS-Interface with a simple fieldbus connection.

The Movigear is a true mechatronic product that combines the gear unit, motor, frequency inverter and communication system all in one compact housing. Due to its high overall efficiency, this drive solution is particularly suited to the energy-efficient operation of horizontal materials handling systems.

In this area, in addition to networked transport systems with multiple drives, there are also numerous individual applica-tions with small machines or simple conveyors that require

�0 THE SOUTH AFRICAN MECHANICAL ENGINEER VOL 63 October 2010

Market Foruma reliable and energy-efficient drive that can be started up easily on ocation.

The Movigear AS-Interface variant facilitates simple and economical connection to the fieldbus using a standard AS-interface. This version of the mechatronic drive system also allows for the use of configurable fixed speeds and ramps. In addition, external sensors that can either be processed directly or transmitted to a higher-level controller via the AS-interface can be connected. The binary inputs make it possible to operate the system on-site or manually.

Sew-Eurodrive Pty Ltd, Rene Rose, Tel: (011) 248 7000, Fax: (0 11) 248 7289, Email: [email protected], www.sew.co.za

Special trimsThe locally manufactured Spirax-Mitech severe service Energy Dissipating Disc Stack Trims are designed for use in high pressure drop and high flow rate conditions. As the liquid moves through the passages in the trim stack, the energy is dissipated through wall friction, swirling, sharp direction changes and a series of expansion chambers and restrictions.

Compact in design, each trim is specially designed for the application and can be combined with cavitation control, resulting in a high rangeability with a 200:1 turndown.

Suitable for cavitation elimination on liquids and low noise on gases, the disk stack trims can be separated and cleaned due to the loose disk design. The flow direction on liquids can be either over or under the plug, while the flow direction on gases must only be under the plug. The trims are available in various body sizes from 80 mm to 400 mm.

Spirax Sarco, Michael Jeffery, Tel: (011) 230 1300, Fax: (011) 393 1922, E-mail: [email protected], www.spiraxsarco.com/za

THE SOUTH AFRICAN MECHANICAL ENGINEER VOL 63 October 2010 �1

Market ForumPowerful impactWalter Becker South Africa (Pty) Ltd has been rated as a level 6 contributor to broad-based black economic empowerment (B-BBEE).

The company has been formally assessed by Emex Trust, an ac-credited BEE verification agency that bases ratings on the Codes of Good Practice and the DTI methodology.

“The Becker Group’s B-BBEE strategy has had a powerful impact on the expansion and improvement of business operations and we believe this new status augurs well for future growth of the company,” says Ken Quick, CEO, Walter Becker SA, a subsidiary of the German organisa-tion, Walter Becker GM BH Group.

“This evaluation involves the company’s compliance to empowerment factors identified by the DTI, which include ownership, management and control, employment equity, skills development, preferential procurement, enterprise development and socio-economic development.”

The Becker Group’s product portfolio encompasses communication and collision avoidance systems; au-tomation, electronics and energy distribution products; transport systems, pumps, shaft safety, underground and tunnel supports, as well as lifting and maintenance equipment.

The Becker Group of Companies, South Africa, Ken Quick, Tel: (011) 617 6300, Website: www.za.becker-mining.com

Order securedHansen Transmissions South Africa, local re-ceived an order in Janu-ary 2010 for the supply of nineteen gearboxes to the Petrochemicals Group Sasol’s Thubeli-sha colliery.

“We received the official order through Sand-vik Materials Handling Division, the company contracted to supply conveyors to Sasol Se-cunda’s new Thubeli-sha coal mine,” says Hansen Transmissions Sales Manager, Clive Dicks. The order con-sists of thirteen Hansen P4 horizontal right angled helical bevel gearboxes and six Invertible I4 industrial gearboxes.

“We will be supplying four different P4 gearbox sizes with ratios ranging from 12.5:1 to 31.5:1, AGMA kW ratings of between 263 and 1640 and installed motors of between 132 and 1 000 kW (Special). The gearboxes will be installed into the colliery’s incline shafts, overland conveyors, bunker reclaim and trunk conveyors”.

Clive explains, “Low speed gear sets are designed with high torque geometry for better strength and surface durability while high speed gear sets are designed with low noise geometry for lower noise and vibration levels.”

The housings of the Hansen P4 fourth generation gearboxes are designed to ensure easy maintenance with a horizontal split above the oil bath level, easy to remove inspection cover

Fritz Fourie, managing director of Hansen South Africa

Ken Quick, Chief Execu-tive Officer

Found in a pipeline near Komatipoort

�2 THE SOUTH AFRICAN MECHANICAL ENGINEER VOL 63 October 2010

On the Move

Index to AdvertisersAxiom Hydraulics 4

AST Pyroshield Inside Front Cover

Bearings International Outside Back Cover

BMG Outside Front Cover

Bonfiglioli Inside Back Cover

Chemserve Systems 18

Festo 14

GEA Grasso 30

Hansen Transmissions 31

Mecad 27

Multotec 38

SAID 40

SEW 10

SKF 24

Spirax Sarco 34

Voith 36

WCNDT Conference 22

Yellotec 12, 20

Please fax us if you wish to subscribe to “SA Mechanical En-gineer” at R400,00 (incl postage and VAT) per year; R945,00 per year for Africa/Overseas. We will post you an invoice on receipt of your fax.

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HPE Africa, the sole South African distributor of Hyundai earth moving equipment, is proud to announce the ap-pointment of Neil Sauls as General Manager.

Brandon Skinner has recently been appointed as Industry Sector Manager of Process Automation at Festo.

Vincent Chetty has been appointed Managing Director of Elgin Engineering.

Honeywell has appointed Dot Coetzee as their Manager of Business Development.

Neil Sauls Brandon Skinner

Dot CoetzeeVincent Chetty

Market Forumabove the oil level and patented maintenance free Oil-Lock sealing arrangement on high speed shaft extensions. As proof of Hansen’s design integrity, customers are routinely supplied with calculations proving the service factor and operating life of each gear, shaft and bearing for every gear unit supplied.

The locally designed compact Hansen I4 range is ideal for underground applications as they can be inverted ie turned 180 degrees, for either left or right handing, to eliminate the need for separate drives.

Clive points out that many coal mines, including Sasol Se-cunda, have standardised on the I4 due to the numerous benefits of reliability and unparalleled flexibility offered by the gearbox.

Fritz Fourie, Hansen Transmissions SA, Tel: (011) 397 2495, Fax: (011) 397 2585, Email: [email protected], www.hansen.co.za

THE SOUTH AFRICAN MECHANICAL ENGINEER VOL 63 October 2010 �3

�� THE SOUTH AFRICAN MECHANICAL ENGINEER VOL 63 October 2010

same: oct 2010

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