Italian pumps manufacturer Saer, whose products are solely distributed in South Africa by pumping requirements solutions provider Letaba Group, was relaunched onto the South African market at Electra Mining Africa 2016 earlier this month.

Letaba dewatering sales engineer Leonard Applegryn commented that it was the first year that Saer had a large stand, and that it showcased two types of products – the domestic range and the industrial range.

“With large stockholdings, we want industry to know that Saer is here to stay,” asserts Applegryn.

He adds that there were a variety of pumps on display from Saer, some of which are well known in industry. Some products, however, were new to the South African market and were also exhibited.

“The T1 is new technology from Saer, and we are the only suppliers of the T1 in South Africa. “The T1 is a small booster unit that can be used in small confined spaces. “What makes it unique is that it can achieve certain pressures that other pumps can’t,” highlights Applegryn.

Moreover, he notes that Letaba has been selling Saer in South Africa for about 16 months. “The uptake on these pumps has been fantastic so far, and we were recently awarded a tender worth R4-million to supply a gold mine in the North West. “At this project, two Saer pumps are being used to dewater a mine shaft. “This is being done in an unconventional way using Saer 185 kW borehole pumps.”

Applegryn points out that the conventional way to pump is to perform batching where only sections of water are removed at a time.

He says, where appropriate, Saer does things unconventionally, which is why it has grown in popularity.

He explains that, for every 700 m, the pump moves 40 m3/sec of water, adding that this saves mines around two weeks of dewatering time.

“Our method pumps the water to a retaining dam, which is then pumped to another site to use during processing,” he comments.

Applegryn notes that the Saer technology has also shown success in a number of countries, such as Australia, Peru, Tunisia and Russia.

“Letaba Group has had positive feedback on this product on a global scale. “It is affordable and trustworthy, and is one of the only products in the market that is 100% Italian-manufactured and -assembled,” he emphasises.

Further, he says that some pumps installed in South Africa have been in operation since 1992 and are still running efficiently. Applegryn notes that, owing to the economic climate in South Africa, Saer offers the industry good value, as these pumps are reasonably priced and offer excellent quality.