CRADLE TO GRAVE •
“ However , even without being forced by law , motor users have a strong commercial incentive to install high efficiency motors ,” he argues . “ This is because a motor ’ s purchase price typically makes up only about 2 % of its lifecycle cost over 10 years . With another 3 % of this cost consumed by maintenance , a full 95 % of the cost of running a motor is the energy it consumes .”
It is clear , then , that reducing the energy consumption is the best way of saving costs when it comes to operating motors . One of the challenges , though , is that many companies incentivised their procurement departments to save money on upfront capital purchases – rather than on the broader cost to company .
“ Where a purchaser does not understand where their motors ’ real costs are incurred – that is , in their energy consumption – they will continue to pursue a false economy by choosing products with the lowest capital cost ,” he says . “ The small amount saved upfront is very quickly lost through higher running costs .”
He points out that , as a global electric motor manufacturer , WEG has been making efficiency innovations to its motors for decades – positioning it well to meet current and future market trends . In South Africa , Zest WEG has gone as far as to offer its IE4 super premium efficiency motors from 37 kW upwards at the same price as the IE3 premium efficiency units .
“ We have recently taken another important step in our efficiency and sustainability journey , offering the market our new IE5 motor – and taking our offerings into the ultra-premium energy efficiency class ,” he says . “ These motors are well suited for fan applications .”
Using smaller fans in these situations can give users the opportunity to install multiple units where they used to have only one large fan . As temperature conditions change throughout the day , one or more of the fans can be switched off completely , further reducing energy consumption .
“ We are very excited about this electronically commutated motor , which also comes with an integrated variable speed drive ( VSD ) and can be locally or remotely controlled ,” says Labuschagne .
FLEXIBLE PARTS MANAGEMENT OPTIONS
With a corporate focus on facilitating predictive maintenance through the flow of real-time data on its equipment , Sandvik Mining & Rock Solutions offers various parts supply and management options .
Among the options , according to Amith Ganasram , business line manager - parts commercial at Sandvik Mining & Rock Solutions , is Vendor Managed Inventory ( VMI ).
“ To streamline the availability of spare parts , our people can be on site with an inventory of stock that we manage ,” says Ganasram . “ The main advantage here is that this makes parts available to the customer at reduced lead times .”
He notes that his team works with the customer ’ s operational staff on site , as well as with the service teams from the company . This means that uptime can be optimised , as the right parts are readily available when they are required .
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Sandvik Mining & Rock Solutions
The inherent quality of Sandvik OEM parts safeguards the lifecycle of machines , minimising any unplanned downtime which could lead to lost production and revenue .
Alternatively , customers may prefer to opt for a stock model that is based on consignment . Under this arrangement , the customer manages a parts holding on their own site , but they only pay for what they consume .
“ We can conduct a regular audit every couple of weeks , for example , to check that the stock level is well balanced with the parts that are actually used ,” he says .
Every effort is made to allow customers to leverage the value of OEM components , as their inherent quality safeguards the lifecycle of machines , minimising any unplanned downtime which could lead to lost production and revenue .
“ We make it easy for customers to standardise on OEM parts , by creating bundled offerings when they purchase equipment ,” he says . “ This allows the customer access to high quality parts at a discount , when they take advantage of a total offering with new equipment .”
Through its advances in fleet data monitoring ( FDM ) solutions , the company offers customers digital tools to track the performance and condition of their equipment . This includes prediction of key indicators like Mean-Time-Between-Failure ( MTBF ), so that servicing and parts supply can be better planned . All these factors contribute to safer and smoother operations , with the lowest total cost of ownership for operating equipment . •
This means that uptime can be optimised , as the right parts are readily available when they are required .
African Mining African Mining • July 2022 • 43