Hydraulics & Pneumatics September 2022

HYDRAULICS behind by its electrical counterparts, there are major strides being made to correct this. British Standards are considering a new document, giving more guidance than is currently available in ISO4413 and 4414. I have been working with the British Fluid Power Association (BFPA) to raise awareness in the industry, and with the National Fluid Power Centre to give the best training we can to the hundreds of engineers and apprentices that undertake its courses. Training Fortress Safety is also running fluid power safety courses alongside its existing portfolio of practical, application-based machinery safety training. In my experience of working with engineers, once they are aware of the potential issues, implementing appropriate systems is straightforward. The risk assessment is reviewed to ensure that it includes the relevant entries and, in most applications a, block and bleed or safe exhaust safety valve can be installed in the system. The input and logic parts of the safety system are usually in place and the valve is operated safely and the monitoring of its state is carried out just as it would be on a safety contactor. By purchasing a safety valve from a reputable manufacturer, all the necessary component testing has been undertaken and the safety data is ready to be included in the calculations to ensure the Performance Level or Safety Integrity Level meets the requirement of the system. Testing of the fluid power parts is then carried out with the rest of the safety validation. We are now working with many customers where this approach is being used on all new projects and just as easily applied retrospectively, installing the valve before an existing valve stacks. There are of course many different applications, but Fortress Safety has a team of product and machinery safety experts on hand to support you with these. Everyone has a duty to keep their colleagues safe and I am proud of the work we do at Fortress to provide the best safety solutions to allow everyone to achieve this. Safety and productivity have come a long way, and with a little more awareness and some small changes we can continue to take big steps in the right direction. www.fortress-safety.com 30 HYDRAULICS & PNEUMATICS September 2022 www.hpmag.co.uk One of the of the hydraulic and pneumatic monitored safety valves in Fortress’s Fluidsentry range. Trelleborg Sealing Solutions has launched its latest lightweight thermoplastic composite bearing, the HiMod Advanced Composite Bearing Plus, an enhanced dual-layer bearing with a low-friction modified PEEK layer that reduces friction and increases wear performance for use in bearing, wear ring and bushing applications. Manufactured using Trelleborg’s patented Automated Fiber Placement (AFP) technology, a thin low friction liner is bonded to the inner diameters and can be added to the outer diameters of the bearing to create a high-quality solution for use in a wide range of industries. According to Trelleborg Sealing Solutions, HiMod Advanced Composite Bearing Plus will not seize or gall, unlike metal bearings, to reduce the likelihood of pump damage in chemical processing applications, has a low coefficient of friction, and can withstand extreme temperature ranges. High durability and toughness Reid Hislop, product manager at Trelleborg Sealing Solutions, says: “Thermoplastic bearings offer high durability and toughness for demanding applications. The addition of a low- friction layer within our HiMod Advanced Composite Bearing Plus provides up to 50% less sliding friction than with standard bearings, to increase performance and prevent damage to hardware components. “These unique bearings can operate from an extremely low temperature of -156degC to +274degC / -250degF to +525degF and are capable of continuous service even when wet, with nearly zero water absorption. Unlike other non-metal bearings, these do not crack or swell in extreme conditions making them a reliable choice for a wide range of applications.” Trelleborg’s AFP technology is part of a special continuous- fiber thermoplastic composite manufacturing process, which uses pre-impregnated unidirectional composite tapes to produce strong, light-weight composite bearings and other components. The manufacturing process utilises In-Situ Consolidated (ISC) technology that requires no autoclave or other post processes to eliminate fibre wrinkling and offer an unlimited choice of fibre angles. Components are rapidly formed by a melt-bond process, which removes the need for adhesives, fasteners, or welding. ISC technology enables the bonding of different materials which can result in the creation of new, hybrid structures. www.trelleborg.com/en Trelleborg launches low-friction thermoplastic composite bearing