Emergency repair service keeps smelters in business

When a large, bespoke-framed fan motor failed at Rio Tinto Alcan the consequences could have been significant. Instead, thanks to quick intervention and significant rework by ERIKS, the motor was back in action six days earlier than anticipated.

The 920kW 3.3kV motor is used for unloading powdered alumina at Rio Tinto Alcan’s port facility and its failure left the company temporarily unable to re-stock its UK smelting sites. The unique nature of the motor meant that no replacement unit could be sourced in an acceptable time scale, but fortunately ERIKS engineering service in Killingworth was able to collect the motor from site and undertake a strip down.

Following inspection, ERIKS’ engineers remanufactured a full set of coils, rewound and overhauled the motor on an emergency service basis. The Killingworth workshop – one of many of the company’s centres of excellence across the UK – has a copper mill, coil manufacturing facility and repair facility all on the same site. Engineers were therefore able to start manufacturing a new set of coils within 24 hours of receiving the motor, using materials from stock, and working around the clock to deliver the refurbished motor back to Rio Tinto Alcan’s site six days earlier than the original agreed date.

Phil Wrigely, Rio Tinto Alcan’s Lynemouth Smelter Works Director, was effusive in his praise, commenting, “ERIKS’ efforts helped us maintain our operations without major interruption to our customers.”