SITUATION
SOTREM-MALTECH is a leader in several industrial and manufacturing sectors that has been operating for nearly 30 years. Maltech, the Saguenay division of the Groupe Sotrem-Maltech, specializes in the treatment of industrial byproducts from Quebec’s aluminum smelters by crushing and screening used and contaminated carbon.
Its equipment operates in extreme conditions, creating major dust management constraints. The company needed a creative solution as its engine filtration systems were requiring near-constant maintenance. Maltech was looking for viable ways to reduce equipment breakdowns, downtime, and related costs.
It was also looking to upgrade its facilities from a sustainability and health and safety standpoint. In particular, it hoped to provide good, clean air to employees in the equipment cabins.
As Maltech is constantly on the lookout for partners to forge successful, scalable, and profitable long-term partnerships, it turned to Propulsa Innovations for a solution.
THE PROPULSA INNOVATIONS SOLUTION
Propulsa Innovations is very familiar with this issue among companies operating in similar environments. It met with Maltech to make a proposal that was very well received:
a self-cleaning pre-filtration system by automatic vibration still in early development.
The idea behind this proposal, which was still in the design phase, was to implement a low-maintenance pre-filtration system that would significantly cut down on maintenance costs and downtime.
The first version of this self-cleaning pre-filtration system was tested for 3 months on the engine of a John Deere 544 P-Tier wheel loader. At the time, the automatic vibrations were powered by a jigsaw. It was a success!
Recognizing the system’s potential, Maltech worked closely with the Propulsa Innovations team and played a crucial role in developing the unique, patented Epura technology. In particular, the company’s environment and feedback on the system were invaluable.
The ingenuity of the Epura concept allowed Propulsa Innovations to adapt its range to provide Maltech with two separate products that perfectly met the company’s needs: Epura Engine and Epura Cabin.
RESULTS
Since 2020, Epura Engine and Epura Cabin systems are standard on all of the company’s vehicles. The benefits:
Vehicles require no maintenance of original filters
More than $10,000/year/vehicle in savings related to original engine filter changes (filters and labour)
More than $7,000/year/vehicle in savings related to original cabin filter changes
Lower fuel use and fewer pollutant emissions for each vehicle
Compliance with current CNESST health standards
”The Epura technology allows us to ensure the vehicles are very reliable, especially in terms of engine combustion, environmental performance, and operator health and safety. We had over 300 used filters to manage per year with filter changes every eight hours. We’ve seen a substantial boost in productivity and much better management of labour and maintenance costs.
Patrick DubéDirector, Marketing & Business Development - Groupe Sotrem-Maltech