Press Repair

The crown of an automotive supplier’s Verson press machine was damaged beyond repair. Installing a new one on their existing press was a…crowning achievement.

THE CHALLENGE

After the crown of one of the largest tier one supplier’s Verson press machine became damaged beyond repair, the company purchased a new one and called Lee Contracting to install the crown on their existing press. However, the job consisted of much more than simply removing the old crown and setting the new one. The rigging team first went to the site to pick up the old crown with their in-house gantry system, rolled it over and set it down on bunks. Next, the Lee Contracting maintenance and repair team disassembled the old crown in hopes of using those same parts in the newly purchased one.

While the crown was disassembled, the Lee Contracting team found damage to the eccentric bushings. This is where Lee Contracting was presented with the first challenge. Eccentric bushings help to reduce friction between two objects and are critical because of their ability to minimize vibration and noise. Ordering new bushings could take six to 10 weeks for delivery, but Lee Contracting knew that would push the project timeline back significantly.

THE RESULTS

A two-week turnaround for the client instead of six to 10 weeks.

Once the crown was disassembled by the maintenance and repair team, the rigging team hauled the old crown out and brought in the new one. Thankfully, the team used their experience, and positive supplier relationships, to think outside of the box. Lee Contracting was able to get unfinished bushings from the supplier, machined them and hand grooved each one to spec in-house.

During the project, the Lee Contracting maintenance and repair team also:

• Re-built the hydraulic overload protection system to prevent any damage to the press in the event of an overload
• Fixed damaged intermediate gears by in-house welding the entire shaft
• Put the machine back together with the newly refined parts