Joma Machine Company, Mohnton, Pennsylvania, Seakeeper’s exclusive manufacturer of the M7000 Gyro, executes multiple critical operations in the gyro assembly process using Spanco bridge cranes and Columbus McKinnon Loadstar variable frequency drive electric hoists, Model 3625E. This combination eliminates the need to use a tow motor and up to three employees at any one time using their hands and muscles to move and place gyro elements.
The Lodestar loading the gyro flywheel into an Okuma CNC turning centre in the company’s large turning cell. With the Spanco 2 USt bridge crane, one operator can easily move this heavy piece (up to 900lbs at this point) between two adjacent Okuma CNC turning centres for machining. Previously, this operation would have been accomplished with a moveable jib crane and an employee standing on the back to counteract the load up front.
The Lodestar is being used for gyro assembly. This job was why Joma originally acquired a Lodestar variable frequency drive hoist. Alignment of the two hemispheres of the gyro is critical, with a number of cables and feedthroughs that need to be adjusted while the two halves are joined, according to Joma assembly manager Pete Blanchet. Joining of the gyro enclosure, where the integrity of O-rings is critical to maintain vacuum, is a delicate operation executed in a clean room. It used to require three people, two to align the hemispheres and one to adjust cables. Now it is accomplished, with the aid of the Lodestar VFD hoist and bridge crane, by one technician.
The final gyro assembly is moved in the test room. Again, one technician now does a job previously done by three people, one operating a tow motor and one on each side of the assembly to help with positioning.
The Lodestar is shown placing the flywheel on a balance machine in the flywheel subassembly cell. Extended from a 1 USt Spanco jib crane, the Lodestar can precisely position the finished flywheel on rollers for balancing. The variable frequency drive allows for careful placement so that critical journal faces are not damaged, according to Pete Blanchet. As in the turning cell, this operation would also have used a moveable jib crane with manual assistance.
A technician using the Lodestar to load the gyro onto the test table, an operation which, again, previously required three employees including a tow motor driver and two others for left-side and right-side alignment.
