Page 4 - Chemical Technology

cover story
Weir Minerals Africa builds on its
petrochemical product customer base
2 Chemical Technology • January 2013
Weir Minerals is represented in
more than 40 countries in the
world and has been involved in
developing and manufacturing products for
the petrochemical industry for more than
100 years.
“Weir Minerals Africa has always been
involved in this industry, albeit on a low key
basis. However, the decision was made
more recently to create a separate division
which will more aggressively address and
serve customer needs in this sector,” Craig
Gelling, product specialist on hydro carbon
processing, Weir Minerals Africa, says.
“Although Weir Mineral Africa’s installed
base of pumps is definitely larger in the
mining sector and this is due to it being the
predominant industry in South Africa, we do
have a large installed base in the petro-
chemical industry as well,” Gelling says.
“The product range available in South
Africa is governed by industry needs and
our market offering ranges from high pres-
sure multi-stage units through to vertical
turbines, down to vertical in-line pumps,”
Gelling says. “These incorporate well known
heritage brands like Begemann, Floway,
Gabbioneta and Rotojet as well as slurry
products specifically engineered for API
applications.”
Gelling has spent time at the Weir
Minerals and OEM manufacturing units
around the world to ensure that Weir
Minerals Africa stays abreast of the latest
technology. This will allow the division to
assist customers in providing the optimum
solution for any given application in the
petrochemical sector.
“We see this as an opportunity to as-
sist in the petrochemical market in so far
as solutions sourcing, whereas in the past
Weir Minerals Africa tended to operate
in this sector as a product supplier only,”
Gelling explains.
Following increased demands from cus-
tomers in the petrochemical industry, Weir
Minerals Africa will now provide support to
all products in this sector on an ongoing
basis. “A lot of end users are on a drive to
return to OEM parts and we will be able to
assist them. Longevity of installation relates
directly to the components being used and
for this reason OEM parts
are essential,” Gelling says.
Weir Minerals Africa is
known internationally for its develop-
ment of critical interfaces with its custom-
ers. These relationships form the basis
of the company’s subsequent interaction
with its R&D hubs to provide more efficient
products, based on the input and feedback
received from these customers.
Weir Minerals has a reputation for its
targeted product research and development
and for providing solutions for customers in
various industries. Sharing of information
between the group technology organisation
and other design centres means that if one
design centre requires a change on a part
of a product this can be done in such a way
that that change will be registered across
the whole platform of Weir Minerals so that
latest revisions are evident.
“The strength of our products lies in the
superiority of our hydraulic designs and
selection of wear- and corrosion-resistant
materials. In pumping applications where
the cost of ownership often outweighs capi-
tal cost as a priority, we help our customers
address such issues as longevity, capacity,
efficiency of operation, and maintenance,”
Gelling adds.
Weir Minerals is forging closer relation-
ships and strengthening bonds with existing
and new customers in order to ascertain
their exact needs and then provide them
with appropriate products and support,”
Gelling concludes.
Floway vertical turbine pumps
as seen from ground level
Installation of a Floway vertical turbine pump on a
Multiflo barge