Never has it been more evident than observing the recent Eskom black out crisis that maintenance and planning should form the core of any industrial operation.

As many mining companies strive to improve the reliability of their operations, it is a fact that this becomes more difficult in a time of continuous deep cost cutting. Whist many see maintenance as a “cost”, lessons learnt from Eskom should make it clear that just maintaining equipment is a futile exercise as technology and processes advance over time and maintaining old equipment is a recipe for even greater expenditure in the long run.

Mechanical Rotating Solutions has proven over the last decade that maintenance, coupled with proper planning, can be a cost cutting exercise if done right, using the right business partner and latest product offerings available.

‘Our philosophy has always been never to accept “good enough.” Says Franscois Steenkamp CEO of Mechanical Rotating Solutions.  “In reality, to offer a client a product that is “good enough” in order to facilitate cost cutting, is not only undercutting the industry but creating continuous breakdown issues and most probably a strained relationship with the client over time.

One of the most frequent used “cost cutting” measures in mining operations is to opt for gland packing instead of mechanical seals when sealing a pump preventing fluid loss. By using gland packing, or a mechanical seal, the rotating shaft is enabled to enter the wet area of the pump while also preventing the pressurised fluid in the pump to escape.

“Often our clients would ask why use mechanical seals when gland packing is considerably cheaper and shows an immediate cost saving on the maintenance account. Whilst many clients still use traditional methods of sealing such as gland packing as a considered cost effective solutions the truth is that this traditional way of sealing a pump will cost more over the long term as a direct result of premature pump failure, increased leakage, higher energy usage and shaft sleeve damage. Because gland packing is in constant contact with the pump shaft sleeve it will cause threading and that will require a considerable amount of money to repair or replace. We advise our clients on the pro’s and the cons of mechanical seals over traditional seals and try to help them make the right decision to suit their needs. “

Correctly adjusted gland packing should be maintained with a leakage rate of approximately 1-drop per minute of sealed product per inch/25mm of outside diameter of shaft. On a 2.000”/50mm diameter shaft this equates to 2 drops/min or 450 Lt/month or 5400 Lt/year. Correctly designed, specified and fitted mechanical seals have no visible leakage and therefore no product loss. On the figures used above reduction in leakage alone would pay for even an advanced mechanical seal in around 6 months.

After a calculation revealed that 24 service pumps at a Limpopo platinum mine was losing in excess of 252 kilolitres of water per annum, Mechanical Rotating Solutions stepped in and replaced the existing pump gland packing with AESSEAL Single Cartridge Seals ensuring a lasting solutions to undue wastage of South Africa’s most valuable resource. By replacing the conventional stuffing box gland packing of the client’s OEM slurry pumps with AESSEAL® SMSS™ single monolithic stationary seals, Mechanical Rotating Solutions has not only addressed the excessive water loss, but also improved the reliability and efficiency of their client’s plant.