Mechanical Technology February 2015

⎪ Industry forum ⎪

FLSmidth’s major investment in estab- lishing its Delmas-based Supercenter as an extensive aftermarket hub is benefiting an increasing number of customers. This is the first FLSmidth Supercenter to open on the African continent and only the seventh of its kind worldwide. The facility provides strategic stockholding, rebuild, repair and manufacturing facilities, and serves as a training centre and a base for the construction team. Delmas Supercenter: an extensive aftermarket hub The facility works alongside custom- ers to boost their competitive advantage and fortify their safety record, since repairs and rebuilds take place off site in a controlled environment. The facility itself has established an exemplary safety record, with zero lost-time injury hours recorded from when it began construc- tion at the beginning of 2012 to when it became operational in June 2013.

house engineering competence to bear on all the work performed, based on readily available manufacturing data records of all this equipment. In addition, the trial assemblies are conducted before equipment is deployed to customer sites. During this process, no-load testing and verification of all op- erating parameters are carried out, effec- tively minimising the potential challenges often experienced during installation and commissioning and accruing savings in time, labour and site costs. FLSmidth has seen nearly 150 Super­ center orders since it opened, of which 85 are currently active, including: the manufacture, assembly, testing and sup- ply of 13 vibrating screens and feeders. “Reducing costs for our customers is a major driver and the Supercenter has afforded us the opportunity to participate in cost saving initiatives with our custom- ers in regard to new equipment, as well repair, rebuild and complete refurbish- ments,” Kruger assures. www.flsmidth.com low-ppm reactive component calibration mixtures Afrox has been offering in stabi- lised cylinders, resulting in high accuracy and extended shelf life. The instrument is equipped with an eight-meter glass gas cell with gold- coated mirrors to ensure that the reactive components in the sample do not react with the cell itself. The MCT detector is cooled to -196 °C, a temperature where the infrared detector is at its most sensitive. Afrox manager for special products and chemicals, Marietha Strydom says that this instrument will enable the analy- sis of gases to medical, pharmaceutical and aviation standards now required by Afrox customers. “It is also part of the ISO 17025 programme that Afrox has embarked on, in order to register as a calibration laboratory.” www.afrox.com The Bruker FTIR was designed specifically to analyse low-level atmospheric contaminants.

Mellanby has trained with TSG’s American infrared expert, Ron Conner since 2013 to become a Snell Authorised Licensee. Jim Fritz, TSG’s president and CEO says, “We are very pleased to welcome Jeanri as a TSG Instructor. All her hard work and ef- forts have paid off, as we recently authorised Jeanri to present Level I courses indepen- dently, as a Snell Group Authorised Licensed Thermography Trainer. As it stands today, there are five Level I and one Level II classes scheduled to be presented by Jeanri over the next 14 months in Johannesburg. We hope that many would-be thermographers will have the opportunity to work with her in person, both in South Africa as well as in the USA ” The next IR Thermography Level I course will be held in Johannesburg from 16 to 20 February, 2015. www.comtest.co.za “Our Delmas Supercenter has already established itself as a star player in our service network,” says Stephan Kruger, general manager. “The establishment of this state-of-the-art facility demonstrates the company’s intention to become a partner of choice to its customers. It forms part of FLSmidth’s global strategy to bring critical services closer to custom- ers and, to date, we have undertaken many diverse projects focusing on the rebuild, repair and supply of products.” One of the most important benefits to customers is that rebuilds and repairs are undertaken by an OEM, bringing in- quantify chemical species found in the atmosphere around us. It uses Opus 7.0 software to compare spectra from gas mixtures to those registered on the atomic spectra database of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). This improves the analytical tolerance of the mixtures that Afrox can analyse and supply. It complements the

The FLSmidth Supercenter in Delmas offers rebuild, repair and manufacturing capabilities, such as welding of an underflow chute pictured here.

Bruker FTIR instrument commissioned

Gas market leader Afrox has commis- sioned a German-engineered Bruker FTIR (Fourier Transform Infrared) instrument at its ISO 9001 Gases Operation Centre Laboratory in Germiston. The Bruker FTIR was designed spe- cifically to analyse low-level atmospheric contaminants, including; CO, COS, H 2 S, NO x , SO x , and will identify and

SA’s first female Snell thermography instructor Comtest, leading lo- cal provider of test, measurement and pro- cess control equipment solutions from world leading manufacturers to the southern African market, has proudly announced the inclu- sion of Jeanri Mellanby into the ranks of The Snell Group’s (TSG) certified instructors. Me l l a n b y, w i t h

Comtest Technologies in Johannesburg since

2007, is the first woman worldwide to become a certified Snell Thermography Instructor.  She is also one of only seven women worldwide to have attained Snell Level III Thermography accreditation.

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Mechanical Technology — February 2015