New Horse Power for Godiva Fire Pumps with DC Drives from Sprint Electric
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Arundel, England, September 2006--Godiva fire pumps are being used by fire fighters all over the world. The fire pumps for engine and static mounting are manufactured by Hale Products Europe Ltd. in England, the European branch of US fire pump manufacturer Hale Products Inc. Hale Products Europe were recently experiencing reliability problems with their three production test rigs. The test rigs were driven by two 250 HP and one 500 HP DC drives and motors. Due to successful volume sales of the Godiva pumps and increasing demand on the production test, it was necessary to upgrade the DC drives. "The test rigs are critical to production output, so minimising the stoppage time between shutting the rigs down and restarting again was the highest priority", comments Paul Fulford, Production Manager with Hale Products, on the importance of the retrofit project.
The local power transmission specialists Andantex Ltd. were chosen to manage the project to replace the drives, and to reinstall and fully commission the test rigs. The refit involved replacing the two 250 HP test rig drives with the latest digital PLX drive modules from Sprint Electric Ltd. The third 500 HP drive would involve reworking the existing thyristor stack and adding the PLXD stack driver from Sprint Electric to upgrade the installation. Start Electrical Services Ltd. provided the specialist knowledge that such an installation requires, along with the re-commissioning of the new drive systems. The whole re-installation of the drives was completed in one week over a bank holiday shutdown.
The test rig DC drive and motor takes the place of the normally coupled diesel engine to vary the speed of the pump and test the output flow. Phenomenal flow rates in excess of 6,500 litres of water per minute are normal for the Godiva pump. The test rig also 'runs in' the new pump to ensure rotating components and seals are at their optimum performance, thereby ensuring the highest quality when the customer takes delivery.
PLX DC drives from Sprint Electric are designed to offer a powerful, flexible and easy to programme digital DC drive. The extensive range of application software functions enable the most difficult tasks to be completed easily and efficiently, making costly external hardware a thing of the past. The 4-quadrant PLX version covers a power range of 5 to 225 kW. The PLX range's functionality and compact design has proven to be ideal for retrofits when a more cost effective, modern drive system is required.
Other applications for DC drives from Sprint Electric include the metal processing industry, the pulp and paper industry, rubber and plastic processing, lifting equipment, food processing, pharmaceutical and chemical manufacturing. DC drives from Sprint Electric cover a power range from 0.37 to 265 kW. Over fifty models are available, analog or fully digital, covering both single phase and three phase, regenerative and non-regenerative applications, from low voltage servo performance controllers to highly sophisticated fully digital three phase DC variable speed drives of many hundreds of amps. Sprint Electric products are available in North America through Bardac in the USA, and through MDA Controls in Canada.
Direct link to detailed product data: www.sprint-electric.com/plplx.html
Company information:
Sprint Electric Ltd., based in England and founded in 1987, offers a wide range of DC motor control, with over fifty models covering both single phase and three phase, regenerative and non-regenerative applications. From low voltage servo performance controller to highly sophisticated fully digital three phase DC variable speed drive of many hundreds of amps, Sprint Electric products meet the demands of countless industrial applications around the globe. Sprint Electric is committed to providing innovative products backed up by a high level of customer service to the world-wide industrial market. In North America, Sprint Electric products are distributed through Bardac in the USA, and through MDA Controls in Canada.
For more information, please contact:
Sprint Electric Limited
Tel: 0044 (0)1903 730000
Fax: 0044 (0)1903 730893
E-mail: gary@sprint-electric.com
Internet: www.sprint-electric.com
Distributors in North America:
USA:
Bardac Corporation
40 Log Canoe Circle
Stevensville, Maryland 21666
Tel: 888 604 3400
E-mail: info@bardac.com
Internet: www.bardac.com
Canada:
MDA Controls Inc.
785 Pacific Road Unit 8
Oakville, Ontario L6L 6M3
Tel: 905 469 6432
Fax: 905 469 6433
E-mail: info@mdacontrols.com
Internet: www.mdacontrols.com
PR Contact:
Christiane Tupac-Yupanqui
TPR International
Trade Press Relations & Translation Services
Hermann-Löns-Weg 57
D-69207 Sandhausen, Germany
Tel. 0049 6224 172751
Fax 0049 6224 172752
Email: c.tupac@tradepressrelations.com
www.tradepressrelations.com
