When a manufacturing facility on the East Rand in Johannesburg required an urgent replacement Variable Speed Drive (VSD) for an extraction fan in its welding facility after the existing drive broke down and halted production, it turned to leading supplier Bearings International (BI) for a solution.

Not only did BI have a 75 kW VSD available ex-stock, its technical department assisted the customer with the installation, integration and commissioning of the new drive so that it could be back up and running on the same day it was supplied, Product Manager Andries Barnard reveals.

“The VDrivePlus is specifically designed for all variable torque applications and ease of integration with existing control configurations,” Barnard explains. The VDrivePlus and AlphaDrive-Micro VSDs are electronic motor control solutions from Hudaco Group Company Varispeed, available from BI as part of its integrated solutions approach.

The VDrivePlus from Varispeed ranges from 0.4 kW to 400 kW, available in 240 V and 400 V. This more advanced VSD features advanced motor control based on DSP technology, together with ‘smart’ auto-tuning. Additional features include flexible inverter control, dual high-resolution analogue inputs and free mappable I/O channels.

The AlphaDrive-Micro VSD from Varispeed is a compact frequency inverter ranging from 0.2 kW to 5.5 kW, and available in 240 V and 400 V. Together with the VDrivePlus, these VSDs offer the best performance-to-cost ratio on the market, without compromising on quality and reliability.

The Varispeed VSDs can be easily supplemented with the Bauer electric motor range from BI. “With our range of cast iron and aluminium motors, we are able to assist customers with a wide range of applications from 0.18 KW to 355KW 400V and 525/550V,” Barnard adds.

Applications include pumps, conveyor belts, sanding machines, cooling towers, crushers and pedestal drilling machines, among others.  A major advantage for end users, and one of the best-selling features of the cast iron range, is that the feet are removable and interchangeable, making it a highly flexible multi-mount motor.