A quick response recently saved the day for an IPR customer, who needed an urgent contaminated water bypass. 

“We immediately sent a pump rental quote following the customer’s call, and specified four Sykes CP150 medium head dewatering pumps,” says Andre Strydom, rental development manager at IPR. “These were delivered and commissioned on site the next day, with 1,500 m of 150 mm lay-flat hose and all other necessary equipment.”

Time was of the essence, as these pumps had to provide four bypass water lines for a contaminated water source which could not be released into the river system. The four Sykes pumps easily maintained a constant flow rate of 190 m³ per hour over a distance of 700 m. They ran on a 24-hour basis to ensure a constant water flow through the four pipelines.

Strydom says the Sykes CP150 dewatering pumps were ideal for the job. They offer a maximum head of 60 m with a flow rate of 172 litres per second. It is also capable of handling solids with particle sizes of up to 77 mm. 

“The Sykes CP150 units also feature sophisticated automatic priming capabilities,” he says. “These are based on a Venturi system that can deliver suction lifts of up to nine metres.”

The robust construction of the pumps ensures optimum reliability and long life. Importantly, they can run dry for extended periods of time without damage. The pumps also boast low fuel usage and lower maintenance costs, and can operate in ‘snore’ conditions.

“The Sykes CP models – or the contractors’ range – are designed to meet the heavy duty demands of the construction, mining and rental industries,” he says. “With pump efficiencies up to 83%, they provide faster and more efficient pumping, resulting in savings to the end user.”

There was more to come from the same customer. Just a month later, they called again after detecting further contamination of more dams. Once again, there was no time to lose. Urgent pumping was required to control the risk of contaminated discharge. 

“This time, the need was for four high head Sykes XH150 rental pumps,” says Strydom. “They were delivered on the same day, with 2,800 m of lay-flat hose with clamps and straight connectors.”

Each of these Sykes extra high head pumps delivered a flow of 220 mᵌ/h over 1,200 m. He highlights that the pumps can be primed with long suction hoses and can manage suction lifts of up to nine metres.

The Sykes XH150 dewatering pumps, offering a maximum head of 170 m with a maximum flow rate of 140 litres per second and capable of handling solids with particle sizes of up to 43 mm, were more than suitable for the task.  

“The Sykes XH150 pump offers automatic priming and solids handling capability,” he says. “It also has one of the best shaft stiffness ratios of any automatic priming pump on the market.”

The large fuel tanks on the Sykes range of dewatering pumps facilitate continuous pumping for more than 24 hours, which according to Strydom makes refuelling that much easier as this only needs to be done once in a 24 hour cycle.