Aggreko

Aggreko is a global leader in providing temporary and mobile power, heating, and cooling solutions.

Unlike manufacturers who sell permanent cooling tower units, Aggreko’s business model is centred on rentals. They offer a diverse fleet of modular cooling towers, which are often integrated into self-contained shipping containers for easy transport and rapid deployment. This makes their solutions ideal for a wide range of applications, including planned maintenance shutdowns, emergency breakdowns, or for providing supplemental cooling capacity during peak seasons. Their equipment is designed to be scalable, allowing multiple units to be connected to meet the specific cooling needs of any project, from small-scale HVAC applications to large industrial processes.

Aggreko’s expertise goes beyond just the rental of equipment. They provide a comprehensive, turnkey service that includes site assessment, engineering, installation, and ongoing support. Their specialised teams are on call to respond to urgent cooling needs, ensuring businesses can get back up and running with minimal downtime. The brand is known for its high-performance, energy-efficient cooling towers that often feature advanced technologies like variable speed drives and remote monitoring. This focus on modern, efficient equipment helps their clients reduce energy consumption and meet environmental compliance standards while maintaining productivity.

While Aggreko is known for its rental fleet of modular cooling towers, these units still require maintenance and potential repairs, especially in the demanding industrial environments where they are often used. FlowMatrix’s expertise in a wide variety of cooling tower systems allows them to provide essential services to Aggreko’s rental units as well as any permanent Aggreko installations a client might have. This includes everything from routine inspections and maintenance to more complex repairs.

FlowMatrix can provide a full range of services for Aggreko’s cooling tower parts, ensuring the systems operate at peak performance and remain compliant with Australian standards. Their work can involve the repair or replacement of key internal components such as fill pack, which is the heart of the tower’s heat exchange process. They can also work with the drift eliminators, which are crucial for preventing water loss and ensuring efficient operation. Additionally, FlowMatrix has the capability to service and repair the mechanical drives, motors, and fans that are integral to the Aggreko units, ensuring that these mobile, high-performance systems continue to function reliably for their clients.

Common Faults & Solutions

A common problem you’ll encounter with an Aggreko cooling tower is the build-up of scale, which are those hard, crusty mineral deposits you’ll see on the fill media and other internal surfaces. This happens because as the water evaporates, it leaves behind minerals that eventually precipitate out and form a hard layer. This scale acts like an insulator, making it much harder for the cooling tower to do its job, which is to transfer heat. To fix this, you need to manage your water chemistry. This involves using chemical descalers to break down existing scale and using water softeners to prevent it from forming in the first place. Regularly monitoring your water’s conductivity and pH levels is the best way to stay on top of this.

Another issue is the presence of slimy, biological growth, often accompanied by a musty smell. This biofilm can clog the fill media and pipes, and it also creates an ideal breeding ground for harmful bacteria like Legionella. The warm, wet environment inside the tower is perfect for these organisms to thrive. To combat this, you’ll need to use biocides, which are chemicals designed to kill these microorganisms. It’s best to use a rotating schedule of different biocides to prevent the bacteria from becoming resistant. Regular cleaning of the tower basin and fill media is also crucial to physically remove the growth and maintain a healthy system.

If your Aggreko cooling tower isn’t cooling the water properly, one of the first things to check is the airflow. This can happen because something is obstructing the air’s path through the tower. It might be something as simple as debris clogging the air inlets, or it could be a mechanical problem like a worn-out fan belt or a malfunctioning fan. To fix this, you should first inspect all the air inlets and outlets and remove any debris. Then, check the fan motor, belts, and bearings to ensure the fan is running at its correct speed. A fan not operating at full capacity can severely limit the tower’s cooling performance.