Vertical turbine booster pumps are com-monly used to maintain adequate water pressure in high-rise buildings, which is why, when equipment at a large American metropolitan hospital repeatedly failed, US-based water systems solutions provider Municipal Well & Pump responded with a state-of-the-art design that included Vesconite bearings.

Municipal Well & Pump sales and project manager Marty Van Ells explains that the hospital was investing considerable labour hours repairing the equipment. “Because of how the system was set up, the pumps would run at full speed with little to no flow, often at dead head,” he explains, adding that this would result in the bronze bushings rapidly wearing out.

Municipal Well & Pump engineered a solution with standardised equipment and variable frequency drives, installing four skids with several new Vesconite-equipped pumps. The company also retrofitted ten existing units with the polymer. Further, the bearing material was specifically chosen to ensure reliability and prolong service life. Hospital staff have since reported that the system runs far quieter now.

“We have gotten good results with Vesconite,” asserts Van Ells. Municipal Well & Pump replaced the bronze bushings in a well pump with Vesconite and has had no issues in its seven years of service.

Low-friction, abrasion-resistant Vesconite does not swell in water like nylon. It offers up to ten times the useful life of bronze. Unlike metal bearings, which can contain lead, the internally lubricated polymer does not need to be greased. It is a safer solution for use in potable water supplies and is approved for varying temperatures, even hot temperatures that reach up to 65º C.

South African engineering plastics manu-facturer Vesco Plastics manufactures a range of easily machined industrial polymers, including rods, bushes and plates, which are available in a selection of dimensions and thicknesses. They are available for immediate shipment from the company’s warehouse in South Africa.