Lighter pulley equals lighter machines
Case: Pulley for agricultural machinery
We have developed a method for using sheet metal to manufacture pulleys, that drive movable parts in engines. We manufacture pulleys for both the automotive industry and the agricultural industry.
This case concerns a pulley used in engines of harvesters. As the pulley is part of an engine environment, it is important that it is resistant to corrosion. Therefore, it is formed from stainless steel.
How we manufacture the V-belt pulley
The pulley is manufactured through a spinning process, where sheet metal rolled to the desired shape. Thereby the forming process happens completely chip-less, which reduces the material waste significantly. The v-belt track on the on the pulley is also made completely chip-less. Read more about spinning here
A New Manufacturing Process That Reduces Costs
Previously, the pulley was manufactured through a casting solution, with subsequent finishing processes. The benefit of using a sheet metal solution instead, of a casted solution is, that you avoid those gas pockets, that is created in the material, when it is heated up during a casting process.
These gas pockets, makes the material more fragile and porous, and you also do not obtain the same surface quality as you do on spinned items.
As spinning is a cold manufacturing process, no gas pockets are created in the material. The result is products with homogeneous surfaces, and better material strength. The strong material also makes it possible to design the item with thinner wall thickness, without compromising strength and quality specifications.
Thereby the unit price of the items is reduced, and the weight of the pulley is reduced as well. The reduced weight of the pulley also benefits the fuel consumption of the engine, as less material is to be rotated, which decreases the engine inertia.