PUMPING: GIW installs underwater innovation on dredge

GROVETOWN, Georgia - GIW Industries has successfully installed a unique underwater pump system for a major Chinese dredging contractor. This equipment package consists of a GIW® Minerals LHD pump directly mounted onto a 4500 kW submersible...

GROVETOWN, Georgia - GIW Industries has successfully installed a unique underwater pump system for a major Chinese dredging contractor. This equipment package consists of a GIW® Minerals LHD pump directly mounted onto a 4500 kW submersible electric motor and housed in a carrier arm attached to the drag arm of a trailing suction hopper dredge. This upgrade allows the dredge to operate efficiently at depths up to 100 meters.

This highly specialized pump package gives the dredging company the flexibility to bid on complex dredging projects all over China and even set their sights on global projects. The drag arm is lowered into the water when dredging, then retracted and stowed on board when sailing to the delivery point. The 1,320-mm impeller and 4,500 kW motor significantly decrease the filling time of the 15,000 m3 hopper when operating at depths in excess of 35 meters, thereby increasing the overall efficiency of the dredge.

Exceptional partnership, professional project management

After winning the initial contract, GIW made completely new design changes to meet the updated requests of the dredging company. Only a few dredges in the world have a similar low speed electric motor configuration for their submersible pump, so GIW had to design major components and the entire system from scratch. The dredge ship was already in operation, forcing GIW to work within existing size and weight parameters to retrofit the underwater pump package.

Jonathan Samuel, GIW region manager serving customers in Asia and Europe, assembled and worked with a team of international partners to deliver the project, fulfilling the dredging company's requirements in September 2014.

"GIW manufactured the dredge pump and the submersible gland water pumps were sourced from KSB Germany," said Samuel. "The electrical system designer-integrator-supplier was a Dutch company, and the carrier arm was also designed by a Dutch expert. The low voltage components and the heavy fabrication were sourced from China. Co-ordinating multiple international suppliers and partners was the biggest challenge of this project, and the successful execution is a testament to the project management and technical capabilities of GIW."

Visit GIWIndustries.com to learn more.

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