Gulf Construction Online - Techni Waterjet enters space age

Pumps & Compressors

The ESP ... revolutionary.

Techni Waterjet enters space age

01 May 2010

TECHNI Waterjet has launched its new range of high pressure waterjet cutting pumps following three years of research and more than $2 million in investment.

The Quantum Electric Servo Pump or Quantum ESP is set to revolutionise the waterjet industry, says a spokesman for the US-based company.
“The Quantum ESP uses the same concept used by Nasa in its space shuttle programme, where it replaced all hydraulic cylinders with the more compact, precise, controllable and reliable direct servo linear actuators,” he adds.
The Quantum ESP incorporates a servo motor that directly envelopes a high-load, precision ball screw, which house ceramic plungers that reciprocate back and forth. This creates a pumping action, similar to what a hydraulic cylinder does on an intensifier pump. The combination of the servo motor’s infinite control and the ball screw’s precision yields a high level of accuracy with regard to output pressure and the volume of water displaced.
“The Quantum ESP is a breakthrough technology for Waterjet that represents one of the greatest changes in the industry for more than 25 years,” says Darren Reukers, managing director, Techni Waterjet. “We have a breakthrough technology because it doesn’t rely on an inefficient hydraulic system, but instead uses the servo motor to directly drive the plungers, resulting in significantly less power to operate – up to 60 per cent – in most cases. The water consumption is also greatly reduced as the high-efficiency servo motor requires minimal cooling. These two factors, as well as the reduced size, noise, and oil requirements, make the Quantum ESP an environment-friendly solution.”
According to Reukers, companies can save more than 32,000 kWH and about 290,000 gallons of water per year by using a Quantum ESP on a single-head waterjet cutting machine for one shift over the course of a year. Additionally, the high-pressure waterjet cutting pump can help make a significant reduction in carbon dioxide emissions. It also has a smaller footprint overall and reduces noise pollution.
Furthermore, the Quantum ESP comes standard with diagnostic software, which facilitates the speed at which users can detect leaks and remedy them. Accordingly, the programme reduces maintenance and increases productivity.
It uniquely combines the benefits of intensifier pumps and direct-drive crank shaft pumps, while also being able to set varying output pressures, flow rates and power usage. But unlike the existing technology, it uses just the power required for any given pressure and flow rate.
“The electric servo motor also enables the Quantum ESP to be much smarter and much more controllable, giving the ability to only use the power that’s required at the cutting head, as opposed to a traditional pump, which uses its power from the time you turn it on,” says Reukers.
Reukers says that the driving force behind the creation of the Quantum ESP came from the desire to develop the next generation of waterjet pumps.
“As with all technologies, as they go forward they become smaller, more efficient and smarter, and just like computers which continue to get smaller and more intelligent, the Quantum ESP is the next generation technology for the waterjet cutting industry.”
The Quantum ESP can cut a wide range of materials, including stainless steel, aluminium, glass, stone, rubber, titanium, just to name a few. “It also has the incredible power that enables it to cut up to 6-inch-thick stainless steel, and the very fine control to cut paper-thin materials,” he adds.