Irrigation equipment repair program is saving $1000's for G-MW customers

G-MW recently reached a milestone in its flume gate repair program.

The gates measure and control the amount of water passing through channels to ensure irrigators what they need, when they need it.

G-MW Stores Project officer Paul Wilde said while the gates were generally quite durable, some of the thousands in the delivery network inevitably broke down, got damaged or had components that needed repairs.

With new flume gates typically costing between $35,000 and $80,000, G-MW established a program to repair and reinstate defective gates.

"Any flume gate that fails is now taken to our Tatura workshop," Mr Wilde said.

"Workshop technicians then inspect and repair the gates' gearboxes, winches, and motors, so that they are ready for use once more.

"We have created a register of all the flume gates in the system, and their different sizes and specifications."

G-MW prioritised repairs, according to demand, so when a gate failed it had a replacement ready to go.

"Having this data means when we replace a flume gate, we can get a crane to remove the faulty flume gate and then immediately install the repaired one, so we're only having to hire a crane for one site visit instead of two," he said.

With the process G-MW has established, the average expense of repairing a flume gate is just over $5000, approximately a tenth of the cost of buying a new flume gate.

In mid-June, G-MW installed it's 100th flume gate that had been repaired through the program during the 2023/24 financial year.

GMW Infrastructure Delivery Services general manager Warren Jose said this represented significant growth in the program.

"During this financial year, we have repaired and replaced more than twice as many flume gates as the year before," he said.

"The savings the program is creating are considerable, and it creates efficiencies we can pass on to customers, so we are eager to continue developing it."