A Canada-based manufacturer has seen an increase in demand for electric brakes. ABHR speaks to the company’s head of sales to find out what is behind the trend.
Johnson Industries manufactures its brakes for use in some of the harshest environments and industries in the world.
Its equipment can be found in mines, ports, and offshore oil rigs in Antarctica, the northern parts of Alaska, and the Pilbara in Western Australia.
Gil Sondraal, head of sales at Johnson Industries, told ABHR the company’s goal is to find new ways of improving its brakes to prevent downtime.
One particular trend the company has noticed is an increasing interest in the use of electric brakes instead of hydraulic systems.
“Some of the big orders for steel mills and recycling plants are looking to spend the extra for electric brakes,” he said.
“Sales of electric brakes have gone up significantly. The people I have talked to are interested in the maintenance and environmental benefits.”
Calliper disc brakes are designed so that when power is active the brake opens, and when power is off the brake will apply.
Traditionally this requires the use of hydraulics, which in turn need valves, accumulators, and pressure switches that need to be monitored.
In addition, the hydraulic oil can leak and contaminate the material and environment around the brake.
Sondraal said hydraulic brakes still have their place for large machinery, where electrical brakes cannot generate the amount of force required.
“You can’t use electric brakes for everything, as you are limited by the amount of torque you can put in, but when we look at some of our recent orders, clients are willing to spend more on four electronic brakes than on one hydraulic brake,” he said.
Where electric brakes stand out for many sites is their maintainability. Sondraal said it is harder to find people knowledgeable about maintaining hydraulic systems than electrical ones.
Brakes are critical to safety and are often used if there is a failure elsewhere. As a result, brakes often undergo rigorous checks and maintenance to ensure they will function properly if needed.
While important, this task is time-consuming, which is why Johnson Industries has developed remote monitoring applications.
The company can plug in a module that allows its team of experts to monitor its equipment via the internet. From there, they can access key diagnostic information and detect if something is not working properly.
This information can even inform preventative maintenance, allowing a site to detect and solve a potential problem before it occurs.
Sondraal said that the ability to slash unproductive downtime is critical for the busy mining industry.
“A lot of the time, remote monitoring is helpful as it helps clients realise where the problem is,” he said.
“Usually, they’re quite grateful to have issues pointed out to them, as it means they don’t need to be constantly monitoring for it.
“We advise our clients to inspect their equipment every two months or so, but that can fall by the wayside in such a busy environment. Remote monitoring means nothing gets missed.”
Johnson Industries plans to expand its remote monitoring offering throughout the country. Part of that will involve finding the right representative and agent to assist the Canadian company.
Sondraal said Johnson Industries wants to ensure its equipment is being looked after properly.
“We do a lot of conveyor projects and have developed sophisticated software to control how they stop,” he said.
“We have a distributor in Australia but are looking to expand. Our goal is to bring local agents online to provide service and inspections.”