Bar stock is used in various applications of fluid power, either as a mounting for other valve systems or simply for consolidation of plumbing. The bar stock itself is typically an alloy of either aluminum or ductile iron, and is manufactured in billets suitable for machining finished product. The most popular use is the bar […]
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Modular transducer allows measurements up to 130 ft
Position sensing in mobile applications can be tricky, especially on large machines with long boom cylinders. Such machines often rely on cable reels and string pots, but these devices are not always reliable. They can stretch, thus require recalibration. And the elements—winds causing erratic readings and dither in the hydraulics, ice buildup preventing the wire […]
Freudenberg-NOK Invests in Fluid Power Segment Capabilities
Freudenberg-NOK Sealing Technologies is continuing to build its global fluid power leadership through significant investments at its Schwalmstadt, Germany material production site. The Schwalmstadt facility produces the company’s new polyurethane and other materials that are used at Freudenberg-NOK plants, including the Troy, Ohio location. Over the past year, Freudenberg-NOK has invested more than U.S. $6.5 […]
Rexroth expands its GoTo program to all of North America
Bosch Rexroth has expanded its GoTo Focused Delivery Program, with it now being available in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. In addition, the company has added more than 250 new hydraulics components into the program. Earlier this month, Bosch Rexroth highlighted its continued growth in its “local-for-local” manufacturing plans, with the expansion of its Bethlehem, […]
Bosch Rexroth continues U.S. growth with Bethlehem, Pa. hydraulics expansion
Bosch Rexroth reiterated its commitment to “local for local” manufacturing this week, as it celebrated the grand opening of its expanded hydraulics facilities in Bethlehem, Pa. Boasting an additional 150,000 square feet, the newest facility brings the number of Bosch Rexroth buildings in the Bethlehem area to seven. Previously, the space at Broadhead Road only […]
Five tips for spring maintenance in your hydraulic systems
By Josh Cosford Spring has arrived, with all the fanfare of a 3675th place finish in the Boston Marathon. As I write this, I am elated by the sunny and relatively balmy weather outside, but also saddened because I know the daytime high barely pushed the mercury into the “normal” range for this time of […]
Is it a fair fight? Hydraulics vs. electrics
By Josh Cosford In my last blog, I squared hydraulics off against pneumatics in a battle to decide the champion of fluid power. The judges called it a draw, because the competitors simply weren’t in the same weight class. Hydraulics is the super heavy-weight of mechanical motivation, with power to spare, but not always light […]
The Metric vs Inch debate: Retaining rings weigh in
The retaining ring was invented in Germany nearly 100 years ago and naturally followed the DIN metric standard since its inception. When the retaining ring was first produced in the U.S. a few decades later, it conformed to the inch standard. The U.S. engineers who conceived the inch version considered their design an improvement over […]
Hydraulics and pneumatics: The big battle
By Josh Cosford Fewer topics in the fluid power realm garner more conversation than that of the differences between hydraulics and pneumatics. The two types of fluid power motivation are very similar, both in the use of a fluid to transmit mechanical energy and the executions using similar terminology, symbols and components. Both hydraulic and […]
IFPE 2014 was very much a success
How do you measure whether a trade show was a success? Was it the number of contacts that you (as an attendee) made? Was it the amount of new design ideas you thought of? Was is how many solutions you found to pain points in your design process? Well, from this editor’s standpoint, IFPE 2014 […]