I WC
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C U S T O M ER F O C U S G I V E S I W C A
TOWERING PRESENCE Water cooling specialists IWC have won top end market share and business retention with quality bespoke solutions and a comprehensive customer service. “We are selling the technology and the know-how to solve problems and improve efficiencies,� says IWC Director Roger Rusch.
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IWC FEATURE
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t’s not the biggest operator in the South African industrial water cooling sector, but IWC and its famously strong focus on quality and customer-specific solutions has won it the business and allegiance of industry giants. Businesses like Eskom, Africa’s largest producer of electricity, and Sasol, the mining, chemicals, and synfuels corporation. Among the reasons for top end market share and business retention; quality bespoke solutions and a comprehensive customer service.
Tailor-made solutions “We try not to fit everybody into the same box. Instead we look for tailor-made solutions for our customers, which most of our competitors don’t,” says IWC Director Roger Rusch “The big guys tend to give a fairly stock standard offering, whereas we set out to understand their requirements and give them a product or solution that will meet their needs.” Midrand-based IWC (Pty) Ltd, founded in 1986 as Industrial Water Cooling, specializes in evaporative water cooling for a wide range of applications. Industries covered include power generation, mining, petrochemical, sugar, steel, food & beverages, air-conditioning and refrigeration. IWC’s product range includes: Package Cooling Towers under the Searle Bush brand. Large Field erected Mechanical Draught cooling towers of all types and materials of construction. Refurbishment of the latter, as well as Natural Draught cooling towers.
Repeat business a IWC factor “We are also almost certainly the only South African company that does the whole range of cooling towers from the smallest fibreglass package unit suitable for anybody from dry cleaners, injection moulders, canneries - all the way up to the refurbishment of large
natural draft towers for clients such as Eskom and Sasol,” says Roger Rusch. ”We have a huge amount of repeat business from both these corporations, and of all the towers Eskom have re-furbished over the last 10-15 years I would guess we have done about 80% of that work.” Focus is based on high quality (ISO 9001-2000 accredited company), excellent service standards and a competitive price structure.
Excellent customer base “The multi-national guys have far bigger overheads and for us it’s fairly easy to be more competitive and gain market share,” says Roger Rusch, 40, an engineer who started out as a South African Air Force Technician. The recession left IWC relatively unscathed. “We had some quiet months, but with our very good customer base we succeeded in getting a good deal of work during that time. And at the moment that period seems to be behind us. In fact we have managed to secure a very healthy order book that should carry us for the next two to three years.”
We extend to our suppliers the same gratitude that we show our customers IWC Training IWC staff is expertly trained, with both inhouse and external training ensuring a strong well-established team and that a smooth operation is put into place. “We have a fairly stable employment base and we spend a lot of time and effort training, focussing on increasing skills and issues like health and safety. The South African labour market has its challenges. It’s fairly difficult to get skilled labour and the prevailing economic climate at any one time plays a part in this.” www.southafricamag.com
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IWC FEATURE
Supply Chain loyalty Staffing stability finds a parallel with IWC’s relationship with its supply chain. “We extend to our suppliers the same gratitude that we show our customers,” says Roger Rusch. “And while we make a note of others, we have been loyal to our main suppliers for many years, reciprocating their own loyalty to us.” IWC’s technical staff makes extensive use of advanced computer software and communication methods. This enables the company to meet customers’ specific requirements, a core feature of its operation and success. Thermodynamic design is undertaken through purpose-developed inhouse software, whose heat transfer characteristics have been determined experimentally and further refined from data collected in the field.
All-inclusive service The experience gained in the installation of cooling towers and associated plant, as well as the extensive development work undertaken over the years has resulted in IWC’s allinclusive range of services from feasibility studies to the installation of complete plant on a turnkey basis.
Refurbishment and Upgrading IWC has been active in the refurbishment of cooling towers and bulk air coolers of all makes, types and sizes over the past two decades. This includes the installation of fill material, drift eliminators, spray systems and nozzles as well as fan mechanicals. As an alternative to a new purchase, old cooling towers can often be satisfactorily refurbished. In many old towers wood fill and drift eliminators have been replaced with more modern plastics and stainless steel. Many times the type of fill originally installed is found to be is ill-suited to the water 4
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conditions, and the existing fill has been replaced with more suitable non-clogging fill materials such as polypropylene or stainless steel splash-pack. In many cases it has been possible to upgrade the performance of an existing tower by judicious re-design of the internal components and fan system.
Africa leader IWC is the African leader in the refurbishment of Natural draught cooling towers, and over the past 18 years has undertaken the great majority of these projects in the region.
Pultrusion Engineering Solutions (Pty) Ltd t/a Firbetek
Manufacturers of
GRP Fibreglass Profiles and Products • Anti-corrosion • Light weight • Low on maintenance • Low electrical conductive • High strength GRP Products include Handrails, Stair Treads, Floor Grating, Cat Ladders, Walkway Structures, Cable Support Systems, Structural GRP Profiles and any customized structures.
Bridge Road, Busaf Park, Unit 3, Stikland, Bellville 7530, SOUTH AFRICA Telephone number: +27-21-948 0851 Fax number: +27-21-948 7942 info@fibretek.co.za www.fibretek.co.za
The company has also developed on-line methods, so reducing down time and production cuts normally associated with this type of project.
Turnkey Solutions As part of its comprehensive service IWC also offers complete turnkey solutions covering the full design supply, installation and commissioning of the following: All types of cooling towers and bulk air coolers. Pumps, piping and all associated equipment. Electrical, instrumentation and control systems. Filtration, screening and dosing equipment. Heat exchangers (Plate, Shell & Tube, etc) All necessary civil and structural design and construction.
Testing and Evaluation Performance and acceptance testing of cooling towers is undertaken in accordance with recognised international standards
(CTI). “Using our own measurements and data logging equipment we can also assist you with the evaluation of your existing cooling towers and water cooling system,” says Roger Rusch.
Replacement Parts for all Types of Cooling Towers IWC can offer a wide range of spare or replacement parts for many makes of cooling towers, some of the replacement components which can be provided are: Mechanical items such as fans, drive shafts, gearboxes and motors Drift eliminators in PVC, Stainless Steel, ABS, etc Fill materials of all types
Expertise and Flexibility “We are selling the technology and the know-how to solve problems and improve efficiencies. We have the flexibility and set out to understand problems before offering a solution.” END www.southafricamag.com
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IWC Marcius Road Barbeque Downs Midrand South Africa Tel: 0027114660699