GEARBOX REPAIR and REBUILD SUPPORT

Gearboxes, also known as gear reducers, are necessary for allowing industrial machinery

to run smoothly. Gearboxes are needed to help machines reduce or increase speed, as necessary, and increase output torque to handle larger loads. Gearboxes are used in various industries and environments depending on the specific type of gearbox or reducer.

We offer rebuild and improvement solutions for virtually all types and manufacturers of gearboxes. Our repair process starts with a detailed teardown and inspection of every component, including the housing. All of our gearbox repairs are initiated by an extensive inspection. This analysis takes into account the reducer’s housing, bearing/seal, shaft, and gear conditions. Given their significance and importance, having any gearbox fail or break would result in costly downtime.

We offer gearbox rebuild or rush repair services to minimize downtime of your operation.

We are always here to help with our 24 Hour Emergency Service!

1.0 Incoming Inspection

Our Gearbox Repair Shop performs a thorough appraisal of the unit's condition, as received, to determine what specific repairs are needed as well as to find unsuspected trouble, perhaps unrelated to the obvious defect. Our technicians diagnose root cause and effect of the gearbox failure to help prevent a recurrence.

The Gearbox must be inspected visually for parts that maybe missing and/or damaged. any defects or anomalies. Additionally it is documented when a gearbox unit comes in with heavy corrosion.

2.0 Disassembly

A thorough appraisal of the Gearbox condition, as received, is to be performed, to determine what specific repairs are needed as well as to find unsuspected trouble, perhaps unrelated to the obvious defect. Our technicians diagnose cause and effect to help prevent a recurrence. Our appraisal will include a complete review of the following conditions of each part of the Gearbox: General cleanliness, Cracked or broken welds or castings, Missing hardware, Wear or rub marks, including fretting, discoloration, charring, or other evidence of overheating, Looseness at mating fits, Corrosion or moisture inside the machine. 

3.0 Cleaning and Blasting

All mechanical parts are to be thoroughly cleaned, sandblasted and inspected for defects, cracks or damage. Acceptable cleaning methods include steam pressure cleaning, shot blasting, solvent cleaning and immersion washing. Ensure all gearbox parts are clean and free of debris. The cleaning process allows for better inspection and paint adhesion later on in the rebuild process.

4.0 Inspection

Once all mechanical parts are thoroughly cleaned and blasted, a thorough inspection for defects, cracks or damage occurs  This includes measuring the clearances, grading surface conditions. Visually check all gear components for excessive heating and other abnormalities, as well as an Inspection of condition of the gear teeth and Gear Casing. Furthermore, measure and record dimensions of the following: Shaft extension, Journal and bearing fits, measure and record bracket fits for housings and bearings, the condition of ball or roller bearing housings.

5.0 Failure Analysis

At Electromechanex, LLC we take pride in reliability engineering, isolating the cause of the failure and repairing your gear unit to the highest possible standards and workmanship with the highest standard of reporting in the industry, as our intent is to let you know how to prevent the failure from happening again. The cause of failure methodology starts with the failed component, then follows a step-by-step process to understand the stresses that caused the component to fail. That way your chosen solution doesn’t just treat the symptom. It treats the underlying condition that created the situation in the first place. Before and after cleaning all internal gearbox components are inspected , both failed and undamaged. Examine closely The functional surfaces of gear teeth and bearings are examined closely, examined and condition recorded. All parts are inspected for signs of corrosion, contamination and overheating. After the components are washed with solvents a thorough re-examination as this step is often the most important phase of the investigation and may yield valuable clues. A low-power magnifying glass and pocket microscope tools may be used for this examination.

Inspection of the bearings often provides clues as to the cause of gear failure: -Bearing wear can cause excessive radial clearance or end play that misaligns the gears. -Bearing damage may indicate corrosion, contamination, electrical discharge or lack of lubrication. -Plastic deformation between rollers and raceways may indicate overloads.-Gear failure often follows bearing failure.

6.0 Procurement

Using decades of experience and state-of-the-art reverse engineering equipment, EMX verifies the sizes and gear geometry of each gear and pinion requiring repair or replacement. After the inspection is completed, defective components are identified and a full list of gear parts is made. Pricing and availability of OEM and aftermarket gear parts is obtained from pre-approved vendors. Prices are also gathered from 3rd party services, such as gear hobbing, rebuilding mechanical seals, etc. In some instances, parts and materials are upgraded to superior quality products, such as premium ball bearings and our exclusive Gen2 polyurea pump bearing grease.

7.0 Machining

In many cases, we prefer to machine the parts ourselves using our In-House Machine Shop. Many Gear parts such as shafts, seal sleeves and spacers, stuffing boxes and packing glands, and bearing housings can be sleeved and finish machined in our own machine shop. Additionally some worn parts can be coated with a polymer composite that can be easily machined in a lathe, drilled, tapped, filed, sanded and polished. This gives us ultimate control over the timeframe and finished quality of these pump components.

8.0 Assemble Gearbox

Once an order is placed, EMX begins the rebuild process, starting with ordering all necessary bearings, seals, breathers, sight glass, bolts, etc. Once all of the parts have been received and verified, surfaces have been repaired, gear cases have been painted, and gaskets have been created, the gearbox can be assembled. 

All mechanical repairs on shafts, bearing journals, end bells, and other equipment are handled in-house by experienced machinists. All gearboxes have tooth contact checked and backlash recorded as well as all shaft end play recorded as well.

A no-load spin test is performed at the top-rated speed of the gearbox to verify correct operation before shipment.

9.0 Quality Tests

We test each gear unit in-house in our testing facility. We can perform basic functionality tests as well as gearbox performance and some load testing. A full Mechanical run performed to ensure the mechanical integrity of the gearbox. This includes maintaining acceptable bearing temperature, vibration levels and no leakage from the seals or gaskets. Inspection of the gear tooth contact patterns         

in the way in which mating gear teeth contact indicates how well they are aligned.      If practical, we record tooth contact patterns under either loaded or unloaded conditions. For certain no-load tests, we paint the teeth of one gear with marking compound and roll the teeth through mesh so the compound transfers the contact pattern to the unpainted gear. The pattern is lifted from the gear with scotch tape and mount it on paper to form a permanent record.

10.0 Paint & Protection

At the completion of the test, the Pump standard external coating is an epoxy primer with a urethane topcoat or an application-specific paint, such as IP67 Marine epoxy. This coating is very robust and resistant to the harshest of environments. Gearbox products are cleaned and blasted to near-white metal to achieve excellent adhesion that lasts for years. The shaft shall be protected by either a rust and corrosion preventing coating or mechanical impact cover, and prepared for shipment.