A hydraulic press is an exceptionally powerful machine that is critical to manufacturing a wide variety of equipment across many different industries. However, hydraulic presses are also expensive, and labor-intensive to maintain. It’s good to know your options when looking at presses that perform various applications, and understand when you ultimately need a hydraulic press over a less costly alternative.
Types of Presses
There are many different types of presses, which have been evolving since the early factory presses were used in the 1500’s. Some of the largest presses can exert up to 80,000 tons of force, while smaller presses can exert as low as 150 lbs of force. This opens up factory presses to a wide range of different applications. However, it can be difficult to choose which type of press is best for your needs. A hydraulic press is often the default choice, but it is not always the optimal choice. Let’s take a look at the situations that require a hydraulic press, and when alternatives can be used.
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When Do You Need a Hydraulic Press?
Longer Stroke Length
You need a hydraulic press in a few unique situations. Though it’s ideal for the machine maintenance, process speed, and overall efficiency to use the shortest stroke length possible, many processes require longer stroke lengths. In these cases, a hydraulic press may be necessary. Hydraulic presses can have longer strokes due to their self-contained oil capacity, and a hydraulic pump can be designed to move oil pressure over longer distances. For parts, materials, or components that are large or awkward to work with, a longer stroke length can make it easier to manage the workpieces. Longer stroke lengths are also required for unique tooling operations that require deeper delving into the workpiece, such as pressing a bearing race 8 inches or more into a housing.
High Force
Hydraulic presses typically exert more force than other types of presses. Though hydropneumatic presses, in particular, can also exert large amounts of force, hydraulic presses are ideal for very heavy-duty applications. This might include heavy broaching applications, parts with larger dimensions or thicker material, applications with tighter tolerances or jobs that require deeper press fits. In these cases, hydraulic may be your best bet for consistent quality and performance.
High Retract Force
When working with heavy pieces of tooling, such as large die sets, hydraulic presses can be ideal. Hydraulic presses use pressurized hydraulic oil to exert force as the cylinder retracts. This allows them to effectively move larger, heavier pieces of tooling. Other types of presses do not have this amount of force on retraction, and won’t be able to effectively pull heavy tooling away from the part after pressing.
Force and Depth
Some applications have to drive a part further than ½ inch with 20, 30, or 50 tons of force at full power. This is generally out of the scope for hydropneumatic presses that are often great alternatives to hydraulic. Within this range, a full hydraulic machine like our HP-Series Hydraulic Press would generally be recommended, though the ideal type of hydraulic press can vary based on the specifics of the process and the part.
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Range of Pressing Applications
Hydraulic presses also offer some flexibility in terms of application use. Whereas many presses are better suited to consistently deliver on one precise set of operations, a hydraulic press can often serve a range of applications with varying required force. The force delivered by a hydraulic press is adjustable with precise control, and the longer stroke length can be applied to more complex jobs, like deep drawing, in addition to simpler applications. If you are running a flexible production where you need a press to perform multiple applications, hydraulic may be the best choice.
Finding the Right Press
The previous sections outline situations that are ideal for a hydraulic press. Outside of these requirements, you can likely make your process more efficient by utilizing alternatives to full hydraulic machinery. Hydropneumatic presses and pneumatic presses offer a variety of force levels, as well as many other advantages like speed of operation. Alternatives to a hydraulic press can provide energy savings, reduced maintenance costs, safer operation, and much more.
As you consider different types of presses for your process, it can be helpful to compare hydraulic, hydropneumatic, and pneumatic presses to see which would be the best for your project. It’s also helpful to find the right amount of force required for your press, otherwise you might be looking for a press that is overpowered, and will expend unnecessary energy.
The experts at Air-Hydraulics Incorporated can help you find factory presses that meet or exceed the needs of your process. Contact us today and tell us about your applications and we’ll walk through the best options we have available, answering any questions you may have to make sure you’re set up with the best press for your production.