GT SCHMIDT and HydraForce Team Up On Custom Pin Marking Solution
Identification marks that aren’t crisp and legible are a waste of time and money. But with a little GT SCHMIDT know-how, marks quickly develop optimal clarity.
The blurred marks
HydraForce is a Chicago-based manufacturer of high quality hydraulic cartridge valves, manifolds, and integrated circuits. Back in 2015, they had a scrap bin filled with blurred (and thus unacceptable) valves. The problem was a rotary application combined with a pin marking system. The marker was hitting the material with enough force to make the imprint, but it also caused the valve to move, which blurred the mark.
So, HydraForce turned to GT SCHMIDT. Sean O’Connor, our Technical Sales Specialist, and Bill Latuszek, our High Tech Manager, listened carefully to HydraForce Engineer Jason Christianson as he explained the issue. The guys then took the project to the GT SCHMIDT engineers to develop a solution.
The collaborative solution
The result: a custom-designed Styliner® with a Dual-Air (Open/Close) Rotary System. The push of a button closes the collet, and another push opens it. This ingenious addition provides more pressure to hold the valve firmly before the strike, then allows a quick and clean release to immediately remove the stylus from the part.
“We have always had a lot of respect for the professionals at HydraForce,” said O’Connor. “So we sent a prototype to them for extensive field testing in their shop.”
“Having worked with them for so long, I knew their input would help make it a better product,” added Latuszek.
“We immediately liked the design, especially its strength,” said Christianson. “Then we asked if we could tweak it a bit and GT SCHMIDT readily agreed.” At HydraForce’s suggestion, we redesigned the entire cover and improved the air line so it would not get tangled with the operator or objects around the workspace. Our engineers also noticed an aftermarket touch sensor on the prototype they received back, so for extra added value, they incorporated it into the standard design as well.
“Allowing us to be part of the design process really gave us a customized solution to our original problem,” said Christianson. “Adding the touch sensor was very thoughtful and typical of the service and value we have always received from GT SCHMIDT.”
HydraForce immediately replaced sixteen competitor’s machines with the new product. “With the results we got from the new Styliner®, combined with GT SCHMIDT’s usual excellent service and fast parts turnaround, it was not really a hard decision,” concluded Christianson.