Top product quality can only be had when one has it in mind from the start. Klaus Kramer is convinced of that. He works in the depart­ment respon­sible for reli­a­bility and testing in Central R & D in St. Georgen, where he tests the mechan­ical connec­tions in motors and fans. He has a variety of test and measure­ment equip­ment to help him with his work, including two Zwick tabletop test machines. They can precisely measure forces from 0.4 newtons to a maximum of 20 kilo­new­tons and are actu­ally intended for mate­rials testing. “But that’s only one area that we use them for here,” says Kramer. The depart­ment uses the Allround­Line machines to test adhe­sive bonds, pressed fittings and welds, springs, motor braces, strain reliefs and breaking strengths, or to perform bending tests during basic inspec­tions of rubber magnets.

Tests for rotor and ball bearing

As an example, when a new motor is devel­oped, Kramer and his coworkers measure how strongly the magnets are glued and at what force the press-fitted shaft detaches from the rotor or ball bearing. On the one hand, these measure­ments help designers to opti­mize the designs of new prod­ucts. On the other, they are essen­tial for produc­tion so that the staff there can make precise settings for the pressing force limits on their machines. In close coop­er­a­tion with the project teams, both activ­i­ties ensure that ebm-papst can supply prod­ucts that fulfill customer require­ments.

ebm-papst fan cools the control elec­tronics

But Kramer’s exacting eye does not stop with the prod­ucts. He noticed that the fan that cools the test machine’s control elec­tronics switched on frequently — and loudly — during the testing proce­dure. The next time a Zwick repre­sen­ta­tive visited, they discussed the problem, worked out some proposals and tested solu­tions in the ebm-papst acoustics labo­ra­tory. Now the new gener­a­tion of controllers uses an ebm-papst 3414 NG fan for ideal flow; it sucks in air from below to cool the elec­tronics and removes the waste heat with the rising hot air.

The improved tabletop testing machine now contributes to top quality at another point in the value stream: For new auto­mo­tive projects, ebm-papst recom­mends that its customers and suppliers use a Zwick machine in order to have veri­fied quality and compa­rable test results for supplied parts.