Rexnord® Omega™ Couplings Keep Equipment in Line at Anheuser-Busch
CASE STUDY
Anheuser-Busch prevents broken shafts on auger drives, handles misalignment on cooker agitator drives, and simplifies pump drive repairs at its Los Angeles-area brewery by replacing gear-type couplings with Rexnord Omega split bonded elastomer couplings.
The Van Nuys facility, one of 12 Anheuser-Busch breweries, has undergone continued expansion and currently has an annual capacity of more than 11 million barrels.
Mash is heated in cookers approximately 25 feet tall. A large agitator, driven from the bottom, keeps the mixture stirred. The cookers originally were equipped with lubricated gear couplings between the drive motor and gear reducer and between the reducer and vertical agitator shaft. The vertical coupling had to be replaced every five to six months. ”The gear couplings are hard to work with,” says Gary Irwin, of the brewery’s maintenance department. “They’re big and heavy, they’re greasy, and interference fits make them difficult to install or remove. Alignment is very critical.”
Irwin retrofitted the cookers with Rexnord Omega E10 couplings between the 25 hp motor and right-angle gear reducer. On the vertical output shaft, an E120 coupling joins the reducer to the agitator drive. Final speed is variable, with a maximum of 28 rpm. Rexnord Omega couplings are split-in-half flexible polyurethane couplings that consist of only two hubs and two half-elements. The non-lubricated couplings incorporate torsionally soft flex elements to protect connected equipment by cushioning shock loads, reducing torsional vibration, and absorbing up to 4º of angular misalignment.
An Omega Coupling between an in-line
reducer and an auger
drive transferring spent grains into storage tanks
Typically, the cookers are in use around the clock, seven days a week. More than two years after installing the first Rexnord Omega couplings, Irwin reported no failures. If a coupling element were to fail, replacement would be fast and easy, with no realignment needed because the hubs remain in place.
The Omega couplings solved another problem on auger drives that transfer spent grains from the brewing process into large storage tanks. The augers are driven by a 15 hp motor through a 25:1 in-line gear reducer, for a final output speed of 30 to 40 rpm. During a jam-up, the 2-1/2" auger shaft would fail before the gear coupling, requiring several hours of labor to install a new shaft and get the equipment back on line. Replacing these gear couplings with E30 Rexnord Omega couplings solved the problem. Now, if an auger jams, the urethane coupling element winds up while the overload sensor shuts down the motor before the shaft strength is exceeded and it breaks. An added benefit, says Irwin, is that the bonded urethane couplings do not require lubrication, which makes for better housekeeping as well as reduced maintenance attention.
Anheuser-Busch also has equipped hundreds of pump drives with Rexnord Omega couplings, including many driven by motors up to 40 hp and some as high as 100 hp. Here, they protect against misalignment and vibration, helping to extend the life of pump seals as well. Previous geared couplings transmitted vibration and misalignment to the pump, seals and bearings, shortening their life. The Rexnord Omega couplings, by contrast, absorb vibration.
An Omega coupling between an in-line
reducer and a typical
auger drive at the Anheuser-Busch facility in California
Closeup shows coupling connecting auger drive (right)
with in-line speed reducer
4-154-121CS/9-29-03
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