New high-tech features help buyers cut total costs
William Atkinson -- Purchasing, 10/21/2004 2:00:00 AM
Buyers of industrial pumps report a host of new features, capabilities and benefits available in the new products on the market today. But in the end, long-term performance and reliability are still the top priorities with pump buyers because all the bells and whistles in the world do not amount to much if the pump is not working.
World demand for fluid handling pumps is forecast to increase nearly 6% through 2008, according to a new report from the Freedonia Group. Growing manufacturing investments as well as growth in undeveloped global markets will fuel growth for the pump market in the next five years. For example, pump demand is expected to rise 10% per year in China for the next five years. Pump markets in the U.S., Japan and Western Europe are expected to register below average gains through 2008.
Freedonia predicts that centrifugal pumps will continue as the most common type due to their varied pressure and load handling capabilities, as well as low maintenance costs. Diaphragm pumps are making fast gains in process manufacturing industries and turbine pump demand is growing for water pumping and sewage applications.
Performance pumps
Features that help improve long-term performance are important to industrial buyers. One new feature that ranks high on a buyer's list is a pump's ability to be more corrosion-resistant and more abrasion-resistant than pumps of the past. Metering pumps, where the pumps monitor the amount of liquids passing through, are also gaining more interest because of their ability to extend life of the product. The main drawback to metering pumps is they often operate with a solenoid that can be difficult to set and may not always maintain its accuracy. To address this issue, Grundfos Pump Corp. of Olathe, Kan. came up with a design that uses a synchronous motor and a stepper motor. Coupled with a computer chip board, the meter can maintain full accuracy.
Pump maker Bosch Rexroth in Lehigh Valley, Pa. recently introduced new models with additional electronic controls to make them more versatile in different applications. "We are also developing pumps with modular features so we can create the best configurations, combinations, and permutations for customers," says Greg Schwartz, product manager. "This involves having a base pump, then building it up from there."
Pump performance
While customers continue to be interested in new features and benefits, their real interest lies with the performance of the pump. "Customers continue to look for innovative ways to cut costs in terms of reliability, energy savings, and ease of repair," points out Len Petersen, director of business development, commercial and industrial products, for Grundfos.
Kip Robinson, marketing manager for Indianapolis-based Peerless Pump, agrees, saying, "Customers are paying a lot more attention to issues beyond just the purchase price of the pump and related components. Purchase price is usually about one-tenth of the total cost of keeping the pump operating efficiently over time."
One energy-saving product gaining popularity is the "smart pump," according to Bob McIlvaine, president of The McIlvaine Co. of Northfield, Ill. Smart pump technology allows remote control management and much greater efficiency, lower energy consumption, and/or longer pump life.
"The software that controls the pumps is getting a lot more sophisticated, providing a lot more information about the pumps," he adds.
Smart pumps improve efficiency by relaying information about their performance, which allows operators to either change performance or schedule required maintenance on the pump to reduce the potential for an unplanned shutdown. A remote controlled smart pump monitors its own performance using a microprocessor and software to provide process control. Users can throttle the pumps higher or lower as needed, thus improving efficiency, a feature that is especially popular in remote applications, eliminating the need to send service technicians out to the locations to monitor performance.
Control issues
Pump controls are becoming another hot issue. Bosch Rexroth offers variable flow pumps, in which the pumps only put out the flow that the system requires. "There is no extra flow that has to go across the metering valve or release valve," explains Schwartz. "Pressure and flow control on these pumps are completely electronic," he notes. "It does all of the control of the machine instead of using different metering valves, which generates excess heat."
The shift toward more pump control and away from valve control provides greater efficiency, especially for injection molding machines, according to Schwartz.
Eaton Corp. in Eden Prairie, Minn. is also focusing efforts on pump control, according to Brent Coppock, marketing product manager for open circuit piston products. Eaton offers new piston pumps with proportional pressure controls, which allow a computer to control the pressure in the hydraulic system without the need for additional valving mounted in the circuit. This reduces the cost of the circuit by cutting down on the fittings and tubing. Users can configure the performance profile such that it only supplies the energy needed to perform the work in the system.
"You're not wasting energy or generating heat that causes cooling costs to increase," Coppock adds. "As a result, you can downsize your coolers."
Energy efficiency
During the late 1970s and the early 1980s, companies paid a lot of attention to energy savings. By the late 1980s, though, that interest seemed to wane. Now, with corporations looking for ways to reduce costs at every turn, interest in efficiency of all kinds, including energy efficiency, is being rekindled. Unfortunately, the message about the importance of energy efficiency often does not reach buyers when it comes to purchasing pumps. For example, buyers may think they are saving $500 by purchasing an inexpensive pump, but their company can end up losing that amount of money in wasted energy costs the first month of operation.
"Everyone is looking to cut costs these days, and pump manufacturers are becoming more involved in this," reports Peerless's Robinson. "There is a lot of emphasis being placed on life cycle costs."
McIlvaine agrees, pointing out that the cost of the power to drive a pump is often many times the original cost of the pump. In fact, according to many in the industry, pump efficiency related to energy usage should be the most important consideration when purchasing a pump. According to Grundfo's research, about 8% of the total cost of a pump is the purchase price, 7% is the maintenance cost, and a whopping 85% is energy cost. As such, saving even 10% on energy could translate into an 8% overall savings, which equates to the original purchase price of the pump.
Besides selling pumps that operate more efficiently, a number of pump manufacturers are beginning to promote services that help customers maximize energy efficiency. "Pump makers are getting more into value-added aftermarket services and other services," says Robinson. In an effort to differentiate themselves from each other, manufacturers are working with customers to help them save as much energy and water as possible. "A lot of companies sell pumps, but not everyone has a lifecycle cost program," he points out.
Peerless has personnel who have been trained in total system evaluation and lifecycle cost and have been certified by the Department of Energy. "For example, we helped one paper manufacturer save hundreds of thousands of gallons of water," says Robinson. Peerless has had the service available for a while but has only recently begun to actively market it as a way to differentiate itself from competitors.
System management
A number of manufacturers are also focusing on total pump system management and consultation. "When purchasing pumps, you really need to look at the whole system," says Petersen. "If you oversize your pumps compared to what you need, you're wasting capital costs and energy costs."
Petersen also says if a pump is under capacity, the customer will notice it immediately. But if it's over capacity, someone may just turn a valve down or operate the pump to the "left side of the curve," which is harder on the pump and reduces efficiency.
In other cases, conditions may have changed. For example, maybe at one time the process did require a large pump. "However, since then, the layout of the lines or the production needs may have changed, and the pump ends up providing overcapacity," continues Petersen.
Grundfos tries to understand its customers' system. "We don't want to oversell them," Petersen says. "There's enough business available in this market without trying to talk customers into purchasing oversized or inefficient pumps."
Senior Buyer, Strategic Sourcing
06/13/2007Black Belt Negotiators
02/02/2009
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