Modern Mining June 2020

POWER SUPPLY AND ENERGY EFFICIENCY

in the cloud to simplify preventive maintenance and avoid unplanned downtime. The Pump Genius, a customisable feature of WEG drives, dedicates standard variable-speed drives (VSDs) for pumping systems to ensure accurate pressure and flow control. “It essentially comprises software added to the drive,” says Vargas. “It allows you to control two or more pumps in parallel, with each pump driven by its respective inverter.“WEG also provides its drives with an energy saving function. The user simply flags energy efficiency when configuring the drive and sets parameters such as speed and torque.” On the generation side, the company will soon introduce to the South African market a 4,2 MW wind turbine designed in Brazil, in addition to the 2,1 and 2,2 MW turbines currently available. This turbine, says Gerrard, will be aimed primarily at utility-scale windfarm projects. Manufacturing company Vargas notes that Zest WEG has a strong focus on manufacturing. It has invested heavily in local manufacturing facilities “because we understand that Africa has advantages on offer. Its markets are mature and we have skills here, contrary to popular belief. We just need to use them.” “Product remains our core but we realise more and more that putting these products together is what makes the difference. We don’t simply sell products; we sell how the products work together, how they complement each-other’s efficiencies. That’s converting energy into solutions!” Although Zest WEG will always be a manu- facturing company at its core, its policy is not to launch products for the sake of introducing new technologies. “We are increasing our wind turbines to 4,2 MW with good reason: it reduces cost, provides more operational efficiencies and reduces the footprint in terms of the number of turbines needed. It’s a more evolved and efficient solution.” This innovation is not without its share of techni- cal improvements as the turbine is gearless and a multi-pole generator is used, which means it takes advantage of the electronic technologies available. And the reason? “To reduce maintenance and increase availabil- ity,” says Vargas. Industry 4.0 He describes Industry 4.0 as a “communications rev- olution”: “We’ve had the mechanical, electrical and digital revolutions, and we now find ourselves in the communication revolution. The internet of things (IoT) is not just the fridge telling you to buy milk; it is a run- ning machine in your plant saying, ‘I need attention.’ “In our solutions, product is core, but we won’t stick with one product only; we’ll always come up

with an alternative, even for common solutions.” He says most of the Industry 4.0 businesses of the future will essentially be digital integrators who develop available technologies “to a different level”. “Take cell phones, for instance. They started out as large devices designed for voice communication only. Today, they have been developed to the point where people’s entire lives are stored on them.” To Gerrard, Industry 4.0 is nothing revolutionary: “It’s already been around for some time,” he says. “Through communications and control systems, we’ve already synchronised multiple generator sets to control start-up and shut-down based on load demand. We’ve implemented systems on customers’ plants that automatically disable non-critical loads where grid supply fails and the client’s own power source is unable to supply all their loads.” Vargas notes the common perception that Industry 4.0 and automation will eliminate jobs in the future. “On the contrary,” he says. “Automation will need people to analyse the data. The generation emerg- ing from our school system at the moment are ideal for this type of work. They were born into this digital age and they don’t remember the old way of doing things.” 

WEG’s energy efficient motors suited to energy-intensive applications such as driving mills.

Quick take  Some 48% of South Africa’s energy-intensive electricity users are in the mining industry which, in turn, accounts for an estimated 60% of the energy used by the industrial sector  The solution is often as basic as using energy-efficient motors on pumps and compressors, installing high-efficiency compressors, retrofitting old compressors with tighter air gaps for greater efficiency, and using variable- speed drives and ventilation on demand)  The location of the energy source relative to the point of consumption plays an important role in the development of an energy solution  Looking ahead, at the world post-COVID-19, Vargas says Africa may become the global solution provider for much of the product manufactured in China and Europe today, as the traditional supply chains have been broken

June 2020  MODERN MINING  27