Pump Industry News

CHEMICAL INDUSTRY OFFERS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR INNOVATIVE PUMP MANUFACTURERS

Chemical manufacturers need to focus on redefining their maintenance strategies for IIoT-enabled pumps, says Frost & Sullivan.

The chemical industry in Europe is in the midst of a huge transformation with manufacturers looking to redefine their value proposition and explore new business models.

Encouraged by the gradual recovery of oil prices, chemical manufacturers are increasing their demand for centrifugal and positive displacement (PD) pumps. Plus, the European Commission’s directive to industries to reduce energy consumption is creating a fertile market for smart, intuitive, Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT)-enabled pumps with asset monitoring features.

The total pumps market in Europe generated an estimated revenue of $1,334.7 million from the chemical industry in 2018. Centrifugal pumps used in chemical processing plants represented 75.6% of the total pump market, and the remaining 24.4% of the market was held by positive displacement (PD) pumps in 2018. The compound annual growth rate for the total market is an expected 2% through 2025.

“Pump manufacturers who are offering value-added services, such as end-to-end monitoring of pump performance throughout their lifecycle to increase energy efficiencies, will remain competitive,” says Kiravani Emani, Industry Analyst, at Frost & Sullivan.

“Furthermore, the shift towards digital chemical plants will create opportunities for pumps embedded with connectivity and intelligence capabilities, as they can aid predictive maintenance, reduce asset failure and, consequently, prevent the shutdown of plants.

“As chemical manufacturers experiment with flexible and modular factories to efficiently manage various product lines, custom-made pumps that are robust and adaptable to mobile production lines will enjoy greater uptake,” noted Kiravani.

According to Frost & Sullivan, pump manufacturers could widen their footprint and increase revenue share by tapping into several growth opportunities. These include differentiating through product performance and reliability rather than just price and product range; the provision of remote and condition monitoring services that help predict failures and reduce maintenance costs; mergers and acquisitions with automation and IoT vendors; the establishment of strong distribution networks to ensure timely delivery of services; and the provision of valueadded services that include remote monitoring of pump performance, proactively replacing and servicing the equipment before it fails.

COLLABORATION SUPPORTS PUMP INDUSTRY TRAINING

Leaders in the pump industry are collaborating to provide essential resources and equipment for NETA Training Group, one of the North East’s leading technical training providers.

Pump manufacturer and distributor, Tomlinson Hall, has joined forces with Crane ChemPharma & Energy, ITT Goulds Pumps and Grundfos to provide equipment which aims to give students the opportunity to gain first-hand experience of how up-to datepump technologies work.

Speaking about the initiative, David Thompson, Strategic Business Development Coordinator at NETA said: “With thousands of different pumps on the market it is essential that our students have a solid understanding of what various pumps are made from, why that material has been chosen and the different fluids that they can handle.

“Through having experience with handling some of the best pumps on the market – all designed to serve different purposes – our students will benefit from the first-hand experience ultimately increasing their knowledge”.

GENERATION Z SHUNS MANUFACTURING

RESEARCH FROM BARCLAYS Corporate Banking shows that only 6% of Generation Z (16-23 year-olds) are considering a career in manufacturing. Almost half say this is because the career path does not appeal to them, while over one-third do not believe they have the skills required for the role.

One reason why young people are reluctant to take up a career in manufacturing is due to misconceptions around the skills that they could develop: only one-third of young people believe a career in manufacturing will provide them with advanced technology skills. This is despite the fact that advanced technology is a key driver of growth for UK manufacturing companies. Furthermore, when asked about what

they want from their future career, 40% of young people say that the opportunity to constantly build their skills is one of their top priorities. This shows that, although a career in manufacturing could fulfil their future job aspirations, young people are unaware of the opportunities that the sector provides.

The potential benefits of overcoming this situation were shown in economic modelling also undertaken by Barclays, which concluded that by 2023 manufacturers could add an extra £6.1bn to the UK economy each year if they invest more in recruitment drives such as apprenticeship programmes, graduate recruitment strategies and collaborations with Universities or other institutions. However, rather worryingly only 11% of firms surveyed have plans to promote the benefits of a career in manufacturing over the next five years.