Introduction
How many times have you heard, "The windows on the school bus are foggy and there's no heat on the bus. My kids are cold?" Clearly, you know there is a problem with the mechanics of the school bus. Unfortunately, you already know the culprit; the booster pump has failed again. Yet, another bus has to be taken out of service for expensive repairs, costing time, materials and labor.
Wouldn't it be nice if you could completely eliminate this recurring problem for your school bus fleet? You can with brushless, sealless pumps. But how does this benefit you—the fleet owner?
Reduced Cost
Although the initial acquisition cost of a blushless, sealless pump is higher at $350, the annual maintenance cost for this application is reduced by 65% for the life of the bus compared with a brush-based sealed pump, saving you money over the life of your fleet. Without the maintenance costs associated with traditional booster pumps, you'll be able to put that money back into your fleet for something other than repairs.
Brushless Motors Provide No Physical Contact
Let's talk about motor technology. Traditional booster pumps leverage a brush- style DC motor that can be inefficient due its perpetual physical contact with the shaft.
This constant contact creates a point of failure within the motor. Additionally, the constant switching action of the commutators as they create and break inductive circuits, makes a great deal of electrical and electromagnetic noise.
However, brushless motors commutate by electronically switching stator fields through rotor position sensing. In other words, the motor is more efficient, because it does not have contacting electrical connections. Unlike brush-based motors, brushless motors have a long lifespan with no maintenance required, making them the choice of school bus manufacturers.
Sealless Pumps Will Not Leak
The sealed design of the pump is another reason that coolant pumps fail. Mechanically sealed pumps are designed to lubricate and cool themselves by leaking small amounts of fluid as they operate. As this happens, coolant seeps into the pump's operating environment, leading to process inefficiency and shorter life. Mechanical seal pumps have a tendency to quickly wear down, lose their effectiveness and leak greater amounts of liquid through their seals. Obviously, this spillage decreases environmental and worksite safety—while adding avoidable expense to the overall life of a school bus.
A sealless magnetic drive pump, like DurA-Tek Prime by AMETEK DFS, has neither mechanical seals nor packed glands. In place of the dynamic seals, you find a shroud (a static containment shell) that forms a liquid pressure boundary. This containment shell forms a completely sealed enclosure. Therefore, the fluid pumped by magnetically coupled sealless pumps does not inherently leak.
So don't fret when you hear, "The windows on the school bus are foggy and there's no heat on the bus. My kids are cold!" Instead, move to a brushless sealless booster pump to reduce costs, maintenance and downtime for your fleet.
At AMETEK Dynamic Fluid Solutions, we understand you’re looking for more than just an off-the-shelf part or one-time solution. You need a true technology partner who understands your engineering challenge that is focused on you, providing customized, collaborative solutions. We’ll also provide you with excellent customer service for a great total experience.
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