How large a pump can you repair?

Our largest vertical boring mill has a 120-inch swing and 100 inches under the rail, our largest lathe handles 65 inches of swing and 240 inches between centers, and our wheel press is rated at 400 tons. That covers the largest liquid ring vacuum pumps in service, including the top of the Nash CL range and Somarakis SV range.

Do you weld cast iron?

Yes, daily. Cracked heads, eroded bodies and broken feet on cast iron pumps are welded and machined back to specification in our shop rather than scrapped. Cast iron repair is considered by many to be a lost art; it is routine work for us.

What is stainless steel cladding and when do you recommend it?

Cladding overlays worn or corroded cast iron surfaces with 304L or 316L stainless steel, which is then machined back to original dimensions. We recommend it for cones, heads and port plates in corrosive seal water or process gas, and for any pump that has corroded through more than once.

Can you make parts for a pump that is no longer supported?

Yes. We reverse engineer rotors, cones, heads, shafts and port plates from the original parts, correct for wear back to design dimensions, and machine them in-house to current OEM specifications.

Do you subcontract any of the machining?

The boring, turning, milling, pressing, welding, cladding and fabrication described on this page are done in our Houston shop.

Can you build a complete packaged vacuum system?

Yes. We fabricate the skid, mount and pipe the pump, motor, drive, seal water system, separator and manifolds, and align the unit in our shop. Packages can be built around a rebuilt, exchange, or new Precise-manufactured pump.

Capabilities

Repair & Service

Pump Repair Machine Shop Capabilities — Houston, Texas

Precise Mechanical operates a heavy machine shop in Houston, Texas, built around the repair of large liquid ring vacuum pumps: a 120-inch Cincinnati vertical boring mill, lathes up to 240 inches between centers, a 400-ton horizontal wheel press, and in-house cast iron welding and stainless steel cladding. That equipment lets us rebuild the largest Nash® and Somarakis® pumps in the world, reverse engineer obsolete parts, and fabricate complete packaged vacuum systems without sending work outside.

Shop equipment

Machine	Capacity	What it lets us do
Cincinnati vertical boring mill	120" swing × 100" under rail	Bore and face the bodies, heads and cones of the largest liquid ring pumps, including the CL14000 class and Somarakis SV5986 class
King vertical boring mill	70" swing × 48" under rail	Mid-size pump bodies, cones, port plates and blower housings
Lucas horizontal boring mill	3" spindle, 48" × 96" table	Line-bore bearing housings, machine heads and port plates square to the shaft centerline, mill baseplates
LeBlond lathe	20" × 60"	Sleeves, bushings, small shafts and couplings
American lathe	32" × 144"	Mid-size shafts and rotor hubs
Poreba lathe	40" × 180"	Large shafts and rotors
Poreba lathe	53" × 185"	Large rotors and cones, turned between centers
Kent lathe	65" swing × 240" between centers	The longest and largest rotors and shafts in liquid ring service
CNC plasma table	5' × 10', 1-1/4" plate	Cut baseplates, brackets, manifold flanges and skid components in-house
Plate roll	10' length, 1-1/4" thick	Roll separator tanks, shrouds and manifold sections
MIG and TIG welding	Cast iron, carbon steel, 304L and 316L stainless	Cast iron repair, stainless cladding, skid and manifold fabrication
Horizontal hydraulic wheel press	98" between rails, 30' long, 400 tons	Press rotors on and off shafts for the largest pumps; straighten shafts

This is machinery to repair the largest pumps in the world. It is also the reason we can manufacture drop-in replacement pumps rather than only rebuild them.

What that capacity means for your pump

The largest liquid ring pumps. A CL series body in the CL9000 to CL14000 range, or a Somarakis SV series pump at the top of the SV range, does not fit on most repair shops' equipment. It fits on ours. The 120-inch boring mill bores and faces those bodies and cones to original OEM tolerances instead of "close enough."

Big rotors and cones. Rotors and cones are turned between centers on lathes with up to 65 inches of swing. Cones that have been clad in stainless steel are finish-machined to original dimensions and taper on the same equipment that made the original fit.

Shafts up to 240 inches between centers. Long shafts from two-stage and large single-stage pumps are turned, straightened and sleeved on the Kent lathe without sectioning. Journal and seal areas are machined true to the rotor fit, which is what keeps runout out of the rebuilt pump.

Rotor and shaft work on the 400-ton press. Pressing a rotor off a shaft, or a new shaft into a rotor, on a large pump takes force that most shops do not have. The 98-inch, 400-ton horizontal wheel press handles it in a controlled, straight push that protects the rotor hub. It is also used to straighten bent shafts.

Boring mill and horizontal mill together. Heads, port plates and bearing housings are machined on the horizontal mill square and concentric to the body bore, so clearances are correct at assembly and not just on paper.

Cast iron repair and welding

Cast iron repair is considered by many to be a lost art. Precise Mechanical performs these operations on a daily basis. Cracked pump heads, eroded bodies, broken feet and corroded cones are welded, stress-relieved as required, and machined back to specification. The alternative, scrapping a large casting because it has a crack, is expensive and often means a long wait for a new one.

Liquid ring vacuum pump repair

Stainless steel cladding

Cast iron components that have corroded or eroded are clad in 304L or 316L stainless steel and machined to original dimensions, all in-house. Cones, heads, port plates and body bores are the usual candidates. The result is a component with the original geometry and better corrosion resistance than the casting it started as, which is often the difference between a pump that comes back every two years and one that stays in service. The 316L grade is used where chlorides or aggressive seal water are present.

Reverse engineering obsolete pump parts

Pumps outlive their manufacturers' parts support. When a rotor, cone, head or shaft is no longer available, we reverse engineer it from the original: measure the worn part, correct for wear back to the design dimensions, verify against the mating components, and machine it here. Because we have both the machining capacity and the pump knowledge, the finished part meets current OEM specifications and fits the first time. This is also the basis of our Precise-manufactured drop-in replacement pumps for Nash CL, 2BE, AT, SC, 904 and HC series and Somarakis SV and HV series.

Vacuum pump parts

Custom machined components

Milling, turning and grinding for pump and blower components: shafts, sleeves, bushings, rotors, cones, port plates, bearing housings, couplings and adapters. We work from your drawing, from a sample, or from a worn part.

Fabrication

The CNC plasma table cuts plate up to 1-1/4 inch thick in sheets up to 5 by 10 feet, which covers baseplates, brackets, manifold flanges and separator tank heads. The plate roll forms 10-foot sections up to 1-1/4 inch thick for separator tanks, shrouds and manifold bodies. MIG and TIG welding in carbon steel and stainless steel joins it all in-house. Having the fabrication under the same roof as the machining means a packaged unit or a custom manifold does not wait on an outside vendor.

Packaged unit fabrication

We build complete liquid ring vacuum pump packages on skids fabricated in our shop: the pump, motor, VFD, gearbox or belt drive, seal water recirculation system, flow monitors, separator and manifolds, mounted, piped and aligned. Packages are built around a rebuilt pump, an exchange pump, or a new Precise-manufactured pump, to match your existing footprint or a new installation.

Packaged unit

An independent shop with the equipment to back it up

No ties to a manufacturer, boxes to stay inside of, antiquated rules to follow, or slow and costly timelines. Many independent shops can talk about repairing large pumps; the equipment list above is what makes it possible without subcontracting the critical machining. Pumps come to us by freight from across the United States because the shop can handle them.

Texas, Gulf Coast and nationwide

Frequently Asked Questions:

How large a pump can you repair?

Our largest vertical boring mill has a 120-inch swing and 100 inches under the rail, our largest lathe handles 65 inches of swing and 240 inches between centers, and our wheel press is rated at 400 tons. That covers the largest liquid ring vacuum pumps in service, including the top of the Nash CL range and Somarakis SV range.

Do you weld cast iron?

Yes, daily. Cracked heads, eroded bodies and broken feet on cast iron pumps are welded and machined back to specification in our shop rather than scrapped. Cast iron repair is considered by many to be a lost art; it is routine work for us.

What is stainless steel cladding and when do you recommend it?

Cladding overlays worn or corroded cast iron surfaces with 304L or 316L stainless steel, which is then machined back to original dimensions. We recommend it for cones, heads and port plates in corrosive seal water or process gas, and for any pump that has corroded through more than once.

Can you make parts for a pump that is no longer supported?

Yes. We reverse engineer rotors, cones, heads, shafts and port plates from the original parts, correct for wear back to design dimensions, and machine them in-house to current OEM specifications.

Do you subcontract any of the machining?

The boring, turning, milling, pressing, welding, cladding and fabrication described on this page are done in our Houston shop.

Can you build a complete packaged vacuum system?

Yes. We fabricate the skid, mount and pipe the pump, motor, drive, seal water system, separator and manifolds, and align the unit in our shop. Packages can be built around a rebuilt, exchange, or new Precise-manufactured pump.

Talk to a Pump Expert

Get the answers you need from our experienced team. We’re here to help keep your operation running.

281-319-5595 Main Line

1-844-276-6274 1-844-276-NASH · Toll-Free

Down pump? Call Ken directly on the emergency line: 713-201-1589 or email Ken@precisemech.com.

Hours: Monday–Thursday, 7:00 AM–4:30 PM.

What to have ready: pump make, model, serial, and a photo of the nameplate.

Quick Links

Precise Mechanical

2414 Black Gold Ct,
Houston, TX 77073, USA

281-319-5595

1-844-276-6274 (NASH) Toll Free

Emergency Contact - Ken
713-201-1589
Ken@precisemech.com

Our Hours

Monday

7:00 - 4:30

Tuesday

7:00 - 4:30

Wednesday

7:00 - 4:30

Thursday

7:00 - 4:30

Friday

Closed

Saturday

Closed

Sunday

Closed