When it comes to electrical motors and systems, DataFactory have the electrical engineering know-how to fix problems that no other Australian company can – and at half the costs.
As DataFactory founder and manager Darius Kowalewksi explains, these are valuable skills to possess, especially when customers are committed to strict production timeframes and suffer serious penalties if a drive or motor breaks down. DataFactory can prevent these companies from losing thousands of dollars – sometimes a loss felt in just 1 hour if a production line stops
“People come to us because there is a shortage of skills caused by the manufacturing moving overseas, a process that started some 20-30 years ago – whereas we still have that expertise,” he says. “The manufacturing companies that are here rely on overseas sources of knowledge, but if something happens and you need to fix the problem urgently, emailing to and fro doesn’t work.”
This is where DataFactory comes in. Starting in Melbourne in 1986, the small company originally designed drives, namely Australia’s first IGBT drive, but with an influx of overseas competition, they decided to focus on the service side of operations from 1997 onwards. Their clients are now Australia-wide and they can provide a turnover of 24 hours – which usually equates to half the time and half the costs of a machines’ manufacturer.
“Swapping and replacing drives is not a trivial issue, you need an engineer with a good knowledge of drives and this is our niche,” says Darius. “We have a test system onsite and are very well-equipped.”
It is common for companies to send their drives to DataFactory from remote parts of Australia as they specialise in obscure and complex drives, but have the ability to repair, replace, or replicate and retrofit all types.
Darius clarified that when the team – which comprises an engineer, technician and electrician – first work on a motor drive, they spend the time to properly understand how it functions. Once they understand the fundamentals, they can usually fix a drive quickly or or will have gained the knowledge to replicate it.
“People use systems from all around the world and we are the specialists who can repair and service these drives here in Australia. Doesn’t matter what sector it is – from satellite dishes to special food production to manufacturing lines – we can fix them,” Darius says. “In the rare instance where we can’t fix it, we will advise the customer what to do.”
DataFactory fill a gap in the servicing market, as few Australian manufacturing plants have engineering expertise in-house. The DataFactory facilities include clean rooms, a fully-equipped lab, test area and large stocks of spare parts.
Darius stressed that DataFactory’s specialised knowledge of CNC servo drives is unrivalled in Australia. They have invested heavily in testing equipment and have several databases on drives that date back as far as 1989. They also have the ability to reverse engineer drives and can simulate onsite conditions using a military-style 100-hour test.
“Customers need someone local with the expertise because if the line stops, they are losing money. The idea that you can wait and bring people in from overseas is fanciful – you need someone locally-based who can move fast, which is where we come in,” says Darius.
DataFactory provide Australia-wide repairs for electronic variable speed drives, servo drives, AC drives, DC drives, electronic inverters, complex electronic boards and monitors. They are specialists in CNC machines and also have expertise in retrofitting and re-engineering control systems.