Servicing Your Buchi Pressure Reactor

If you already own a Buchi pressure system – whether this is a 100ml Miniclave or a 20L BEP280/Kiloclave then you will know that it requires very little maintenance thanks to great Swiss design and robust construction. However, there are seals and bearings that do eventually wear and oil, belts, valves and rupture discs that need inspecting and occasionally are in need of replacement. Ken Kimble Ltd is here to support you whether it is to supply spare parts, advice or to provide an on-site service engineer. Indeed we are very proud of the fact that we have been supporting systems for over 40 years and have huge range of spares in stock for next day delivery. If you are in the UK and a user of our pressure equipment your Health and Safety department will have probably identified the relevance of the Pressure Systems Safety Regulations (PSSR, 2000). The PSSR sets out the responsibilities of the pressure system Owner and mainly concerns larger systems where the product of pressure and volume is greater than 250bar.litres. However below this volume, which includes almost all the Buchi pressure systems we have supplied, there are indeed four sections which are very much applicable, including Section 12 which requires proper maintenance. “All pressure equipment and systems should be properly maintained. There should be a maintenance programme for the system as a whole. It should take into account the system and equipment age, its uses and the environment”. “The user of an installed system…….shall ensure that the system is properly maintained in good repair, so as to prevent danger. Checks should be carried out to ensure that safety-related features are operating correctly. A fault affecting production is normally apparent within a short time whereas a fault in a safety critical part, such as a protective device, could remain undetected unless appropriate safety checks are included as part of the maintenance programme”. The manuals that are supplied with the equipment show in detail the changing of various seals, rupture discs and for those systems with magnetic couplings, the bearing sets. We are happy to provide you with the latest versions of these manuals and to talk you through the steps necessary. For the larger systems such as the old BEP280 and the newer Ecoclave, Polyclave, Kiloclave, Versoclave and the high pressure models such as the Limbo and the Midiclave you might consider a visit from one of our factory-trained service engineers would be more appropriate and perhaps better satisfy the requirements of PSSR. A service visit will include a very thorough dismantling, cleaning, change of seals and bearings, transmission oil change (where present), inspection and re-assembly. The system is then tested for leaks and functionality and a full report is made and discussed with the system owner. If there is a heater/chiller attached we have also been directly trained by both Huber and Julabo – you might like us to service these at the same time. If you have a Buchi BPC gas controller we can also arrange service and calibration. Whether or not you decide that your system would benefit from a visit by one of our service engineers please feel free to call us for a relevant spares list and information on how to self-maintain your Buchi pressure system. Above all please let us help you to keep your system running safely. For more information contact Ken Kimble Ltd, BuchiGlasUster agents for Ireland and the United Kingdom.