Servo-electric press line offers accurate, high tonnage capacity, low maintenance alternative to traditional hydraulic machines
September 2019 - When George Lucas took his iconic Star Wars trilogy and created a digitally remastered special edition set in 1997, film critics wanted to know why. His response over the years has been unwavering: “I was waiting for technology to catch up to my original vision.”
In the last 10 to 15 years, electromechanical actuators have also “caught up.” Able to match the strength of hydraulic actuators in most cases, these systems give users complete control over motion profile. The technology helped pave the way for Beckwood Corp. to launch EVOx in April 2019. The new line of C-frame and four-post servo-electric presses is a highly accurate, low-maintenance alternative to traditional hydraulic presses.
“We’re seeing a lot of interest in the marketplace,” says Josh Dixon, Beckwood’s director of sales and marketing. EVOx is available in models ranging from 1,000 lbs. to 100,000 lbs. “These fully configurable press systems offer the highest tonnage capacity of any servo-electric press available on the market today,” he says.
The genesis for EVOx came in 2018 when a customer tapped the machinery manufacturer for eight 13-ton servo-driven, electromechanical presses for a trimming application. “It was a natural evolution for Beckwood,” says Dixon. “The customer was looking for a machine that didn’t use oil. They also wanted precision, repeatability and part traceability. With a hydraulic press there would have been trade-offs, but a servo-electric press met all of their needs.”
EVOx C-frame and four-post servo-electric presses offer an accurate, low maintenance option for light-duty assemblies.
Maximum force
Similar to hydraulic presses, servo-electric machines can initiate maximum pressing force at any point during the stroke. As a result, the operator can control cycle parameters such as travel distance, pressure and return position. Additionally, roller screw actuators, like those used by Beckwood, last up to 15 times longer and can achieve greater load capacity than ball-screw actuators.
An electric actuator eliminates the need for hoses, pumps and oil typically associated with hydraulic systems. Improved cleanliness, energy efficiency and lower operational and maintenance costs make the press suitable for equipment in such industries as food service, automotive, laboratories and clean rooms.
Higher force ratings support general fabrication, aerospace and automotive applications as well as assembly processes like clamping, crimping, part joining, inserting, riveting, staking and swaging.
With the EVOx line, Beckwood can customize actuator size, frame style, dwell time and power requirements to a customer’s specific needs. “We’ve found that multiple servo-electric actuators can be synchronized to create up to 200 tons of force in a single press,” notes Dixon. “This is a game-changer for manufacturers performing applications that were traditionally reserved for hydraulic presses.”
Fabricators can follow certain guidelines to determine whether servo-electric actuation is the best choice. “Shops looking for a press solution that can function in a clean room environment or produce parts without contamination should consider servo-electric,” says Dixon. “EVOx is also a good choice if an operation requires precision, force, positional repeatability or part traceability with serialization.”
Hydraulic presses need a large amount of electricity to run even if the machine is idle, but servo-driven electromechanical presses use energy on demand for a cost savings of up to 60 percent.
The EVOx line of servo-electric presses is fully programmable to ensure accuracy and positional repeatability to within +/- 0.0005 in.
Versatility
Positional repeatability on the EVOx line is within ±0.0005 in. Data acquisition measures torque, force, position and time at maximum rate of 1 sample/ms. “We offer high-speed data acquisition which feeds to an onboard, searchable database,” Dixon says. “An operator can go back months to retrieve data regarding a particular production run.”
Beckwood’s control system for EVOx is a simple transition for companies that have had previous experience with its presses.
“We’re building on years of collaboration with customers on our human-machine interfaces,” according to Dixon. “We have a track record with press controls and databases. And we are using the latest technology in a simple manner to provide high-performance results while keeping maintenance and operating costs low.”
The servo-driven presses are equipped with Beckwood’s proprietary PressLink remote support module to provide fabricators with quick, easy troubleshooting. While the EVOx carries a slightly higher price tag than hydraulic or pneumatic machines in most cases, Dixon says it provides versatility for fabricators that need to stamp multiple parts.
“Hydraulic presses have always been the gold standard for flexibility,” he notes, “but servo-electric presses are now maturing to that point.” FFJ
