Capital Equipment News February 2019

Ctrack partners with the National Small Business Chamber

Leading vehicle tracking and telematics provider, Ctrack, has joined the National Small Business Chamber (NSBC) of South Africa, a non-profit member organisation that promotes small business development in the country. The NSBC National Partnership that Ctrack has entered into is designed for leading brands who want to grow topline quickly and cost-effectively in the small to medium enterprise (SME) space, and who have powerful solutions for SMEs. Partners commit resources to the success of small business in South Africa, while benefiting from access to a powerful network of 127 000 small and medium-sized businesses. As part of its partnership with the NSBC, Ctrack will exhibit at the upcoming My Busi- ness Expo South Africa 2019 – Africa’s largest business expo, conference and networking event for anyone serious about starting or growing a business. With more than 25 000 delegates, 250 exhibitors, 100 top of the line seminars and sessions expected, the My Business An independent test has proven that a Vesconite left-hand torque-plate bushing, made from a no-grease hard-wearing engineered polymer, shows 35% less wear than a phosphor bronze right-hand torque-plate bushing of a similar design after one year of being exposed to abrasive material. The test was carried out by a large trailer manufacturer over one year. The test utilised a vibrating jig on which the bronze bushing was mounted on one side and the Vesconite one mounted on the other side. The jig was enclosed in plastic wrap and sand and an inflow of air was introduced through a hole to simulate the abrasive off-road material that the bushings would be exposed to. No seals were used so that the bushings would be fully exposed to abrasive wear conditions. “The intention was to mimic how a truck drove and when it braked to emulate the expansion against the drum,” says the test engineer. “Initially, we were going to do interval checks every three weeks but, be- cause of the limited wear on the Vesconite, this was increased to three to four months and then left until a year was completed for the final fifth measurement.” The results were conclusive: the Vesconite bushing showed 0,0175 mm of

Expo is the most successful show of its kind in Africa. The expo takes place twice this year – on 20 and 21 February and again on 1 August, 2019 – both at the Gallagher Convention Centre in Midrand, Johannes- burg. Ctrack will offer a 10% discount on its hardware to all NSBC members who purchase any of its tracking units at either of these two shows. The 10% discount will apply to new products like Ctrack Drive, an afford- able, feature-rich Software as a Service solution ideal for SMEs, which provides more options than just tracking of fleet vehicles, as well as Ctrack’s BX range of compact, wireless and affordable GPS tracking devices. “The partnership with the NSBC is a great fit as Ctrack has always been SME-friendly, catering to the needs of the small business owner while simultaneously granting access to its solutions through easy-to-use software designed for mobile devices and desktop computers,” says Hein Jordt, MD of Ctrack SA. b wear to its inside diameter after one year compared to 0,05 mm wear for phosphor bronze – demonstrating that a phosphor bronze bushing has 35% faster wear than Vesconite in a dry application with sand and under laboratory conditions. Similarly, when shaft wear was con- sidered, Vesconite shaft wear totalled 0,0025 mm after a year, while the compara- ble phosphor bronze bushing showed wear of 0,0125 mm. Considering bushing wear and shaft wear, the Vesconite showed an increase in clearance of 0,02 mm, while the phosphor bronze had an increase in clearance of 0,0625 mm over the same period. “One would expect that the wear rates would get worse in the second year and even worse in the third year,” advises Eddie Swanepoel, Vesconite Bearings tech- nical sales representative. “In addition, in tough off-road conditions where the bush- ings are exposed to impact, there is likely to be much more wear than in a laboratory test environment,” he says, noting that one coal transporter has had to replace his phosphor bronze bushings four times a year, compared to once a year when his bushings were replaced with Vesconite. Swanepoel points out that, while the bushing wear measurements seem small,

Ctrack will exhibit at the upcoming My Business Expo South Africa 2019.

• 10% – The discount Ctrack will offer on its hardware to all NSBC members who purchase any of its tracking units at My Business Expo

Vesconite bushing shows 35% less wear than phosphor bronze

these small changes in bushing sizing and shaft wear result in significant impacts for associated components, including tyres, which would be affected by poor alignment and have to be replaced more frequently at a considerable cost. b Vesconite bushing showed 0,0175 mm of wear to its inside diameter after one year compared to 0,05 mm wear for phosphor bronze.

CAPITAL EQUIPMENT NEWS FEBRUARY 2019 39