Remanufacturing enormous marine diesel engines requires a specialist remanufacturing facility that is equipped with machinery to accommodate these extraordinarily large components. But this in itself is not sufficient, according to Andrew Yorke, operations director of Metric Automotive Engineering, who explains that using the latest technology is only one of the factors that will ensure a quality remanufactured component.

“Most importantly, a remanufacturing facility must have the technical competency to be able to use the technology appropriately and this must be supported by best practice quality procedures that underpin the standard of the workmanship and offer the customer complete peace of mind,” Yorke says.

Metric Automotive Engineering has over 45 years’ experience in the large diesel engine component remanufacturing sector and has a solid reputation for meeting or exceeding OEM specification on remanufacturing dimensions. Yorke says that the quality of workmanship is critical as it can affect the operational life of the component and the engine itself. Significantly much of the work undertaken by the company is repeat business which underpins its commitment to producing exactly what it claims to – a quality remanufactured component that will perform reliably.

The company’s modern, well equipped facilities were recently boosted with the commissioning of one of the largest crankshaft grinders put into service in Africa and the commissioning of a new generation three axis CNC machining centre which is the only machine of its kind in Africa.

The enormous crankshaft grinder can easily handle shafts of up to 4.7 metres long with weights of up to 5 tons. Yorke says that this machine is paired with a set of compensators which dramatically improves the grinding tolerances achieved by helping to eliminate ovality and taper.

In addition to the crankshaft grinder which is now in service, a unique custom built crankshaft polisher, with a shaft capacity of 8 metres, will be commissioned during the third quarter of 2015. This will facilitate quicker turnaround times on crankshaft polishing as well as an improvement on journal surface finishes.

The new CNC machining centre, which has added capacity for Metric Automotive Engineering to handle the huge engine blocks found in the marine and railways sector, is capable of line boring, surfacing and blue-printing blocks over 6 metres in length.

Quality is assured at the Metric Automotive Engineering facility which is considered one of the most comprehensive ISO 9000:2000 accredited remanufacturing capabilities in Africa. While the company is able to refurbish large diesel engine components and offers services such as cylinder head remanufacture, cylinder block line boring, milling, honing and boring, camshaft grinding, crankshaft grinding, engine assembly and dynamometer testing, it is also able to salvage major components that would otherwise be rendered unserviceable.

Yorke says that its continued investment in best practice technology has positioned Metric Automotive Engineering to service customers across Africa and in industries which need access to quality remanufacturing operation such as the marine sector.

“Some companies believe that diesel engine component repair or remanufacture can only be done properly in Europe or America. This is not true. We have facilities and competencies that are comparable to anywhere in the world. In addition, it is far more cost effective to carry out such repairs or remanufacture locally due to the exchange rate.” he concludes.