In the machinery and plant engineering sector, ensuring reliability and performance is now at the forefront. Particularly, manufacturers of machine tools, automation systems, and general mechanical engineering have significantly increased their requirements for high-performance elastomer couplings recently.

Deutsche Messe is reporting 4,000 exhibitors in 2023 and 130,000+ attendees searching for the latest developments in electrification, sustainability, and digital solutions. While one might wonder if the show will ever reach pre-pandemic levels again, it was obvious there’s still a very focused global manufacturing network looking to solve climate, energy, and automation challenges in the coming years.

Precision flexible shaft couplings come in two basic forms, both of which are designed to operate without backlash or excessive inertia while compensating for inevitable misalignment offsets between motor/gearbox and load. Torsionally stiff couplings are made with metallic flexible elements and with the intent to eliminate as much twisting deflection as possible so that the rotation of both shafts is kept as well synchronized as can be. 

R+W is currently ramping up to produce the majority of its precision bellows couplings, elastomer couplings and line shafts for the North American market in its new production facility in West Chicago, Illinois.  Significant improvements to product availability and lead times are already underway.

Across three days, the relaunched Smart Production Solutions (SPS) 2022 event in Nuremberg, Germany, attracted a total of almost 44,000 visitors in November.

Ball-detent safety element couplings are used to protect industrial power transmission drivelines from damage due to torque overload. They provide a rapid safety disconnect in the event of a machine jam or crash, along with a simple mechanical reset, preventing costly downtime and repairs.