Why use a linear shaft motor instead of a U-shaped linear servo motor? With an independent review of energy efficiency, this article discusses the benefits of using linear shaft motors in place of linear servo motors.
Articles and White Papers
Automation
A common trend in the industrial automation and robotics industries is looking for electric alternatives to pneumatic components. What is the benefit of switching from pneumatic to electromechanical actuators? Take a look at our top 5 benefits to see why it might be right for your operation.
Solenoid valves used in air manifolds can be direct acting or pilot operated. In the case of a direct acting solenoid valve, the coil acts directly on the valve spool to actuate it. In the case of a pilot operated solenoid valve, it uses system air pressure as a pilot to actuate the spool.…
Vertical Loads: When And How Should Brakes Be Used On A Linear Actuator? In Motion Control, there are many examples of vertical applications, and the examples can vary widely. Whether it’s a packaging gantry or a robot end effector, linear actuators commonly are used to lift loads against gravity. However…
Top five reasons cobots are great for adapting to our “new normal” It’s an understatement to say that things have changed since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. For many of us, almost everything about our daily lives has changed in an effort to adapt and continue operations while keeping…
Pneumatic Proportional Control with Actuator Position Feedback When infinite position adjustability of an actuator through its entire range of motion is required, many people have become accustomed to looking at servo-electric solutions first. This is often the best choice, but in some cases, a pneumatic solution can be more cost-effective overall.…
Hose and Fittings
Types of Fire Resistant Hydraulic Fluid In many industrial systems, hydraulic fluids may come into contact with sparks, flames or could be subject to extreme ambient conditions caused by nearby equipment. When these conditions are present, hydraulic system designers are tasked with selecting fluids that will safely withstand the presence…
Preventing Rust on Hose Adapters Have you ever tried to disassemble a hose from a piece of equipment, only to find that the rusted adapter won’t allow you to break the connection? Then you know about rust and the problems that can come with it! And it isn’t just connection…
Save time and money by using Transair for your compressed air piping Compressed air literally keeps your facility running, but are you wasting time and money with copper or galvanized steel tubing? These old systems are time-consuming and expensive to install, and corrode over time causing poor performance and damage…
OSHA Regulation for Silica Dust Suppression Silica, a mineral found in stone, sand, and soil can cause serious health issues when inhaled. Using equipment such as a saw or jackhammer to cut or break up brick and mortar, causes silica particles to become airborne which creates a hazardous environment. Workers…
Can you Mix and Match Hose Manufacturers? Cross Hose & Fittings is a Parker distributor, providing precision-engineered products that meet or exceed a variety of industry standards. Parker is synonymous with quality, and their products can be found on and around any production operation with moving parts. Although there are…
Consider the True Cost of Industrial and Hydraulic Hoses Many buyers and maintenance managers equate the cost of a hydraulic hose assembly to its purchase price. However, the cost relevant to your business is not only the purchase price but the whole the cost of ownership or cost of using…
Mobile Systems Integration
Testing for Mobile Electrification Components, how does your equipment hold up in the field? For mobile machine builders, the push toward electrification is growing more popular every year. Environmental regulations are frequently being released in the U.S. and a focus on process efficiency is at the forefront of the industrial…
The mobile equipment market is moving steadily towards more electrification. As this occurs there is a growing demand for quality batteries for this equipment. The inevitable debate that comes up is whether to go with traditional lead-acid batteries or lithium-ion batteries. At Cross, we believe that lithium-ion batteries are the…
Capitalize on Replacement Part Sales Using IoT As a mobile equipment manufacturer, you are aware that there are significant opportunities for revenue in selling replacement parts for your machines. However, chances are that much of this income is lost to aftermarket parts manufacturers. Why is that? In theory, OEM parts…
Common Causes of Hydraulic Overheating Every hydraulic system is adversely affected by excessive heat. The impact of excessive heat in a hydraulic system can be particularly insidious because of the subtlety of its effects. Over time, excessive heat can lead to system damage due to seal failure as well as…
Hydraulic Charge Pump Overview For OEM’s that build on-road and off-road mobile machinery, a hydrostatic transmission should be considered versus a standard gear transmission because of the seamless way speed ratios and torques can be achieved. A hydrostatic transmission is made up of a hydraulic pump connected (and dedicated) to…
Increasing Aftermarket Sales for Mobile Equipment Manufacturers Many original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) lose a significant amount of business by not gaining the re-sale of aftermarket OEM spare parts from their customers for warranty and service work. This is because their customers are sourcing these replacement products from other manufacturers or…
Precision Measurement
One of the questions we get most often is “how frequently should I calibrate my equipment?” Unfortunately, this is something that we cannot answer for you, as it is a decision that must be made considering a number of factors. Check out this article to learn more about determining calibration…
Environmental testing is critical in ensuring your product performs under real world conditions Environmental testing is the exposure of a specimen to environmental conditions that may affect its function or life. These conditions include temperature, humidity, precipitation, corrosive elements, ice, frost, and condensation. Exposing your product to these conditions helps…
When making the decision to use external inspection services or purchase inspection equipment, there are a number of expenses to consider. We want to help you walk through the process so you can make an informed decision. Purchasing New Equipment for Inspection When deciding to buy equipment, there are many…
Scale conversion from analog to digital signal is a hot topic in the weighing industry. Even the definition of what makes a scale digital is a topic of debate. For our purposes we are going to consider both those that convert the signal from analog to digital in the load…
Mistakes to Avoid: Thread Gages While thread gages are some of the most commonly used inspection instruments in manufacturing, they can be confusing and intimidating to those who are not familiar with their design. Small mistakes can have large ramifications such as incorrect judgements or frequent need for gage replacements.…
If the number wasn’t important you wouldn’t take the measurement, right? Manufacturers around the world invest tremendous resources into their metrology programs to inspect parts and products for quality assurance and insight into their process. Despite this immense volume of data, time-consuming and error-prone manual entry is still common practice.…
Process Solutions
Industrial control valves are constantly moving and therefore will wear faster than an on/off block valve. They require more maintenance than block valves and can be very expensive to replace. Proper material selection, sizing and maintenance are crucial to extending the life of control valves. Pneumatic Control Valves Pneumatic Control…
As an integrator we are often brought into new projects later than what would be ideal, which results in the creation of additional work for the integrator and additional cost for the customer. If the OEM or custom equipment has already been spec’ed and ordered before engaging an integrator, there…
Commissioning For Process Controls: The Pursuit of Excellence There are so many control system platforms to choose from, it is hard to know what is right for your facility. To make matters more complex, you may also be debating whether or not to standardize platforms across your entire facility. While…
Top 10 Low Hanging Fruits to Pick for Process Improvement Before or After a Lean Audit This article was featured in Valve World Americas and was written to help any plant manager, maintenance supervisor, process engineer, or mechanical team shine. These may not be everyday ideas for you, but they…
Commissioning For Process Controls: The Pursuit of Excellence Commissioning is a team effort to document the continuity of a project as it moves from one project phase to the next. To achieve commissioning excellence requires that the testing documents be accurate and written in an orderly fashion. The Documentation Gatekeeper,…
The Preventative Maintenance Mindset: How to quantify the True Cost of Inaction Many of us have heard of lean initiatives such as predictive maintenance. Possibly in the past, you focused upon preventative maintenance, or even use to failure. Each of these have their good points and bad points. Today we’re…
