During Q1 2018, In-Situ Machining Solutions (UK) Ltd made the last 2 visits to complete an 18 month crankshaft refurbishment project at multiple mining facilities worldwide. During the project (which began in October 2016), a total of 8 complete crankshafts were refurbished utilising the most cutting edge orbital machining & polishing equipment within industry, developed by In-Situ Machining through focused R&D and field experience.
Upon each visit, the crankshaft main bearing journals (diameter 300mm) and crankpins (diameters ranging from 280mm) were initially inspected to determine a complete understanding of their condition, and to generate a full scope of work for the shaft. During the course of the project, which spanned over 18 months and consisted of 8 visits to multiple locations covering a total of 80 days on the job, the following works were undertaken:
52 main bearing journals were superfinished and polished to re-instate the manufacturer’s specified surface finish, remove any surface corrosion/scoring and ensure flatness of the journal. 50 crankpin journals were machine polished to re-instate the manufacturer’s specified surface finish, remove any surface corrosion/scoring and ensure flatness of the journal.
3 crankpins were machined (removing between 2mm & 4.5mm) undersize due to seizures/failures. All main bearing and crankpin journals were completed to OEM standards and exceeded the expectations of our client. Upon each visit which was meticulously planned to coincide with the engine overhaul, our engineers worked to an extremely tight timescale to minimise downtime to the engine and ensure we completed our scope of work on or ahead of schedule.
