Project updates

Repair Projects recognised at AEMT Awards Ceremony

At the recent AEMT Awards, three projects were shortlisted for the Project of the Year category, which recognised the most innovative project carried out in the previous 24 months covering the installation, maintenance, repair or service of electro-mechanical equipment. The award, sponsored by EMiR Software, went to Fletcher Moorland for its work refurbishing iBOT PC Cards. Renew magazine looked at the projects that made it to the finalist stage.

FLETCHER MOORLAND: IBOT PCB CARD REFURBISHMENT The robot warehouse picker, iBOT, is integral to Amazon's efficiency. It can move in all directions to allow automated picking of goods in the company's warehouses.

To maintain efficiency, every time a circuit board failed in the iBOT, Amazon replaced it with a new board – a wasteful and costly exercise.

When a member of the Fletcher Moorland team became aware of this practice, they became determined to find a better solution, driven by the company's mission to repair and recycle, reducing waste and helping the environment by moving away from a throwaway society.

So, having worked with Amazon on other projects, Fletcher Moorland was tasked with finding a way to repair and reuse the circuit boards on the iBOTs.

A faulty board was brought to Fletcher Moorland's workshop to be inspected. The company's engineers developed a test rig specifically for the iBOT circuit boards that enabled failing components to be identified and replaced. In addition, the team now overhaul the complete circuit board, returning it with more effective and robust parts than when they arrived at Fletcher Moorland.

Fletcher Moorland now repairs iBOT circuit boards for Amazon across the UK. It has successfully repaired over 600 iBOT cards in under 12 months, saving both money and positively impacting Amazon's carbon footprint by reducing waste.

Beyond its work with Amazon, the potential for this project is enormous – the pandemic has accelerated online shopping and delivery services, with many online retailers having an automated robotic warehouse picking system.

The success of this project can be seen in terms of savings to Amazon – both financially and environmentally – in that they are not simply throwing away and replacing circuit boards. Furthermore, they now receive more robust products from Fletcher Moorland, with a longer life. This has only been made possible due to Fletcher Moorland's 'can-do' approach.

www. fletchermoorland.co.uk > 18

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BEATSON

Suppliers to Industry Since 1928

Industrial Fans, Electric Motors, Pumps, Geared Motors, Inverters, Starters, Fan Impellers, Fan Balancing, Repairs, Rewinds and all related products...

Beatson Fans & Motors are one of the longest established suppliers of electric motors & industrial fans in the UK. Founded by Herbert Beatson in 1928, we have remained an independent family run business ever since.

We are committed to offering unparalleled service and an unrivalled range of stock to our customers. Our engineers have over a hundred years of collective experience, with some having worked for the business for over 30 years. In addition to this hands-on knowledge, we also have access to an exhaustive back-catalogue of industry information.

Call us on 0114 244 9955 sales@beatson.co.uk www.beatson.co.uk

Celebrating over 90 Years in Business

GES GROUP: WIND TURBINE GENERATOR RE-DESIGN Northern Ireland has a substantial wind power capacity of 1.4 gigawatts. A significant number of turbines here are around 250kW (798 with a total installed capacity of 214MW). The wind fleet in Northern Ireland contains 1,236 sites of 5,000 kW in capacity or less, with a total capacity of 218 MW.

Deploying larger capacity turbines with a reduced output capability has become extremely viable as the machines can produce the maximum 250kW at lower wind speeds, making for a potentially more efficient machine.

GES has been working closely with the industry in developing the generator winding design to accommodate this capacity change. Recently GES has completed machine winding conversions which have been installed at several sites across Northern Ireland and Europe.

The feedback from customers and service providers has been excellent, and the machines' performance has met all expectations.

www.ges-group.com

FLETCHER MOORLAND: PROMOTING MAJOR NEW EFFICIENCIES AND RAISING STANDARDS IN THE REPAIR OF CLASS 66 LOCOMOTIVES. Over several years, Fletcher Moorland had developed a relationship as a trusted repair partner for the Electro-Motive Diesel depot close to its workshops in Stoke-on-Trent. As a result, the company was approached to assist in the creation of formal repair procedures and the associated service kits for the repair of Class 66 locomotives in Egypt.

Electro-Motive Diesel had won a contract to oversee locomotive repairs in Egypt and needed to standardise repairs in that country. The task was compounded by the Egyptian government's insistence that all repairs were carried out in the country and by Egyptian railway workers. Due to tight Egyptian government restrictions, there was no possibility of shipping locomotives to the UK to be overhauled.

Standardisation was vital. For years the locomotives had been repaired using random parts and methods. This impacted on safety and reliability, with locomotives breaking down repeatedly.

Fletcher Moorland brought in UK-based Class 66 locomotives and stripped down all engine parts. As the company's engineers went through the processes of stripping down, cleaning and renovating every mechanism, they were asked to write down and video their actions.

This was extremely complex. Fletcher Moorland's work in England with the train company meant it had to strip down, repair or replace engine parts in real-time before delivering them back to the Electro-Motive Diesel depots in Stoke-on-Trent and Darlington working to a normal repair schedule.

This meant that to create the manual, the repair company had to piece together actions on engine parts, as they came and went from its workshops, over several months.

Taking this approach, Fletcher Moorland was able to develop a bespoke repair manual with stepby-step instructions on how to maintain the Class 66 locomotives – the workhorses of the Egyptian railway network.

The manual was the result of hundreds of hours of work in Fletcher Moorland's Stoke-on-Trent workshops. Its engineers stripped down locomotive parts and repaired them, logging every piece of work and then describing each step for the online manual.

The result is a comprehensive guide used by every locomotive repairer across Egypt, which has been placed on Fletcher Moorland's extensive database, and can be easily located via a password. Service kits were also prepared for each part, containing all materials used to work on the Class 66 Locomotives, even down to items such as cans of WD40.

Electro-Motive Diesel believes that the project undertaken by Fletcher Moorland has saved a substantial amount of money and made a significant impact with their overseas repair contracts.

Machine winding conversions carried out by GES

www. fletchermoorland.co.uk

Image from the locomotive repair documentation prepared by Fletcher Moorland

AIR COMPRESSOR DRIVE TO THE RESCUE

A GERMAN MANUFACTURER OF industrial gases turned to Menzel when it faced a dire emergency. Cuba had lost the country's only air compressor drive which is used to produce oxygen for all hospitals across the island nation.

When the drive failed unexpectedly Menzel was called upon to supply a suitable drive solution from stock within a very short time. Facing extreme time pressures – as lives literally depended upon it – Menzel was able to customise a compressor motor from stock which was delivered to where it was needed by passenger aircraft.

What added to the difficulty was the fact that during the installation and commissioning on site in Cuba no structural modifications would have been possible. The replacement air compressor motor had to fit perfectly. All details were therefore coordinated directly by telephone between Menzel’s engineers and the plant operator in Cuba.

The customer requested an adaptable 6,000V motor that would be able to cope with the required 3,600rpm at 60Hz. In record time, the required connections for cooling water and lubricating oil were moved to ensure a quick and seamless replacement of the old failed motor.

Because there are no cargo flights to Cuba, the 6.3 tonne motor needed to be dismantled to allow for transport on a passenger plane.

On site, the Menzel team was able to coordinate the reassembling and commissioning of the new air compressor drive, including assembly of the sleeve bearings. Just seven days had passed between the initial emergency call and the commissioning of the air compressor drive in Cuba.

www.menzel-motors.com

IE5 motors help realise energy savings

BMW GROUP’S MINI manufacturing plant in Oxford has upgraded its original IE1/IE2 motors with IE5 synchronous reluctance motor (SynRM) and drive packages from ABB, increasing plant efficiency, reducing costs and lowering the carbon footprint of operations.

An energy assessment, carried out by APDS – an ABB Value Provider – estimated that the project will reduce energy costs by £40,000 annually and will significantly reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Payback for the SynRM packages and installation is estimated to be under three years.

A large collection of motors has been upgraded to IE5 SynRM in the plant’s paint shop, powering a network of supply and exhaust fans for the paint spraying booths. The motors, which range between 55 – 132 kW, are paired with ABB general purpose drives and were chosen primarily for their energysaving capabilities.

The drives are integrated into the plant’s new PLC system, improving operational communications across the paint shop. The paint shop operates with a positive air pressure, meaning more air is introduced into the area than is removed. This ensures dust in the air does not settle on the painted products, helping deliver a blemish-free finish. The PLC functions by monitoring the air pressure and triggering the drive to increase power to the fans if, for example, a door is opened. The drives also enable an underload function. This indicates if there is a reduced load on the belt-driven fan systems used for ventilating the spray booth, alerting maintenance staff and reducing the potential for expensive downtime.

Other benefits of the IE5 SynRM motor and drive packages include lower ambient noise and lower running temperature which results in reduced heat losses and lower ongoing maintenance requirements.

new.abb.com

Machines for all applications

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For further information contact us on T: 0161 872 3123 or E: enquiries@cembhofmann.co.uk

www.cembhofmann.co.uk

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