Customer

ZF Friedrichshafen AG is a leading global automotive supplier headquartered in the German city of Friedrichshafen. Founded in 1915, it now has 162 production sites in 31 different countries. ZF is known for its innovations relating to electric mobility, automated driving, and integrated safety systems.

Project description

ZF Friedrichshafen commissioned SEW‑EURODRIVE to fully modernize a VARIBLOC® mechanical variable-speed gearmotor that was over 40 years old. This motor was essential for the transport chain of a power & free conveyor in the paint drying oven for truck gear units. To avert the risk of system downtime, it was decided to replace the obsolete technology with a state-of-the-art drive concept comprising an up-to-date parallel-shaft helical gearmotor and a frequency inverter.

The drive's poor accessibility and its vital importance made the retrofitting project particularly challenging. Our experienced team developed a customized drive concept that combined a maintenance-friendly mounting position with minimized future maintenance times.

Following precise planning and detailed measurement of the system on site, a CAD model was created to serve as a basis for the tailor-made drive console. Together with the new parallel-shaft helical gearmotor, this console was pre-assembled at our service center and underwent a check to ensure top quality.

Our innovative solution included:

• Modernization of the drive system: Replacing the old mechanical variable-speed gearmotor with a state-of-the-art parallel-shaft helical gearmotor.
• Integration of a frequency inverter: Enabling flexible control and adapting the motor power to the specific requirements.
• Customized drive console: Developing and pre-assembling a tailor-made console for optimum integration into the existing system.
• Precise CAD planning: Creating a detailed model to ensure compatibility and functionality.
• Maintenance-friendly design: Optimizing access to the drive unit to minimize future maintenance times.

Efficient implementation without any production downtime

It took just three days to modernize the drive unit, and carrying out the work during a scheduled system overhaul avoided any adverse effect on production operations. Thanks to careful preparatory work, the installation process went without a hitch – the drive unit was a perfect fit for the existing system's interfaces.

Besides strengthening the partnership between ZF Friedrichshafen and SEW‑EURODRIVE, the successful project will also significantly improve the system's efficiency and reliability.

Other services and customer benefits

• Analysis of current situation and status recording: We conduct a thorough examination of the existing system to document the current situation.
• Project planning and design: We develop a detailed modernization concept based on the analysis of the current situation.
• Adaptation engineering for system and application: We modify the new drive units to fit the existing structures precisely.
• Replacement of drive components and peripheral equipment: We replace the old drive components with cutting-edge solutions.
• Replacement of peripheral mechanical equipment for application and system: We replace worn or obsolete mechanical parts in the system.
• Startup: After installing the new components, we start up the system.
• Project management: We coordinate all project activities and ensure the project is completed on schedule.

Retrofit

is one of the many service packages we offer to cover the entire system life cycle.

Only with state-of-the-art machines and systems can you achieve the best possible productivity. Using our Retrofit Service to integrate our latest drive technology and drive automation will optimize your existing system's availability and process reliability.

Further information about our Retrofit Service