Sparks Electrical News September 2016

CONTRACTORS’ CORNER

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OFFERING COMPLETE CONFIDENCE, CERTAINTY AND COMFORT I T is never just about supplying products or tech- nical support to the market. It is also about im- plementing best practice across all companies and in particular manufacturing operations. operations director, explains that the manufacturing planning and execution system being used is well proven at other WEG manufacturing facilities. tion process has begun. Being dynamic, the system allows for the simulation of the change to be done and an accurate prediction made with respect to the impact in cost, time and order conclusion.

Zest WEG Group’s panel manu- facturing facility in Cape Town.

“The system facilitates full control of all our man- ufacturing operations, and importantly provides ac- curate cost and time control. Access to this level of information allows a high degree of certainty and creates an environment where customers can have complete confidence and comfort,” Vargas says. “Continuous improvement programmes have en- sured that the system functions optimally and what is most important is that the system implemented at the South African manufacturing operations has been localised,” he explains. “This means that South Africa was able to draw on the experience of all WEG facilities with the result that the system con- siders the exact Zest WEG Group operational condi- tions while still achieving best practice criteria.” Zest WEG Group currently operates four separate manufacturing facilities being Shaw Controls, WEG Transformers Africa Wadeville, WEG Transformers Africa Heidelberg and Zest WEG Group Generator Sets Division. Vargas says the system will enable greater and transparent communication with customers in terms of the status of each order. “Access to in- formation is in real time and is so specific that at any point in time a customer can find out the exact stage at which the product is during the manufac- ture process,” he says. This is most significant especially given the dy- namic nature of business at the moment where manufacturing facilities often receive change no- tices or order amendments even once the produc-

Commenting on the actual implementation, Var- gas says that the planning stages started mid-2015 when the alignment between the Zest WEG Group and the WEG teams was made. In November 2015, a team of skilled practitioners from WEG Brazil visited the South African facilities to assess these operations and establish the status compared to WEG global best practices in manu- facturing. This took place over a three week period to ensure in-depth assessment of all four facilities. Comparisons were done with WEG facilities in Colombia, Brazil and Mexico. These operations produce the same or similar products which meant that the manufacturing processes are the same and similar. These facilities already complied with WEG best practices, and Vargas says that some had done so for more than 20 years. “The resultant gap analysis between the Zest WEG Group status and that of WEG’s best practices formed the foundation from which the implementa- tion stage began,” Vargas says. The gap assessment was discussed in depth with WEG Brazil and the implementation plan was de- veloped in conjunction with a local partner in South Africa. The implementation phase started in March this year and consisted of a couple of facets. A team of practitioners from Brazil that had already im- plemented similar systems at other WEG facilities joined the local team, and the system went live mid- June with the support of the full team.

Louis Meiring, chief executive officer of the Zest WEG Group, says that it is this operating philosophy that has seen the Group’s holding company, WEG Brazil, continue to invest in the local operation’s manufacturing facilities. Significantly, Zest WEG Group will be exhibiting its locally manufactured custom equipment at Electra Mining Africa 2016. Meiring says that the most recent investment has been in best practice production control pro- grammes that will allow the Zest WEG Group manufacturing operations to improve processes thereby accelerating production and meeting the shortened lead times which have become the norm in the market. He explains that decision to introduce WEG’s manufacturing planning and execution system into the South African operations forms part of the glob- al sustainability strategy. “It was always the intention to implement best practices at these facilities with the long term objective of enabling these manufac- turing plants to produce product for the internation- al market,” he says. Eventually, WEG will be able to manufacture at any of its centres worldwide. “Zest WEG Group as an organisation is very ex- cited about this step and particularly the very clear benefits that our customers will see,” Meiring says. “It will make a massive contribution to the success of our local manufacturing facilities and put us into the international space.” Juliano Vargas, Zest WEG Group logistics and

Vargas pays tribute to the implementation team and all at the Zest WEG Group manufacturing op- erations as he underscores the fact that on day one of going live it was possible for all facilities to oper- ate normally. “We cannot say it was effortless, but we can say that the implementation was thorough and custom- ers have already started realising the benefits of the significant investment WEG has made in the four manufacturing operations,” Vargas says. Meiring concludes by confirming that being re- sponsive to the market has always been the corner- stone of Zest WEG Group’s success on the African continent. “It is this ability to adapt our business that we believe will enable us to become the supplier of choice to the market.”

Enquiries: +27 11 723 6000

SHOWCASING SOLUTIONS AND SUPPORT SYSTEMS

wind and solar, as well as agricultural tractors and self-propelled ma- chinery. Covrad’s turnkey radiator cooling packages feature high-per- formance cores and low horsepower fans, engineered into a compact envelope to deliver maximum cooling, in the smallest footprint. A critical part of Vert Energy’s service is the availability throughout Africa of factory and OEM trained technicians who cope efficiently with any electro-mechanical breakdown situation or routine preventative maintenance procedures.

the new automatic sustainable controller (ASC). This is the first fully integrated control solution between renewable energy inverters and traditional diesel generators. Vert Energy will also be showcasing the ASCO Series 230 automatic transfer switch, which consists of an intelligent controller and a modular load break switch that automatically transfers the load to the emer- gency power source when it detects under and over voltage, under and over frequency, or phase failure. Avtron and Froment power test solutions are used effectively for the exercise and verification of diesel gensets, gas turbines, UPS systems,

Extended Guarantees on WEG Products Vert Energy is the exclusive distributor of Leroy Somer LS alterna- tors, the largest producer of alternators for gensets globally. These alternators are available from 5 kVA to 20 mVA from 48 Vdc to 11 000 V. On display will be the new LS range of two-pole alterna- tors for portable power, as well as variable speed alternators, designed especially for the telecoms market. Also on show will be DEIF power and control components, including VERT Energy is participating at the Powerex show at Electra Mining, to be held at Nasrec from 12 – 16 September 2016 (Stand B06, Hall 9). “As a service provider to the diesel, gas, wind and hydro generator set building industry, we believe this show will be the perfect forum for Vert Energy to display and demonstrate our solutions and support service to key players in the electric power generation and electro-mechanical sectors,” says Vert Energy’s managing director, Grant Robertson. “Escalating energy requirements have placed power utilities under enormous pressure throughout the African continent, which is why companies are investing in alternative sources of electricity production. “Through an extensive range of quality branded EPG products and a highly skilled team of technical experts, Vert Energy plays a major role in providing dependable power to companies, even in the most remote regions. “As part of our commitment to the genset manufacturing sector, for the swift supply of reliable components, the company has made a substantial investment in sourcing the finest components that pro- duce electric energy from mechanical energy and which withstand harsh operating conditions.” Vert Energy has been appointed distributors in sub-Saharan Africa for leading brands, which are supported by original spare parts and accessories. These components include Leroy Somer alternators; a wide range of electric motors and drives; DEIF controllers; ASCO automatic transfer switches; API Covrad radiators and Avtron and Froment load banks, as well as customised control panels.

Enquiries: +27 11 453 9669

Please contact your nearest sales office for further details.

www.zestweg.com Tel: +27 11 723 6000

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2016/01/27 8:26 AM

SPARKS ELECTRICAL NEWS

SEPTEMBER 2016