Wind Energy Profile

Intellifast GmbH offers you an innovative new technology for the direct measurement of the clamp load within critical bolted joints.

The most common techniques used today for bolt load control are indirect methods. These secondary parameters: torque, angle of rotation or yield point of the fastener material, are not direct indicators of the clamp load in a bolt. It is a fact that the variation of the friction factor (dependant on 71 variables), and the variation in the assembly process, can produce bolt clamp loads that are +/-30 % of the specified target load. In addition, time dependent relaxation behaviour of the joint (creep and/or embedment) can neither be verified nor corrected.

The Permanent Mounted Transducer System (PMTS) measures the clamp load in bolts directly. The system is rugged, repeatable, accurate and reliable during the production assembly process and in the field, at any time or place! The system provides built-in data documentation and transfer (e.g. offshore applications) for long term maintenance and QA requirements.

With PMTS the clamp load is measured using the universally accepted ultrasonic time-of-flight technique. The heart of the PMTS is a rugged thin film transducer on every bolt! This “operator independent” permanent transducer, coupled with the state of the art measurement hardware built exclusively for the PMTS transducer results in a system that cannot be rivalled by any other for ease and flexibility of use.

The advantages of the PMTS system in bolted joint assembly and maintenance are:

• The direct measurement of the bolt load during the assembly process guarantees precise and accurate clamp load in every joint. The savings from the elimination of loose bolts in the field that can result in a system failure are obvious
• Streamlining the assembly process can result in a large reduction in the assembly costs
• PMTS allows for the measurement of clamp load after assembly without loosening or destroying the assembled parts. This can result in large reductions in inspection and assembly times
• Accurate assembly bolt loads will eliminate over design, resulting in the use of fewer bolts and lighter materials. A saving in weight and assembly costs!
• Design and test engineers gain new and valuable insight into the complicated behaviour of bolted joints under assembly and operating conditions. This new and previously unknown information will result in more efficient designs of the bolted joint!