Advanced plastics enhance equipment life

Technologically advanced materials have revolutionised many applications in the industrial environment with engineered plastics able to outperform and outlast steel in heavy-duty applications such as bearings, bushes and protective housings.

They have also enabled modern manufacturers to develop strong and durable solutions for age-old problems such as protecting cables, reducing wear and providing flexible control for robotics and automation through the development of specially produced chain flex energy chains. These can be developed for cables from 3 mm to 300 mm hoses in applications that replace festoons, busbars and cable reel drums and enhance machine operations.

Moreover, modern-day cables are being specially developed for specific applications and boast equally advanced materials that enhance their strength, durability and longevity. The cables can also be developed to adopt properties that are required for various applications.

At the forefront of these technological developments is German manufacturer Igus, which introduces several hundred advanced plastic products and chainflex cables to the market each year.

With various production facilities around the globe and a fully autonomous local operation –  igus South Africa –  local manufacturers and engineers have access to a range of products and materials that can significantly improve equipment and processes.

igus South Africa MD Ian Hewat says the company is actively engaging with local industries to introduce these new solutions to the local market.

“We have been a mainstay of the energy chain market in South Africa for more than a decade. Our [products] are providing continuous protection on some of the country’s largest cranes at our ports and harbours, while similarly tough and durable energy chains serve mining, automotive, packing, and other industries.”

Local Solutions

“It is time for the local industry to embrace new motion plastic materials and tap into a world of reduced maintenance, safer working environments, greaseless operation and vastly simplified mechanics offered through the use of polymers. Our slogan at igus is ‘plastics for longer life’ and we work with customers to find solutions that can drive costs down and product life up.”

Hewat states that the company’s energy chains, for example, allow direct continuous control with no slip rings or joints required for added reliability, while its specially developed chainflex cables are tailored to required applications.

“We have the widest variety of cables specifically for use with energy chains and dynamic applications. Different outer jackets and specially developed internal material have been developed for these applications and provide users with a three-year guarantee for added peace of mind.”

He notes that having specially developed cables for different applications significantly improves the reliability of the cable systems and provides reduced maintenance and increased lifespan, which in turn increases a system’s mean-time-to-failure.

“Best of all, we have solutions for almost all industries wherever there are moving and dynamic cables for measuring, fibre optics, power, servo cables, control, Bus and data systems.”

Lubricant Free

Advanced new materials in the manufacture of polymer plain bearings and bushes allow engineers to replace a wide variety of steel and other traditional bearings.

igus polymer bearings make use of tribology materials that include polymer, fibre and dry lubricants into the polymer, says Hewat.

The bearings are manufactured with the latest materials for self-lubrication that provides a lifetime of maintenance-free operation that is usually far longer than traditional types. “In the heaviest and dirtiest of conditions these materials can perform flawlessly and can even run underwater with no contamination. Similarly, they can maintain continuous operation in the hottest and driest of conditions or provide corrosion or chemical resistance with any one of the 40 different standard base materials.”

Hewat concludes that perhaps the biggest measure of the success of igus’ advanced products is their uptake in the country’s largest projects, including mining drill rigs, metals recycling, high-speed packaging plants and throughout the logistics supply chain.