Why Hydraulic Costs are among the Top Expenses in Waste Collection When I worked as an editor for Hydraulics & Pneumatics magazine, I attended LOTS of trade shows. Sure, many of the exhibitors displayed hydraulic components, but my main reason for attending was to sniff out useful info from original equipment manufacturers. Because construction, mining, […]
How a Piston Rod Becomes a Missile
How a Piston Rod Becomes a Missile? A series of mistakes nearly ends in near catastrophe. Most hydraulic cylinder repair and rebuild work is pretty routine. But when a special or unusual cylinder comes in for repair, technicians should consult experts if they come across an unfamiliar feature. A double-acting cylinder used in mining equipment […]
Trial and Error Techniques are Risky Business in Hydraulics
Are You Prepared for the Consequences? Suppliers of flow meters and other hydraulic components generally stipulate their products be used only by qualified personnel. This protects them from liability if an incident occurs due to lack of proper training or negligence, especially from not reading instructions on proper and safe use. In my 30+ years […]
Outrigger Cylinders Aren’t Fool-Proof
Hydraulic Outrigger Failure Crushes Worker Safety expert Rory McLaren seems to be an endless source of interesting stories with valuable lessons that are especially relevant to those who work around hydraulic systems. More often than not, a lack of proper training is a major cause of these accidents. Although Rory may not have witnessed these […]
Unexpected Consequences can be Costly
Testing Hydraulic Cylinder Goes Wrong – Fire Erupts The lack of standardized component test methods in the fluid power industry has left maintenance personnel devising their own techniques for testing hydraulic components. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that a maintenance technician, with no formal training in hydraulics, caused a fiery inferno that burned […]
Why Hydraulic System De-energization is Absolutely Critical
The Penalty of Making an Incorrect Assumption A mill maintenance technician who had some hydraulic training was badly injured in an accident at a sawmill. He was trying to remove a hydraulic cylinder from a production machine so he could replace the rod seal, which was leaking. The cylinder was mounted vertically, and its piston […]
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