By 
A centerless grinding machine is a powerful piece of equipment that can significantly increase a company’s productivity and add enhanced precision to its manufacturing process. With a centerless grinding machine, workers can quickly load parts in without needing to clamp or secure them. Instead, this machine does all the work as it is set up to naturally secure a workpiece within its wheels as it’s worked over.
Once the centerless grinding machine is set up, workers don’t need to make any other adjustments or constantly check settings. This hands-off nature is a great boon, but it also comes with a big disadvantage as the ease and effectiveness of this machine can make it easy for people to forget that it, as any other machine, still needs regular attention in the form of preventive maintenance.
Centerless grinding machines are advanced, complex pieces of equipment that when operated with daily frequency will require daily, monthly, and yearly inspections. Such inspections will help ensure that small problems are discovered and remedied before they can become massive issues.
The following is a look at the three most important preventative maintenance steps all owners and operators of centerless grinding machines should perform to prevent excess wear and tear and premature breakdown:
Daily – Inspect to Ensure All Moving Parts are Properly Lubricated
Your centerless grinding machine comes with a specialty recommended lubricating oil chart which will indicate how and how much all the machine’s moving parts should be lubricated. Insufficient lubrication is one of the most common ways in which a tool like the centerless grinder becomes damaged. While some calculated friction amidst moving components is a necessary part of the grinding process, allowing too much friction due to insufficient lubrication can and will cause damage. As such, it’s important to check the lubricating oil chart and lubricate your machine as necessary every day.
Daily or Weekly – Inspect the Hydraulic Oil
Dirty hydraulic oil is another one of the more common causes of failure in a centerless grinding machine. Additionally, allowing the hydraulic oil to become as stay dirty will reduce the machine’s performance and thereby compromise all the advantages the machine otherwise offers. It’s a good idea to do a daily visual inspection to ensure the hydraulic oil in your machine is in good order and to always change the machine’s oil and oil filter as stated in the manufacturer’s recommendations.
Daily – Clean the Leftover Swarf
During normal operation of a centerless grinding machine, the used coolant will carry swarf to different areas of the machine. When that coolant then dries out, the swarf will accumulate and harden and thereby cause issues with internal components.
To prevent this from occurring, we recommend employing a policy of turning the machine off at the end of every production shift in order to remove leftover swarf and then restart to run the machine and ensure a clean process.
Have Questions? Need to Order a Centerless Grinding Machine? Contact Laurel Wire Company
At Laurel Wire Company, we are proud to have been offering exceptional centerless grinding machines and related services since 1983. If you are ever in need of a professional inspection on your equipment or if you are in the market for a new machine, then we are here to assist.
Contact us today to learn more about how centerless grinding machines can significantly improve the productivity and processes in your manufacturing company or similar large-scale project.
Comments