As a global partner for the automotive industry, Linamar, a Canadian company, designs and manufactures components and systems for drive systems at more than 60 locations worldwide. The 23,000 square meter Linamar Powertrain GmbH plant in Crimmitschau, Saxony, Germany was founded in 2010 and manufactures engine components such as connecting rods and transfer cases for 4WD vehicles.
Junker Saturn 915 machined connecting rods are mainly used in 1 to 3 liter petrol and diesel engines. Andre Schmiedel, Operations Manager at Linamar Powertrain GmbH, says: “In total, we have installed six production lines that produce more than 11 million connecting rods per year. They are machined or even fully assembled according to OEM requirements and drawing specifications.”
Saturn machines use a continuous grinding process with connecting rods up to 400 mm long. The connecting rods are transported to the machine on a conveyor belt. The workpiece carrier rotates continuously and guides the workpiece onto a vertical grinding wheel arranged in parallel planes. The end face of the connecting rod is machined synchronously, and the intelligent measuring system ensures the ideal end size.
Schmidl can attest to this. “The SATURN grinder has successfully met OEM requirements for accuracy in terms of parallelism, flatness and surface roughness,” he said. “This grinding method is an economical and efficient process.” After processing is completed, the connecting rods are suspended from the discharge rails, cleaned and transported along the conveyor belt to the next station on the line.
Flexibility and versatility With Juncker’s Saturn double surface grinders, plane-parallel workpieces of various shapes and geometries can be machined efficiently and accurately. In addition to connecting rods, such workpieces include rolling elements, rings, universal joints, cams, needle or ball cages, pistons, coupling parts and various stampings. Parts that grip different types of workpieces can be changed quickly and easily.
The grinder is also particularly suitable for machining heavy workpieces such as valve plates, bearing seats and pump housings. Saturn can process a wide range of materials, Linamar, for example, uses it for more than just micro-alloyed steels. And sintered metal.
As Schmiedel says: “With the Saturn we have a high performance grinder that allows us to provide our OEMs with excellent availability while maintaining consistent tolerances. We were impressed with the efficiency with minimal maintenance and consistently high quality results.”
Similarities in the history of the company After many years of working together, it became clear that professionalism leads to business partnerships. Linamar and Junker are united not only by their passion for innovative technologies, but also by the similar history of their companies. Frank Hasenfratz and producer Erwin Juncker both started. They both work in small workshops, and both have successfully sparked interest in their technology through innovative business ideas, Schmidel said.
Mechanical operations in which material is removed from a workpiece using powered grinding wheels, stones, belts, slurries, sheets, compounds, slurries, etc. Available in many forms: Surface grinding (to create flat and/or square surfaces) Cylindrical grinding (for external and taper grinding, fillets, undercuts, etc.) Centerless grinding Chamfering Thread and profile grinding Tool and chisel grinding Non-hand grinding, lapping and polishing (grinding with very fine grit to create an ultra-smooth surface), honing and disc grinding .
Powers grinding wheels or other abrasive tools to remove metal and finish workpieces with tight tolerances. Provides smooth, square, parallel and precise workpiece surfaces. Grinding and honing machines (precision grinders that process abrasives with extremely fine uniform grains) are used when an ultra-smooth surface and micron-sized finish is required. Grinding machines are probably the most widely used machine tools in their “finishing” role. Available in various designs: bench and base grinders for sharpening lathe chisels and drills; surface grinding machines for the manufacture of square, parallel, smooth and precise parts; cylindrical and centerless grinding machines; central grinding machines; profile grinding machines; face and end mills; gear cutting grinders; coordinate grinding machines; abrasive-belt (back bracket, swing frame, belt rollers) grinding machines; tool and tool grinding machines for sharpening and regrinding of cutting tools; carbide grinding machines; manual straight grinding machines; abrasive saws for dicing.
A strip or bar of fine abrasive used to lift a workpiece while remaining parallel to the table to prevent tool contact with the table.
Machining by passing the workpiece through a flat, sloping or contoured surface under a grinding wheel in a plane parallel to the grinding wheel spindle. See grinding.