First Alzmittal Machining Centre on South African soil.

The year 2011 has definitely been one of the most productive years in the history of Transmission Components.  With a total turn over increase of 15% it was obvious that production would have to increase by the same amount while our high standard of precision and quality were maintained.  We decided that the best idea would be to purchase a drilling center from Alzmetall in Germany.  Known for producing some of the best drilling machines in the world, we knew the machine would not only deliver quality, but quality in the shortest amount of time!  The speed and precision with which the machine drills and taps our flanges and locking elements is phenomenal.  Below are some images of the machine arriving and being off loaded here at Transmission Components.

Refurbished Gildermeister

To keep up with production and ensure the highest precision on our products, Transmission Components recently sent one of it’s older ‘Gildemeister – Max Muller” CNC machines away to be refurbished.  It arrived back in our workshop on the 30th of March 2011 with a new and much small motor which still puts out the same torque as the older, much larger motor.  The new computerized control panel will make for much easier operation and increased production.  Below are some images of the machine as it currently waits to be programmed and put to work!

The TC106 Locking Element

Designed mostly for use on Conveyor Pulleys, the TC106 was one of the earlier Locking Elements that actually improved on an older design.  Being a 2 part unit the TC106 is easy to install and has since found itself as one of the most commonly used Locking Elements today.  The TC106 has proven itself as a great Shaft to Hub connector and will remain an industry standard for many years to come.  Below is a picture of the TC106 and also a picture which shows it installed in a Conveyor Pulley.

Ringspann Torque Limiters

Ringspann has been manufacturing Torque Limiters for over 40 years with an excellent track record in the most diverse applications.  Today Ringspann offers a comprehensive range of high quality positive and friction type Torque Limiters.  Transmission Components supplies the full range of Ringspann Torque Limiters to the South African market, as well as other surrounding African countries.  The Torque Limiter you see in the image below is a Rimostat type with a chain coupling which is used as ‘slipping’ shaft coupling to compensate for minor misalignment. 

New Sand Blasting Machine

Transmission Components recently bought a new sand blasting machine from Turbotecnica in Italy to ‘clean’ up our raw material before it is machined into Locking Elements or Tru-Line Rigid Flange Couplings.  Raw material is received from our suppliers with a lot of loose scale which, once our machining operations begin, turns into a sort of grinding paste once it is broken down and mixed with oils etc…  This paste is definitely not good for the machines and the tools used to cut the forgings.

In the pictures below, you can see what the forgings look like before they have been sand blasted and what they look like after, when they are ready for machining. 

Shaft to Hub Connections – Locking Elements

Locking Elements, also known as Shaft to Hub Connections are a very intricate part of the mining and industrial industries across the globe today.  Designed for key-less shaft to hub mounting they greatly reduce material costs as well as down time on machinery and conveyor drives, as they are easy to install.  Transmission Components has been manufacturing and designing Locking Elements for over 30 years and is currently the largest Locking Element manufacturer on African soil.  To ensure that our customers receive the quality that they deserve, Transmission Components does not release any Locking Elements until they have been tested in our quality control area.  Before being wrapped in corrosive-inhibitor paper, all our Locking Elements are stamped with a “TC”, making them easy to identify in this world of imitations.  If you’re looking for true quality, make sure it has the “TC” stamp of approval. 

Buy Cheap and get what you pay for…

Transmission Components has recently had quite a few customers asking us to replace Locking Elements which they had purchased from another supplier under the impression that it was one of our products.  Since quality is our main focus here at Transmission Components we did not hesitate to look at and possibly replace the damaged Locking Elements.  We didn’t have to look very closely to notice that the damaged Locking Elements were not from our production line!  Now, while most imitation products seem to flood in from the Asian continent, it is now evident that the phenomenon of copy/immitate and under-cut are VERY MUCH a reality right here on our very own soil.  Transmission Components now has a shelf dedicated to failed Locking Element attempts.  While these cheap imitations look exactly like the real thing to the untrained eye, it is only once they have been installed and breakdown that their cheap quality becomes obvious!  We have tested many of these imitation locking elements and so many errors that it is actually quite shocking to say the least.  From material not being heat treated properly and to the tapers not matching, these products would definitely NOT even meet the lowest standard of quality!  This is why we here at Transmission Components would like to strongly advise that your company does some research before just buying the cheapest brand on the market.  Buying cheap imitations can not only hurt the name of your company but also cause a snowball effect in which companies lose faith in the Locking Element as a whole.  Please think before you buy and make sure you are getting a quality assured product.  Below is a picture of a 1014 Locking Element that was sold to a customer who believed it was top quality.  Not the case.  The inner ring of the Locking Element has been machined to a bore size not suited for this specific size and this is what has caused the distorting effect that you can see on the inner ring.  The ‘science’ of the Locking Element has been totally discarded and this is the exact product of a cheap, low quality imitation that failed on a conveyor drive and ended up costing the company much more in down-time on the conveyor as well as the costs of a replacement Locking Element.  No Locking Element leaves our production line without going through quality testing to ensure that our customers get the best quality which they deserve.