Accuride Rolls Forward with Atlas Copco’s Compressors

October 10, 2019

1 minutes

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Paul Simms makes it crystal clear: “Without air, our test lab can’t run.” Simms is the Corporate Director of Testing & Measurement Systems for Accuride Corporation, a global manufacturer of steel and aluminum wheels for the Class 5 through Class 8 truck market. “In our test lab, we use compressed air to keep our tires inflated,” he said. “We go above and beyond all the test requirements of the industry. We use continuous flow air in most of our testing, so we have to maintain constant pressure and we have to have reliable compressors for that.”

Accuride relies on Atlas Copco’s compressed air to power the test lab. Prior to choosing Atlas Copco’s compressors, Accuride had two extremely large air compressors that took up an enormous amount of floor space. Now, with a pair of GA30 VSD+ compressors, the footprint is half the size! An additional benefit of the new compressors? Atlas Copco’s Variable Speed Drive (VSD) technology also precisely matches air production to demand.

“The Atlas Copco Mark V controller has a sequencer that we can set up to automatically turn the compressors on and off at specific times on any given day of the week,” said Adam Cartwright, Territory Manager for Evapar, Atlas Copco’s Platinum Distributor. “Accuride’s compressors are set up to cycle once a week to be a lead machine and a backup machine, so they get equal run hours. Plus there’s 100% redundancy.”

Both units are also monitored 24/7 by SMARTLink. Notifications of any warnings or issues are sent automatically to personnel at Accuride, and to Evapar’s service team for immediate response.

“Wheels and compressors have a lot in common,” said Cartwright. “Simple concept, but it’s the technology that makes all the difference.”

So how does Atlas Copco keep Accuride rolling?