With the changes to the EU regulations on small pumps every manufacturer has to replace their standard three speed pumps with new highly efficient alternatives. Grundfos as market leader has been selling the Magna range for several years and heavily trailed the launch of a new version for mid-2012.
The Grundfos Magna3 was shown, with lots of show biz style razzamatazz in Berlin last June. It is even more efficient than the regulations demand with many new features which the designers hope to persuade the market are just what they need.
Grundfos then wrong footed all their competition with the launch of Magna1 in December 2012. Essentially, these are Magna3’s with all the clever stuff removed and an aggressive price point. The Magna1 is expected to be the standard replacement for the many installed UPS/UPSD pumps in existence.
The key features for both ranges is that they meet the regulations, are available with single phase motors only and have variable speed control. The difference is that Magna1 is limited in control to only three power curves, proportional duty curves or 3 fixed pressure settings. Magna1 has no option to link to BMS systems, fault signal or alarm signal, just like old UPS’s. The display is simple traffic light style compared to the Magna3 LED screen.
What Grundfos are not stressing is that it is still possible to buy replacement heads and terminal boxes for larger sized UPS’s. This is important for those clients with 3ph pumps. It will allow a wide number of pumps to be repaired as opposed to replaced. It will always be worth checking.
For the moment there is the added confusion of parts of the new ranges yet to become available. Grundfos are continuing with the previous Magna models for sizes below 40mm connection size until 2014.
