Stainless construction for worm-style gearboxes

Citation

(2004), "Stainless construction for worm-style gearboxes", Anti-Corrosion Methods and Materials, Vol. 51 No. 4. https://doi.org/10.1108/acmm.2004.12851dad.001

Stainless construction for worm-style gearboxes

Stainless construction for worm-style gearboxes

Keywords: Stainless steel, Gearboxes, Corrosion resistance, Baldor

A new range of all-stainless-steel gearboxes for electric motors provides machine builders with optimal speed-reducing solutions for clean-area automation such as conveyors.

The worm-style gearboxes set a new performance standard for food, pharmaceutical and chemical machinery applications through advanced features that include complete sealing, very smooth 316-grade steel exterior surfaces, and a hollow shaft for direct connection to the load.

The new Baldor 900 Series of gearboxes provides a single reduction with a choice of eight ratios from 60:1 to 5:1 – providing a 29 to 350 rev/min output from a standard 1,750 rev/min motor for example.

A C-face quill-style input is provided for connection to the motor.

Three sizes are available, spanning centre distances from 44.5 to 66.6 mm, supporting continuous duty output torques from 18 to 121 Nm, depending on the model variant selected from a range of over 50.

For maximum reliability and ease of use, the gearboxes include an internal compression chamber and expansion bladder. These features eliminate the need for a breather vent, which can provide a route for contaminants such as water – a major cause of failure in pressure-washdown processing environments. Additionally, the gearboxes are constructed using all stainless steel materials, with high-grade 316 material used for the exterior casing. This provides a very high resistance to corrosion, for compatibility with caustic cleaning agents, and even the ability to be used in harsh chemical processing environments.

The casing is cast using a special mould to create a standard surface finish of typically around 6.3 Ra. This smoothness can be enhanced even further with Baldor's optional electropolishing service.

The protection delivered by these features provides a much more robust and versatile solution than conventional gearboxes made with cast iron or aluminium – which are prone to pitting corrosion and other damage from cleaning solutions. Another factor in optimising the gearboxes' suitability for washdown environments is the provision of hollow-bore shafts. These facilitate direct connection to loads, eliminating the cost and space required for a coupling mechanism, and with it any need for washdown guarding. Solid shafts are also available. Baldor offers a range of compatible stainless-steel motors to complement the 900 Series gearboxes.