August Steinmeyer: New washing system for miniature ball screws

Miniature ball screws from August Steinmeyer with spindle sizes from 3 mm to 16 mm are used wherever high precision is required in a small installation space. "Our systems are precisely adjusted in the micrometer range with regard to preload and freedom from play," reports Jonas Hillenbrand from the development department at August Steinmeyer. "Particles and, in particular, residues from hardened materials can affect the overall system and lead to errors or even premature failures during operation - every speck of dust counts." In addition, contaminants can contain materials that are not permitted in vacuum or UHV applications, for example. Contamination with particles can also lead to increased wear or a rise in temperature and therefore have a negative impact on the service life of a miniature ball screw.

If the demand for cleanliness is particularly high, August Steinmeyer offers the option of adapting the cleaning process of the products accordingly. For example, several washing processes can be carried out on individual parts or the assembled ball screw. To this end, the company recently invested in a new washing system and switched to a load carrier concept for the miniature sector. "This allows us to expand our cleaning options and increase cleanliness in internal logistics," says Hillenbrand. Areas of application that particularly benefit from the manufacturer's specially cleaned miniature ball screws can be found, for example, in medical technology for the manufacture of prostheses, in the energy or food sector for the actuation of valves, in the aviation or military sector for the realization of actuators and in precision mechanics for the manufacture of high-resolution optics as well as in electronics production. If standard solutions are not sufficient, August Steinmeyer develops processes and products further in order to be able to offer customized solutions. Individual adaptations are possible even for small quantities.