Voith Introduces SealView
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SealView technology monitors the wear on every single seal strip and can be used with conventional and Voith HydroSeal seal strip designs. Its functional principle is based on a non-electric solution, which ensures maximum reliability in the adverse suction roll environment.
Seal strips in suction rolls create the individual vacuum zones and are subjected to constant wear as they are pressed against the rotating suction roll shell. Before SealView, it was not possible to determine the current state of wear while the roll was in operation. The right time for a roll change has generally been determined based on historical values. When operating parameters change, an unexpected vacuum failure might occur which negatively influences production and the planned runtime of the roll.
With SealView, new technology is built into the suction roll – independent of roll design and brand – during a roll service at one of Voith’s service centers. After SealView is installed, Voith personnel will do the initial commissioning and training at the paper machine.
The system alerts the operator when the seal strip has reached half of its service life. When it gets to a safety margin before the maximum wear level, an alarm is triggered. Using a visual representation on a monitor, the system informs the operator about the actual wear condition and the calculated remaining service life of the seal strip, alerting the operator in enough time for a roll change. In addition, the associated notifications are sent via email and are available to personnel on their smartphones.
After receiving this information, the operator has sufficient time to systematically plan the disassembly of the roll, coordinate further action for roll service and procure the replacement parts with the Voith service department. “A further advantage of the new SealView technology is that it is no longer necessary to keep an expensive set of seal strips inventory in the warehouse for emergencies. This helps customers to reduce working capital, a topic which plays a more and more important role in our industry,” explains Jochen Honold, Global Product Manager Mechanical Roll Service, Voith Paper.
For more information on the SealView technology, please visit voith.com/sealview.
