Diesel Engines

Have you tried the relevant machine service agents directly?

They are better suited to issues such as this rather than a world-wide engineering forum.

i have, many of them. KOMASU, BORLOWORD, LUSANGA, ATLASCORPCO< CUMMINS and many others.

You need someone who listens to what posters tell you and acts accordingly. These machines collect the whole North African, dust, air, contaminants etc..

I had many diesels in heavy equipment with the same problems. I took care of the fuel supply: removed the diesel tanks and had them cleaned. One must be inventive.

We welded them one by one to a concrete mixer and had them spinning around with water and gravel. They came out almost polished on the inside.

All the slurry, rust, dust came out.

From there, we replaced the rubber hoses. They have no eternal live either. The filter holders were next, in hose fuel pumps have been installed, because some original pumps might need some extra help.

When your batteries are gone, you have a battery problem.

When all your diesels don't run, you do not have to look far.

How many more posters must tell you to check your common used elements:

That is diesel.

I hope you'll get the message soon and let some one with common sense take care of your diesels. I don't think you'll need a diesel mechanic for the posted problem.

are you sure, because this is rain season. most machine have gone for service 250 500 and 1000hrs service. and for the dust rain season started mid November so the open pits are very wet. maybe your second line but i have BP supplying the fuel and its good. coming to this forum means i have exhausted allot

What have you found so far when you have tried to trace the problem (inspected the engine cylinders, checked the electrics and hardware, etc)?

Any common factors, unexpected wear patterns, changes in engine efficiency/speed/sound, etc?

Fuel systems are easily forgotten to service. You have too many similar defects and all in different engines.

What I have met in servicing:

Plastic bags or parts of it in the fuel tanks (good way to sabotage someone). Found this after replacing 4 diesel pumps in a row.

Plug of dirt in the diesel tank with sporadic defects.

If BP delivers, they can have delivered some water too that was sitting in their tank or in the delivery truck. On the other hand, when you put it in your tank, there can be water also and when your pump suction sits deep, it pumps water too.

Make sure your supply tank cannot get water through the breather or has no ground water or cleaning water coming in. A good water separator can fix this problem. Also leave always some height under the suction part.

Further in your machines' tanks condensate can form also, especially when running almost empty. It is better to keep your tanks rather full than empty.

Once a diesel runs, it keeps running unless you cut the fuel. Most problems occur in the supply. (90% in your case0

Thinking of other things, while the problem is common in all your engines makes no sense.

If you are asking some here to diagnose thirty different engines and suggest how to keep them all running smoothly, it probably won't happen.

There are hundreds of things that can, and will, go wrong with each one.

It sounds like your management is too cheap to spend the money required to properly maintain this equipment.

So, they will lose more money in down time than it would cost to properly maintain the equipment.

Without money, divine intervention is your only hope.

If it's a problem in common across a wide variety of machines/manufacturers, it's time to look at the most common element in your environment- the fuel and/or the maintenance.

Seems possible bad diesel or good diesel with water in the system. Check separators. And filters.

What are you finding on failure inspection? Mining engines are famous for getting dusted, this is just poor maintenance and design. Cat or whatever they are just air pumps that require clean conditions for long life.

It might help to categorise the causes of the break downs and try to find a common thread. Are you having problems with metal failure, fuel, wear in the engines, overheating or other. Are all the machines the same age roughly. Machines do need regular maintenance especially when working in the notoriously harsh environment of mining. Are the operators well versed in checking their machines at the start of each shift. Finally (remembering a problem I once had) are you all one big happy family. If not don't rule out sabotage. Lets know how you go. Cheers

Two different engine manufacturers with the same issues being exhibited?

Bad quality fuel.

Incorrect fuel.

Water or other chemical contaminants in the fuel.

Sediment/Contaminants in fuel that is clogging the filters.

Incorrect fuel filters being used.

Failure to service and change the fuel filters correctly and/or on the correct interval.

And depending on the engine design; if HEUI where Engine oil is used to open & control fuel injector operation:

Failure to change the engine oil and filters at the proper interval.

Use of the wrong engine oil. (Incorrect viscosity or type.)

Incorrect oil filter.

Pick the items/condition that apply, correct to OEM specifications, and try operating again.

that is more like it chief, but i have oils lab here and all that is checked.

i have, cummins, KOMASU, Boeloword and many others doing the service and most of the listed things have been exhausted. that's why i said, need experienced mechanical engineer working with such equipments. anyway, i appreciate your comments thanks alot.

You have had some good advice from several sources. As shift engineer you must have other engineers for other shifts. Do they report the same problems. If all shift engineers say there is a problem then there must be one. Surely 2 or 3 shift engineers can analyse the evidence and draw up a maintenance program. I can not see much other advice that can be given by post. Short of a visit and first hand look at the problem there does not seem to be much more that can be done from this end. Good luck.