AS GOOD AS NEW

WHEN A CUSTOMER IN THE CHEMICAL INDUSTRY sent SPP Pumps a 50-plus-year-old 5 ton Blair horizontal split case pump for refurbishment, it was soon evident that it would be uneconomical to repair.
The pump was received in a very poor condition and, needed to be replaced. However, the pump’s manufacturer was no longer in business, and original parts were long since unavailable. In addition, due to the surrounding plant layout, it was not possible to install a new type of pump without significant piping, civil and structural modifications.

SPP had to find an alternative solution and took on the task of reverse-engineering the obsolete pump and manufacturing an identical replacement.

The company’s engineers scanned the top and bottom casings with a 3D laser scanner and captured the existing pump surface data in a mesh form. Using this information and elements of original drawings held by the pump’s user, dimensional drawings and 3D models of the pump’s components were produced. From this data, SPP was able to cast new casings from an NI Resist iron which suited the pump’s application, produce a new impeller and machine the other parts, including shafts and sleeves.

The ‘new’ pump was then assembled before being delivered to site for installation in time for a planned shutdown. The pump was fitted into the existing footprint and connecting pipework without issue, and upon commissioning, was found to run smoothly, capable of delivering the required process flow of 22,000 GPM at 20ft head.

Re-engineering the pump cost SPP’s customer less than half of the cost of a new alternative – maybe a quarter had the civil and structural engineering changes been needed on site. And in addition, the customer now has full drawings and data to enable the production of new parts should they be needed in the future.enquiries@spppumps.com