Diesel Dynamics
| by Austin Gamble
The Importance of High Quality
Diesel Test Benches
“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting it to come out different” has been
attributed to both Benjamin Franklin and Albert Einstein, but no matter who said it, when it comes to utilising low
quality diesel test benches the quotation is spot on.
P
roprietors of diesel pump rooms play a critical role in
the economy, as they effectively keep vehicle fleets
running efficiently, and the more efficient the better for the
economy. And key to this activity is the
quality of diesel test benches, because
with the increasing cost of diesel fuel
(and fuel is by far the most expensive
cost input in fleets) any improvement
in fuel consumption, extrapolated over
the country’s commercial vehicle
parc, is massive. Utilising low
quality diesel test benches, with
inaccuracy guaranteed each
and every time thus equates to
insanity.
In addition, planned and
unplanned “vehicle off
road” (VOR) time disrupts
service delivery and adds
cost to operational budgets.
For example, many fleet
operations put the cost of
downtime in the region of
R30 000 to R40 000 per truck
per day. This takes into account
not just the downtime of the
vehicle itself but also the cost
of lost business. Today, diesel
fuel injection is an exacting
technology requiring specialised
equipment to service the
sophisticated and expensive
parts used, and the latest test
equipment and repair procedures
need to be performed to manufacturers’
specification by qualified technicians.
And the manufacturers are upping the ante, driven
by legislation, as they strive to conform to Euro v,
Euro Vi, and beyond. By implication, this means that the qualified
technician and the expensive truck are short changed by inferior
equipment, and once again, to add a variation to the quote used
in the introduction, to use inferior equipment, or to buy a diesel
bench press on price alone is, I’m afraid, another manifestation of
insanity.
| words in action
➲ Only Bosch offers a rail design with 2,500 b ar –
for unrivalled, precise testing at up to 2,200 bar
The automotive aftermarket plays a key role in maintaining these
high standards, and pressurised rooms are required to repair most
common rail fuel injection products. In addition, testing facilities
have to utilise the latest computerised test benches not only to stay
in the game, but also to increase speed and accuracy to reduce
down time and save money for the diesel pump room proprietor
and the customer.
58
august 2014