Updated on Aug 14, 2023
Fast operation
High efficiency
Low cost of construction
Simple control section
Easy to maintain
Disadvantages of mechanical presses
Smaller working table
Increase its power transmission is generally equipped with a counterweight wheel (flywheel) larger, noisy operation, high vibration.
What is a hydraulic press
Hydraulic press is a kind of general-purpose press with delicate structure. With a wide range of uses, high production efficiency, hydraulic presses are loaded smoothly and can be widely used in cutting, punching, dropping, bending, deep drawing, shaping, riveting and forming processes. By applying strong pressure to the metal billet to make the metal plastic deformation and fracture to process into parts. Mechanical presses, on the other hand, have a large impact force and are more suitable for separation processes such as punching and cutting.
Hydraulic presses are used to transmit power through hydraulic actuators in a control circuit by means of a fluid with pressure generated by a hydraulic pump, and the fluid mediators are water, emulsion; hydraulic oil. Features are large working pressure, smooth operation, work stroke can be freely controlled by a wide range of adjustment, a large working space, moderate work efficiency, can complete most of the work of mechanical presses, a wide range of applications. The configuration of hydraulic presses is more complicated, and slightly larger presses are generally equipped with independent pumping stations, and the control parts and circuits are more complex and relatively expensive.
Advantages of hydraulic presses
Because hydraulic presses have many advantages, they are widely used in industrial production. Especially in the forging and stamping production has a long history of application, for large pieces of hot forging, large pieces of deep drawing process, but also its superiority.
With the rapid development of the plastics industry, it has occupied a very important position in the plastic molding process, is the processing of thermosetting plastics, rubber products and tetrafluoroethylene cold blanks, such as the main press molding machinery, and can process long glass fibers and sheet fillers of hot homogeneous plastics, the physical properties of its products and mechanical properties better than the injection molding products
It is easy to obtain the maximum pressure
Easy to obtain a large working stroke
Easy to obtain a large working space
Pressure and speed can be steplessly adjusted
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Standardization of hydraulic components
Hydraulic components have been used, standardized and serialized, which bring convenience to the design and manufacture of hydraulic presses, and the hydraulic operation is convenient for the realization of remote control and automation.
Disadvantages of hydraulic presses
High maintenance cost
Due to the use of high-pressure liquid as the working medium (mechanical oil or emulsion), thus requiring high precision of hydraulic components, the structure is more complex, the adjustment and maintenance of the machine is more difficult, and the current leakage of liquid is difficult to avoid, not only pollute the working environment, waste of pressure oil, and the risk of fire when applied in the hot processing field.
Efficiency is not as good as mechanical presses
There is pressure loss in liquid flow, so the efficiency is low. The efficiency is especially low in high speed movement, so the fast small hydraulic press is not as simple and flexible as the crank press.
Conclusion
Mechanical presses are fast, but the pressure is not as great as hydraulic presses. Hydraulic presses have high pressure but slow speed.
Compared with mechanical press, hydraulic transmission has a large power/mass ratio, easy stepless speed regulation and overload protection, flexible and convenient layout and many other technical advantages
From the aspect of mold, hydraulic press is suitable for large, complex, precision automotive sheet parts, especially with "stretching" function. It is suitable for large cover parts, door parts, etc. of automobiles. Its characteristics are better than mechanical presses in terms of denseness and stability of product structure and dimensions. Maintenance is easier than mechanical presses because of the standardization of hydraulic parts and the high maturity of theory. For example, you can find the problem from a hydraulic schematic diagram to follow the diagram of the wings. Just insist on using genuine hydraulic oil. The efficiency problem is two problems, incomparable.
Mechanical presses generally rely on punching force, the pressure stroke is generally about 5 mm. Hydraulic press is lasting force, pressure stroke and cylinder stroke the same.
Mechanical high efficiency, speed, the resulting pressure is small, overload is likely to cause accidents. Generally press thin parts. Hydraulic press is the opposite.
Mechanical press has high efficiency, but vibration and noise are larger; hydraulic press solves the problem of reducing vibration and noise, but the efficiency is low.
The general pressure of mechanical presses is a little smaller. The advantage of mechanical press is inertia speed, punching volume; hydraulic press is to rely on the pump to pressurize.
JDM is a leading manufacturer of stamping and punching machines in China, providing top quality high-speed presses and mechanical presses worldwide. If you have more questions and needs, you can visit our press website or contact us to talk with our professional technical team and sales team.
There is much to discuss when it comes to understanding the principles behind hydraulic and mechanical presses and their various purposes and benefits. For a business to make a fulsome and carefully considered decision on what might work best for their industry, you’ll need to specifically address whether your needs are simple or complex, if speed is critical or more versatility is important and of course, to consider the costs associated with installing either style. Here’s what you need to know when it comes to considering the purchase and installation of a hydraulic vs. mechanical press.
The essential design principle behind a mechanical press is that it has many moving parts. There’s the flywheel, the clutch, gears, the crankshaft and connecting rods, to name just some of its components. Often, a mechanical press requires a very specific and customized fabrication and with so many moving parts, its complexity could lead to expensive maintenance and repairs.
Relies principally on pressurized hydraulic fluid (oil) as its “medium of motion” and a hydraulic pump as the power source. What this means to your production line is a more predictive and preventative maintenance schedule and a better, and more consistent source of full press force at any given point during a stroke.
Behind your purchase and install decision will be the evaluation of the purpose behind your purchase. What will your press be doing? What performance measures are most important to you and your business?
A mechanical press is best suited to a production line where both speed and high volume are critical considerations. Set up is simple and your operator’s ability to control speed is easy to maintain. Generally speaking mechanical presses will offer consistently high accuracy and your initial set up costs can be lower.
A hydraulic press will better serve your purposes if you require versatility. A hydraulic press offers more flexibility in design and comes in a variety of sizes to suit many different production requirements. It offers technological accuracy on the most complex of parts and this is one of the key differences between the two press types – a hydraulic press allows for the creation of intricate shapes including “deep bowl” applications, as just one example. In fact, deep and complex forms rely on a hydraulic press to be able to address the need for a more consistent full press force at any point during a stroke.
As implied above but clarified here, a mechanical press will play a more useful role in high production runs where parts might be simple or flat and will require only minimal set up. In such situations where speed and volume outweigh the occasional need for flexibility – you may wish to consider a mechanical press. They offer lower initial set up costs and a high degree of accuracy.
A hydraulic press on the other hand is more economical to maintain over the longer term with fewer moving parts resulting in less maintenance and repairs than its mechanical counterpart. The hydraulic press is by no means slow but its main advantage, as stated earlier, lies in the ability to create intricate shapes for unique production line purposes.
Before you consider the installation of either a mechanical or hydraulic press you’ll need to undertake a complete business case evaluation. Knowing your product design features, the industry you serve and the end user requirements will each help to clearly identify whether you are best served by installing a mechanical press – perhaps in an automotive manufacturing setting, or a hydraulic press – often used in appliance manufacturing for example. Macrodyne offers a variety of hydraulic press types that can be completely customized to your exacting specifications, addressing your need for both innovative design and ease of automation – even on the most complex of parts.
Despite everything we’ve said here today, there’s an important caveat: a hydraulic press CAN offer both versatility and speed, even in a high production line / automotive environment! Macrodyne manufactures hydraulic presses that work in a variety of automotive manufacturing settings including; molds and trim, electric vehicle battery components, body panels and more. You might want to schedule an appointment with a member of the Macrodyne team to ask how a hydraulic press offers cost-effective applications across a wide range of industries around the world. Let us help you make a carefully considered decision on what will work best for your business.
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