Perfluoro seals save GE moulding company

Gent, Belgium - GE Power Protection, based in Gent, has reduced downtime, enhanced the reliability of its key compression moulding processes and cut seal costs by at least Euro21 000 per year by switching to DuPont Performance Elastomers (DPE) Kalrez Spectrum 6375 perfluoroelastomer parts. 

The company, which employs about 600 people at the Belgian facility manufactures electrical equipment and components for residential and industrial low voltage distribution, automation and controls, enclosures and switchboards. Its products are designed for electrical and engineering contractors for the process industry, telecom and infrastructure markets.

GE Power Protection's compression-moulding production line uses steam at up to 165°C to heat the stamping-press. Steam at this temperature can be aggressive to some other elastomers, and can cause embrittlement, surface cracking and reduction in tensile strength — resulting in significant loss of sealing force. However, Kalrez Spectrum 6375 perfluoroelastomer parts provide continuous service in temperatures up to 275°C, and may lead to longer seal life, as in the GE Power Protection application.

“We were replacing the original O-rings about every six months because of the incompatibility of the FKM with hot steam. Production had to be stopped for at least two days each time the seals leaked — incurring very high maintenance costs due to the enormous dimensions of the mould. We also had the problem that every unexpected stop affected production planning and delivery schedules,” said Erik Buysse, project leader Toolshop – GE Power Protection.

“Realising that elastomer performance was a critical component in improving seal lifetime, we installed a pilot Kalrez® SpectrumTM 6375 O-ring in September 2005, which is still functioning well. As a result, we have had no more standstills to replace O-rings — gaining time, increasing yields, reducing maintenance and saving an estimated €21 664 per year in seal costs.”

As the Kalrez O-rings have also led to greater reliability and a five times increase in Mean Time Between Repair (MTBR), the mouldign operation has now decided to upgrade all critical O-rings to Kalrez SpectrumTM 6375 parts, according to Buysse.

The life cycle cost savings estimated by GE Power Controls were made using DPE’s online value-in-use calculator tool.