News & Events

Press Releases

Flender Solves Space Problem For Customer

Power transmission giant Flender has helped a customer solve a space problem with an inventive type of gear unit.

Flender's customer, Plenty Pumps, which specialises in pumps for the sugar industry, needed to solve a problem for one of its major clients in the Philippines. The client was short of factory space, and so in conjunction with Plenty Flender designed a special piggyback gear unit to operate with Plenty's Magmo No.6 belt driven pump.

As Plenty Pumps' sales manager Marcus Dearlove confirmed, the initiative for the one-off design came from Flender: "We discussed the problem with Des Walsh from Flender, who suggested the piggy-back design. It's a great solution and the customer's delighted with it!"

The Plenty Magmo pump is designed to operate primarily with massecuite, magma and molasses, and the Flender unit was positioned with a Motox D181P geared motor on top of the gear unit.

Two Flender Motox units were supplied, each with a power rating of 55kW, and operating at speeds between 10rpm and 50rpm. The pump's flow range is 1.2m_/hr to 56m_/hr, with a discharge pressure of 7.0 bar g and unlimited viscosity. All Plenty Pumps are designed to minimise sugar crystal damage through a gentle pumping action and with their good tolerance to large particles minimise the chances of pump seizure. With belt driven units such as the Flender one, pump speeds are easily changed on site through altering the pulley diameters.

Flender also supplies FZG helical and bevel helical units and Arpex couplings to Plenty Pumps, although the supply of the Motox gear unit is the first of its kind. Plenty Pumps has now incorporated the unique piggyback design into its catalogue, which goes to its customer's worldwide.