“Made for Motion” ...and Braking

General Brakes Here at KTR, we are widely known for our ‘Made for Motion’ slogan. We take pride in our ability to drive things forward, both literally in terms of mechanics and figuratively in terms of innovation. However, motion is not all we do here at KTR. Anything that moves, must also at some point stop. With that in mind, it makes sense that a company devoted to motion would be involved in the braking industry too. Today, we are a leading manufacturer of drive technology, brake and cooling systems, and hydraulic components. We’ve revolutionized the hydraulic brake and tripled the power spectrum of our electromechanical brakes. We’re proud to be one of the few global manufacturers to provide customers with two different types of brake systems; KTR-STOP (hydraulic) and EMB-STOP (electro-mechanical). Since the braking world can be a bit confusing, we thought we would provide you with a brief breakdown of the difference between the two brake systems we offer. Both of the ranges discussed below are a floating caliper disc brakes and available in both active and passive designs. KTR-STOP® We like to conceptualize the hydraulic KTR-STOP as the workaholic of brake systems for two main reasons; it requires very few “breaks” (pauses for maintenance) and performs under conditions its brake coworkers simply won’t (or can’t). The KTR-STOP floating caliper brake is fully encapsulated, has built-in dirt scrapers, and extra wearing rings to allow it to operate under extreme conditions such as arctic, marine, sulphurous, and high ambient temperatures environments. These features also reduce operating costs and increase service life. An increased piston travel range means brake pads can impressively be worn almost entirely down before this workhorse will require maintenance and even then, only a short break for repairs is needed before it’s ready for operation once again. As we said, it’s the workaholic of brakes. The Linz coking plant provides a great example of the KTR-STOP braking system in action. Coke is the main fuel for making pig iron in steel production, but before it can fire a blast furnace it needs to be quenched. On the Linz plant, three quenching trains travel 200 metres continuously with up to 80 tonnes of coke on board. The trains are remote-controlled and must operate through extreme temperatures, water, and steam. For safety reasons, each train must also stop at the entry gate to the tower as it opens. This situation required a braking system that could reliably (and frequently) halt a train carrying 80 tonnes of material in a very challenging environment. Given these circumstances, they chose to install four KTR-STOP brakes with a clamping force of 20kN into each car. Multiple brakes were precisely fitted to each car to ensure the force of the train could be stopped without blocking or damaging the wheels. This meticulous placement and the workaholic nature of the KTR-STOP means that these trains will reliably and safely stop for some time to come. EMB-STOP If KTR-STOP is a workaholic, then EMB-STOP is our high-achiever. The EMB-STOP brake system is well-suited for high altitudes and operates reliably in massive wind energy plants towering 135 meters above ground. It provides the ability to smoothly and continuously increase braking force through a sensor until maximum force is reached. This smooth operation holds true regardless of extremely low or high ambient temperatures, such as those surrounding wind turbines, winches, and deck cranes. The EMB-STOP electromechanically generates its braking force, which means the system is almost maintenance-free as there is no need for local HPUs and the oil changes they require. It’s also fail-safe and able to operate reliably for long periods of time, allowing for low operating costs and high safety. While we often focus on moving forward, it’s equally important to have the right components in place to slow things down. Brakes are a matter of necessity and safety, which is why we take the time to find the very best solution for each system we encounter.

For more information on “Made for Motion” ...and Braking talk to KTR U.K. Ltd