When a customer called dewatering and dredging specialist IPR for help, it took just 24 hours before pumps were running on site. IPR rental development manager Andre Strydom says this was all the time they needed to quote, deliver and commission their Sykes dewatering pumps.
“We immediately sent a pump rental quote following the customer’s call, and specified four Sykes CP150 medium head dewatering pumps,” says Andre Strydom, rental development manager at IPR. “These were delivered and commissioned on site the next day, with 1 500m of 150mm lay-flat hose and all other necessary equipment.”
Time was of the essence, as these pumps had to provide four bypass water lines for a contaminated water source which could not be released into the river system. The four Sykes pumps easily maintained a constant flow rate of 190m³ per hour over a distance of 700m. They ran on a 24-hour basis to ensure a constant water flow through the four pipelines.
Andre says the Sykes CP150 dewatering pumps are ideal for the job. They offer a maximum head of 60m with a flow rate of 172 litres per second, and are capable of handling solids with particle sizes of up to 77mm. “These units also feature sophisticated automatic priming capabilities. These are based on a Venturi system that can deliver suction lifts of up to nine metres.”
Running dry
The robust construction of the pumps ensures optimum reliability and long life. Importantly, they can run dry for extended periods of time without damage. The pumps also boast low fuel usage and lower maintenance costs, and can operate in ‘snore’ conditions.
“The Sykes CP models – or the contractors’ range – are designed to meet the heavy duty demands of the construction, mining and rental industries,” Andre explains. “With pump efficiencies up to 83%, they provide faster and more efficient pumping, resulting in savings to the end user.”
A month later
There was more to come from the same customer. Just a month later, they called again after detecting further contamination of more dams. Once again, there was no time to lose. Urgent pumping was required to control the risk of contaminated discharge.
“This time, the need was for four high head Sykes XH150 rental pumps,” says Andre. “They were delivered on the same day, with 2 800m of lay-flat hose with clamps and straight connectors.” Each of these Sykes extra high head pumps delivered a flow of 220mᵌ/h over 1 200m. These pumps can be primed with long suction hoses and can manage suction lifts of up to nine metres.
The Sykes XH150 dewatering pumps, offering a maximum head of 170m with a maximum flow rate of 140 litres per second and capable of handling solids with particle sizes of up to 43mm, were more than suitable for the task. “They offer automatic priming and solids handling capability and these pumps also have one of the best shaft stiffness ratios of any automatic priming pump on the market.”
The large fuel tanks on the Sykes range of dewatering pumps facilitate continuous pumping for more than 24 hours, which according to Andre makes refuelling that much easier as this only needs to be undertaken once in a 24 hour cycle.
