MCA meets with KSB Pumps and Valves’ SupremeServ team members, who offer industry-leading pump services, including repairs, spares, refurbishments, upgrades, and engineering solutions for in-service pumps from KSB and other brands.
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KSB’s SupremeServ is an industry-leading pump services offering that includes repairs, spares, refurbishments, upgrades and engineering solutions for any in-service pumps from KSB and other brands.
KSB SupremeServ Manager in South Africa, Friedrich Görgens, says SupremeServ is responsible for after-sales care of all KSB pumps. This includes installation, testing, and commissioning from the concrete level up, including the valves, piping, and electrical connections.
The services provided offer customers a flexible solution, allowing them to choose assistance from a SupremeServ Field Service Specialist to oversee installations, alignments and commissioning, or to handle the complete installation. Once operational, SupremeServ offers lifetime repair and refurbishment services for its pumps and valves, either as part of a long-term contract or on an ad hoc basis. The service also extends to non-KSB equipment brands.
The SupremeServ management team includes Stephen Bale, the Sales Manager; Johan Mey, the Field Service Manager responsible for the local team of field service specialists; and David Mathonsi, the Operations Manager, responsible for the company’s Service facility in Germiston, where pumps and valves can be serviced in their entirety.
Wesley Bartholemew is the manager of KSB’s Spartan Distribution Centre, which stores spares for delivery wherever they are needed. “Our Distribution Centre supplies replacement parts to the whole of sub-Saharan Africa as well as exports across the globe. Our local manufacturing plant is still producing replacement parts for pumps installed in the 60s and 70s, and like all of our products, they can still be upgraded. KSB’s online platform also enables registered clients to order the parts they need and have them delivered directly to their premises.”
SupremeServ sales
Bale says the heart of SupremeServ is ensuring that all the pumps sold by KSB Pumps and Valves perform at their best efficiency throughout the life of the pumping system. This can only be achieved if the equipment is correctly and regularly serviced, timeously repaired to minimise downtime, and refurbished as soon as wear starts to reduce efficiency and increase pumping costs.
“This is best achieved by developing a long-term service contract with customers and users where we have nurtured relationships with users, big and small. A good example is the energy sector, where we have serviced ongoing pump refurbishment needs for units that are often old or no longer supported by the original suppliers. This is particularly important on critical pumps for which the industry cannot afford unscheduled stoppages.”
“For other critical applications in the mining, agricultural and water sectors, our services are also used on an ad-hoc basis, in addition to regular assistance to support the petrochemical and chemical (PCC) sectors, the pulp and paper sector and the critical water and wastewater sectors.
We are also able to develop industry-specific customised service contracts at any level of service to help pump users manage their assets better,” says Stephen Bale.
He advises that before deciding to replace pumping assets, clients should consult KSB’s SupremeServ team. “We can often refurbish and upgrade existing pumping systems more cost-effectively, which can result in significantly extended life and ongoing cost savings. This approach is operationally smart, cost-effective and environmentally responsible. It also improves asset availability, making this service well-suited to our ageing water infrastructure.”
Görgens notes that new pumps may not fit existing infrastructure, potentially requiring a new plant. By comparison, KSB SupremeServ’s team can upgrade the capacity of existing pumps on the same footprint, extending the life of a water or wastewater plant at a fraction of the cost of a new plant.
The SupremeServ Jet Park Workshop
Operations Manager, David Mathonsi, says the Jet Park Workshop is about to be extended due to additional work volumes coming in. “This speaks to the quality of the repair and refurbishing support we offer our customers, which all stems from the technical skills of our shopfloor and supporting staff.”
The current plant comprises 4 400 m2 of under-roof space, eight fully equipped work centres for refurbishing the KSB pump range, and three dedicated work centres for refurbishing boiler-water recirculating pumps used during boiler start-up or shutdown. These are large KSB pumps that operate at high pressure and temperature.
The SupremeServ workshop is also set up to refurbish the flue-gas desulphurisation pumps for a large power plant. “These pumps have 900 mm suction and discharge piping, which draw about 1.2 MW of power. They spray an abrasive limestone slurry into the flue-gas stream to remove sulphur dioxide (SO2). We also refurbish other critical pumps like API pumps for the chemical industry, replacing the mechanical seals and restoring pumps to their as-new specifications.”
Mathonsi explains that SupremeServ’s own machine shop, with additional support from the KSB Pump and Valves manufacturing plant in Activia Park, can also manufacture replacement and re-engineered components for pumps and valves, including impellers and impeller wear rings, case wear rings, throat bushes, liners, and more.
“To further improve our lead times, we are turning to automation through new Field Service Management (FSM) software. This system will completely replace paperwork, accelerate recording and communication of progress and ensure accountability for every job that comes into the workshop,” he proudly tells MCA.
SupremeServ Field Services
Johan Mey, the newly appointed SupremeServ Field Service Manager, manages a team of 16 Field Service Specialists as well as technical, administrative and management staff. “We take great pride in having the first female Field Service Specialist within KSB globally, a milestone that reflects our commitment to diversity and inclusion within this traditionally male-dominated field,” he tells MCA.
The team’s qualifications and experience enable them to deliver a comprehensive portfolio of field services, including electrical installations, assembly and connection of electrical panels for pump systems, and detailed fault-finding and diagnostics. “We also perform pump data capturing and analysis; base and motor installations in accordance with OEM specifications and best engineering practices; as well as in-situ repairs of pumps and valves. Every pump service is supported by a detailed post-completion report that includes our findings, recommendations and performance data to support continuous improvement,” Mey adds.
The team repeatedly serves a broad spectrum of industries, including clients ranging from individual farmers with irrigation challenges to operators of supercritical pumps at South African power stations, chemical plants, mines and water utilities, among others. “Our work also extends to municipalities and industrial clients across the region and beyond South Africa’s borders into sub–Saharan Africa. Our specialists have even supported projects as far afield as Sri Lanka and Vietnam.
To meet service contract commitments, KSB’s SupremeServ Field Services crews are strategically positioned across the country, supported by seven branch workshops, enabling rapid response even after hours. “We pride ourselves on delivering a highly professional and technically sound service. Our wide range of capabilities ensures clients receive the kind of support they need, when they need it, wherever they need it,” says Mey.
Another essential part of KSB’s SupremeServ offering is System Optimisation Services (SOS). “Our studies show that over 90% of in-service pumps operate outside their intended design point, leading to unnecessary energy consumption and reduced equipment life. Through our data-driven analysis, we are now able to identify and implement targeted efficiency improvements and perform structured root cause analyses of pump failures to deliver measurable gains in performance, energy savings and operational reliability for our clients, worldwide.”
In conclusion, Görgens adds that SupremeServ is on a growth path and ready to meet existing and future users’ long-term maintenance needs. “We are increasingly aiming at assisting our customers and users to develop long-term maintenance contracts where we take the responsibility for servicing and maintaining systems at their facilities. This can help them overcome expenditure constraints and ensure essential maintenance is completed when needed,” he says.