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Episode 12 of the Australian Power Transmission Podcast
In this episode
Mechanical
variable speed drive replacement
Thanks for joining me for the twelfth instalment of the
Australian Power Transmission Podcast.
It is Monday, April 23rd, 2012 and I am Damian Harris, coming to you
from Melbourne.
With the Australian Power Transmission Podcast I endeavour
to bring the latest happenings in the mechanical power transmission industry,
as well as the issues that affect it. As
time goes on I am going to interview some of the industry’s major players and
bring you their thoughts about how see the future of their business.
I normally do the show every fortnight, but last week I went
to the footy and really strained my voice.
You can probably still here the remnants of the strain as I record
this. I apologise for the delay, but as
a North Melbourne fan we don’t usually defeat the reigning premiers so it was a
day to remember. Don’t worry, it was
back to earth with a thud this week as the Roos got thumped by Sydney. Oh well...
As always, if you would like to contact the show, the best
way is by sending an e-mail to feedback@australianptpodcast.com. I have received a few kind words of feedback
as well as a few further pieces of information about stories that I have run on
the show and I honestly appreciate them all.
Also, the show’s twitter handle is @ozptpodcast so make sure to send me
a tweet if you think it’s relevant.
*Bauer Gear Motor
is opening an assembly plant in China, solely to service the domestic
market. Now part of Altra Industrial
Motion, Bauer is quick to point out that design and manufacture is still
carried out in Germany and Slovakia, with the Chinese facility being opened to
service its clientele which has uprooted manufacturing from Europe and the
United States, as well as new business.
Bauer almost
tripped over itself in making clear they are not moving production to China,
whilst pointing the finger at those who have.
China remains a dirty word, still, in the mechanical power transmission
world.
*Without trying to
have the Australian Power Transmission Podcast dominated by the Australian car
industry, it is nonetheless well worth reporting that Toyota has gone through
with the redundancies it flagged back in January for its Altona manufacturing
plant. 350 positions are gone, which
comes after Toyota refused a proposed bail-out from state and federal
governments.
The main reasons
given for the closure by Toyota are... you guessed it... the continued strength
of the Australian dollar, as well as a reduction in domestic demand. The new Camry is in showrooms now but it
looks like there is no going back to work for those shown the door.
*Wednesday, May 9
will see the National Manufacturing Week 2012 Conference take place, with
innovation, sustainability and productivity gains the stated – if somewhat
predictable – goals. Held during
Sydney’s turn for National Manufacturing Week, May 8 to 11, the Conference
features some of Australia’s manufacturing heavyweights.
Entry to the event
will set you back $550.00 and for your money you will get to hear
representatives from Boeing, Bluescope, Ontera Carpets, Siemens, Manufacturing
Skills Australia and the CSIRO. Oh yeah,
you will also get lunch.
*AGMA’s Board of Directors has a few new appointees. Joining the Board are Steve Janke, President
of Brelie Gear Co; Dean Burrows, President of Nixon Gear; Mark Michaud,
President of REM Surface Engineering and Jan Klingenberg, Chief Executive Officer
of the Klingenberg Group.
Outgoing Board members are Robert Phillips of Gleason
Cutting Tools; Kyle Seymour of Xtek and Jim Bregi of Doppler Gear.
*One thing I find intriguing about the US political system
is the weight that lobbyists carry; undoubtedly backed up by the finance that
supports them. Political Action
Committees or PACs become the face of the lobby, arguing for particular issues
with political candidates. In short, money
equals speech.
The National Association of Manufacturers has applied to start
its own PAC, with a view to furthering its four-point plan for economic growth
and jobs, namely:
·
The United States will be the best place in the
world to manufacture and attract foreign direct investment
·
The United States will expand access to global
markets to enable manufacturers to reach the 95 percent of consumers who live
outside our borders
·
Manufacturers in the United States will have the
workforce that the 21st-century economy requires, and
·
Manufacturers in the United States will be the
world’s leading innovators
These four points are, I’m sure, the goals of every
developed, manufacturing nation on the planet.
As we all know, a goal without a plan is just a dream. I suppose having representatives in Congress
who support manufacturing is one step closer to reaching this goal, but how
many political candidates are opposed to manufacturing?
The NAM understands that business also foots the bill for health
care costs in many cases and is one of the most difficult challenges facing
manufacturers. Structural issues like
this are where manufacturer PAC money is inevitably bound to find itself.
Semi-related is the news that The Manufacturing Institute
(which is the 501(c) affiliate of the NAM), has announced that it has named
Jennifer McNelly president, beginning in April.
*The ink is still drying on the rubber stamp that the
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission gave to Amcor’s purchase of
Aperio, but Amcor remains restless in the M&A field.
Amcor has bought into the Mexican packaging market, spending
$40 million for Aluprint, a specialist in the tobacco-packaging field.
*Meanwhile Huhtamaki has picked up Hong Kong food service
packaging manufacturer Josco for 67 million Euros. Josco’s two manufacturing plants in China are
well-positioned for Finnish Huhtamaki to continue expansion efforts in the
region.
*While the dust settles on recent General Motors investment
decisions both in Australia and Europe, Mitsubishi Motors has decided to quit
the European manufacturing landscape altogether. Mitsubishi currently produces the Colt and
Outlander in the Netherlands at its Born facility, but low sales have forced
management to consider the loss-making enterprise’s future. 2012 will see the last cars roll off the
production line.
What to do with the plant once Mitsubishi production comes
to an end is probably the biggest question mark to be decided. When Mitsubishi closed its Tonsley Park
assembly plant in Adelaide, it was left with a similar dilemma. Eventually selling the site to the South
Australian government, it is currently in the process of being turned into
residential housing. The Born factory
may offer a Korean auto manufacturer a walk up start, considering Mitsubishi
took it over from Volvo in the mid 90s.
* The month of May in
Indiana is famous for only one thing, the Indianapolis 500. 2012 will be the 96th running of
the event.
The people at Reliable Plant 2012 would like Indiana in May
to be famous for two things now, as their 13th conference is taking
place on the first to the third.
Okay, a pretty weak segue, I’ll grant you, but this
conference looks like it’s worth attending.
The conference itself is fully loaded with key-notes and there is a good
depth in the exhibition list.
Plus, I suppose you can hang around until Memorial Day.
*Next, I have a brief round-up of some staff movements that
have been brought to my attention. I’ll
probably do this once every couple of episodes, so please send me information
if you would like me to tell the world. feedback@australianptpodcast.com.
Parvalux has announced that it has promoted its Sales
Director, Nick Spetch, to Managing Director.
He was also formerly Sales Director for RS Components.
Parvalux is based in UK’s Bournemouth, with agents and
distributors across the globe, marketing a full range of AC and DC geared
motors.
From Europe to America, and Regal Beloit-owned Durst of
Clinton Wisconsin has appointed Scott Filzen to the role of Engineering
Manager. With an MBA and a degree in
mechanical engineering, Durst’s press release is glowing of Filzen and the
increase in scope he will bring to the role.
*Electronic variable speed drives continue to get more and
more sophisticated, with multiple I/O functionality, theoretical full torque at
low RPM capability, immediate feedback and data logging all becoming available
in lower-priced versions as new models are introduced. It has been interesting to see developments
in the field and I am certain that the learning curve is going to continue,
mirroring Moore’s Law, where computing capacity doubles every 18 months or so.
Yet while electronic VSDs look to upscale the smarts,
mechanical speed variation still has a role to play in the power transmission
landscape. Mechanical VSDs such as the
Reeves belt variator or the SEW version can deliver full load torque all the
way down to – in many cases – zero RPM, and full horsepower all the way from
midpoint speed through to maximum drive RPM. They really are an intriguing piece of
hardware that has been around for many decades and whilst replacing them has
been straightforward in many cases, in others there are some things that must
be considered.
When replacing a mechanical variable speed drive with an
electronic version, it is not enough to simply replace the unit with a similar
capacity motor and gearbox, because the electronics cannot deliver the low end
torque that a belt variator can.
Instead, an idea of the actual load must be gathered at its
lowest speed, and work backwards from there.
I have done a few of these mechanical to electronic VSD
retrofittings and each time, the size of the electric motor input has had to
basically double to achieve an outcome similar to what was there before. A lot of the issues arise due to the starting
torque capacity of mechanical belt variators, which are similarly matched to
the motor capacity at 225%. Electronic
VSDs usually have a starting torque capacity of only 150%, creating problems.
Mechanical belt variators continue to do the heavy lifting
in applications such as wastewater treatment, the cement industry and bulk food
mixing. In many cases electronics can
assist, with ease of operability and functional repeatability the main
drawcards. Obvious negatives such as
cost are continually being negated as the technology filters through, making
electronic VSDs the first choice for new applications but also forcing users to
look at replacing belt variators as the need arises.
Thank you for tuning in to episode twelve of the Australian
Power Transmission Podcast. Please
contact me if you have anything that you think I should know about from the
vast mechanical power transmission industry.
I’m Damian Harris and I will catch you in two weeks.
