Industrial Pumps Blog

Packaged engineering systems have long been the Cinderella which has not gone to the ball when it comes to their popularity with engineering installations. Frequently, the common objection which is found is that a packaged solution will not be able to meet the client needs effectively, or that there will be issues in integrating the packaged solution into the system or indeed, that the total cost of ownership of the solution will exceed that of a one built in-house or from a tailor made alternative.

None of these objections is capable of standing up to close scrutiny when they are considered in individual situations.

Packaged solutions are capable of exceptionally flexible deployment, even into existing infrastructure and bring with them numerous benefits. They are capable of significantly reducing total cost of ownership through simplified installation procedures and with greater operating efficiencies due to integrated components and systems being used.

In addition, there are significant further benefits to be gained which are not always readily appreciated by clients.

Many clients find that they are burdened by managing a significant number of vendors in the procurement process. A packaged engineering solution removes a whole level of vendors from the equation; the burden then falls on the contractor engaged with delivering the packaged engineering solution instead of the client. This makes for increasing the effectiveness of your procurement process, and project management are also able to focus more effort and resources on managing the overall project without getting bogged down in the minutiae of the packaged solution. Using a packaged solution also means that communications between the client and vendors are streamlined down to a single point of contact, which increases efficiency and effectiveness.

Packaged engineering solutions do require an experienced partner to ensure the project deliverables are achieved. There is a need for extremely tight project management on the vendor side and liaising with the main, client project team. There is also a need for packaged engineering providers to fully understand the installation in the context of the overall project.

Pumping installations consume a large portion of the total power consumption of the entire operating system.  It is essential for commercial profitability that pumping systems operate efficiently and effectively. Inefficiencies incur a financial cost in terms of additional power consumption and increased total costs of ownership, in particular they are more expensive to operate due to higher maintenance costs, including both scheduled and unscheduled incidents.

The US Department of Energy has issued a three step process for assessing pumping installations on a standardized basis. In addition, the DOE report advises the use of a detailed assessment of pumping installations combined with a Pumping System Assessment Tool (PSAT) which highlights the cost/benefit aspects of the efficiency result and solutions.

#1 Identify the Major Elements and Equipment of the Pumping Installation

Larger items of equipment are usually the greatest consumers of power and the source of the largest opportunities for implementing solutions for energy and pumping efficiencies. Most pumping installations will find that they already qualify as a large-scale installation to begin with, so it makes sense to focus on the largest pumping elements first and work down from there.

#2 Identify Fixed Speed Pumps Used in a Variable Load Application Environment

Fixed speed pumps are not efficient across all load situations. This provides an opportunity for efficiencies to be found and the DOE notes the following situations which are of particular interest:

• Multiple parallel systems which are in continuous operation;
• Throttle valve control systems;
• Pump bypass lines or recirculation lines are normally held in the open position throughout operation;
• There is cavitation noise;
• Constant operation of the pumping system in a batch environment;
• Incidence of high maintenance captions, both scheduled and unscheduled; and
• Pumping systems which have undergone substantial alteration in their function or there has been a significant change in demand for their output.

#3 Check Pump System Performance Data & System is appropriately Matched to its Application

Design inefficiencies frequently result in mismatching of pumping installations to the operational requirement. Building safety margins into the initial design frequently results in inflation of the margin as the design proceeds through further iterations. This inflation of the safety margin is responsible for the frequent over capacity seen in many pumping installations, and it is not unusual to find a industrial pump installed which has double the actual capacity required for the system’s effective operation.