You can buy cylinders from three types of hydraulic cylinder suppliers. Over-the-counter hydraulic cylinder suppliers usually sell mass-manufactured hydraulic cylinders and parts like hoses, fittings and seals for simple applications. Kappa Engineering sells the 150 series cylinder to many of these suppliers around the world.
Other suppliers manufacture cylinders according to a drawing or to match a sample product. These suppliers generally specialise in high-pressure cylinders like the 250 series hydraulic cylinder which is commonly used for earthmoving and transportation applications. These suppliers usually provide repair services as well.
Custom hydraulic cylinder suppliers design and manufacture hydraulic cylinders for any special application to directly meet a set of specific requirements that an over-the-counter cylinder supplier won’t do.
Kappa Engineering provides hydraulic cylinders in all three of these categories. This article explores these categories to help you determine which option will suit your needs.
Hydraulic Cylinders Suppliers: Who Should You Buy From?
Over-The-Counter Supplier
When your application is of a simple nature and doesn’t require a lot of pressure, you will generally buy your hydraulic cylinders from an over-the-counter supplier, also known as an off-the-shelf supplier.
Examples of applications that use simple low-pressure hydraulic cylinders can be found in the agricultural industries and factory industries where machines are used for packing. If this describes your situation, you can buy your cylinders from this type of supplier and it won’t break the bank. These hydraulic cylinders are usually mass manufactured and aren’t intended to be repaired when they break. Their simple nature makes them very affordable to replace with a new unit.
Remanufacturers
If your application needs to operate in adverse environments and requires high-pressure hydraulic cylinders for heavy lifting, you will likely buy your cylinders from a remanufacturing supplier.
Remanufacturers specialise in hydraulic cylinders used in earthmoving and transportation applications. Because of the expensive nature of these hydraulic cylinders, these suppliers repair or remanufacture a cylinder if it breaks. Repairing a high-pressure hydraulic cylinder is the most economical solution but it won’t be repaired to OEM specifications.
Remanufacturing a hydraulic cylinder, however, will restore it to OEM specifications. Any part of your broken cylinder that cannot be reused will be remanufactured and your cylinder will be rebuilt. These suppliers can manufacture a cylinder according to a drawing or match it to a sample product.
For more information on the difference between hydraulic cylinder remanufacturing and hydraulic cylinder repair, read the Kappa Engineering article on the topic by clicking here.
Design and Manufacture Suppliers
You might find a hydraulic cylinder from an over-the-counter supplier which almost meets your requirements, but not exactly, therefore you need a hydraulic cylinder design and manufacture supplier. They will design and manufacture a custom hydraulic cylinder to meet the specifications of your application. For example, the bore size on an over-the-counter cylinder might be slightly larger than what you require. You might be limited in regards to the cylinder rod material and diameter sizes of the rod.
If some or all of the following criteria describes what you require your hydraulic cylinder, this might indicate you need a custom hydraulic cylinder:
- Unusual pin or port locations
- Restricted space on your machine
- Special mountings
- Unusual stroke-to-bore-ratio
Custom built hydraulic cylinders will meet your exact specifications and fit your application without any compromise. Custom built hydraulic cylinders can be specifically made to operate in extreme conditions such as high ambient heat or extreme sub-arctic conditions. If your hydraulic cylinders require a specific attribute or you have a custom application in need of hydraulic cylinders, contact a design and manufacturing supplier.
Conclusion
When you are in need of a simple, low-pressure hydraulic cylinder for everyday use in the agricultural or industrial packing industries, you’ll be buying a cylinder from an over-the-counter supplier. From Kappa Engineering, we recommend any of our 150 Series cylinders.
If your application requires a lot of power and functionality in an adverse environment, you’ll be buying from a hydraulic cylinder remanufacturer. Take a look at our 250 Series cylinders and visit our Repairs page if you are interested in hydraulic cylinder remanufacturing.
If you can’t find a hydraulic cylinder that is suitable for your application, your solution will be a custom built hydraulic cylinder.
Whatever your need may be from a hydraulic cylinder supplier, know that Kappa Engineering has you covered in all three of these supplier categories.
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