Komatsu Australia customer Kurnell Land Fill (KLF) located in the southern suburbs of Sydney have first hand experienced the negative effects inferior aftermarket undercarriage components can have on the efficiency of any operation .
As a customer of Komatsu Australia for more than 22 years, KLF have operated a number of Komatsu Machines and have had a long association with local Komatsu CSSR Phil Walker.
When the original factory undercarriage of KLF's D275A needed to be replaced, they elected to substitute in aftermarket components, purely on a cost basis.
This however, created numerous problems from an operational perspective both in terms of servicing costs and a major increase in machine downtime.
CSSR Phil Walker continued to monitor the wear rates and metallurgical characteristics of the aftermarket undercarriage on the D275 and discovered that its life span was close to 50% of the original factory Komatsu product.
Kurnell Land Fill's Peter O'Donovan said the service provided by Komatsu's local representatives and field technicians was second to none.
"Even when we weren't using the original Komatsu undercarriage product, Phil from Komatsu continued to monitor its wear rates, which actually ended up highlighting how we could make a major improvement to our operating efficiency," he said.
"Phil noticed the aftermarket undercarriage was wearing at less than half the rate of the genuine Komatsu product and because he had monitored the original product from new, we were able to compare the two.
"Once we looked at the data, Phil talked us through the advantages of the genuine undercarriage product and the massive costs savings and downtimes reductions that returning to the Komatsu product would provide us.
"The decision was made easy thanks to Komatsu's service techniques and expert staff," he said.
Komatsu CSSR Phil Walker commented that since returning to the Komatsu genuine undercarriage product the wear rates of individual components have significantly improved.
"We're continuing to monitor the undercarriage of the D275, including the sprockets, rollers, links and 610mm track plates and it's performing extremely well over a variety of terrains," he said.
"Komatsu Australia also carries out a range of services for KLF, including component rebuilds, an auto electrical service, and any afterhours servicing they require.
Komatsu prides itself on the way we deliver product and servicing needs to our customers, and are thrilled to have been able to help this customer improve their bottom line," said Phil.
Kurnell Land Fill's Peter O'Donovan agreed with Phil.
"Komatsu machines have provided us with decades of reliable service, and continue help us everyday in the efficient operation of this site," he said.