Solutions in Motion™

What does a custom design project look like at W.C. Branham? Here’s an inside look.

Stainless Systems has been a Branham customer since May of 2016, primarily purchasing stainless steel cylinders. Stainless is a necessity in their line of work because many of their industrial equipment customers are in the food processing industry. Everything has to meet stringent cleanliness standards and withstand harsh wash-down environments.  

Simple gears are used to transfer power from one shaft to another, but when the shafts intersect at odd angles, they don’t intersect at all, or you need to change rotational direction of a shaft, things become complicated. It takes a bevel gear to keep things moving. Bevel gear design is commonly used in many industrial applications as well as in all types of vehicles.

What is a right angle gearbox?

A right-angle gearbox is one in which the driveshaft and the output shaft meet at a 90^o angle, using rotation to transfer power.

The nature of automation and the facts of physics dictate that all moving parts wear out over time, and your right angle gearbox is no exception. Industrial settings are demanding and unforgiving. High speeds, high temperatures, wash down requirements, and other factors take their toll.

Right angle gearboxes are used throughout dozens of industries in hundreds of applications that require a reliable transfer of speed or power.

Years ago, it was expensive and very difficult to make spiral bevel gearboxes. And while the precision necessary to craft such beautiful and intricate pieces is still tricky, with the right attention to design and fabrication, it's much more doable.

Wear and tear is a fact of life for machinery operating in industrial settings that feature high temperatures, high speeds, outdoor dirt, or harsh washdowns. Even the highest quality components eventually break down. Right angle gearboxes are generally low-maintenance, but if something goes wrong, how can you tell if you’re looking at gearbox repair versus replacement?

The sooner you detect emerging problems, the better your chances of a less costly repair instead of an untimely, expensive gearbox failure. Developing problems can also push gearbox components out of spec, which weakens performance and speeds further damage. Here are some signs to look for and steps you can take to troubleshoot gearbox problems.

Nothing looks more professional than stainless steel gearboxes. They’re so shiny and clean-looking. And that might actually matter if your working environment sees visiting guests or official inspectors. Other equipment that needs re-painting or a new powder coating can make the entire facility seem sub-standard.

But a pretty face isn’t enough, especially in certain industrial applications. You need gearboxes that can perform reliably as spec’d, for a long time, with minimal fuss, so there are serious functional reasons to choose stainless steel gearboxes.

With so many unique applications and different sizing requirements, it can be difficult to find the perfect gearbox for your needs. And of course, you want your selected gearbox to help your application run as smoothly as possible.

In this video, our VP of Engineering and General Manager, Chad Randleman walks you through the process of finding the right gearbox amongst the various types of gearboxes we offer.

Reliability is crucial for any industrial equipment, but most of all when machinery is operating under high-speed, high-torque conditions. For these applications, a high-speed right angle gearbox is often the best design choice to ensure cost-effective, long-lasting, safe performance. Right angle gearboxes are also compact, an important advantage when space limitations are a design factor.

High-speed automation is common in applications such as packaging, bottling lines and other food processing operations, pulp and paper manufacturing, heavy manufacturing such as cement or steel, and mining. And locations such as car washes, food and beverage operations, or medical facilities typically use high-speed roll-up doors.