Testing water samples is an important and critical business, so when Hach Co., Loveland, Colo.—a provider of water quality testing and water quality analysis—was designing one of its signature samplers, it wanted a design that was maintenance free and wouldn’t cause any problems.
That’s why Hach turned to R+W America, as it worked on the driveline of its Sigma SD900 Sampler, an all-weather sampler ideal for NPDES storm water runoff monitoring, pretreatment compliance, CSO studies and monitoring, industrial wastewater discharge, and WWTP process control. Hach needed a compact, zero backlash coupling to be positioned between the motor and a peristaltic pump. When searching for a coupling, size, vibration-damping characteristics, and maintenance-free solution were important factors in Hach’s decision-making process. R+W’s Servomax elastomer jaw couplings fit the bill.
Selecting the Model EKL Servomax coupling allowed the engineers at Hach Co. to design a shorter housing, resulting in as compact a design as possible. The EKL/5 has an outside diameter of only 25 mm and an overall length of 26 mm, making it a perfect fit in the tight installation space needed by Hach. Key to the Servomax selection was its ability to damp vibration while compensating for misalignment. The engineers at Hach selected the elastomer insert with an 80 Sh A hardness to maximize these features. And finally, like all of the components in the SD900 Samplers, the coupling is maintenance free. Once installed within the given technical parameters, the repeatable, smooth running Servomax elastomer jaw couplings from R+W are wear- and maintenance-free and given an infinite service life.
All R+W Servomax couplings undergo a unique calibration process in which secondary heat treatment of the injection molded, polyurethane insert is used to smooth out inconsistencies in the driving surfaces, allowing for a smooth fit and high level of repeatability. The couplings compensate for all types of shaft misalignment while damping vibration and maintaining a backlash free performance. Because they are offered in three different Shore hardnesses, the designer can select the correct amount of flexibility, vibration damping, or stiffness depending on the exact requirements of the specific application. Their high torque density and reasonable cost make them ideal for aggressive applications within a confined space.
Since implementing these robust, maintenance-free Servomax couplings from R+W, Hach has never had any coupling related failures in the field and can safely rely on the performance of the R+W coupling day in and day out.
R+W America
www.rw-america.com