Product category:
Hydraulic Components
News Release from: Richard Alan Group
Edited by the Engineeringtalk Editorial
Team on 11 December 2007
Hydraulic components to aid dam
maintenance
Richard Alan Group has secured a major order for machining precision parts for hydraulic rams to be used for a maintenance project on the Guri Dam in Venezuela.
The Richard Alan Group has secured a major order worth over GBP 0.5 million for machining precision parts for hydraulic rams to be used for a maintenance project on the Guri Dam in Venezuela, the second largest hydroelectric facility in the world The order has been won from Mabey Support Systems based in Lancashire; it is part of a larger multi-million-pound contract for equipment to undertake major maintenance on the Guri Dam
This article was originally published on Engineeringtalk on 17 Apr 2007 at 8.00am (UK)
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The Dam took over 20 years to build, finally being completed in 1986.
At 1300m long and 162m high, the Guri Dam is the eighth largest in terms of water retained, and second largest in terms of hydroelectric output.
Its importance can be judged from the fact that it provides 87 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity (70% of Venezuela's total requirement) and saves the country 300,000 barrels of oil a day.
Richard Alan's role in the prestigious project to maintain the dam is to machine and supply 348 finished assemblies of 260mm bore for use on hydraulic jacks (or rams) these rams will support the walls during routine maintenance work.
To ensure that the walls are secure, the 20 vertical shafts between the dam walls, which are normally flooded, need to be drained, this is a demanding and arduous procedure involving the use of divers to insert the hydraulic jacks at various levels in the shafts.
Demanding, because the divers will be working in extreme and dangerous conditions and depths, and arduous, due to the requirement to accurately position such large jacks at a variety of levels within the dam structure.
"We are delighted that Mabey Support Systems have recognised the quality and precision of our machining facilities with this highly prestigious order", said Richard Alan Group, Sales Director, Edward Jennings.
"We regularly manufacture precision components for some of the best known names in the fields of process and general engineering, but this is the first time we have been called on to provide components for such a critical task".
"In addition to our quality and ability to deliver on time, this order is also vindication of our continuous investment strategy in the latest generation of equipment; only last month we took delivery of a new Puma 400 CNC lathe and a CNC co-ordinate measuring machine with a joint value of over GBP 127,000".
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