We Do What The OEM Can't, In-House!

Sometimes, you have to improvise. To do that, you have to be knowledgeable and creative, and have a willing attitude for resolve. Such was the case on March 9. It was a Friday overtime rush pick-up from Nexteer plant 7.

Our repair team disassembled a special chip conveyor pump made by Brinkman Pumps. We found a broken guide bushing made of carbide impregnated ceramic, a material you cannot cut. We then called the OEM and found out that there was a 3-day lead time on the parts. We also found that a new unit would take 2-3 weeks for delivery. We contacted our customer and told them the bad news. Needless to say, they were not happy. The lead time was far too long for our customer to wait. They were in the middle of an important run on steering components that had to be completed on time: NO EXCUSES!

So we didn’t make any excuses either. We then gave them another option: We could possibly manufacture a stainless steel pump sleeve and seal to be used. We also found that the pumps shaft needed machining and the stator needed to be re-wound. We got to work immediately in our machine shop, and worked through the night so it could be delivered the next morning. And so it was done! Through our resolve, knowledge and creativity, we rose to the challenge, and got our customer back up and running.

We delivered, so they could, and right on down the line. We followed-up two days later with Pat Richardson. He said, “The pump is working great, we can’t thank you guys enough for the quick turnaround.” And so it was.