Obsolete Refractory Press Hydraulic Manifold

A 60+ year old massive refractory press was to be brought back into production after several  years of being decommissioned. It was not known when the last time the press worked correctly.  The press was manufactured in Switzerland, there were no hydraulic system prints, most of the  component manufacturers were either not in business or had been acquired by larger entities. The  press’s main hydraulic controls were integrated into a 48” L x 24” Hgt x 24” W Manifold that  included 0ver 120 plugs and 70+ hydraulic controls. There were additional undocumented  hydraulic functions added post manufacture.

Present day maintenance and production personnel were consulted so as to determine  possible manufacturing sequence and function.  

A course of action which can best be described as “Hydraulic Archaeology” included:  o Total disassembly of the system and all components.  

• Carefully documenting the manifolds internal passages.  
• Creating a hydraulic schematic.  
• Replacement of obsolete components and misapplied customer placed  components.  
• Custom manufacturer of numerous seals  

IRG remained onsite during the startup process and trained maintenance and production  personnel in the function, proper maintenance and troubleshooting procedures of all  components. The press is reliably functioning