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CAPITAL EQUIPMENT NEWS
OCTOBER 2016
35
we strive to offer a fair service for a fair price
in an ethical, sustainable way.
MS: Just take me through the whole
engine rebuild process.
AY:
We have got two types of customers.
The first is the customer that sends us a
complete engine. That complete engine will
go through a full initial assessment process,
prior to stripping. Then the engine is stripped
into its component form. At that point, our
workflow joins another type of customer,
which is either an OEM or large end-user that
have their own workshop where they would
have done a complete engine dismantle and
only sent us the major components. At this
point we have individual engine components
that flow into the next section, which is the
cleaning department.
In our cleaning section there are different
cleaning processes that we use to get these
components into the necessary condition
that allows us to do our inspections.
The cleaned components then flow
through to specialised departments that deal
with specific components, where they are
assessed by qualified personnel against the
OEM specification. From the inspections we
generate a repair requirement. We then take
all those repair requirements and submit
them to the department which then quotes
the customers.
MS: And from here the remanufacturing
process starts?
AY:
Once we have the go ahead from the cus-
tomer we initiate the required engineering
repairs that take components back to speci-
fication. There is a lot of boring and milling,
as well as all the other different processes
specific to that particular component’s reman-
ufacture. Particularly important for us is that
at the end of each component’s remanufac-
turing cycle, it is inspected for quality. Part of
our ISO quality systems requires that we have
an independent second measurement done
on every component and that helps ensure a
quality product s. If there are any issues, they
can be detected in-house before the compo-
nent reaches the end user.
Once those components are remanufac-
tured they are packaged and preserved be-
fore they either go to the customer or flow
to the assembly area where they will be
reassembled into a complete engine. At the
same time we send the fuel pumps, injectors
and turbos to Reef Fuel Injection Services for
the necessary remanufacturing. Once that
process is done, these components are sent
back to Metric Automotive and are reassem-
bled back into the engine system. After that,
the engine then goes for dyno testing.
The key thing here is our attention to
detail and quality. That for us is very critical.
Considering the cost of rebuilding, especially
on today’s sophisticated engines, you cannot
afford to have any engineering mishaps.
MS: What are the potential turnaround
times for a standard engine rebuild?
AY:
We normally quote 14 to 16 working days
for a complete engine rebuild. It is possible
to do it quicker than that but most often the
limiting factor is the availability of spares
locally. On a parts complement of more than
100 items on an engine, it’s highly likely that
the local distributor does not have everything
readily available in stock, and in such
circumstances parts will have to be sourced
from overseas. There are potential delays as
often the lead times for getting spares from
overseas can be longer than expected.
MS: Speaking of parts, you also have
the IPD engine parts in your Metric
Automotive fold, which should come
in handy when remanufacturing Cat
engines?
AY:
One of my jobs is to ensure that we
have availability. We offer our customers a
premium aftermarket product in the form of
IPD aftermarket engine parts. We try to make
sure that we add value by having availability.
IPD parts meet or exceed OEM specifications.
IPD prides itself on the fact that all the
parts are manufactured in a Lloyds certified
environment. They do not just copy or reverse
engineer; they have a full R&D department
and they re-engineer those parts before
they are sent to the market. They also back
up their quality with a comprehensive parts
warranty. So, if you take their part, it will be
identical to the OEM one, or improvement
will have been made.
MS: How big is your capacity?
AY:
We run a work sheet of between eight
and 15 engines per month on complete
engine remanufacture depending on
demand. But, we are quite adaptable. On
component remanufacture it’s very difficult
to say because we don’t always get all the
components to know how many engines
have been remanufactured. That said, we
have significant spare capacity at this point
because we have made a big investment
into new machinery and more space. We
have just doubled our floor space in the
past two years to facilitate growth and
be able to grow with our customers. We
see a growing future need for our services
and we need to stay one step ahead of our
OEMs’ capacity. Capacity is also not only
about machines and floor space; it’s also
about the skills at your disposal. You have
to look at all these factors to be able to
stay where you need to be.
MS: You also have got Reef Fuel Injection
Services, which makes you a one-stop
shop when it comes to breathing new life
into those critical engines. Tell me more
about this business.
AY:
Reef Fuel Injection Services, from the
service provider point of view, has the ability
to pre-test and diagnose all faults in injection
systems. Because some of these fuel
systems are not OEM components, OEMs
may not have the capacity to do a holistic
test and diagnosis on fuel systems. For
example, if you run a Volvo ADT, it doesn’t
necessarily have a Volvo fuel pump and the
OEM can only diagnose on the fuel systems
to a certain point. Reef has the capacity to
do in-depth diagnosis and more importantly
the testing.
Where we offer huge benefits to our cus-
tomers is that we are able to take those in-
jectors that either the OEM technician or the
customer has diagnosed with a fuel system
issue and test to pinpoint where exactly the
problem is, whereas the customer on their
own would only have the option to buy new
fuel system component. So, from Reef’s point
of view, the major competitive edge is the
diagnosis, testing and remanufacturing ca-
pabilities. Another service that Reef offers
is service exchange. Earthmoving and min-
ing equipment customers need equipment
availability, while their safety and production
issues require healthy machines. Imagine
when you have a big hauler on an open pit
mine with a fuel system issue and it’s block-
ing the whole haul road into the pit. So, Reef
offers service exchange units so that the cus-
tomer doesn’t have to wait while his unit is
being remanufactured. We give them a set of
injectors and they continue working, reduc-
ing unwanted downtime.
b
Quick take
• 14 to 16 working days for a complete engine rebuild
• Work sheet of between eight and 15 engines per month
• Continuously invests in new machinery
PROFILE