Mechanical power transmission products and equipment includes chains, couplings, belts, gearboxes, sheaves and pulleys.

T he global industrial mechanical power transmission market includes basic power transmission open-drive products such as motors, V and synchronous belt drives, chain drives, shaft couplings, sheaves and pulleys. According to estimates of SKF, a leading worldwide manufacturer and supplier of ball and roller bearings, linear motion products, precision bearings, spindles and seals, and one of the major players in this segment, the total size of the global power transmission market is around USD 18-20 bn. Growth in the power transmission market over the last 10-15 years has been between 3 to 10% per year. While SKF is one among the few total solutions providers, the global power transmission market is quite fragmented with regional and/or industry-specific manufacturers and suppliers generally providing only partial product offerings. There are not many manufacturers present across the entire value chain.

In India, JK Fenner specialises in transmission belts and transmission equipments – pulleys, couplings, gearboxes, taper lock bushes, etc. The company also manufactures related products like oil seals, gaskets, boots and bellows; and hoses, anti vibration products and valve + seal kits. The company has 5 manufacturing plants at three locations: two at Madurai, one in Chennai and two at Hyderabad. It ahs independent R&D centres for each product group, i.e., R&D centre for belts, R&D centre for oil seals and an R&D centre for power transmission equipment. Besides a large share in the domestic market, the company also caters to the exports markets including North and South America, Europe, Middle East, South East Asia and Australia.

PIX Transmissions Ltd is another significant player in belts and related mechanical transmissions products in India. The company has state-of-the-art belt manufacturing units as well as a completely automated rubber mixing facility in Nagpur. It enjoys significant brand equity in the power transmissions industry, with strong local as well global presence. The company has overseas subsidiary operations in Europe, and Middle-East, in addition to over 250 committed Channel Partners in over 50 countries worldwide.

Another major manufacturer in India is Gates Unitta – Industrial Power Transmission Division, a subsidiary of the over 100 yarer old Gates Corporation, USA. The company manufactures a complete industrial belt programme, including V-belts, multi-ribbed belts, synchronous belts, flexible couplings, tension testing tools, tensioners, pulleys and complete drive systems. The industrial application range extends from minimum drives on computer printers or other high-precision tools to industrial compressors and agricultural harvesters and tractors.

Important players in the global mechanical power transmission products market are ABB (Sweden/USA), Altra (USA), Emerson (USA), Tsubaki (Japan), Renold (UK), Rexnord (USA), Donghua (China), Gates (USA), Carlisle (USA), Optibelt (Germany) and ContiTech (Germany).

Altra is a leading multinational designer, producer and marketer of a wide range of mechanical power transmission products, its products selling in over 70 countries throughout the world. These products are frequently used in critical applications, such as brakes for elevators, wheelchairs and forklifts. The company also provides products for use in a wide variety of high-volume manufacturing processes, where the reliability and accuracy are critical in both avoiding costly down time and enhancing the overall efficiency of manufacturing operations.

The Altra product portfolio includes industrial clutches and brakes, enclosed gear drives, open gearing, couplings, machined-race bearings, variable frequency and belted drives, linear actuators and other related products. Its customers operate in a diverse group of industries, including automotive, general industrial, material handling, aggregate and mining, marine, power generation, oil and gas, transportation and turf and garden.

Altra Couplings represents some of the oldest and best known names in the coupling industry, including Bibby Turboflex, Huco Dynatork, TB Woods, Ameridrives and Lamiflex. Recently Huco Dynatork became the first to re-use the sliding coupling design introduced by the 19th century engineer, John Oldham, for locomotive applications. By introducing a plastic disc to achieve zero backlash, Huco Dynatork then applied the principle to modern precision drives.

The Oldham lateral offset coupling became central to the Huco Dynatork product programme in the mid ’80s has been continuously developed since that time. Just introduced are new models that are designed to handle 25% higher torque than their forerunners. Previously a peak torque rating of 44Nm was the highest available, now it is 55.36Nm and this has been achieved using a specially designed larger diameter disc.

The Oldham is precision engineered throughout and comprises two hubs with inward facing tenons. These engage with matching slots spaced at 90° in a central lightweight torque disc. As the coupling rotates, the disc compensates for any parallel shaft offset by sliding the commensurate distance along each tenon in turn. A hard, low friction facing on the working surface guarantees long, trouble-free operation.

Siemens Flenders has also completed its portfolio of couplings with the addition of the new backlash-free Flender Bipex-S and Flender Sipex couplings. Both coupling versions can be used in production machines and machine tools, as well as in automation engineering. They are available in various sizes and can be installed in integrated drive systems, frequently in combination with servo motors. Bipex-S torsionally flexible elastomer couplings are used in applications subject to vibration and shocks; Sipex metal bellows couplings are used in drives that require an absolutely angle-preserving torque transmission.

High-precision applications in machine tool manufacturing, control engineering and processing industries demand a great deal from the performance, quality and precision of couplings and their process reliability. Backlash-free couplings with reliable power transmission form the modular interface between motor and drive machine. They also compensate for offsets between the coupled units.

The backlash-free, breakdown-resistant and vibration-damping Bipex-S couplings are characterized by high power density and electrically isolating properties that protect against leakage currents. They enable a high degree of positional accuracy and reduce the wear on the system through lower peak loads and vibrations. The axial plug-in enables blind assembly. If the elastomer wears away completely, the jaws of the coupling hubs provide emergency running properties.

Gerwah, a brand of Ringfeder Power Transmission GmbH, promotes safety couplings as investment protection. Safety couplings, serving as torque limiting devices, protect machines from being damaged through interlocking and overload. The company provides a very convincing range of this type of couplings, made under the renowned Gerwah trademark. By combining divers hubs and couplings, customers are given the optimal solution for each individual application they require. Special roller guides guarantee that the torque is transferred with no clearance at all – both clockwise and anticlockwise. Components can therefore be used optimally whether a drive is rotationally or directionally controlled. As rolling elements, the rolls come with another decisive advantage: They are extremely reliable and durable thanks to their special tight fit.