Ensuring redundancy in large scale manufacturing operations is key to any plant manager’s peace of mind. In the beverage industry, where processing speeds are high and profit margins per unit low, securing redundancy is especially important towards promoting uptime. One world famous brewery has turned to Rotamec, an electro-mechanical service provider to industry, who secured its production line by carrying out a specialist motor rewind and refurbishment within seven weeks.
CO2 is what makes drinks fizzy, and is all important in providing a desirable ‘head’ on a glass of beer. Compressors are utilised in the production process to carbonate beverages with this gas, performing a vital role in the plant. Without a running back up compressor to step in seamlessly during issues with the primary compressor, production uptime is at greater risk.
So, when a leading brewery found that the 500kW motor powering its on-site compressor back up had failed, the business required an urgent motor repair and refurbishment to minimise the chances of downtime. With reference to pre-existing maintenance schedules, while balancing adequate time for a quality repair with ensuring manufacturing security, a timeframe of seven weeks was settled on by the brewery.
After contacting several motor specialists that could not fulfil the project requirements, Rotamec was selected. The business was not only able to service the motor within the seven week timeframe, but also provide a cost advantage. Rotamec has been providing high quality motor rewinds and repairs to industry since 2000, operating state-of-the-art workshop facilities in Cheddar, South Wales and Exeter to ensure a responsive UK service. In fact, the business operates 24/7, 365 days a year to support the needs of its customers. Engineers undertake in-house training provided by leading motor manufacturers, so can quickly familiarise with customers’ motors for a speedier repair.
Alan Brooks, Branch Manager for Cheddar at Rotamec, remembers the project well: “In terms of this customer, we were required to rewind the motor and carry out a general overhaul. The challenge was that the motor featured pre-formed coils, which are not the most common type. We therefore had to source these coils quickly before we could begin the rewind. Luckily, we have a wide-ranging capability with regards to specialist motors, which meant we could solve the issue. Ultimately, we were able to return the now refurbished motor within the seven-week deadline, which was a challenge that our breadth of expertise ensured we could meet.”
Once the motor was re-installed, the beverage manufacturer again had access to a compressor redundancy. As a result, production uptime was effectively safeguarded to ensure productivity and profitability. Backed by the highly responsive 24/7 Rotamec service, the manufacturer also has access to the support required for continued high speed, large scale manufacturing in the long term.
Alan concludes: “I am very proud that the team could conduct this specialist motor rewind to schedule, despite the challenging coils. Not every supplier can achieve this, but thanks to our capability with regards to motors of all types, it was a challenge we could meet effectively and efficiently.”
