Pump and Abrasion Technologies® (PAT) unveiled its latest product range CURVE™ to the African market at Electra Mining 2016 and to global markets at the recent MINExpo in Las Vegas, USA. According to Sales Director James Pienaar the reaction to the CURVE™ from potential international clients has been highly positive.

Pienaar says that the CURVE™ measured up well against competitor products on show at MINExpo. “MINExpo is widely regarded as the world’s leading international mining industry tradeshow event. The best and most advanced and respected companies from around the world come to this event to showcase their products and new developments.

The fact that we were there representing South Africa and the Pump and Abrasion Technologies® brand, I feel, puts us and the CURVE™ range in the same league as these companies,” Pienaar commented. “The CURVE™ brand really stood out at the event as we felt that it competed well with other products on show due to the technology and benefits that the CURVE™ range offers. As a product with the potential to change the industry, we believe that the CURVE™ was head and shoulders above the rest and was definitely perceived as a product that has made significant improvements in its field.”

The CURVE range has been designed and developed by PAT over the past three years. Its design and features are based on in-depth research into what clients need backed up by extensive client feedback. The result is an innovative pump solution that is truly customized to the requirements of its end user, answering all of their operational needs. Based on the information that was gathered, the internal hydraulic layout of the CURVE pumps was redesigned to achieve a combined optimum for capital and operational cost when plotting the specific geometric size of the pump against the total lifecycle cost. In addition to this, PAT’s designers ensured that low energy consumption was prioritised in the CURVE’s™ design and that the CURVE™ could be retrofitted to legacy pumping systems with minimal changes to existing piping.  This results in 40-60% reduction in total ownership costs.

Overall, the products in the new CURVE™ range offer decreased energy consumption throughout the product life cycle, TOC reduction, longer wear life, increased efficiency and improved safety for personnel during both installation and maintenance.

According to Pienaar, the overall reaction to the CURVE™ from international visitors to MINExpo was one of enthusiasm and relief. “I think if I had to describe their reactions, the right words to use would be eureka or maybe at last!” Pienaar explains. “Many visitors to our booth said that they were incredibly excited to see a slurry pump that caters for the needs of the client not just with regards to the engineer but from the ground up. They were relieved to finally see something new and different in an industry that really has been stagnant for a number of years in terms of product design and new technology.”

“Usually when there is an upgrade in old technology there are only one or two new added benefits. With the CURVE™ range of pumps the added benefits are limitless stretching from running costs and safety to ease of maintenance and efficiency. There are more than 20 added features that differentiate the CURVE™ range from older slurry pump technology.”

Pienaar continues that the product features that visitors were most excited by included the safety improvements that make it safer to work with the pump and the lowered maintenance requirements due to the CURVE™ range’s longer life cycles. Engineers were captured by the CURVE’s™ overall reliability and uptime. Most foremen were drawn to the fact that the CURVE’s™ disassembly and reassembly time is half that of other pumps on the market. Overall, says Pienaar, the feature that made the largest impact was the CURVE’s™ offering of reduction in total cost of ownership for the supply chain, engineer and the owner. “The CURVE™ truly takes a holistic approach to its clients’ needs and ensures that every single division benefits.”    

This overall enthusiasm has translated into numerous new business and sales opportunities for PAT. “Following the launch of the range, there have been many enquiries from local, regional and international clients. We are currently in negotiations with several companies to facilitate an effective global rollout for the CURVE™ range,” Pienaar concludes.

More information on the CURVE™ is available at www.pumpandabrasion.co.za