New service offers custom connection solutions

Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team Aug 12, 2004

Many modern electronic systems use complex cooling systems that need high integrity couplings for water, refrigerant fluids etc that are capable of safe and quick connection.

Many control systems and machine installations, particularly those containing advanced electronics, require dedicated cooling systems to maintain the designed operating temperature and ensure performance is to specification.

A good example of the increasing need for electronics cooling are the latest military radar installations in fighter aircraft.

Power consumption of the new systems is increasing dramatically, for example from 5kW to 20/25kW, generating greater amounts of heat and calling for the installation of water/glycol based cooling systems rather than the basic systems currently installed.

Cooling systems invariably call for secure, high integrity, couplings for water, refrigerant fluids, compressor oil and hydraulics that are capable of safe and quick connection both on installation and during maintenance.

This is where a new service being launched by Staubli, the specialist in quick release connections, can ensure that an effective and reliable solution is achieved.

Staubli's expertise and knowledge of coupling solutions are available at the design stage to ensure that the installed system is reliable, easy to set up and will need only minimum maintenance.

This new service, being launched as "Staubli ConnectAssure" places Staubli technical specialists alongside the system designers working in partnership to produce a specification that meets all requirements.

Once the requirements have been assessed, the next stage is the selection of the most suitable products for that specific application from the extensive Staubli range.

In cases where a standard product does not provide the best solution, modifications can often be made to suit.

Occasionally this may lead on to new product developments involving Staubli's own Design Department - all part of the ConnectAssure service.

Staubli has experience of providing coupling solutions for system cooling applications right across the industrial sector from railways to aeronautics, defence systems to telecommunications, electrical transformers to nuclear reactors.

The spectrum of product attributes is equally impressive: efficient heat transfer, compactness, corrosion resistance, connection in inaccessible locations, cleanliness requirements, connection under differential pressure, environmental constraints, light weight, safety, reliability, proven leak tightness, reduction of maintenance time, and mechanical constraints.

The ConnectAssure service continues beyond the design stage.

On installation, advice on couplings selection can bring additional benefits.

For example, the selection of flush-face couplings permits the use of prefilled hoses, pre-assembled at the factory, avoiding the need to purge and refill circuits, removing the chance of ingress of pollutants into the fluid lines and ensuring the correct fluid is used.

During maintenance quick disconnection allows immediate replacement of the cooling system while the machinery is in operation, minimising downtime.

Increasing complexity in electronics, coupled with the continuing drive for miniaturisation, will continue to create demand for more effective and efficient cooling systems.

Staubli's ConnectAssure service allows designers to easily access the expertise of planning connection solutions that Staubli has gained over many years.