Doubles floor space by adding 4 000m² to its existing facility.

Brakpan, Gauteng based foundry PCS Foundry has recently completed a major expansion that will enable the company to expand its stainless steel and steel alloy production capacity. It will also diversify into other manufacturing industries other than the ones that the company already services and allow the foundry to offer production runs.

“For a long time we have been seen as one of the most significant suppliers to the pump and valve industry in South Africa. The company was established in 1985 to specialise in casting pump bodies and impellers and even took its name from the industry – Pump Casting Specialists. We changed the name to PCS Foundry because of the limitations associated with the name and our desire to expand into supplying castings into other industries and not be regarded as just a jobbing foundry,” explained Director Ren Lubbinge and the founder of PCS Foundry.

“Manufacturing of precision parts are a prize contract for any foundry but also something of an ongoing problem. There is the steady demand to maintain tolerances for size, gauge and performance and lately there is the challenge of fending off emerging technologies that promise more efficiency and more accuracy. For manufacturers of castings, those challenges have never been more relevant.”

“For a long time we have been seen as one of the most significant suppliers to the pump and valve industry in South Africa. The company was established in 1985 to specialise in casting pump bodies and impellers and even took its name from the industry – Pump Casting Specialists. We changed the name to PCS Foundry because of the limitations associated with the name and our desire to expand into supplying castings into other industries and not be regarded as just a jobbing foundry,” explained Director Ren Lubbinge and the founder of PCS Foundry

Today PCS Foundry manufactures a variety of castings and components including valve bodies, flanges, pump casings and housings, pipes, impellers, liners, discs, rotors and other fittings and assemblies

“We have to recognise this fact but don’t have to be too pedantic about it. Foundry practice as it has been known for many years will still play a significant role in the future. Your ability, as a foundry owner, to reduce scrap and increase productivity and capacity, is more important in my view.”

“We at PCS Foundry have decided to go this route with our recent investment in production floor space, equipment and people. However, we have not neglected the precision and quality side and have recently been accredited with the ISO 9001:2015 quality management system. We must be one of the first foundries in South Africa to attain this up-to-date internationally recognised accreditation.”

“Our expansion in the production area to build capacity has been motivated by a number of other factors. These included the recent demise of one the foundries in South Africa that concentrated on manufacturing stainless steel castings. This left a gap in the market. Another reason is that a number of our clients want their castings to be manufactured in stainless steel in the future. These were compelling reasons for us to make this decision. Additionally, there are still plenty of castings that need to be manufactured for a variety of industries that don’t need micron size tolerances and can be classed as precision parts.”

“You could also go the high-value with low-volume route but that would be a radical change for a foundry such as ours.”

“Although PCS Foundry begun life as an iron and non-ferrous casting facility with an emphasis on the pump industry, within five years of us starting we began to diversify and started manufacturing castings in the steels and stainless steel variants.”

A view of the original foundry

A pour taking place in the original foundry that casts about 150 tons of iron castings a month, between two and 10 tons of non-ferrous alloy castings a month and 200 tons a month of steel and stainless steel castings, with stainless steel making up 60% of that number

“Currently our original foundry casts about 150 tons of iron castings a month, between two and 10 tons of non-ferrous alloy castings a month and 200 tons a month of steel and stainless steel castings, with stainless steel making up 60% of that number.”

“With the addition of the new foundry we will be able to cast between 220 and 250 tons of extra castings a month, on a one shift basis. This new section will concentrate on stainless steel and the various steel alloys.”

“It will also give us the opportunity to seek that work that requires longer production runs. Our current services in the existing foundry can accommodate this type of work but we have never pursued it. In the new foundry we have included a comprehensive roller track system that will allow for fast and easy handling of moulds and castings through the various processes, including shakeout and shot blasting.”

“The pump and valve, steel, heat treatment, petrochemical, power, chemical processing, cement, gearbox and crane manufacturers, paper and pulp and refineries are all industries we serve already. Castings that we manufacture include valve bodies, flanges, pump casings and housings, pipes, impellers, liners, discs, rotors and other fittings and assemblies.”

The majority of the new equipment for the new PCS foundry has been supplied by Lauds Foundry Equipment, which included a rollover and manipulator that can handle moulds 2.5 metres long by 1.2 metres wide

“But there are many other potential castings that we could manufacture. Take the rail and transport industries or even the automotive and water industries that we are currently not involved in or have a limited exposure to.”

“This new foundry will enable us to offer a fuller suite of solutions and capabilities for our existing portfolio of clients as well as an entry into new markets.”

New equipment
“As I have said previously we have in reality set up a second foundry. We were fortunate enough to purchase the factory next door and although it had the existing basic infrastructure we still had to improve the civils and the building fabrication to fit our production environment. This included re-roofing, floor reinforcement and re-concreting, all of which began about 18 months ago. This had to be completed before we could start installing the new equipment we had ordered.”

“The majority of the new equipment has been supplied by Lauds Foundry Equipment. This includes a 12 ton per hour continuous mixer, a 12 ton an hour low level reclamation unit, an inline flood coating system, an auto-blend system and a rollover and manipulator that can handle moulds 2.5 metres long by 1.2 metres wide, which we believe is the biggest rollover that Lauds have manufactured. We opted to invest in this size rollover so as to accommodate larger size boxes. Additionally Lauds have supplied the roller track system.”

Lauds Foundry Equipment have also installed a 12 ton an hour low level reclamation unit

“On the melting side M.U.R. Industries supplied us with a new 2-ton an hour induction furnace, which takes us to four furnaces within the foundry and gives us the ability to manufacture a broad range of castings. In future we will add another furnace body to this furnace, which will give us more flexibility when melting. We can now produce castings up to 1.4 tons in the existing foundry and up to two tons in the new foundry.”

“We are also currently installing a dust extraction system and a 12 ton an hour sand reclamation system that includes the cooler and classifier.”

“Other necessary equipment includes a fettling bay and the installation of three 30 ton silos, which we have manufactured ourselves through other Group companies.”

“PCS Foundry is the casting production facility within Colvic Petroleum Products Group (CPP). Other companies within the Group include Colvic Marketing and Engineering, a supplier of turnkey product and service solutions for the safe management and handling of fuels at filling stations, commercial sites and fuel depots. They specialise in the design, manufacture, supply and installation of complete fuel management and containment systems.”

Director Ren Lubbinge and the founder of PCS Foundry in front of the 12 ton per hour continuous mixer that Lauds Foundry Equipment supplied. The new foundry includes a comprehensive roller track system that will allow for fast and easy handling of moulds and castings through the various processes, including shakeout and shot blasting

“Another company where the group has shareholding is Tseba Construction. They manufacture aboveground and underground storage tanks in the respective variants. It is through them that we were able to manufacture our storage silos. Likewise PCS Foundry supplies castings to the other CPP Group companies.”

Machined components ready for delivery

“With this cross pollination between the Group companies it allows us to offer more services to our clients. We may have an extensive pattern shop but we do not have a machine shop, for example. Any machining of castings that our clients need is done within the Group companies. They work with SolidWorks, Autocad and Edgecam software packages so if there is design work that is required we can rely on our colleagues. 3D scanning services are also available for us to use.”

“Through the Group ownership breakdown we are also a fully compliant BBBEE contributor.”

“For PCS Foundry this investment has not been about reorganising the chaos around us. We understand the value drivers of our business. The primary drive behind the investment we have undertaken is to increase capacity and expose ourselves to new industries and clients. To do this you have to invest in your company,” concluded Lubbinge.

For further details contact PCS Foundry on TEL: 011 740 9814 or visit www.colvic.co.za