ACE Tips: The Advantages of Modular Gas Springs
Gas springs with interchangeable end fittings provide many benefits. The ability to mix and match various connections improves application flexibility and facilitates installation. In the following blog, we’ll provide some helpful tips to help you mount your gas spring while making the most of its modular design:

Mix and Match Accessories
Let’s say you’re mounting two gas springs in parallel to decelerate a horizontal-hinged hood. In this case—as in all cases—proper mounting is essential. Mounting your springs incorrectly could cause them to wear prematurely or experience torsion-related seal damage.

ACE tip: In situations like this, simply screw on an end fitting with a swivel eye to enable more movement and minimize the risk of torsion.

The modular design also lets you attach your gas spring to mounting brackets should your application require them. Thanks to the interchangeable end fittings, mixing and matching these accessories is easy and makes the mounting process quick and painless.

ACE tip: Our product code system provides a simple, clear way to shop around for gas springs based on your application’s requirements. Each set of letters and numbers in the product code corresponds to gas spring type (push or pull), cylinder diameter, stroke, rod end fitting, body end fitting and extension force, respectively.

Customized and Ready to Ship in 24 Hours
Visit our gas springs calculations page—available 24 hours a day, seven days a week—to customize your gas spring in just a few minutes. Based on your data, we’ll size your spring and send you a technical proposal complete with mounting points. We’ll also include all the end fittings and mounting equipment you’ll need. You’ll then receive your customized, modular gas spring in as little as 24 hours from order finalization.

Visit our online calculations page to get started.

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Let’s take a look at some of the common ones you’ll see, as well as examples of their typical uses:

Push-type gas springs to lift and lower loads. These gas springs suit devices that lift or lower loads with easy control and minimal exertion. They support covers and lids in many industries, including automation and machine building, medical technology, electronics—and more.

Pull-type gas springs to fit constrained spaces. These compact springs can mount in any orientation and position. Unlike push-type springs, the gas pressure in the cylinder retracts the piston rod. Pull-type gas springs are used in various industrial applications, as well as medical devices, electronics and furniture.

Locking gas springs to hold a position. Many chair-type applications, such as mobility systems, need to maintain a certain position to support the end user. For example, when a person triggers a chair into motion by pressing a button or lever, a piston valve opens—extending the spring and moving the seat into position. When the user triggers the seat again, the valve closes, locking the piston rod—and chair—into position.

Rust-inhibiting gas springs to protect against corrosion. Many gas spring vendors offer rust-inhibiting versions of their standard models to protect against corrosion in food or hygienically sensitive areas. ACE Controls, for example, offers standard gas springs with an advanced UV coating or stainless steel outer bodies that can also be filled with food-grade oil—conforming to FDA standards.

To learn more about gas spring design and customization, download our latest white paper.

Download the White Paper

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The next few blogs will provide a helpful overview of what you need to know about gas spring design and customization. We’ll explore the various gas spring types, selection data, proper mounting—and more.

Let’s kick off the series with a look at standard versus engineered springs.

Standard Gas Springs Can Bring Unintended Results

While standard gas springs can be a quick and inexpensive purchase, a lot can go wrong during sizing and implementation. For one, off-the-shelf springs commonly offer one of three choices of output force. Will one of those forces be exactly right? Either way, you may get unintended results. If the factory-supplied output force doesn’t succeed, for example, your hood or lid may open unexpectedly.

In addition, standard gas springs can come with the wrong end fittings. Situations like these can cause you to spend unnecessary time trying different forces or modifying your assembly—inflating your labor expenses and delaying your operation.

An Engineered Solution Offers Many Benefits

An engineered gas spring, on the other hand, refers to a premium custom part that is adjusted according to your unique specifications. The added investment pays off via the time and labor cost savings that result when your gas spring works to perfection. ACE Controls’ customer support combines online tools and knowledgeable engineering staff to assist you in making the necessary modifications to your standard gas spring—including recommending the correct end fittings to make installation easier.

To learn more about designing and customizing gas springs, download our latest white paper. And stay tuned for more upcoming posts on this topic.

Download the White Paper

The post Your Guide to Gas Spring Design and Customization: Part I appeared first on ACE Controls Inc..

Here’s a look at how the oversized safety shock absorbers—capable of stopping 4,000-ton cargo ships—are key to protecting the lock gate and ensuring the safety of the ships passing through.

Like Navigating A Tight Parking Spot
During the design phase of the ship lock system, Dutch construction and steel company Mourik Lumburg had to take into account the fact that ships may touch the safety beam while navigating into the lock. The action resembles the way a car, as its driver navigates a tight parking spot, might tap the car next to it. But with loaded vessels weighing up to 4 million kg and traveling at 0.5-m/s speeds, the gate would need to withstand a considerable amount of force.

Mourik technical experts needed large, heavy-duty shock absorbers that could protect the gate. They approached ACE Controls for a solution.

An Extra-Large Solution
ACE technical experts calculated that the shock absorbers would need to withstand 500,000 Nm of energy—requiring a customized design. Weighing in at 320 kg, these special oversized shock absorbers feature a length of 2,649 mm, outer diameter of 200 mm and stroke of 800 mm.

After the collision in the Netherlands ship lock, engineers installed a new beam on the gate—a process that required temporary disassembly of the shock absorbers. During this process, ACE technical experts were on hand to provide the repair team with all the necessary support on how to remove and then reinstall the dampers.

Thanks to these extra-large components, the ACE and Mourik teams are confident the ship lock will continue to operate safely for many more years.

To learn more, download our latest case study.

Download The Case Study  

The post Extra-Large Shock Absorbers Keep Ship Lock Intact Despite Collision appeared first on ACE Controls Inc..

Let’s take a closer look at this new, user-friendly tool:

Make fast calculations 24/7. In the past, any questions about our gas springs required direct contact with one of our application engineers—a process that involved filling out a design form and exchanging information by fax or email. But our new online tool, which you can find under the “calculations” tab of our homepage, reduces this time to less than a minute. It’s also available 24/7.

Explore interactive models. To properly size your spring, the tool asks you to provide the details of the flap, including the length, width and opening angle—to name a few. It then generates interactive 2D and 3D simulations, which you can rotate, tilt and zoom.

Order your spring at the push of a button. Once you input all the data, the tool matches you with one of our most popular gas springs, including the model number, custom filling pressure and desired mounting accessories. You can even download a mounting sketch with all the specifications. Then, when you’re ready to order, simply fill out a contact form and one of our representatives will contact you to finalize the process.

Ready to get started? Click here to try out our new sizing tool.

The post Select Gas Springs Instantly With Our New Online Sizing Tool appeared first on ACE Controls Inc..

Tip 1: Mount Your Gas Spring With The Piston Facing Downwards
Gas springs contain a small amount of oil in the pressure tube. This oil is important for two reasons: first, it lubricates the main seal and rod. It also creates damping at the end of each stroke—particularly the last few millimeters.

Remember: it’s very important to mount your spring with the piston rod facing downwards. This position keeps the oil in contact with the rod seal, preventing it from drying out. But more importantly, it ensures the piston dives into the oil, which reduces the velocity at the end of extension.

Tip 2: Adjust The Pressure Using The Spring’s Built-In Valve
You may find, at some point, that your spring has too much pressure. This could be the result of many things. The technical data related to sizing may have been incorrect or unknown at the time of specification. The design of your machine may have also changed.

Whatever the case may be, our valve technology lets you easily adjust and fine-tune the gas pressure and extension force of your spring. Each spring integrates a pressure valve in the stud of the end fitting. Simply thread our DE-GAS adjustment knob onto the stud and press down to release small amounts of nitrogen gas. Now your spring is adjusted.

Tip 3: Take Advantage Of Our Local Support Team
Here at ACE Controls, we offer a full range of motion control products, including industrial push- and pull-type gas springs, hydraulic dampers and door dampers. For free sizing or on-site support, contact our local support team. Our application engineers are always ready to provide you with the help you need to make sure your spring is tailor-made your application.

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