Displaying items by tag: Service

China: Australia-based FCT Combustion has announced a formal alliance with air pollution control partner Enelco Environmental Technology (EET). Together the companies will target the Chinese cement, steel, glass and other markets. EET has become the exclusive China representative of FCT Combustion, with which it shares its capabilities and resources in the service of Chinese customers.

The two companies have set up a joint office in Nanjing, Jiangsu province. A workshop in Bengbu, Anhui province will support its work. FCT Combustion and EET also plan to launch local technical support, engineering and procurement teams for customers in China.

FCT Group chief executive officer Adriano Greco said “We have great respect for our growing customer base within China and believe that it is important to establish a locally based business unit so that we can deliver the best outcomes and customer experiences, providing customer service and engineering according to the local culture and language, as well as local procurement to offer the most cost-effective solution.”

Turkey: Sormas Refrakter has agreed to sell 85% of its shares to RHI Magnesita for Euro38.8m. The Turkey-based refractory manufacturer has a production capacity of 60,000t/yr. The companies expect to conclude the deal in the first half of 2022

RHI Magnesita said "With an enlarged product portfolio, further potential exists from this opportunity to deliver full-line service solutions to customers in Turkey.”

Germany: Aumund has announced the launch of its PREMAS 360° packages. The three packages – basic, advanced, premium - combine quality Aumund all-around maintenance and inventory management support, extended warranties, physical inspections, cutting-edge Industry 4.0 monitoring of Aumund and other conveying equipment, technical training, emergency remote support and consultation programmes.

Managing Director Pietro de Michieli said “With PREMAS 360°, Aumund puts customer service to the forefront. Our goal is to reassure machine availability and reliability through the simplicity and flexibility of a fully bundled maintenance solution, to be a partner to our customers assisting them to reach operation excellence.”

UK: Cemex UK has relaunched its used pallet collection service. The scheme aims to reduce timber waste in its supply chain, according to the company. It forms part of its Future in Action – Committed to Net Zero CO2 climate action strategy. Its partner ELM will collect stockists’ pallets free of charge for refurbishment and return to Cemex UK. It will reuse all repaired pallets and recycle those damaged beyond repair.

Packed cement sales manager Graeme Barton said “We want to make life easier for our merchants to work with us to reduce waste. We’d like to make pallet recovery part of the standard delivery process, as many pallets still end up in landfill. It is increasingly costly to dispose of pallet waste and there is far greater value to be gained by recycling and reuse. Rising timber costs, combined with pallet shortages, means there is a heightened need to conserve and maintain pallets throughout the supply chain. Recovery is considerably more cost effective than buying new replacements.” He added “Pallets are a standard format in transporting building products and contribute a significant financial and environmental cost which needs to be captured by the user. We saw a similar situation with supermarkets and plastic bags, but we’d rather not wait for legislation to enforce this; we’d really like to make a difference now with preventative action. The pallet recovery service is regenerative by design and aims to support the key principals of the circular economy to benefit business, society and the environment. If we all pull together it will have a significant impact across the whole supply chain.”

Kazakhstan: Denmark-based FLSmidth has announced the opening of its new ‘Service Supercenter’ in Karagandy, Qaraghandy region. The service centre has a focus on mining, but will also serve cement customers with equipment delivery, component maintenance and rapid on-site service backed by local support. The centre consists of a 2500m² warehouse and 1200m² workshop, as well as a customer service office, customer training centre and other support facilities.

Mining president Mikko Keto said, “The main concept of the Supercenter is to get closer to our mining and cement customers across Kazakhstan and Central Asia and support them with the best solutions, fast access to spare and wear parts, and, of course, local knowhow and expertise. This move supports FLSmidth’s ever-growing focus on customer service and aftermarket.”

Germany: Continental has strategically sharpened its conveying solutions and services profile by unifying all products, technologies and services under the Continental brand. The company said that the unification complements an optimisation and extension of the portfolio in both belts and digital products. In 2021 it will launch drone-based monitoring services for conveyor systems.

Conveying solutions services head Andreas Bakenhus said “We see fast-changing requirements in our markets. A few years ago, our customers asked for high-quality, long-life belts. Now, construction, industry and mining companies are looking for safety, quality, efficiency and productivity gains. Our customers are requiring integrated solutions covering the entire value chain around a belt from commissioning, consulting and training to digital monitoring and on-site maintenance. Additionally, energy-optimised belts, new business models and sustainability aspects will play a crucial and competitive role in the future.” He concluded “Basically, we understand it as our job to offer service levels that allows our customers to fully concentrate on their core business.”

Conveying solutions head Hannes Friederichsen said “Decisive drivers are our customers. In this way, our customers and partners will benefit from a stronger and trusted global product portfolio from a single source. Thus, we will further be joining forces to continue our customer-centric business approach.”

Greece: Titan Cement has signed a new service agreement with Denmark-based FLSmidth. The agreement covers sustainability, digitisation and productivity support across 17 of the producer’s cement plants in Europe, Africa and the Americas.

Titan Group strategic planning director Antonis Kyrkos said, “We are constantly on the lookout for more efficient ways of running our operation. With this service partnership agreement, we tap into a wealth of knowhow and hundreds of specialists without carrying the full cost. The two-and-a-half-year agreement allows both parties to work strategically on maintenance programmes and upgrade projects based on data and the best allocation of resources.”

FLSmidth Europe, North Africa, Russian and Commonwealth of Independent States regional head of cement sales Carsten Pustelnik said, “The agreement reaffirms our belief in planned maintenance programmes, supported by digitalised processes, as the next level in service optimisations. We have invested heavily in acquiring the skills and infrastructure to provide online condition monitoring and safely handle and analyse data from our customers.”

Nigeria: Denmark-based FLSmidth has secured a contract with Dangote Cement for the supply of hot kiln alignment services for 16 kiln lines across Africa. 10 of the lines are installed across three plants in Nigeria, with the remaining six situated in Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, South Africa, Tanzania and Zambia. The contract will endure until 2026.

Dangote Cement said that it chose FLSmidth to help it achieve ‘uninterrupted cement production and dispatch around the clock. Dangote Group deputy managing director Arvind Pathak said, “The equipment health audits, services, and support extended by FLSmidth have helped us maintain our pyro process equipment with good reliability. Hot kiln alignment is an excellent preventative maintenance strategy.”

FLSmidth says that it conducts 250 hot kiln alignments worldwide annually.

Canada: Haver & Boecker Niagara has launched a new service programme. Called PROcheck, the programme conducts operational analysis of screens used in raw materials processing. PROcheck reports to Haver & Boecker, which is then able to recommend to producers the best practices for raw materials processing proficiency. Haver & Boecker Niagara North America and Australia president Karen Thompson said, “By partnering with our customers through the PROcheck service programme, we are monitoring the efficiency of their screening process to identify potential problems early on.”

Thompson said, “We are experts at looking at the big picture,” “We engineer and manufacture both vibrating screens and screen media, and this gives us the insight to offer valuable advice producers won’t find elsewhere.”

Spain: HeidelbergCement subsidiary HeidelbergCement Hispania has informed clients that its plants remain open ‘in order to continue to provide required products and services, combining this availability with the mandatory security measures.’ Deliveries and collections continue, subject to the requirements of its Prevention and Safety protocol. In the interests of safety, HeidelbergCement Hispania’s service team has replaced most site visits with additional telephone services.