“It is not just the economic times and the power disruptions that plague the profitability of manufacturers,” says Raymond Obermeyer, general manager operations at SEW-Eurodrive. “Much can also be said about planned maintenance and putting measures into place to allow for the smooth running of a plant.”
Raymond Obermeyer
Stockholding and spares form an important part of the company’s business strategy in Africa. “It contributes a significant amount to our business, as we pride ourselves on the ability to offer availability of spares and accessories as part of our after-sales support on a 24/7 basis,” he elaborates.
Spares are critical
Obermeyer reveals that there is constant demand for accessories and spares, with some customers ordering critical spares ahead of time in order to have them available when they are needed.
SEW-Eurodrive boasts a stockholding of 80% of the items that the company sells at any given time. These include cooling systems, condition monitoring equipment, maintenance operating manuals and a selection and design software. Obermeyer explains that if the required part is available from any of the company’s five South African branches, it can be delivered to the customer within a very short period of time. “If the spares or accessories are not locally available, we can source them from our global network within days,” he says.
Condition monitoring provides benefits
Obermeyer believes that there are two types of customers in the African market, namely those who operate their equipment until it needs replacing, and those who make use of condition monitoring equipment and enjoy the benefits that it provides.
“There are several arguments for the use of condition monitoring equipment. Firstly, there is a lack of skills in the country, and maintenance personnel are not always equipped to look after the equipment under their care.” Although there is a cost associated with adding the additional monitoring equipment initially, the pay-off is unrivalled when compared to the cost of replacing the unit.
“Today customers have the option of adding oil dipsticks, oil drain valves, temperature switches and various sensors to assist them determine when a unit is in need of maintenance. In this way the customer can plan for the maintenance and avoid unnecessary productivity losses,” adds Obermeyer.
Through its drive academy, SEW-Eurodrive offers customers courses which assist them to understand and maintain their equipment efficiently. Furthermore, the company has fully equipped field service vehicles that can assist customers with onsite with commissioning, fault finding and basic repairs and maintenance.
“We are noticing an increased demand for site surveys,” concludes Obermeyer. “The field service team and engineering department would visit the customer site and do a full survey of all the units and where the unit is in terms of its life span. The team would then recommend a course of action in terms of maintenance, repair or replacement. This is of tremendous assistance to the maintenance manager in terms of forward planning.”
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