june 2018 watt - actom · 2018-06-21 · images illustrating some of the manufacturing capabilities...

June 2018

Featuring: ACTOM’s commitment to

local manufacturing

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ACTOM (Pty) Ltd Always with you

www.actom.co.za

What’s Watt June 2018 2

Corporate Focus

The last financial year has been one of the most challenging years the group has faced.

Business confidence collapsed early in the year following political upheaval, which resulted in invest-ment across the private sector being deferred and cancelled.

The ongoing mining charter negotia-tions and corporate governance issues in parastatals, municipalities and other role players led to a further deteriora-tion in the market.

Thankfully, the recent political changes have given impetus to ad-dressing many of these issues, which augers well for business and the economy in the medium term.

I believe it will take some time to reverse the economic damage done and the current cooperation that ex-ists between business, government, labour and other role players will be

Patience, flexibility and innovation are needed to address challenges

vital in ensuring success. In addition I sense the depth and consequences of financial mismanagement in govern-

ment sectors is underestimated and will require innovative financial and management solutions to build on the return of confidence that followed the change in political leadership.

I would like to thank all stakeholders for their hard work and support in an extremely challenging environment and encourage everyone to remain flexible, patient and positive as the environment recovers and we address the risks and opportunities that present themselves.

We must ensure we stick to our value systems and risk management disciplines and not take on business that we later regret.

Finally I would like to congratulate the management and staff for perform-ing well in this environment and ensur-ing the integrity of our order book, cash flows and profits has remained intact.

Mark Wilson: Chairman

The political developments at the end of 2017 and the start of 2018 which saw the long hoped-for change in the leadership of the ruling party and government have boosted prospects for improved governance, economic recovery and greater social stability.

Our new president has undertaken various initiatives to restore investor confidence, with issues of governance and corruption that have plagued the country over the past few years being addressed as a matter of priority.

These changes give us greater cause for optimism than we have had for a long time. It will still take some time, however, for them to translate into a genuinely favourable economic climate in which we may develop our businesses in a meaningful and sus-tained way. Improved economic and trading conditions are unlikely to be felt much before the end of 2018 but may be expected to become increasingly evident from the beginning of 2019 onwards.

For the present, though, we have had to continue to adapt to the prevail-ing depressed conditions that have impacted adversely on most of the group’s businesses over an extended period. This has unfortunately necessi-tated rationalisation in several divisions

Positive political changes auger well for business growth

and business units, as well as leading to the closure of our Elmacast foundry.

Our divisional management teams are to be commended for the way in which they have continued to manage their businesses exceptionally well through challenging times. We are well-positioned as a group for the growth that lies ahead.

Thankfully, in addition to the above-mentioned significant changes in the country’s political and economic landscape, another positive change

which provides further grounds for optimism is the recent resuscitation by government of the Independent Power Producer based renewable energy programme.

This, together with the govern-ment’s commitment to encouraging local manufacture via its designation programme favouring the purchase by state-owned enterprises and gov-ernment institutions, including mu-nicipalities, of locally-manufactured products, bodes well for healthy ongo-ing development of local industry and manufacture together with job-creation and skills development – all of which ACTOM has long supported, encour-aged and practiced.

In line with this, early this year ACTOM reached an important mile-stone in attaining for the first time a Level 1 B-BBEE rating. This achieve-ment followed close on the heels of the group raising its black-empower-ment and black-women empowerment shareholdings to 51,3% and 34,66% respectively late last year.

We can be rightly proud of both these advances in the group’s status and I would like to thank everyone involved for their efforts in achieving them.

Mervyn Naidoo: CEO

What’s Watt June 20183

Feature Article

What’s Inside

ACTOM’s commitment to local manufacturing Pg 3

ACTOM attains Level 1 B-BBEE rating Pg 6

Chairman’s Awards Pg 6

ACTOM joins Proudly SA Pg 7

100% pass rate for Balmoral College matriculants Pg 8

T&D offerings at Africa Utility Week Pg 9

MicroGen boiler breakthrough order Pg 10

Static Power celebrates 50th anniversary Pg 11

Gibela contracts awarded to ACTOM Power Systems Pg 12

P&C introduces versatile relay range Pg 14

P&C opens prepayment meters factory Pg 15

Advantages of Web-based SCADA solutions Pg 16

LHM rebuilds pump motor for pumping station Pg 17

CSIR and Metalplus collaborate on laser welding Pg 18

M&C solves motor bearing failure riddle Pg 19

M&C Zambia installs vent fan test column Pg 21

ACTOM Turbo Machines refurbish de-scaler pumps Pg 21

Electrical Products’ Branch of Year awards Pg 22

Genlux develops LED floodlight range Pg 23

Key appointments Pg 24

John Thompson’s spends R4-million on CSI projects Pg 25

Ronnie Russell and Neville Lock retire Pg 26 & 27

Long-service awards Pg 28

R&M staff members run half-marathon Pg 29

CoverImages illustrating some of the manufacturing capabilities across various divisions within the ACTOM group. Read part 2 of the feature “ACTOM’s commitment to local manufacturing” in the December 2018 edition.

To page 4

South Africa’s unemployment rate, for the first quarter of 2018, was re-ported as 26.7%. Although slightly improved since July 2017 (27.7%), it is still a major concern and one that has been highlighted as a key focus area by President Cyril Ramaphosa.

As explained in his documented “New Deal”: “Despite the remarkable

ACTOM’s commitment to local manufacturing (Part 1)progress we have made since 1994, the economy has recently stalled. We are not creating the jobs we need, poverty remains high, investment has fallen and confidence is low.

In part, this is because of the slow-down in the global economy. But it is also the result of poor policy imple-mentation, weaknesses in collective

decision-making and the damaging effects of state capture and corruption.

We must act now – boldly, deci-sively and collectively – to change the trajectory of our economy and our country.

We need a NEW DEAL for jobs, growth and transformation.”

The document then goes on to explain 10 priorities that should under-pin a NEW DEAL for the economy to recover and thrive:1. Create decent jobs2. Focus on growth and investment3. Pursue meaningful economic par-ticipation for the poor4. Implement macroeconomic policy that promotes growth5. Transfer ownership and control of the economy6. Improve access for all to quality, relevant education7. Revitalise and expand manufac-turing capacity8. Maximise the impact of infrastruc-ture build9. Restore state owned enterprises as drivers of economic growth and social development10. Confront corruption and state capture

The manufacturing sector employs approximately 1.8 million people in This rotor and motor frame was manufactured by ACTOM Electrical Machines. Featured in the

foreground is Nathaniel Mofokeng and behind the motor frame, Vincent Phala.


Feature Article

From page 3

South Africa and provides the base-load and scale for our key national infrastructure including electricity, rail and municipal services. It is the main driver of tertiary education and the ab-sorption of people into the workforce and accounts for just under 12% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Manufacturing is also the only viable means of beneficiating South Africa’s own natural resources. And, most noteworthy is that manufacturing is rated within the top three multiplier sectors in terms of value addition, job creation, export earnings and revenue generation.

Mervyn Naidoo, ACTOM’s Group CEO, believes that local manufactur-ing in South Africa has the potential to stimulate the economy, “China did this very successfully by forcing OEMs to build factories in order to localise the manufacture of products required for China’s infrastructure expansion initia-tives. This facilitated major industriali-sation and job creation in the country and had a substantial impact towards stimulating the economy. Similar potential exists in South Africa in the energy and transportation sectors.”

ACTOM, being committed to manu-facturing and the positive impact it can have on South Africa’s economy, has been a member of the Manufacturing Circle since 2014.

The Manufacturing Circle was established in 2008 as a corporate association of manufacturers. They conduct research and engage with

key stakeholders to promote the benefits of manufacturing growth for the broader economy. They influence policy and highlight opportunities and key priorities for manufacturing growth. In pursuit of these objectives, the Manufacturing Circle also meets pe-riodically with government ministers, heads of key state-owned entities, provincial and local government lead-ers; and other business sector leaders.

According to the Manufacturing Circle, more than 300 000 South African manufacturing jobs have been

lost since 2008 and manufacturing has declined from contributing more than 15% of GDP to just under 12% of GDP. The key factors that have contributed to this decline include constraints in domestic electricity supply, rapid in-creases in administered prices, labour instability and competition from un-fairly incentivised imported products.

“The Manufacturing Circle believes that in order to put South Africa on a higher, job-rich growth path, to en-able us to compete and succeed as a manufacturing destination in the global economy, we need to prioritise three clear goals. These include achieving a competitive manufacturing environ-ment; attaining a supportive interna-tional trade position and advancing the reputation of South African manu-factured products,” explained Philippa Rodseth, Executive Director of the Manufacturing Circle.

Phillipa expanded on elements of these priorities by explaining that a competitive manufacturing environ-ment requires government interven-tion in the form of coherent, coordinat-ed and consistent economic policies and the regulation and implementation of such policies. Advocating efficient spending, cost recoupment and price regulation for public infrastructure and utility services are vital in supporting manufacturing growth.

And, in order to attain a supportive international trade position, manufac-turers must work to level the playing

Jackson Shabangu and William Lebenya working on porcelain insulators for disconnectors at ACTOM’s high voltage equipment manufacturing facility in Knights, Germiston. The porcelain insulators are currently imported, but with an increased acceptance of ACTOM developed and manufactured composite insulators, opportunity exists for the large-scale manufacture and ultimately export of this component.

John Makhanya and Dan Sepudumo (in the foreground) working on level crossing booms that will form part of rail infrastructure in the Western Cape, while Emmanuel Moyo does a final inspection of locally manufactured integrated circuit controls housed in the black crank handle boxes in the background. These are all signalling products manufactured by ACTOM Signalling.


Feature Article

field through the effective use of tariff and non-tariff barriers, as well as other policy measures and must develop trade and transport linkages within the African region and other export markets.

She also highlighted the need to investigate ways in which to advance the reputation of South African manu-factured products. One organisation that has been very successful in this regard is “Proudly South African”, an organisation that ACTOM recently became a member of.

Lastly, promoting preferential pro-curement for locally manufactured and beneficiated products that are competi-tively priced will definitely boost the manufacturing sector.

A strong and healthy manufactur-ing sector requires a deliberate and positive approach by all stakeholders to bring about an environment that is conducive to increased investment in manufacturing, improved competitive-ness and job creation.

Philippa believes that many of the challenges facing manufacturing in South Africa today can be addressed through a more co-ordinated approach to economic policy development and implementation, as well as how we engage our trading partners to ensure a level playing field for our industries.

Andries Mthethwa, ACTOM’s Deputy Chairman, and a member of the National Executive Committee of the Manufacturing Circle, is particularly ex-cited about the “Map to a Million” cam-paign launched by the Manufacturing

Circle in November 2017.“More than half of our population

lives in poverty and as good corporate citizens, we need to step up and take responsibility for job creation. This pro-posal, developed by the Manufacturing Circle, is realistic, constructive, and de-tails actionable steps that companies like ACTOM can take in order to create an environment in which manufactur-ing in South Africa can thrive and jobs can be created,” said Mthethwa.

The proposal details how, if manu-facturing can expand to 30% of GDP, between 800 000 and 1.1 million direct jobs can be created, with five to eight times that number in indirect jobs.

The first priority is to prevent fur-ther de-industrialisation, ensuring that

no further jobs are lost and that the industrial base is stabilised.

Then, to increase the utilisation of existing capacity and to create addi-tional demand for locally manufactured goods which in turn will necessitate capital investment.

As well as the number of demand-side interventions, the “Map to a Million” also details supply-side inter-ventions to make manufacturers more competitive by reducing input costs, making changes to fiscal policy and supporting labour productivity.

A number of structural fixes that will help to increase investment and job creation through manufacturing are also detailed. Most notably is the sug-gestion of the appointment of a super-ministry to advocate manufacturing in a coordinated manner and greater policy certainty coupled with reduced currency volatility. Of particular inter-est to ACTOM is the introduction of significant private sector equity par-ticipation in state-owned enterprises; the support of municipalities with the capacity to deliver and maintain infra-structure and the creation of a home-grown renewables sector.

In conclusion, Mervyn Naidoo said, “As the largest manufacturer of electro-mechanical equipment in Africa, we believe that we have a significant role to play in stimulating the South African economy. By partnering with like-minded visionaries across a broad-range of manufacturing sectors, we look forward to taking advantage of the various opportunities that a renewed focus on manufacturing will present.”

ACTOM MV Switchgear is a market leader in the supply of medium voltage indoor and outdoor solutions to the electrical industry. Featured here is the manufacturing of medium voltage mini-substations.

Manufacturing has the potential to generate a positive and significant spillover effect on the economy, with one of the highest multiplier effects in terms of output, as demonstrated in this graphic, but also in employment (R1 million investment = three jobs), export earnings and fiscal revenue. Fiscal revenue will be boosted by an estimated R0.35 for every rand invested in manufacturing.

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SOURCE: PAIRIS

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R0.81R0.72

R0.60R0.49

R0.03 R0.03

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A R1.00 investment in manufacturing results in a R1.13 increase in GDP


Corporate

ACTOM has attained a Level 1 rating under the government’s re-vised Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) regulations and amended Codes of Practice.

The rating attained on 9 February 2018 following auditing of its B-BBEE status by a SANAS-accredited verifica-tion agent.

ACTOM is the only company in its industrial sector that currently enjoys Level 1 B-BBEE status.

“The upgrading of the group to Level 1 is chiefly attributable to the advances we have achieved in Skills Development during the year under review, due to the extensive training that the group undertakes, ” com-mented Mervyn Naidoo, ACTOM’s Group CEO.

In the latest audit ACTOM also scored well on three of the other four key elements, namely Ownership, Enterprise & Supplier Development ( E S D ) a n d S o c i o - E c o n o m i c Development (SED).

The exception was the Management Control key element, where the group’s score was higher than for the previous year but still fell well short of the target.

Mervyn said that satisfactory pro-gress continued to be achieved in promoting people of colour and women

ACTOM attains Level 1 B-BBEE status

to junior management positions during the review year, as in recent years, but the group hadn’t succeeded in achiev-ing similar advances in middle and senior management.

“The reduction of opportunities for business growth arising from the per-sistent recessionary economic condi-tions has been a contributory factor to the slow rate of advance achieved to date in this respect. However, we are giving attention to the matter and have put in place measures aimed at accel-erating the advancement of people of colour and women into higher manage-ment levels in the group,” he stated.

In addition to the new B-BBEE rating, another change that enhances ACTOM’s standing in the market place, is the recent increase in the group’s black-empowerment shareholding to 51,3% and of the black women share-holding to 34,66% – these previously being 32,5% and 11,5% respectively.

The change, which came into ef-fect in October last year, advances the group’s black empowerment and black women shareholdings to their optimum levels in terms of the black-empowerment requirements set by SOE’s, government departments and many major metropolitan municipali-ties, among others, for local private

sector companies seeking to do busi-ness with them.

Andries Mthethwa, ACTOM’s Deputy Chairman, said the combined effect of the group’s Level 1 B-BBEE rating and its optimum black-empower-ment shareholding status is to place it in the highest attainable position to do business with SOE’s and municipalities from the point of view of meeting their black empowerment requirements.

“In addition to this they also en-hance our standing with other private sector companies, since they, like us, are actively encouraged by legislation to do business with accredited black-empowered companies to enhance their own B-BBEE standing with the au-thorities and hence the SOE’s,” he said.

“This consideration applies es-pecially to our Level 1 status, as it means that another private sector company that does business with us will gain higher B-BBEE procure-ment credits than when dealing with a company that has a lower B-BBEE rating,” Andries concluded.

John Thompson wins Chairman’s Award for fifth time in seven yearsAt ACTOM’s annual review at the end of May this year Chairman Mark Wilson and CEO Mervyn Naidoo stated that the past year has been the most difficult and most challeng-ing to date for the group.

Mervyn Naidoo, Mark Wilson and Deputy Chairman Andries Mthethwa stand behind senior executives. They are (from left) Tembela Caza, Divisional CEO for T&D, who accepted the award on behalf of High Voltage Equipment; Sybrand Nel, Divisional CEO of Engineering Projects & Contracts; Greg Smith, GM of ACTOM Contracting; Peter Colborne, GM of ACTOM Transport; Sylvester Makamu, Reid & Mitchell’s Divisional HR Executive, who accepted the award on behalf of the division; Andy Abbey, former Divisional CEO and now Chairman of John Thompson; Pieter Grove, Distribution Transformers’ Financial Manager, who accepted the award on behalf of the division; Greg Whyte of MV Switchgear; Patrick Barnes, Divisional CEO of Wilec; and Tobie Jansen, GM of Utility Boilers & Environmental Solutions.

It was therefore all the more com-mendable that most divisions and busi-ness units have done as well as they have in the financial year to end March 2018, they emphasised. This was fur-ther underlined by Mark when present-

ing the Chairman’s Awards at the event, which took place at Birchwood Hotel in Boksburg, Gauteng, on May 29.

This year’s awards presentation was the seventh since the inception of the Chairman’s Awards.


Corporate

ACTOM has joined Proudly South African, the national organisation dedicated to promoting the sale and purchase of South African products and services.

Proudly SA, which enjoys the full support of the government and is part-sponsored by the Department of Trade & Industry, provides a range of services to member companies that assists them to grow their businesses and extend their reach into new and existing markets.

Its members encompass indus-trial and commercial companies of all sizes, government agencies, financial institutions, business and professional organisations, training institutions, cultural bodies, media and publishing houses, healthcare services and sports organisations, among others.

ACTOM has joined Proudly SA with effect from April 1, 2018. All divisions and business units within the group are afforded the benefits and services it provides. These include:l Linkages to all other Proudly SA members, including government agencies. l First-hand access to all tender op-portunities in the sectors in which they operate.l Display of local products and ser-vices on Proudly SA’s database.l Free participation in Proudly SA’s annual Buy Local Summit & Expo and in other business forums it hosts.l Use of the Proudly SA logo in all the ACTOM businesses’ communication and promotional media.

“Of especially great value to us is that the services offered by Proudly SA are provided to each and every division

ACTOM joins Proudly SA

and business unit in the group accord-ing to their individual requirements and the specific markets they cater to,” said Andries Mthethwa, ACTOM’s Deputy Chairman.

“For example, the tender opportuni-ties that Proudly SA undertakes to pro-vide to members on an ongoing basis, in which it alerts us to available tenders as they arise, are provided to each divi-sion and business unit in accordance with their particular requirements and scope of business.

“This, along with the other services Proudly SA provides, is of great value to us in assisting in the development of our various businesses.”

Andries added that having all group locally manufactured products and components listed and displayed on Proudly SA’s widely-used and well-viewed database also offers great

promise in making ACTOM’s offerings more widely known among custom-ers and potential customers in the Southern African region and beyond.

Proudly South Afr ican CEO, Eustace Mashimbye said: “ACTOM’s membership means a great deal to Proudly South African as we have had a particular drive in the manufacturing sector, which has such an enormous capacity for job creation. The re-indus-trialisation of the country is an impor-tant component of economic growth, and companies such as ACTOM can assist in this respect. A number of their divisions manufacture items that are designated under the Preferential Procurement Policy Framework Act and so they are especially well positioned to benefit from our tender monitoring system. We look forward to a mutually beneficial relationship. ”

John Thompson proved once again – as it did last year and on three previous occasions – to be the best-performing division in the group and named the winner of the Chairman’s Award for 2018.

In terms of the broad-based set of criteria on which the Chairman’s Awards are based, John Thompson did exceptionally well in achieving growth in trading profits in difficult circumstances, while at the same time maintaining excellent cash flow. Among other areas where it scored well were in growth of export orders, risk management and safety.

Similarly Distribution Transformers and Wilec, joint winners of the Runner-up Award, did exceptionally well on profit growth, cash conversion and on

most of the other key parameters that apply. For Distribution Transformers, 2018 is the first year that they have received an award, and very well deserved after the past challenging year. For Wilec, 2018 is the second award received, previously receiving a Divisional Certificate of Excellence.

Three divisions, Engineering Projects & Contracts, High Voltage Equipment and Reid & Mitchell, were awarded Divisional Certificates of Excellence, while Business Unit Certificates of Excellence went to ACTOM Contracting, John Thompson Uti l ity Boilers & Environmental Solutions and ACTOM Transport.

A new award, the Chairman’s Award for the best Semi-technical Article Published in What’s Watt, was

introduced this year, the winner of which was an article published in the December 2017 issue of the magazine entitled “Switchgear development experts highlight need to conduct temperature rise type testing of minis-ubs”, co-authored by MV Switchgear’s Greg Whyte, the unit’s Design & Development Manager, and Rhett Kelly, its Technology Development Specialist.

Explaining why this award has been introduced, Andries Mthethwa, ACTOM’s Deputy Chairman, said: “It is to both encourage staff to write semi-technical articles as well as showcase to readers the group’s expertise in devel-oping and providing to customers the best technical solutions as they arise.”


Corporate

Matric learner at Balmoral College scores seven distinctionsBalmoral College, one of several education institutions that receive sponsorship support from ACTOM, maintained its long unbroken record of 100% pass rate for its matric class in 2017.

“The year was an exceptional year, in that one of our top-achieving matrics had a clean sweep of seven distinc-tions, which has only once before been achieved by a matric learner at our school,” pointed out Matie Wium, Balmoral’s Principal.

The learner in question was Lilyossa Mandizvidza, who was closely followed by fellow learner Tiisetso Polori, who with six A’s and one B just missed attaining a “full house” of distinc-tions. The third highest scorer was Mbalenhle Malinga with five A’s and two B’s.

The only other occasion when a matric learner at Balmoral College scored more than seven distinctions was in 2011, when Gugulethu Ngwenya achieved eight distinctions.

Meanwhile double-storey class-rooms have been built to increase classroom accommodation at the school, which has enabled it to increase the number of its learners.

The expansion, which was started late last year and completed at the end of January this year, has resulted in four additional classrooms being provided. “The eight new classrooms contained in the new double-storey

buildings replace four prefab class-rooms that previously occupied that part of the property. They are being used to accommodate both primary and high school grades,” said Cobus

Matthee, HOD of the Further Education & Training (FET) college at the school.

Balmoral College has increased its total number of learners to 1461 – an increase of almost 6% over last year.

Sylvester Makamu is currently in training to take over as Group Human Resources Executive when Johann Ellis goes on retirement.

Johann, who has been with the group since 1981 and held the Group HR Executive position since 1991, be-gan training and mentoring Sylvester for the job from the beginning of this year.

“We’ve agreed to share the Group HR Executive’s responsibilities be-tween myself and Sylvester on a 60/40% basis until the end of April next year, when these percentages will be switched around as the next step towards his appointment to the job,” Johann said.

Sylvester spends the remainder of his working time performing his

Sylvester Makamu in training to succeed Johann Ellis as Group HR Executive

duties as Divisional HR Executive at Reid & Mitchell. He has held this posi-tion since 2013, prior to which he was

Employee Relations Specialist for the Savcio Group since 2007.

Sylvester, 39, an LLB degree gradu-ate and an admitted advocate, started his career in 2002 with the Department of Justice in Johannesburg specialis-ing in labour relations. He is currently studying by correspondence with the University of South Africa for a B.Com in Industrial & Organisational Psychology.

He was elected a Trustee of the ACTOM Pension Fund in 2016 and Deputy Chairman of the Electrical Manufacturers Association of SA (EMASA) in 2017. In 2014 he was co-opted onto the Bargaining Council of the Steel & Engineering Industries Federation of SA (SEIFSA) to work alongside Johann in wage negotiations.

Sylvester Makamu

Standing in front of the newly-built double-storey classrooms at Balmoral College are (from left): Roan Halgryn, Tourism teacher for Grades 10 to 12; Memory Wium, Primary School HOD; Belinda Dadswell, Afrikaans teacher for Grades 5 & 6; Ina-Marie Dadswell, Afrikaans teacher for Grades 4 & 5; and Madisa Barry, Foundation Phase HOD.


Power

John Thompson has received two further orders for package boilers for deployment in processing plants in Ghana’s main port city of Tema.

The latest contracts follow one it secured in late-2016 for an Enviropac unit for a new edible oil factory in Tema.

The first of the two recent contracts was a rush order placed in August 2017 by longstanding John Thompson customer operating a fish processing plant in Tema. It was for a 12t/h capac-ity heavy furnace oil-fired Enviropac boiler, which was dispatched by John Thompson in November and subse-quently installed and commissioned by the customer.

“We succeeded in meeting the ex-tremely tight deadline through efficient procurement and focussed project management,” said Simon Boiskin, the division’s Export Sales Manager,

John Thompson supplies package boilers to three Ghanaian plants

Package BoilersA new customer operating a food

and personal care factory awarded a contract to John Thompson in January this year for a 8t/h capacity biomass fired Europac boiler for deployment in its Tema plant.

The boiler, equipped with ancillary equipment that includes a container-ised bag filter designed and produced by John Thompson’s Air Pollution Control business unit, was delivered in May this year, as scheduled.

The earlier order for an Enviropac boiler for the new factory in Tema was received from a Europe-based com-pany that has set up a plant in Tema to refine shea olein harvested from locally-grown trees. Shea olein is used for numerous applications in food and cosmetics.

The 12t/h capacity boiler, which

John Thompson delivered late last year, is specially equipped for firing by shea olein produced in the plant.

A technician attends to a 12t/h capacity heavy furnace oil-fired Enviropac boiler in a fish processing plant in Tema, Ghana.

Corporate

Four of ACTOM’s six Transmission & Distribution divisions and business units exhibited jointly in this year’s three-day African Utility Week exhi-bition at Cape Town’s International Convention Centre in mid-May.

High Voltage Equipment (HVE) in-cluded among its products on display a newly-developed medium voltage com-posite silicon and porcelain transformer bushings, MV Switchgear showcased the RMV gas-insulated ring main unit it launched at last year’s African Utility Week expo, Protection & Control (P&C) presented, among other prod-

High Voltage Equipment launches MV composite bushing at African Utility Week

ucts exhibited, its recently introduced NovaTech Orion I/O substation automa-tion unit, and Distribution Transformers displayed its special exhibition trans-former, which enables viewers to observe many of the internal compo-nents of a standard distribution unit.

HVE used the African Utility Week exhibition to introduce the new com-posite bushing into the market. “For ex-hibition purposes we had a transformer with the new composite units mounted on one side and a set of porcelain units mounted on the other side,” said Greg Scholtz, HVE Contracts Engineer on

duty at the show. The new product complies to

the SA Bureau of Standards’ SANS 1037:2011 standard and is available in 11kV, 22kV and 33kV. Its develop-ment and introduction follows HVE’s successful introduction in 2014 of high voltage composite silicon and porcelain post insulators for discon-nectors. “These developments are in response to the growing trend in the market towards adopting composite insulators in preference to the tradi-tional all-porcelain units because of their greater resistance to pollution,” Greg commented.

P&C, which introduced the new Orion I/O substation automation unit into the local market in November last year, had a full functioning unit on display at African Utility Week, which attracted much interest among visitors to the show.

NovaTech Orion I/O is an extension of the family of OrionLX automation platforms for substation automation. It can be used as a standalone hardwired RTU or in conjunction with the OrionLX where additional inputs are required.

“It is a rack-mountable I/O assem-bly with four slots, which can be filled with any combination of I/O cards. A full population of discrete cards yields 64 I/O in a 2U rack, which makes it a very compact solution,” said Herman Mare, P&C’s Automation Specialist.

Imraan Mohamed (right), Protection & Control’s Business Development Manager, Network Control & Metering Solutions, explains some of the solutions on offer to a visitor to the ACTOM stand at African Utility Week.


Power

US metal recycling industry expo ‘more upbeat’ than previouslyElectrical Machines, which par-ticipates as an exhibitor every year in April at the annual convention and expo of the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI) in the US, found a change in mood at this year’s event.

“Understandably, the mood there hasn’t been positive for several years now due to the prolonged economic recession and depressed state of the market.

But this year it was noticeably more upbeat, which gave us the sense that

the industry is recovering at last,” com-mented Antonio Teixeira, Electrical Machines’ General Manager.

For one thing, the exhibition hall at the venue in Las Vegas – where ISRI stages its exhibition every other year – was fully booked out and attendance

John Thompson, a leading designer and manufacturer of fossil fuel- and biomass-fired boilers and ancillary plant, has made a breakthrough sale of the innovative MicroGen small medium-pressure watertube boiler it has developed for the local and international industrial markets.

An automotive tyre manufacturer has ordered a 30t/h MicroGen boiler for production of saturated steam at 28bar gauge for process heat in its KwaZulu-Natal plant to cater for an expansion that is currently under way.

The new boi ler, ordered in December last year in a fast-track contract for delivery and installation at the end of October this year, will be a coal-fired unit.

The boilers currently in operation at the plant are three 13,65 t/h coal-fired bi-drum watertube boilers that were supplied by John Thompson more than 30 years ago.

The MicroGen, John Thompson’s new modular design watertube boiler, has a steam output capacity range of between 15 and 30t/h at a pressure up to 67bar gauge and a final steam temperature to suit any customer requirement from saturated steam temperature up to 485 degrees C. This mono-drum boiler may be fired with coal or fibrous biomass-fuel and is suitable for producing steam for co-generation, dedicated power genera-tion as well as process heat.

Et ienne de Vi l l i e rs , John Thompson’s Divisional Technical Manager, described the contract as an important breakthrough for the MicroGen. “It not only enables us to complete the detailed design of the new product, but having a reference plant in our local industry will enable us to demonstrate the capabilities and advantages of this range of boilers,” he commented.

Ancillary equipment to be supplied with the boiler will include a de-aerator

John Thompson receives breakthrough sale for the new MicroGen watertube boiler

and feed pumps, a make-up water plant and a high efficiency multi-cyclone grit

collector with performance enhancing recirculation system.

Three key players involved in the design and manufacture of the 30t/h MicroGen boiler for a local tyre manufacturer are shown above standing on the lower rear panel wall of the boiler in John Thompson’s factory. They are (from left) Divisional Technical Manager Etienne de Villiers, Leon Fourie, the artisan responsible for managing the welding of the wall panels, and Design Engineer Christof Kotze.

Power Conversion


Power Conversion

HVAC Systems provides air-conditioning and heat-recovery system for Simba’s new pellet line plant

Seated at Electrical Machines’ exhibition stand at the ISRI expo in Las Vegas, Brian Lindsay (left), the business unit’s Commercial Manager, and Paul Cuthbert, Divisional CEO of the Power Conversion division, chat to Steve McGlothlin, an executive of IST, a shredder technology company.

ACTOM HVAC Systems recently supplied and installed a special-ised industrial air-conditioning and heat-recovery system to serve a newly-established pellet production line at Simba Pepsico’s Prospecton, Durban, plant.

The pellet line is an addition to the existing Lays and Simba crisps manu-facturing line at the Prospecton plant. The pellets are the main dry ingredient used in the manufacture of Chipniks.

The turnkey contract, awarded to the business unit in mid-2017 and com-pleted in January this year, comprised the design, manufacture, supply and

installation of an air-conditioning sys-tem to filter and cool the hot air emitted in the production process and return it back into the production line.

“The whole system conforms to the required food hygiene standards for the manufacturing process, which includes the use of a wash-down stain-less steel return air duct system and fabric supply air ducting that can be removed and laundry cleaned.

The chiller is also supplied with an energy-efficient full heat recovery system so the client can use the hot water for their CIP systems to reduce water-heating costs,” said Robert

was excellent. “To top it all we received an order for a shredder motor during the show itself, which hasn’t happened for a very long time!” Antonio said.

Electrical Machines is the largest supplier of shredder motors to the US metal recycling market.

MacDougall, General Manager of ACTOM HVAC Systems’ Pinetown facility.

“The chilled water system also cools the food process plant equip-ment, as well as providing chilled water to the cooling coil in the air-handling unit cooling the hot process return air from the production plant,” he added.

The air-handling unit supplies a total of 65 770m3/hr of air, while the heat-recovery system supplies hot water into the production process at a temperature of 50 degrees C.

Static Power celebrates 50th anniversaryStatic Power celebrates its 50th an-niversary this year.

A 50th anniversary function for staff and management of the Static Power group’s three business units was held on May 18 at their premises in Jet Park, Boksburg, to celebrate the occasion.

The Static Power division, which comprises Static Power, Alkaline Batteries and Com10, has advanced from being a small player in its field at inception into a leading designer, pro-ducer and supplier of standby battery chargers, power supplies, rectifiers, modular UPS systems, converters, battery discharge units, batteries and related products and systems.

Static Power was founded in 1968. They manufactured simple battery chargers consisting of a transformer,

rectifier and a switch. They then de-veloped and produced thyristor-based chargers and the company grew rap-idly on the basis of providing a good product at a good price, supported by good service.

During the 1980’s the company relocated to larger premises in Benoni where it continued expanding to be-come one of the leading suppliers of chargers to the mining industry, utilities, municipalities and telecom-munication industry, among others. The company added transistor-based chargers and batteries to its product offering alongside the thyristor-based charger units. The addition of these products enabled the company to sup-ply complete DC charging systems to the industry. Further innovation was

the development of furnace control panels, DC distribution boards and the introduction of micro-processor based battery chargers.

The company was acquired by the Formscaff group and during this period, Alkaline Batteries (established in 1984) was also acquired. Alkaline Batteries is the exclusive local distributor of the world class ALCAD and SAFT range of Nickel Cadmium batteries. Shortly af-terwards Dysart Investments acquired Static Power and Alkaline Batteries.

Static Power meanwhile kept pace with the technological advances in its field, diversifying into switchmode technology during the 1990’s. It also commenced production and supply of thyristor-based and IGBT-based UPS

To page 12


Power Conversion

ACTOM awarded contracts for Gibela train plant substation and reticulationACTOM was awarded two major contracts in September 2016 for the supply of power to the Gibela manu-facturing plant currently being es-tablished in Dunnottar, Ekurhuleni, to manufacture the majority of the total 580 passenger trains on order by the Passenger Rail Agency of SA

ACTOM Contracting wins top safety awardACTOM Contracting was named winner of the Platinum Safety Award of the Federated Employers Mutual Assurance Company (FEM) at its an-nual awards dinner in Johannesburg in early-November last year.

The award was made to the busi-ness unit for achieving the best safety record in the building and construction industry over the 10-year period of 2005 to 2015. It is the first time the business unit has won this award.

The picture shows Ignus van der Merwe (left), HSE Manager for the Engineering Projects & Contracts divi-sion, being presented with the award by FEM Chairman Nico Maas at the awards dinner. At the same time ACTOM Contracting received an award for achieving the best safety record in the year 2015.

systems and started providing elec-tronic versions of battery discharge units and power supplies.

Alkaline Batteries also diversified its offerings during this period, adding valve-regulated, ultra-low maintenance nickel cadmium batteries to the exist-ing product range and later introducing Lithium Ion batteries into the market.

In 2005 ACTOM, then Alstom South Africa, acquired the Static Group and the acquisition of COM10 followed in 2012. Com10 specialises in modular switch-mode battery chargers, AC-DC converters, DC-DC converters and modular UPS systems to further enhance the divisions capabilities and scope in switch-mode technology. Among other items, Static Power and Com10 developed switch-mode port-able power supplies for temporary supply pending the repair/upgrade of a DC system.

A major advancement was a 12-pulse thyristor controlled battery

Elsabe Swart, Static Power’s General Manager, is shown with staff celebrating the 50th anniversary on May 18 when a function was held at the business unit’s premises to mark the occasion. charger with micro-processor control, equipped with an Ethernet port, there-by providing customers with laptop

interface for setting up the charger and for maintenance purposes.

(PRASA) to replace its aging fleet. The plant is being established by

Gibela Rail Transport Consortium, the black-empowered consortium as-signed by PRASA in 2013 to manufac-ture the modern metro fleet over the subsequent 10 years.

The pair of contracts awarded to

ACTOM are worth in excess of R80-million. The first, for the electrical retic-ulation of the new plant, was awarded by Gibela in September 2016, while the larger second contract, for the estab-lishment of the new 88kV/11kV Gibela substation for supply of power to the facility, was awarded in November

From page 11

Engineering Projects & Contracts


Engineering Projects & Contracts

2016 by Trencon Construction, the main civil and construction contractor on the project.

Direct responsibility to execute and manage both the Gibela substation contract and the Gibela manufacturing plant electrical reticulation contract, which are scheduled to be completed in the first half of 2018, were assigned by ACTOM to its substation project management business unit Power Systems.

Also linked to the project are a range of economic development initiatives, which Power Systems is committed to fulfil on ACTOM’s behalf. In addition to providing work and busi-ness opportunities for local labour and businesses, the initiatives are aimed at providing new skills and other ways of assisting in the development of previ-ously disadvantaged communities in the area.

Much of the equipment required for the Gibela substation is being produced and supplied by ACTOM divisions and business units. “The bulk of the outdoor gear will be supplied by High Voltage Equipment, while the indoor switchgear for the substation is to be produced by MV Switchgear and the protection and SCADA systems by Protection & Control,” said Hannes Horn, Power Systems’ Senior Contracts Engineer responsible for the contract.

The substation contract also incor-porates construction of a 4km long 88kV overhead line to link the new substation to the existing 88kV/11kV Vorsterskroon substation near Nigel.

The line will connect to the existing line between Vorsterskroon substation and Prosperitas substation just outside Vorsterskroon.

For the Gibela manufacturing plant reticulation contract Power Systems is installing a total of seven custom-ised 1000kVA 11kV minisubs and one 630kVA 11kV minisub produced by MV Switchgear, to serve the various manufacturing operations located on the extensive 780 000m2 manufactur-ing complex.

The plant reticulation contract also encompasses:l An 11kV internal reticulation sub-station comprising a 14-panel MV switchgear board produced by MV Switchgear. l Three FBX air-insulated ring main units produced by MV Switchgear.l Three 1600kVA distribution trans-formers produced by Distribution Transformers.l Close to 5km of cable, supplied by Electrical Products, for distribution of power to workstations throughout the plant.l Provision of an information & communications technologies (ICT) network, which includes a fibre-optic network to the office building for data and WIFI connections, CCTV cameras and an electrified security fence on the perimeter. These systems have been subcontracted to specialist suppliers. l Supply and erection of high-mast lights for lighting of the entire plant area. Genlux Lighting is the supplier of the luminaires for these.

Ramano Singo, Power Systems’ Contracts Manager responsible for the

Shown above in front of the switchgear board at the Gibela plant premises in Dunnottar are Ramano Singo (second from left), Power Systems’ Contracts Manager for the plant reticulation contract, and colleagues (from left) Kaizer Sithole, Site Manager; Dumisani Sihlangu, Quality Control Officer; and Francois Weideman, Health and Safety Officer.

reticulation contract, said: “The inter-nal reticulation substation incorporates a generator network for backup in the event of temporary loss of power from the main substation. This comprises two 550kVA diesel-powered gen-erators and a 2MVA distribution trans-former operating in combination with a 100kVA NECRT transformer, both supplied by Distribution Transformers.”

Regarding the economic develop-ment initiatives ACTOM is committed to introduce in terms of the plant reticulation contract, Ramano said that the following initiatives had been implemented during the course of the contract up to the end of April 2018:l A total of 27 local people have been employed in both semi-skilled and un-skilled work that encompasses, among others, brick-laying, cable-laying and digging of excavations on the site. l Under the SMME portion of the programme a local contractor has been engaged for the supply and construc-tion of the ITC manholes and sleeves. In addition, a number of local suppliers have been hired for regular procure-ment of equipment and consumables required for the contract and for the day-to-day use of contract personnel. These include bricks, cement, safety equipment, fuel, data and airtime.

Regarding expenditure by ACTOM on social development initiatives to the benefit of local communities, negotia-tions between ACTOM, Gibela and lo-cal community representatives had not been finalised by the abovementioned date. “We expect to have the content and scope of these initiatives resolved soon,” Ramano said.

Ramano and his three colleagues in front of one of the minisubs outside the Gibela plant.


Medium Voltage & Protection

WPI Power Solutions and Dev-Tech awarded Gauteng streetlights maintenance contractThe Gauteng Department of Roads & Transport (GDRT) has awarded a R55-million three-year streetlights maintenance contract to a joint venture company in which ACTOM

and 100% black-owned company Dev-Tech are partnered.

Dev-Tech and ACTOM’s WPI Power Solutions are leading electrical infra-structure maintenance businesses.

The contract was awarded to the JV in December last year and runs from January 2018 until the end of 2020. It is for the maintenance of the streetlights and the associated electrical infrastruc-ture serving provincial roads linking the province’s main metropolitan areas.

The contract conditions incorporate employment-creation requirements. “These include having to prepare and submit monthly reports detailing all personnel engaged on the project,” said Siphiwe Mkhwane, a Director of Dev-Tech and Contracts Manager on the contract.

The reports are forwarded by the GDRT each month to the Department of Labour.

“We employ a fixed number of skilled people throughout the contract, while the unskilled workforce changes month by month,” Siphiwe added.

One of the service vehicles deployed on the recently awarded contract

for the upkeep of Gauteng provincial road streetlights and associated

electrical infrastructure.

Protection & Control (P&C) has expanded its range of Arcteq pro-tection relays with the addition of the AQ250 range, which provides greater functionality than the exist-ing AQ200 range on offer.

The AQ250 range, introduced in mid-2017, adds a 7-inch colour HMI, additional protection functions and ad-ditional I/O slots. There are a total of 11 slots available, which can be used for either inputs, outputs, ARC protection, RTD measurements, analogue meas-urements or communication options. The range also incorporates IEC61850, bay control functionality, powerful logic programmability and a free software suite to ease programming.

“The new range caters to users who require a larger selection of I/O op-tions and protection functions, so giv-ing them greater flexibility to mix and match I/O capabilities according to their specific requirements,” said Elizabeth Senatle, P&C’s Product Manager, Protection Products & Systems.

The AQ250 range also enables us-ers to access information more easily, with the addition of the 7-inch colour HMI, 20 controllable objects, 16 tri-

Protection & Control introduces more versatile MV protection relay range

colour LED’s and 12 programmable function keys. “This ensures that the AQ250 range can meet the more demanding requirements experienced in the modern substation,” Elizabeth pointed out.

Applications available are: feeder protection; transformer (+diff) protec-tion; motor (+diff) protection; generator (+diff) protection; voltage regulating IED; bay controller IED; and measure-ment IED.

Learner Technician Africa Nkosi (left) and Senior Technician Joseph Sibuyi display some of the new Arcteq AQ250 protection relays now on offer by P&C. Joseph holds two overcurrent and earth fault relays, while on the display panel are other models in the range, including a variety of meters.


us better to cater to the local market as a whole as far as these products are concerned,” said Faisal.

“A major advantage is that it pro-vides us flexibility to customise the product according to each customer’s specific requirements,” he pointed out.

“We have used local contractors for our renewable energy requirements and installed a roof-mounted solar PV system to cover most of our energy needs for the new ‘Green’ factory that employs insulation measures to reduce our air-conditioning load and by extension our carbon footprint,” he added.


Protection & Control sets up prepayment meter manufacturing plantProtection & Control (P&C) has set up a prepayment meter factory at its Knights, Germiston, premises in line with the latest national regulations governing local content require-ments for key industrial products.

Residential prepayment meters and smart meters are included among many categories of equipment recently designated by the Department of Trade & Industry (DTI) as requiring a minimum 70% and 50% local content respectively to be eligible for sale and supply to SOE’s and other organs of state, including many municipalities.

The establishment of the local pro-duction facility, operating since March this year, enables the business unit to meet the DTI’s local content conditions applying to prepayment meters.

“It positions us optimally to cater to the rapidly growing demand for state-of-the-art smart prepayment metering systems in the local market, especially among local authorities, which have increasingly adopted them as the most efficient and convenient method for controlling, monitoring and managing electricity consumption in the resi-dential areas under their jurisdiction,” commented Faisal Hoosen, P&C’s General Manager.

P&C produces and assembles the equipment under licence to its tech-nology partner Holley Technology, an international manufacturer and sup-plier of metering systems. The items produced in the new factory comprise prepayment meters, smart prepay-ment meters and customer interface units (CIU’s).

The manufacturing area of the new facility contains four dual multi-station assembly lines for both single- and three-phase meters, a withstand voltage test bench, two calibration benches, two configuration benches and two quality testing benches.

“The building includes an adminis-tration office, a components storage area and a dispatch area, while provi-sion has also been made for future expansion of the manufacturing facil-ity,” said Leon de Nysschen, P&C’s Electricity Metering Manager.

“The current manufacturing capabil-ity can however be ramped up easily with the inclusion of additional produc-tion equipment and staff.”

Various components of the meters are manufactured by contracted ser-vice providers prior to being brought into P&C’s Knights manufacturing

facility for assembly, calibration, con-figuration and quality testing. “We also consciously support small black-owned component suppliers and manufactur-ers in our area which may well promote further job creation in the Ekurhuleni area,” said Leon.

The business unit has reassigned some of its existing technical, man-agement and support staff to the new facility.

“In addition to enabling us to conform to the government’s local content requirements applicable to prepayment meters sold to SOE’s and other government-related institutions, the manufacturing facility also equips

Two factory staff-members calibrate residential prepayment meters in P&C’s new assembly and test facility, while a third is seen configuring a meter.



Web-based SCADA for cost-effective and efficient access to network information

Web-based SCADA has reached a level of maturity that makes it very cost-competitive and easy to im-plement compared with traditional centralised SCADA systems.

Instant access to information has become part of modern life, including how business is done, as it contributes significantly to – among other things – enabling us to increase productivity and make more informed and quicker decisions.

Smaller municipalities and indus-trial operations in South Africa, have been unable to do so due to barriers such as cost considerations, lack of the necessary communication infra-structure and problems of complexity, but to a large extent these obstacles no longer apply. One of the key tech-nologies that have transformed the communications landscape for the better in recent times is the use of a Web-based SCADA interface.

Prior to the advent of the Web-based SCADA solution, in an electri-cal substation the system typically consisted of a RTU interfacing with the primary plant via inputs and out-puts and/or communication with a protection IED. The RTU relayed the collected information via a commu-nication network to a master station where a dedicated Server with SCADA software provided visibility and interac-tion between the substation and the operator.

In a Web-based SCADA solution

the Web-Server capability of the RTU replaces the former dedicated Server and SCADA software. A typical instal-lation now consists of an RTU with I/O for direct access to the primary plant and serial or IP communication to the protection IED’s. The RTU is connected to a Wide Area Network (WAN) either via existing IP infrastructure or via an IP to GPRS gateway.

Web-based SCADA offers many significant advantages, compared with traditional centralised SCADA systems. These include: l Cost-savings - The Server with SCADA software in the central control room, as previously required, is elimi-nated, as the Web-Server functionality is now embedded in the RTU and can be viewed from a standard computer or smartphone/tablet using a Web browser such as IE Explorer. This en-sures a low-cost barrier to entry, where a customer can easily start with only the essential substations and minimal outlay at the control centre. For sim-ple substations, ongoing licencing of SCADA systems is unlikely as the gate-way device “serves” the webpages and the hardware is generally supplied with the licence embedded. l Increased visibility - The available SCADA pages can be viewed from any WAN-connected browser, making the SCADA information readily available to management, the control centre opera-tor and the field engineer.l Improved safety - The field engi-

neer’s safety is assured as he can now perform switching operations from outside the substation via a mobile device.l Greater functionality - Due to the broadening of accessibility of the SCADA pages to include management and maintenance and field engineers, functionality is accordingly increased to fulfil all their requirements. l Flexibility - It makes use of standard Webpage development technology, thereby enabling creation of content-rich pages to maximise provision of all relevant information to customers. These can include links to IED soft-ware, live video and other features.l Security - It incorporates user-based and/or role-based access levels, with suitable log-on functionality. The RTU also provides a firewall, ensuring that only devices with the necessary authority can connect to it. l Engineering - The engineer config-uring the RTU can also configure the SCADA web server with the aid of standard templates and off-the-shelf Webpage development tools, thereby eliminating the need for specialised Server skills.l Longevity - Unlike a PC Server-based solution, where the hardware and operating software require regular upgrading, hardware and software uti-lised in a Web-based SCADA solution have a long utilisation period without need of regular upgrades.

In summary, a web based SCADA

This illustration shows graphically some of the advantages Web-based SCADA systems offer over traditional centralised systems.


LH Marthinusen

LH Marthinusen rebuilds 6,3MW main pump motor for Rand Water’s Zuikerbos Pump Station


solution provides users with optimum visibility into their electrical network in a scalable, quick and cost-effective manner.

The Orion RTU/Gateway product manufactured by NovaTech, USA, has been used as the basis for this article. The Orion platform performs the func-tions of multiple single-purpose boxes in the electric utility substation, reduc-ing cost and complexity.

Orion can connect to almost any substation device in its native protocol, perform advanced maths and logic and securely present the source or calcu-lated data to any number of clients in their own protocol. It can also present the data to the client on a Web-based

intuitive graphic interface, which allows it to perform a continuously expand-ing number of functions in the utility substation.

ACTOM Protection & Control is fully trained in the application of NovaTech products and also offers an Automation

LH Marthinusen (LHM) recently re-manufactured an as-new large induc-tion motor to replace a motor that had overheated during operation.

The motor LHM rebuilt is one of a number of 6,3MW main pump motors deployed by Rand Water at its Zuikerbos Pump Station near

Vereeniging, Gauteng. Two major components from the

original motor – the stator frame and the rotor shaft – were retained for in-corporation in the rebuilt motor, while all other major components were remanufactured.

“Both the stator frame and ro-

tor shaft required some repair work, but were otherwise in a satisfactory condition for re-use. These are among the largest components in the motor, so the fact we were able to retain and repair them represented a substantial cost-saving for the client,” commented

LH Marthinusen rebuilds induction regulator for pump station motorLH Marthinusen (LHM) recently completed rebuilding of an induc-tion regulator for a stator-fed AC commutator motor

The induction regulator, used for speed control of a pump motor in a municipal pump station, had failed during operation.

The rebuilding of the unit last year by LHM’s Large Rotating Machines

division entailed manufacture of a new 3,3kV 330kVA line transformer and rewinding both the stator and rotor windings of the induction regulator.

“This particular model of induction regulator has a 36-circuit configuration that had to be reverse engineered due to lack of data on the aged unit,” said Boris Breganski, LHM’s Electrical Engineer.

“The phasors were plotted and calculated to verify the winding phase relationships for the required manu-facture of the line energy recovery transformer. Furthermore the trans-former flux patterns were calculated and plotted to ensure the integrity of the interconnections of the multitude of transformer wound coils.”

Manufacturing of a new conductor for the stator also posed a major chal-lenge, due to it being of an outdated rectangular design. A special jig had to be set up to create the original rectan-gular profile for braiding in the manu-facturing process. “We then adapted an automated conductor covering ma-chine for the continuous insulation of the conductor,” said Andrew de Vries, Foreman of Wire Drawing.

The rebuilding of the induction regulator, which was installed and put into operation late last year, saved the municipality from the expensive alter-native of having to upgrade the plant with current variable frequency drive technology.

The induction regulator’s fixed transformer is shown removed from its frame to enable an integrated test to be conducted on the connections between it and the rotary transformer mounted in the frame.

To Page 18

Partnership Program to select integra-tors to further unlock the capabilities of Orion.

By Marius van RensburgProduct Manager

ACTOM Protection & Control

The Orion platform performs the functions of multiple single-purpose boxes in the electric utility substation, reducing cost and complexity.


LH Marthinusen Reid & Mitchell

Metalplus and the CSIR’s National Laser Centre (NLC) have agreed to collaborate in marketing and pro-viding a laser-welding service to in-dustry as an extension to the repair services Metalplus already provides.

The two-year collaboration agree-ment signed in January this year is aimed at further fostering use of fibre laser welding technology as devel-oped by the CSIR NLC to perform specialised mechanical repairs on components that can’t be repaired using conventional welding methods.

The well-proven fibre laser welding system performs weld overlays at low

Metalplus and CSIR’s National Laser Centre collaborate to broaden repair services

input energies and also has low dilution compared with other welding systems.

“It is used for repair of compo-nents that have suffered surface damage or wear and to improve the performance of components by changing their surface properties,” explained Hardus Greyling, the CSIR NLC Manager, Commercialisation & National Programmes.

“Due to its low heat input and low dilution it is also suitable for perform-ing small-scale repairs and depositing fine layers of metal as weld overlays, which is beyond the scope of the tra-ditional welding systems,” he pointed

out, adding that it is also able to weld a variety of alloys.

While occupying a niche market among industrial equipment repair applications, laser welding promises substantial savings to owners and us-ers of high-value equipment.

“Typical examples of components best suited for rebuilding and repair by laser are rebuilding of worn tenons on Stage 3 power generation turbine blades, providing coil retaining ring landings on generator stator bodies and repairing worn labyrinth seals on compressor screws. This technology is especially well suited to repair of rotational equipment, where compo-nents may be at risk of suffering heat-distortion when conventional welding is applied,” Greyling stated.

Laser-welding has about a tenth of the heat input of conventional welding, while its dilution is around 5%, com-pared with up to 50% in other welding processes.

Metalplus and the CSIR NLC have been collaborating for several years on an ad hoc basis in combining their respective capabilities in serving the mechanical repair market. In some instances operating equipment de-ployed by clients of Metalplus have required repairs to be done by CSIR NLC welding engineers and techni-cians using laser-welding technology, while Metalplus has assisted the CSIR NLC with machining services – both for pre-preparation of components in need of repair and for final finishing of components upon completion of laser-welding repair work.

“The collaboration agreement formalises these arrangements, while also providing for close cooperation

During an Open Day held for Metalplus’ customers in its Robertsham, Johannesburg, workshop in mid-May, a CSIR NLC technician performs a weld on a shaft to demonstrate some of the special capabilities and advantages offered by laser welding technology. He is shown handling a robotic arm and laser control pendulum linked to the laser delivery equipment seen in the background.

Pieter van der Walt, General Manager of LHM’s Large Rotating Machines division.

The Zuikerbos Pump Station, which supplies water to most of Gauteng, is the largest pumping station in the Southern Hemisphere.

The equipment that was completely remanufactured at LHM’s main facility in Denver, Johannesburg comprised a complete rewind kit, a new stator core, a new rotor core, new rotor bars and new end-rings.

All the remanufacturing work was conducted by reverse engineering procedures, since drawings of the original motor were unobtainable, due to the overseas original equipment manufacturer having ceased operation many years ago.

The repairs to the 11t rotor shaft and the bearings, which were completely refurbished, were also carried out in-house at LHM.

“In addition to the cost-savings achieved by having the motor rebuilt

instead of replaced, the client also ben-efitted from the rebuilding of the motor as it was performed in less than half the time it would have taken to replace it with a new one,” Pieter stated.

“We have manufactured compo-nents like these on various previous projects, but this is the first time we manufactured a complete motor of this large size to date,” he added.

LHM was awarded the contract in August 2017 and completed it in April this year.

From Page 17


Marthinusen & Coutts

between us in marketing our respec-tive services in a unified way, mainly to spread the word more widely in the marketplace about the special applica-tions and benefits of laser welding, including promoting its use where applicable among Metalplus’ exist-ing customers,” said Jose Gomes, Metalplus’ General Manager.

Reid & Mitchell

Posing with the equipment used in the Open Day laser welding demonstration to customers are (from left) Jose Gomes, Metalplus’ General Manager; Corney van Rooyen, CSIR NLC Welding Engineer; and Hardus Greyling, CSIR NLC Manager, Commercialisation & National Programmes.

M&C technical team solves puzzle of repeatedly failing mine ventilation fan motors

BackgroundIn October 2017 a mining company operating an underground zinc mine in the Northern Cape approached Marthinusen & Coutts (M&C) with a request to assess three 1300kW 6,6kV 12-pole squirrel cage induc-tion motors driving the three main ventilation fans on one of the ven-tilation shafts at the mine.

The motors’ drive end bearings had failed repeatedly since the ventilation system had been installed around 2012. A number of rotating machine repair companies had attempted to establish the cause of the failures and rectify the problem over that six-year period, but without success.

The various repairers offered and provided a variety of remedies. The motors however continued to fail after operating for periods ranging from one month to a year. On each occasion the spherical roller bearings on the drive-end of the motors failed.

Preliminary assessment

M&C initially repaired one of the failed motors at the request of the client by replacing the spherical roller bearing. The motor however failed a month after being put back into ser-vice, again with the drive-end spherical roller bearing failing. Thereafter M&C conducted an on-site investigation, as well as examining all the previous reports on the motor failures.

In the preliminary assessment –

prior to more thorough investigations and tests being conducted – M&C found that due to axial misalignment of the rotor, the motor magnetic centering force was causing a skidding condition in one of the two rolling element sets of the spherical roller bearings. Using a clock gauge to establish the centering force, the M&C team measured a 0.08 mm axial deflection of the end-shield when subjected to full magnetic field force effects.

Finite element assessment (FEA)

M&C then conducted a finite element assessment (FEA) on the failed motor. This consisted of a three-dimensional simulation of the drive end end-shield with known applied forces. The FEA simulation calculated the deflection of the end-shield at various points. This calculated force allowed accurate confirmation of the centering

To Page 20

The colour scale graph from the FEA simulation of the deflection of the drive end end-shield of the induction motor, with an arrow showing the direction and location of the applied force.



force that was causing the deflection. With this it was established that about 2t of force was required to cause the abovementioned deflection. This force also correlated with the centering force that M&C calculated using more tradi-tional electromagnetic design theory.

A spherical roller bearing is de-signed to sustain high axial thrust without failure, and also importantly without any significant increase in vibration; but if the axial force exceeds 70% of the radial load on the spherical roller bearing, it will cause skidding of one set of roller elements, resulting in failure of the bearings at some point – as occurred in these instances.

Confirmation of cause of failures

To confirm definitively that the above diagnosis of the cause of the fail-ure was correct, M&C then conducted a test in which the motor was placed in a temporary modified condition to enable it to float axially into its true

magnetic centre while operating. For this state to be achieved the

motor was fitted with a temporary cylindrical roller bearing in place of a spherical roller bearing. This in turn enabled the appropriate modifications to be made when the motor was sub-sequently reassembled, to place the rotor in correct axial alignment.

At this point the axial deflection test of the end-shield, as conducted during the preliminary assessment stage, was repeated. The deflection was found to be well within the acceptable margin for correct operation, at less than 0,015mm of deflection.

When the motor was operating in the unmodified state with the spheri-cal roller bearing, the skidding action of the spherical roller bearings was faintly but clearly observable, with full supply voltage applied (and hence full centering force). With the supply volt-age reduced – and very little centering force in effect – the skidding sound disappeared. This proved the skidding

Marthinusen & Coutts Zambia now offers 12t dynamic balancing service

The largest balancing machine in Zambia was recently successfully commissioned at Marthinusen & Coutts’ Zambian operation in Kitwe.

The fully upgraded 12t machine is ca-pable of balancing rotors up to 12t at op-erating speeds up to 3300rpm, 5,5m in length and with diameters of up to 2,2m.

Careful planning and execution by

M&C ensured that the machine was successfully installed, calibrated and commissioned. The local M&C team received training to ensure optimum operation of the machine.

The in-house ability to precision balance rotors to very high accuracy is a valuable service to customers in the region. “It will no longer be necessary

to transport large components to South Africa for this work to be done. This local dynamic balancing service also expedites the repair process, reducing delivery time and avoiding the risks as-sociated with long distance transporta-tion. This translates into a bottom line cost reduction for customers because of the quicker turnaround times,” said

A technician operates M&C Zambia’s newly-commissioned balancing machine.

of one set of rolling elements, as well as the axial deflection being close to its maximum level when the skidding was observable.

Conclusion

M&C performed the same modifi-cations on one of the other two mo-tors that had repeatedly failed. Both motors were thereafter re-installed and put into operation to drive two of the three centrifugal fans serving the ventilation shaft.

The temperatures at which they operated were found to be an optimum 46 and 47 degrees C respectively. Senior technical personnel at the mine notified M&C that these were the low-est temperatures they had operated at since the ventilation installation had commenced operation six years ago.

By Rob MelaiaEngineering & Technical Executive


From Page 19



M&C Zambia commissions vent fan test column at its Kitwe works

Test technicians of M&C Zambia are seen above conducting a test with the facility’s newly-installed mine ventilation fan test column.

Marthinusen & Coutts Zambia has had a mine ventilation fan perfor-mance test column installed at its Kitwe works.

The column, which was commis-sioned in May this year, has been set up to meet a requirement that exists among many of the copper mines served by the repair facility to verify the performance capabilities of venti-lation fan motors sent to it for repair.

The column, designed to perform tests in accordance with the cur-rent BS ISO 5801:2007 Standard, is equipped with common test airways and an interchangeable conical inlet throat to simulate operating conditions underground.

“While subjecting the fan to oper-ating conditions we are able to record various critical parameters for verifica-tion of efficiency, pressure flow, vibra-tion, speed, power and environmental parameters. We also have a selection of reference fans should an OEM re-quest us to test fans on their columns for performance verification,” said General Manager Eugene Lottering.

“The column is also a vital quality tool that enables us to ensure that re-pairs we undertake in our works meet the required specifications,” he added.

M&C Zambia’s customers include several major mining companies with underground operations in the Copperbelt in Zambia, as well as the Southern DRC.

M&C was requested by one of these large customers in May this year to act as a third party to test the performances of fans of various OEM’s

on the column according to the AMCA Standard 205-10 (Rev. 2011) Energy Efficiency Classification for Fans.

“This enabled the company to choose an OEM that achieved or ex-ceeded their specification, therefor ensuring that they selected the correct OEM,” Eugene explained.

ACTOM Turbo Machines extends lives of steel mill’s high-pressure de-scaler pumpsIn September 2016 a steel mill in Gauteng invited ACTOM Turbo Machines (ATM) to quote for refur-bishing one of their multi-stage high pressure de-scaler pumps.

This was the first step towards ATM possibly refurbishing these pumps on a regular basis if our price was right and our delivery times better than as previously provided by other suppliers.

The steel mill’s stated aim in ex-ploring the possibility of hiring ATM as an alternative refurbisher of these

high-wear pumps was to extend their service life. The pumps, which operate in extremely harsh conditions, were lasting for only three to six months each, after which they required com-prehensive refurbishment. The refur-bishments involved complete remanu-facture of all wearing components, with only the original outside housing being retained for re-use.

Having found ATM’s quote accept-able, the client commissioned ATM in November 2016 to refurbish a single

pump on an extremely tight schedule of only four months. This was indeed a challenging undertaking, taking into consideration that it involved remanu-facture by reverse engineering.

But ATM took it on, being reason-ably confident – despite the daunting time constraint – that it could achieve it on account of its substantial experi-ence in performing reverse engineering projects of various kinds over the years, including remanufacturing of pumps,

To Page 22

Mike Chamberlain, M&C’s Marketing Executive.

“The service will prove to be invaluable to customers and OEM’s operating in the Copperbelt region, and underpins M&C Zambia’s position as the leading electro-mechanical repair facility in the region,” he added.

Over a period of four years M&C Zambia has upgraded its test facilities, which can now accommodate both AC and DC motors. The facility also boasts a temperature-controlled burnout oven, curing ovens, vacuum pressure impregnation (VPI) tank and a test fan column for performance testing of

underground vent fans. Furthermore, winding verification ensures that sta-tors and rotors are wound to interna-tional and OEM specifications.

Upgrades have also been imple-mented to the mechanical repair shop, which also offers machining, milling and submerged arc welding.



Vertical setup of a multi-stage pump for final assembly.

Electrical Products’ Pretoria branch came to the fore once more by win-ning the business unit’s Branch of the Year Award for 2018.

The branch, which has won the award in previous years and was Runner-up last year – when Steelpoort branch won it for the first time – was also awarded the Best Sales Team award. Steelpoort came a close sec-

Electrical Products’ Pretoria branch wins ‘Branch of the Year’ award

ond, being named Runner-up for both Branch of the Year and Best Sales Team.

Pretoria branch hosted Electrical Products’ sales conference, which in-corporates the awards presentations, in late-May this year.

“Pretoria branch have been the most consistent performers in the last half-dozen years and their achieve-

ment over the past financial year is the more commendable because of the large amount of ACTOM product they sold, especially from the Transmission & Distribution factories,” commented Rod Penaluna, Electrical Products’ Divisional CEO.

“Steelpoort once again performed remarkably well for such a small branch operating in a remote area,” he added.

although ATM had not remanufactured any multi-stage high pressure pumps prior to this contract.

The seven-stage 3MW pumps, used to de-scale newly-rolled steel plates as they come out of the forging process, operate at 4250rpm and 160 bar pressure.

Reverse engineering procedures

With a reverse engineering project the form and function of each of the hundreds of components involved have to be appreciated, while the same re-quirements apply to the entire machine as a whole. The procedures that have to be conducted prior to remanufacture are:l All components must be measured and drawings made of each. Qualified and experienced pump technicians are deployed to perform the measur-ing, comprising a combination of 3D measuring using a laser scanner and

hand-measuring. l A general arrangement of all the drawings must be made of the entire pump, using computer-aided draught-ing (CAD), to provide a total perspec-tive of the pump’s form and the ar-rangement of all its components. l Material analyses of all the compo-nents have to be done by spectrometry analysis and/or X-ray to positively iden-tify the materials used. l Great scrutiny has to be given to the dimensions of all components and the way these are to be assembled within the pump to ensure that it will operate according to its intended function.

Remanufacturing of components

The team responsible must have in-depth experience and knowhow of rotating equipment in general and – in this instance – of various types of pumps to ensure that the remanu-factured pump operates successfully as designed. This includes having a clear understanding of all the individual components’ functions and modes of operation. The team is also required to know how components made of specialised alloys are to be manufac-tured, as in many such instances this is exceedingly complex.

In addition, the team must have sufficient knowledge to enable it to introduce any changes to the original design that promise to improve the equipment’s performance and/or ser-vice life.

Improvements introduced

In refurbishing the de-scaler pump to return it to its original operating condition, ATM remanufactured and replaced all the wearing parts. These comprised the the rotor shaft, impel-lers, white metal bearings and all the

stationary and rotating sealing and wearing components.

At the same time ATM introduced two major improvements that had not been done in any of the previous refur-bishments. These improvements were: l Application to all the wear compo-nents of a tungsten carbide coating to increase their wear-resistance and so extend their lives. l Restoring the pump’s centre line to its true centre by executing a com-plete line-boring of the pump casing. This ATM did after finding the pump’s centre line to be severely distorted. The most likely cause of this distortion was probably that it had been left to operate for many years without any at-tempt being made to adjust it towards its true centre. When a pump (or any rotating machine) operates out of cen-tre the small clearances between the stationary and rotating components are compromised, leading to rubbing and accelerated wear in the best case scenario, or in the worst case, a catastrophic failure, from a stationary component rasping onto the rotating element.

Final outcome

The refurbishment as performed by ACTOM Turbo Machines has been shown to be a success by comparison with the previous refurbishments car-ried out on these high-wear pumps. The steel mill has affirmed its complete satisfaction with ATM’s work.

Following upon the completion of the initial contract, ATM was awarded a further contract in mid-2017 to re-furbish another four de-scaler pumps. These refurbishments have since been completed.

By Mark GulbisQuality Management Engineer

ACTOM Turbo Machines

From

Electrical Equipment



Genlux Lighting develops Fortes LED floodlight range Over the past 30 years Genlux Lighting’s core product range has been built around traditional High Intensity Discharge (HID) light sourc-es and magnetic ballasts and based on luminaire housings that are pro-duced using high pressure die-cast aluminium.

In response to the latest techno-logical advances and changed market demands Genlux recently took on the challenge of developing a competitive-ly-priced high power LED floodlight family for sale into the local market.

High power LED lighting has rapidly gained acceptance as a viable com-mercial light source, due mainly to its optical distribution flexibility, massive power-saving opportunities and ex-tended service life.

Before starting the development project we identified strong demand in the market place for high performance LED floodlights in the high-end specify-ing project market. We defined the core product development targets as:l Speed to market: A rapid product offer was required. l A competitively-priced product. l Low to no tooling investment cost, ensuring an immediate return from sales without a payback.l A robust design to ensure good service life in demanding conditions.l A scalable platform to cater for varied applications.l “Future proofing” to remain agile for any future changesl Compliance to relevant SANS and IEC standards

We conducted intense research to develop the product in line with

all the technical and commercial re-quirements involved. A vital step was leveraging the support of technology partners in Europe to supply the two key electrical components required for the product – a complete modular light engine and matching control gear.

The main criteria applied for select-ing the light engine were:l The correct amount of light output.l Light energy efficiency to achieve

the least possible power usage. l Correct colour rendering.l Mechanical durability in accordance with the IP66 international rating.l Extended ser vice l i fe of up to 150 000 hours.

The control gear used in the prod-uct set has on-board smart capabilities that include pre-set dimming profiles to enable automatic dimming during periods of low activity, thereby con-

This picture shows a high-mast installation which Genlux Lighting installed at Electrical Products’ headquarters in Driehoek, Germiston, as a test site for the new Fortes high power LED floodlight range prior to introducing it into the market.

Electrical Products’ Pretoria branch staff celebrate their achievement after winning the 2018 Branch of the Year and Best Sales Team awards. They are (from left): Godfrey Mogane, Field sales Manager; Volker Schweigardt, Sales Manager; Coert Snyder, Branch Manager; Fritz Hattingh, Regional Manager; Lynette Klaasen, Sales Assistant; and Liezelle Lubbe, Office Manager.

A new focus on stock reduction was introduced for the first time and factored into the competition’s awards criteria. “In the current tough climate we needed to put this component into the mix and I’m happy to say all the branches grasped this challenge and did extremely well, resulting in the stockholding of the business unit as a whole being reduced by as much as 25%,” he said.

The other award winners in the competition were: l Best Stores: Welkoml Best Credit Control: Bloemfontein l Most Improved Branch: Polokwane


General

Key appointments

Andy AbbeyJohn-Paul Andre

Lizbe Sloet

Jaco Grobbelaar Janene Jansen

Thinus Damon

John-Paul Andre , former ly Divisional Finance Executive of John Thompson, has been appointed Divisional CEO of John Thompson with effect from April 1, 2018.

Andy Abbey, John-Paul’s prede-cessor in this post, continues to serve the division on a part-time basis in the role of Chairman of John Thompson.

Jaco Grobbelaar , former ly Divisional Finance Executive of ACTOM Energy, has been appointed Divisional Finance Executive of John Thompson with effect from April 1, 2018.

Janene Jansen, formerly SHEQ Country Manager at an international

certification body, has been appointed Divisional SHEQ Manager of John Thompson with effect from December 18, 2017.

Aaron Gamede has been appointed Manufacturing Manager of Signalling with effect from September 1, 2017.

Lizbe Sloet has been appointed Financial Manager of ACTOM Energy with effect from March 1, 2018.

Thinus Damon has been appointed Commissioning Engineer at ACTOM Industry with effect from March 1, 2018.

Otto van Jaarsveld has been ap-pointed Branch Manager of Electrical Products’ Nelspruit branch with effect

from April 1, 2018. Warren Filippa has been appointed

Product Manager, Power Products of Electrical Products from June 1, 2018. He was formerly Sales Manager at Electrical Products’ Nelspruit branch.

Quinton Brittion has been ap-pointed to the new post of Product Manager, Overhead Line Equipment of Electrical Products with effect from April 23, 2018.

Chris van Aardt has been appoint-ed Business Development Manager of Protection & Control’s LV Engineered Products department with effect from January 15, 2018.

tributing to power-saving, and an on-board diagnostic capability to monitor and report on abnormal power supply conditions, among others.

The main criteria applied for select-ing the control gear were compatibility to the light engine in terms of providing the necessary forward voltage and output current; sufficient electrical protection, comprising an on-board surge protection rating of 8kV 3kA; and basic intelligent features encompass-ing a dimming capability and providing diagnostic readouts.

Product features and specifications

The Fortes family starts with a 2-way unit, comprising two light engine modules, that provides 20200 Lumens at 70W, going up to a 9-way with an

output of 90 900 Lumens and 657W. The product in its varied configura-

tions comfortably replaces and com-plements in Genlux’s existing HID floodlight range. Typically ranging from 150W to 1000W, the FORTES range provides power savings of between 30% and 60% versus traditional HID floodlights, with the additional benefit of extending service life from around a typical 24 000h to well over 100 000h.

All the mechanical components were CNC laser cut and formed from 304 Grade stainless steel sheet metal, which helped keep development costs down to a minimum. They are also modular, thereby enabling ease of as-sembly and scalability.

Initial production of the product was based on a typical high-mast ap-plication for area lighting. The design

applied here is a layout in which three masts of 20 to 30m in height are placed 300m apart in a triangular formation, for which the key requirement is that the illumination at the halfway point between the masts – i.e.150m – must reach an average level of 1 Lux.

The Fortes product family passed all the relevant SANS safety and per-formance tests conducted at the SABS Lighting Laboratory.

Since its launch into the market in mid-2017 the product set has been well received by customers. It has been supplied and installed into several major projects across South-Africa and the first export order received was for an airport renewal project in Thailand.

By William BlackbeardTechnical & Quality Manager

Genlux Lighting


Aaron Gamede


General

Otto van Jaarsveld Chris van Aardt Warren Filippa Quinton Brittion

John Thompson carried out four major corporate social responsibil-ity (CSI) projects during 2016/2017 to uplift previously disadvantaged communities near Grootvlei power station in Mpumalanga.

The CSI projects were undertaken as part of contract obligations linked to two contracts currently in operation at Grootvlei by the division’s Utility Boilers & Environmental Solutions business unit.

“The CSI projects have focussed on the development and enhancement of facilities and services in the Dipaleseng Municipality towards improving the living and working conditions of the community, including providing op-portunities to small and medium con-tractors in the area to carry out some of the work involved in the projects,” said Shad Seeth, John Thompson’s Business Development Executive, who assisted in arranging and co-ordinating the projects.

John Thompson has spent a total of more than R4-million on the four projects, which were:l Refurb ishment of Tshepeha Secondary School from late-2016 to July 2017 l Refurbishment of Tegwan’s Nest Primary School between January and July 2017l Provision of a new library for Greylingstad’s Nthoroane township community between June and August 2017l Provision of flush-toilets to replace pit-toilets at Tegwan’s Nest Primary School between September and December 2017

The division commissioned a local black-owned construction company to execute most of the work involved in the refurbishment at Tshepeha school, which included classrooms, the admin-istration block and ablution facilities,

ACTOM carries out R4-million worth of CSI projects for communities near Grootvlei

as well as paving and landscaping the grounds.

At Tegwan’s Nest school the im-provements included rebuilding the school hall and kitchen and supplying and installing two new 10 000 litre wa-ter tanks and an electrically-powered borehole pump to replace the hand-pump previously in use.

Modified shipping containers were used to replace the library in Nthoroane township and to replace the pit-toilets at Tegwan’s Nest school with flush-toilets.

The previous library serving the township was housed next to the for-mer municipal office building, which had been damaged during community protests in 2011. With the municipality’s permission John Thompson had the municipal office building demolished and a pair of converted 12m containers joined together as a single large room erected in its place. The new facility was provided complete with a flush-toilet and hand basin together with electricity, air-conditioning and water

supply from the municipal reticulation system.

At Tegwan’s Nest school the pit-toilets were removed and replaced by the new container flush-toilet facility, which consists of a 12m container comprising separate toilets for girls and boys. The facility includes two polycar-bonate septic tanks plus a 5000 litre capacity Jo-Jo tank to supply the water for the flush-system and hand-basins. The municipality undertook to regularly replenish the water in the Jo-Jo tank.

When the refurbishment projects had been completed official handover ceremonies were held, attended by senior municipal and provincial repre-sentatives, among others.

“ACTOM is extremely proud of the container toilets project in particular, given the recent tragedies around pit-toilets. The new toilet facility elimi-nates the risks that young children are exposed to with pit-toilets, as well as improving hygiene and the overall quality of life for the learners,” Shad commented.

Tegwan’s Nest’s Principal Mr J.S. Galela (second from left) cuts the ribbon at the official opening of the new container flush-toilets, accompanied by (from left) Councillor Khanye of Dipaleseng Municipality; Mdu Ncube, Project Manager for Eskom; and Andy Abbey, John Thompson’s Divisional CEO.


General

Ronnie Russell of Power Transformers retires

Ronnie Russell retired from Power Transformers at the end of November 2017 after 31 years as CEO, with a total of more than 51 years’ service.

He played a key role in building up the division to its present position as a leading manufacturer and supplier of power transformers.

When Ronnie joined the small young company as a Sales & Contracts Engineer in 1966 it was known as Bonar Long NTC, which manufactured and sup-plied distribution transformers based on designs from Bonar Long of Scotland.

Ronnie’s high ambitions were evi-dent right at the start. In replying to a question in the application form for the job, where he was asked what his career goal was, he said he wanted to become Managing Director!

He encouraged some of the draughtsmen he had trained when he was Section Leader in the drawing office at his former employer to apply to join him at Bonar Long NTC. Among those who did so were Gert Kriel, current Sales Manager, Robert Hill, current IT manager, and Chris Hale, who was Chief Buyer when he retired in March this year.

During the initial period of his em-ployment Ronnie and his colleagues were required to work longer hours than normal. No spare office space was available then for Ronnie’s use, so he was installed in the office building’s passage, which he shared with the receptionist/telephonist.

He had a mischievous sense of

Ronnie Russell (third from right) poses with some of his longstanding colleagues and ex-colleagues during the farewell party held for him at Power Transformers on his 75th birthday in November last year. With him in the picture are (from left): Gert Kriel, Sales Manager; Paul Rogers, former Chief Draughtsman; Louis Liasides, Technical Manager; Neville Reid, former Materials Controller; and John Barty, former Works & Projects Manager.

humour, recalls John Barty, a long-standing colleague who joined the company from Bonar Long Scotland in 1964. John, who was Works & Projects Manager when he retired in 2012, said Ronnie liked playing pranks on other staff-members. “One of his gags was phoning one of us pretending to be the host of a radio programme offer-ing a prize for answering a question correctly,” he said.

Ronnie, who was promoted to Sales & Contracts Manager in 1970, was an excellent salesman, so making a significant contribution to the com-pany’s growth and expansion during his first two decades there.

During the late-70’s a second com-pany, Bonar Long NTC Switchgear, was set up to operate alongside the trans-former company. It added HV switch-gear, imported from Sprecher Energy AG and Haefely AG of Switzerland.

Bonar Long Scotland then relin-quished its shareholding in the local company, resulting in the transformer company having to develop new technologies and designs itself. It later linked up with world leading transformer design consultants Felber Engineering of Austria to bring its de-sign and production capabilities up to international standards.

“This major boost in our capabilities enabled us to secure an over R1-billion seven-year power transformers frame contract with Eskom in 2007 – the largest single long-term frame contract awarded to date to ACTOM Power

Transformers,” Ronnie said. He was promoted to General

Manager in 1985 and was appointed Managing Director the following year. In 1995 further changes in ownership of leading international players in the electrical equipment supply industry resulted in the closure of the local HV switchgear company. At the same time the transformer company’s local owners sold it to the NEI Africa group, which transferred its distribution trans-formers portion into the group’s Cape Town based transformer company.

The purchase by ACTOM – then Alstom South Africa – of the NEI group in 2001 marked the start of Power Transformers’ biggest and most sus-tained period of expansion and growth. Between 2003 and 2013 its production capacity was increased by over 100% and it extended it product range to en-able it to design and produce units up to 315MVA at 275kV, against its previ-ous upper limit of 45MVA at 132kV, while the test capabilities were also greatly enhanced.

As CEO Ronnie applied a policy of having more work than staff to perform it. “This put everyone under pressure, so making it hard. But the advantage was greater security of employment, since if a downturn occurred you’d stop working overtime, instead of having to be retrenched,” Ronnie explained.

Ronnie’s long-standing colleagues said he was always very popular with his staff and was fair as a manager. He was firm, but also open to advice.


General

Neville Lock, General Manager of Industry, retires at 78

Martin Kelly and Vanessa de Swardt attain 25 years’ service

Neville Lock, General Manager for 27 years of the Industry business unit in the Engineering Projects & Contracts (EPC) division, retired towards the end of 2017.

Neville, 78, after retiring from his post in August last year, continued working as a consultant for the unit until the end of February this year.

At an EPC presentation function for long-serving employees and retirees in late-February, at which Neville was presented with a certificate for a total of 33 years’ service with the group to-gether with a retirement gift, Sybrand Nel, EPC’s Divisional CEO, paid tribute to him for his dedication and hard work as head of the unit.

Group CEO Mervyn Naidoo and EPC’s Divisional CEO Sybrand Nel pose with Neville and his wife Eileen on Neville’s retirement at the end of February this year.

Neville steered Industry through a period marked by both noteworthy successes and tough challenges.

The unit enjoyed dominance as a supplier of mine winder electrics in South Africa until 2007, when, due to changing conditions arising in the local mining industry, the unit’s international technological partners focussed their attention on meeting the require-ments of other types of industries in other parts of the world. Industry consequently started losing major lo-cal contracts to its competitors for the first time.

Neville and his colleagues fought hard to win back their leadership posi-tion in this market. “To do so we had

to convince our partners of the need to work together closely in winning large local contracts,” Neville commented.

These efforts started paying off from 2010 and have been sustained up to the present. More modern technolo-gies assisted them in making a new breakthrough, with pulse width modu-lated inverter drive technology suc-ceeding the cyclo-converter drive tech-nology deployed in earlier contracts.

The unit’s recent successes for new winder systems have been mainly with mines in Zambia’s Copper Belt, involv-ing five big mine winder installations there.

Nevi l le graduated from Wits University with an electrical engi-neering degree in 1963 and received post-graduate training in the UK on a fellowship. He met his future wife there and they married after returning to South Africa in 1966. He worked for several companies in the mining indus-try and joined the group – then the local subsidiary of GEC – in 1984 as Sales & Contracts Manager for mining and industrial systems. He was appointed General Manager in 1990.

“I have been very fortunate to have been associated with a very competent and dedicated team of people,” he said.

Neville, who is in good health, will spend his retirement on his regular hobbies of DIY and gardening and also plans to participate in some char-ity work. In addition, he and his wife Eileen will pay occasional visits to their three children, family and many friends, who live abroad.

In early-December last year a long-service awards presenta-tion was held at the group’s head office in Knights to mark the at-tainment of 25 years’ service in 2017 by Martin Kelly, Divisional CEO of the Medium Voltage & Protection division, and Vanessa de Swardt, General Manager of Current Electric.

Vanessa and Martin are shown in the picture displaying their cer-tificates after being presented with them by Mervyn Naidoo (left), ACTOM’s Group CEO, accompanied by Tembela Caza, Divisional CEO for Transmission & Distribution.


General

2017 long-service awards presentations at Distribution TransformersDistribution Transformers’ Pieter Grove, Financial Manager, with 35 years’ service, and Jorge del Pozo, Engineering Manager, with 25 years’ service, were the division’s longest-serving employees in 2017.

entations were made to two em-ployees who went on retirement, Matshagi Thiya, Tank Assembler, and Theophilus Thage, Insulation Guillotine Operator, who both had 17 years’ service.

The other long-service awards re-cipients were:

15 years: GK Maseko, A Bayat, MS Mthshali, WL Moekoena, HR Nghonyama, NS Nxumalo, MB Bonoyi, BA Buthelezi and JD Louw.

10 years: K N Dlazi, DS Siggs, GS Mgudlulwa, PM Maoku, SP Zwane, AL Maema, CT Sethuntsa, MJ Leboho, MV Makola, KL Ngoetshana, MP Mnyango, TR Motha, MN Magu-Maseko, MB Radebe, MF Mahlatji, MB Nalana, BB Basi, DG Godi, TY Ngobeni, MJ Motlana, L Nolte, R van der Mescht, AM Mashaba, ST Thiya, SM Magawu, SP Morune, BW Ntshangase, JL Lephoko, PS Nhlapo, NM Mokoena and KM Mohloba.

They were among a total of 44 em-ployees who were presented with cer-tificates at Distribution Transformers’ long-service awards function in November.

In addition, long-service pres-

Financial Manager Pieter Grove was both a recipient and a presenter at Distribution Transformers’ 2017 awards function. On the left he receives his 35 years certificate from Divisional CEO Alan Buchholtz, while on the right he is seen presenting Jorge del Pozo with his 25 years certificate.

Signalling’s long-service awards recipients for 2017Laurence (Larry) Pienaar, Senior Applications Engineer at Signalling, headed the list of employees who received long-service awards for 2017 in December last year.

Larry, with 35 years’ service, was the longest-serving among the total 23 employees at the business unit who were presented with certificates. Sybrand Nel, Divisional CEO of the Engineering Projects & Contracts division, presented Larry with his certificate, while the other presenta-tions were made by Peter Colborne,

Signalling’s General Manager, and Aaron Gamede , Manufacturing Manager.

The Performer of the Year Office Administration award went to Barbara Swanepoel, PA to the GM, presented by Peter, while Dan Sepudumo, Storeman, won the Performer of the Year Manufacturing award, presented by Aaron.

The other recipients of long-service awards were:

20 years: Dan Sepudumo and John Makhanya.

15 years : Shaun Nolte and Thembisile Ngweni.

10 years: Daniel Walkinshaw, M a r i u s S u t h e r l a n d , M i ch a e l Sikhakhane, Suzette van der Merwe and Sizwe Yende.

5 years: Trevor Hann, Riaan Myburgh, Marius Rautenbach, Conrad Fourie, Paul Zietsman, Lambert Fick, Ryno Engelbrecht, Stephanus Dippenaar, Herold Machabe, Tjaart Swanepoel, Rick Theunissen, David Sisilane and Heinrich Weideman.

Displaying their awards are (from left): Suzette van der Merwe, John Makhanya, Ryno Engelbrecht, Stephanus Dippenaar, Barbara Swanepoel, Rick Theunissen, Heinrich Weideman, Larry Pienaar, Trevor Hann, Tjaart Swanepoel, Marius Rautenbach, Sizwe Yende, Ignus van der Merwe and Michael Sikhakhane.


General

R&M staff members take part in half-marathon

ACTOM canoeists accompany star performers in run-up race before Dusi Marathon

Six Reid & Mitchell (R&M) staff-members got the year off to a good start by taking part in a half-mara-thon in January this year.

The group is shown in the picture after completing the event, hosted by Benoni Harriers and sponsored by the industrial company Johnson Crane, which is located nearby R&M’s premises in Benoni. They are (from left): Sylvester Makamu, Divisional HR Executive, Yolanda Harris , Procurement Manager, Mike Shaw, Divisional CEO, Queen Dhludhlu, Finance Clerk, Rene Rajzman , Workshop Executive, and Michael Hoaeane, Commercial Executive.

For Yolanda and Rene it was their first half-marathon, while Sylvester and Queen achieved “personal bests”.

“R&M is proud to have a workforce with an awareness for healthy living. I’m extremely impressed with how a growing number of individuals have embraced exercise and are enjoying the benefits of greater wellness and vitality, which spills over into a vibrant

ACTOM canoeists Craig Johnston, Michael Stead (both of TLT ACTOM) and Mike Merry (Electrical Machines)

joined star performers Loveday Zondi (Electrical Products) and his canoeing partner Thando Ngamlana

(not from ACTOM) in a show of soli-darity in one of their three run-up rac-es to the Dusi Marathon in February.

All these canoeists participated in the 23km long Elands River Race near Waterval Onder in Mpumalanga on February 3 – the first of three short races in which Loveday and Thando participated in quick succession before tackling the gruelling three-day Dusi in Kwazulu-Natal in mid-February.

The two high-performing athletes won all three run-up races – the other two being the Duzi Jozi Joli on Emmarentia Dam, Johannesburg, on February 4 and the Night Race on Victoria Lake, Germiston, on February 6 – and finished in sixth place in the Dusi to win gold medals.

Including the latest Dusi, Loveday, 32, who is Electrical Products’ Product Coordinator for T&D equipment, has won five golds to date in Dusi, the pre-vious occasions being in 2014 (eighth), 2008 (tenth), 2006 (fifth) and 2005 (third). His 23-year-old partner, a stu-dent at the University of Johannesburg, has won two golds to date, this year and in in 2014, when he finished eighth as Loveday’s partner.

After completing the Elands River Race are ACTOM canoeists Loveday (front centre), Michael Stead (left), Craig Johnston (right) and Mike Merry (behind Craig). In the canoe on the left and behind Loveday are his friends Nkosi Mzolo and Richard Cele, who also took part in the race.

team spirit. We’re hoping to have an even bigger group next year and en-

courage more runners and some walk-ers to join us,” Mike Shaw commented.


ACTOM divisions and business units

POWERJohn Thompson, Isando: (011) 392-0900www.johnthompson.co.za John Thompson designs, manufactures, installs and maintains indus-trial boilers and environmental equipment for local and international process steam and power generation applications. It also retrofits, services and maintains utility boilers and environmental equipment in the power generation market, as well as designing, supplying and installing dust control, product recovery and gas-cleaning equipment for the mining, mineral processing, cement, chemical, petrochemical and food industries.

POWER CONVERSIONElectrical Machines: (011) 899-1111Electrical Machines supplies medium and low voltage motors, starters, gearboxes and speed reducers to the mining, industrial, processing and utilities markets.

Large Motors: (011) 899-1111Large Motors designs and manufactures medium voltage motors that include its reputable customised large UNIBOX series and its high specification MS4 totally enclosed fan-cooled (TEFC) cast-iron motors.

Laminations & Tooling: (011) 899-1111Laminations & Tooling manufactures laminated components and tooling for the electric motor manufacturing and repair industries.

HVAC Systems, Durban: (031) 700-3286HVAC Systems, Cape Town: (021) 981-0111www.actom-hvac.co.za HVAC Systems designs, supplies and installs industrial ventilation, heating and air-conditioning systems for the petrochemical, paper, pharmaceutical, mining, food, textile and various other industries.

Static Power: (011) 397-5316Static Power Specialize in the design and manufacture of AC and DC standby equipment,including thyristor type battery chargers (Micro Process Controlled option), industrial batteries, power supplies, recti-fiers, DC/DC converters, DC/AC inverters, furnace control panels, capacitor trip units, battery trip units, power distribution boards. All systems are designed and engineered to suit their purpose.

Alkaline Batteries: (011) 397-5326Alkaline Batteries, is the South African Distributor for ALCAD and SAFT industrial nickel cadmium and Lithium Ion batteries for the industrial, telecoms, rail and renewable energy markets. Services offered; Installation, Commissioning, Battery Sizing, Testing, Training, Maintenance and Repairs.

COM 10: (011) 552-8368COM10 is a local assembler and integrator of Alpha switchmode rectifiers, DC/DC Converters with sophisticated supervisory control-lers, Haze Batteries, stands, battery cubicles and power enclosures.

ENGINEERING PROJECTS & CONTRACTSIndustry: (011) 430-8700Industry is the system integrator in the ACTOM group. It provides turnkey drive and control systems for mining, metals and process industries as well as the public sector. It is equipped with local expertise for design, manufacture, project management, installation and commissioning and after sales service.

Contracting: (011) 430-8700Contracting is the electrical and instrumentation business unit which provides turnkey solutions for electrical power and instrument & control systems in the mining and manufacturing industries as well as the public sectors.

Power Systems: (011) 430-8700Power Systems delivers complete MV, HV, EHV and renewal bal-ance of plant turnkey projects for the electrical power industry. It undertakes AIS, GIS and renewable substations and projects ranging from 6,6kV to 500kV.

Transport: (011) 871-6600Transport has three trading units: ACTOM Signalling; designs, manufactures, install and maintains railway signalling equipment and turnkey systems.ACTOM Transport Equipment and Projects (TEP); a contractor and supplier of rolling stock equipment, parts, maintenance and special-ised depot machinery and test equipment.ARNOT Vibration Solutions (AVS); suppliers of anti-vibration products and engineered solutions to a wide range of industries, including rolling stock.

HIGH VOLTAGE EQUIPMENTHigh Voltage Equipment: (011) 820-5111High Voltage Equipment is a designer, manufacturer and supplier of high voltage equipment to power utilities, local authorities and industry. It manufactures and supplies isolators, instrument trans-formers, circuit breakers and dog-box circuit breakers.

MEDIUM VOLTAGE & PROTECTIONMV Switchgear: (011) 820-5111MV Switchgear designs, manufactures, supplies and installs me-dium voltage air- and gas-insulated switchgear that includes indoor switchgear, miniature substations, ring main units and containerized substations - serving power utilities, local authorities, contractors, industry and the mining sector. It also specializes in the repair and maintenance of electrical networks.

Protection & Control: (011) 820-5111Protection & Control is a market leader in the supply of protection and metering solutions to the electrical industry. The offering in-cludes a comprehensive range of automation systems, protection relays, credit, smart and prepayment metering systems and hosted services as well as LV panels, components and accessories.

Current Electric: (011) 822-2300Current Electric designs, manufactures and supplies medium voltage current and voltage transformers to switchgear manufacturers and repairers, electrical distributors and a diverse range of end-users locally and internationally.

POWER TRANSFORMERSPower Transformers: (011) 824-2810Power Transformers designs, manufactures and supplies a wide range of power transformers to power utilities, electrical contrac-tors, the mining sector, local authorities and industry locally and internationally.

DISTRIBUTION TRANSFORMERSDistribution Transformers: (011) 820-5111Distribution Transformers designs, manufactures and supplies distribution transformers to power utilities, the mining sector, local authorities and industry locally and internationally.


What’s Watt is published by ACTOM (Pty) Ltd to inform staff, customers and other stakeholders of developments within the group.

Editorial contact: Julian Kraft, J Kraft Public RelationsTel: (011) 472-6686, [email protected] story editorial contact, Wendy HardyTel: 083 230 0643, [email protected]

Produced by: Jeroen Luyk, In Africa(011) 768-7050, [email protected]

ACTOM contact: Andries Mthethwa, Tel: (011) [email protected]

Disclaimer:This publication is designed, compiled and produced on behalf of ACTOM (Pty) Ltd. Whilst the compilation and production of What’s Watt is done with care and with every effort being made to avoid errors, ACTOM, its shareholders and staff do not accept responsibility for any errors or the consequences thereof.

LH MARTHINUSENLH Marthinusen: (011) 615-6722www.lhm.co.za LH Marthinusen repairs and refurbishes transformers and rotating machines, including repairs to hydro and thermal power alternators. Manufacture of electric motor components, insulation components and specialised transformers and motors. It also provides engineer-ing services for its products to the mining, industrial and petrochemi-cal sectors and local authorities, as well as for the export market.

REID & MITCHELLReid & Mitchell: (011) 914-9600www.reidmitchell.co.za Reid & Mitchell is a repairer and manufacturer of electrical equipment for open cast mining, steel, rail transportation and marine indus-tries. Motors and generators for excavators, off-highway vehicles, locomotives, drilling and pumping applications. The division is also a specialist repairer of DC motors and generators, including rebuilds, rewinds and commutator manufacture.

Metalplus: (011) 433-1880www.metalplus.co.za Metalplus is an expert mechanical facility. It has pioneered Submerged Arc Micro welding in South Africa. It’s core competen-cies are machining of new shafts and repair, grinding and micro welding of all types of rotating equipment and other mechanical components, as well as the mechanical repairs of a wide range of electrical components (traction motor casings, electric motor cas-ings, end/bearing caps, etc.).

MARTHINUSEN & COUTTSMarthinusen & Coutts: (011) 607-1700www.mandc.co.za Marthinusen & Coutts offers the most extensive after-market ser-vices throughout Africa. The range of 24/7 motor repairs covers large and small AC and DC motors, flameproof motors, traction motors and power generators up to 980 MW. M&C’s services include customised manufacture and design, on-site engineering services and unique motor management solutions that complement the repair business.

ACTOM Turbo Machines: (016) 971-1550 www.actomturbo.co.zaCapabilities include minor and major repairs on any design or type of turbine, generator, stator or rotor.

WILECWilec: (011) 629-9300www.wilec.co.zaWilec specialises in the manufacture and distribution of a diverse range of materials serving predominantly the electric motor and transformer manufacturing and repair industries. The product range includes enameled and covered conductor manufactured under the Transwire brand, and a comprehensive range of insulating materials, impregnating resins, cables, bearings and industrial tapes sourced from leading global manufacturers. Materials are sourced in bulk and converted in South Africa into kits, machined components and slit rolls according to customer requirements.

ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENTwww.actomep.co.zaElectrical Products: (011) 878-3050Electrical Products is ACTOM’s trading and representation arm, with a national network of strategically located branches. The busi-ness unit supplies products produced by ACTOM divisions and other manufacturers, including cable, cable accessories, lighting equipment, heating and ventilation equipment, circuit breakers, distribution transformers, minisubs, protection and control equip-ment, electric motors, meters and fusegear.

TLT ACTOM: (011) 878-3050TLT ACTOM designs, manufactures, supplies and installs industrial, process, ventilation fan systems, heating, ventilation and air-con-ditioning (HVAC) systems to the mining, processing, air pollution control, power generation and construction industries.

Appliance Components: (021) 863-2035www.satchwell.co.za Appliance Components manufactures and supplies domestic and industrial heating elements, temperature controls, refrigeration components, solar water heating components and appliance spares to the domestic appliance manufacturing industry and the chemical, mining and construction industries, among others.

Genlux Lighting: (011) 825-3144www.genluxlighting.co.za Genlux Lighting is a leading designer and manufacturer of luminaires for roadway lighting, floodlighting, outdoor commercial lighting and industrial applications. It produces a wide range of high qual-ity products and employs a team of expert designers, with further technological support available from a leading international designer and manufacturer of luminaires.

ACTOM ENERGYACTOM Energy: (021) 511-9146www.actomenergy.co.za ACTOM Energy in collaboration with divisions within the ACTOM group, provides System Integrations and Turnkey Subsystems across all sectors.

hydron hydraulics: (021) 511-9146www.hydron.co.za hydron hydraulics designs and supplies hydraulic engineering sys-tems and services to the offshore oil & gas sector internationally. Equipment it designs, supplies, assembles, refurbishes, repairs and installs includes high pressure power packs, ring main units, winch-es, cranes, ballast systems and drilling and under-sea equipment.

Electrowave Cape: (021) 510-2550www.electrowavecape.co.za Electrowave Cape designs, supplies and services electrical and elec-tronic engineering systems for the marine and offshore industries locally and internationally. These include design and installation of power automation and drive systems, automation and instrumen-tation systems and generator control systems and refurbishment, repair, installation and maintenance services.

Namibia Armature Rewinders: (00264) 64-462-886Namibia Armature Rewinders repairs electric motors, generators and other rotating equipment for a wide range of industries in Namibia.

What’s Watt June 2018 32 What’s Watt December 201332ACTOM (Pty) Ltd: 2 Magnet Road | Knights | 1413 | PO Box 13024 | Knights | 1413Tel: +27 (0) 11 820 5111 | Fax: +27 (0) 11 820 5100 | www.actom.co.za

ACTOM is the largest manufacturer, solution provider, repairer, maintainer and distributor of electro-mechanical equipment in Africa.

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