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6 years ago

MDA Technologies 5/2016

MDA Technologies 5/2016

NSK to the rescue

NSK to the rescue MACHINE ELEMENTS Due to the age of lathe and the fact that the original manufacturer had changed ownership, meant that the Austrian ropeway maker faced a challenge when wear and tear dictated that the main spindle’s roller bearings required replacement. A reverse engineering operation was the need of the hour. 01 Cylindrical roller bearings used as high precision bearings for the spindle T he demand for ropeways, which are seen as an economic and rapid alternative to conventional ground transport systems, in both, inaccessible terrains and highly urban landscapes is globally increasing. Owing to this rising demand, the business at the Doppelmayr/Garaventa Group has seen the manufacture of more than 14,600 ropeway systems for customers in 89 countries to date. The Doppelmayr/Garaventa Group in Wolfurt, Austria, is a specialist in the manufacture of surface and aerial ropeways. The company makes all of the required components for its ropeways in-house, including the large sheaves at the top and bottom stations which guide the main drive cable. The bearing surface of the sheaves must be MDA Technologies 5/2016

help identify the bearing locations and assembly parameters, including the bearing clearance and spacer ring width. NSK also helped develop strategies for replacing the bearings. By characterizing the installed bearings through reverse engineering, NSK was able to replace them in the central bearing positions with high precision double row cylindrical roller bearings in the correct sizes. The replacement took place during a planned maintenance period so that production schedules were unaffected. For the axial bearings, spacer rings were measured after setting the clearance and new ones manufactured in the required width. Post-installation, NSK technicians checked the clearance to make sure it was correct. This was facilitated by conducting a dynamic lift test, allowing the loading conditions to be simulated with the bearings installed. The process confirmed that the previously measured value of 0.005 mm had been successfully maintained. With the project now on the verge of completion and the surface wheel lathe ready to re-commence its operations, Doppelmayr’s maintenance team was given instructions by experts at NSK to monitor the temperature of the bearings during the initial start-up phase. No irregularities were observed and the lathe is now back in full sheave production. Photographs: lead Doppelmayr/Garaventa, others NSK Deutschland GmbH www.nskeurope.com About NSK Established 100 years ago, NSK (Nippon Seiko Kabushiki Kaisha) is a Japanese-listed company that has evolved from a regional ball bearing supplier to a roller bearing specialist and automotive supplier with a global market presence. Today, NSK employs more than 31,000 employees in 30 countries. As per March 2015 NSK achieved a turnover of 975 billion Yen. In addition to a complete rolling bearing portfolio, NSK develops and manufactures precision components and mechatronic products, as well as systems and components for the automotive industry, including wheel bearing units and electric power-steering systems. In 1963, NSK’s first European subsidiary, Düsseldorf, Germany, was opened and in 1976, the first European production facility in Peterlee, England. Today, NSK Europe supports pan-European sales with production locations and technology centres in England, Poland and Germany. manufactured with very high precision to ensure smooth operation and secure cable guidance. The sheaves are machined on a large surface wheel lathe that was rebuilt from an original longitudinal lathe produced many years ago by Zerbt. Although the machine, which has a face plate weighing 30 tonnes, gives good service, Doppelmayr faced a challenge when wear and tear dictated that the main spindle’s roller bearings required replacement. The principal problem in replacing the bearings was the machine’s age and the fact that the original manufacturer had changed ownership. This meant there was no documentation relating to the main spindle assembly. For this reason, the Austrian ropeway maker Doppelmayr turned to NSK, which was able to support the company in a reverse engineering project that would 02 Experts from NSK supporting Doppelmayr’s maintenance personnel with the replacement of the main spindle bearing 03The bearings in installed state MDA Technologies 5/2016

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