The demand for pumps efficiency has been prevalent for the past five to ten years; thus, industrial equipment supplier Rand Transmission South Africa (SA) has changed its product range and aligned it to meet market requirements and demands.

Despite Rand Transmission South Africa’s products accounting for only 10% to 15% of the cost of a complete pump unit, the company is determined to increase this percentage by introducing new value- adding products to its range.

“We have made several strides with our products to ensure more efficiency and a longer life span. This is noticeable in our range of Tagex V-belts – an integral component in most pump units – sourced from Germany, which we have worked on for more than two years to perfect the balance of neoprene, polyester chords and the outer fabric, as well as the curing process, to increase the life of the V-belts, as well as the amount of kilowatts that can be transmitted per belt, which decreases the groove requirements,” says Rand Transmission SA GM Marius Scheepers.

He explains that decreasing groove requirements on the V-belt decreases costs to the company’s customers, as the same wattage can now be transmitted with a two-groove pulley, eliminating the need to use a three-groove pulley, which also makes the V-belts more energy efficient. This is due to the efficiency of the V-belt’s construction.

Pumps Projects
Scheepers says Rand Transmission SA has been working closely with pumps manufacturers Gorman-Rupp Pumps and Dayne Robins to solve a complex pump setup. He explains that a pulley and coupling drive were required on the same shaft, which required the assistance of Rand Transmission’s engineering department head, Ewald van As. The pump set was optimised and now Gorman-Rupp Pumps can install the unit on site at the new fuel storage unit currently being built for a fuel supplier.

Rand Transmission SA also worked closely with pumps manufacturer Keto Global Mining Pumps Solutions on a large project during the last three months. Owing to the size and complexities of the project, Rand Transmission SA worked closely with the design and engineering team and the assembling plant, headed by Marc Young at Keto to ensure that the pump sets were delivered on time and adhered to strict client requirements.

In addition to its current projects, Rand Transmission SA is expanding its footprint into Africa, as it believes that Africa holds potential for growth. Strategic business units have been set up in regions such as Mozambique, Angola, Tanzania, Ghana, Mali, Nigeria and Burkina Faso.

Despite project successes, Scheepers laments that many mining projects that are reliant on the pumps industry in South Africa have currently been put on hold, with the exchange rate for different commodities, most notably gold, platinum and manganese, cited as the reason.

Rand Transmission SA continues to strive for efficiENGINEERING NEWS COUPON ON PAGE 74 E464973ency in both production and energy, despite South Africa’s challenging economic environment.