Freudenberg Increases Tractor Seal Production

Freudenberg Sealing Technologies, an expert in the design and manufacturing of sealing solutions, supplies the latest Cassette-S4 cassette seals for a large global manufacturer of agricultural, construction and forestry equipment. This seal is installed on the rear axles of tractors designed for agricultural work. The seal provides the most effective protection against dirt and durability even in the most difficult environmental conditions.

The newest Cassette-S4 seals have been designed to solve previous-generation seal problems. By tracking customer reviews and warranty claims, Freudenberg engineers found that the Cassette-S3 seal design does not always withstand the constant impact of dirt and moisture in actual use. For example, farm machinery that worked in rice fields, where water and dirt were a constant problem, needed a higher level of axle compaction to prevent contamination and oil leakage in the wheel hub. These leaks were costly in every sense: their elimination took a lot of time and caused customer dissatisfaction. It took a new design that would improve sealing and protection from pollution.

A dedicated team of engineers and sales managers from the Freudenberg Cassette Seal plant in Lucerne, Italy, participated in the development and testing of the new seal.

For the new seals, a complex three-component design was chosen, which protects all functional elements — sealing edges, working surface of edges, edges to remove dirt, selected counter-surfaces, etc. The working sealing surface is integrated in the cartridge seal. Thus, the shaft does not need to be hardened and ground separately. Additional mud seals are also not required.

Together with the customer, two-year field tests of Cassette-S4 seals under actual operating conditions were carried out. These tests confirmed the results of bench tests and proved that the Cassette-S4 cassette seals can last four times longer than their predecessors and analogues.

In 2016, the Casssette-S4 test results were presented at the customer product development center. Despite the fact that the customer considered several alternatives for new tractor lines, the durability and performance of the Cassette-S4 were out of competition. In addition, this product was suitable not only for wheeled, but for tracked agricultural machinery.

Cassette-S4 compaction production is currently expanding at the Freudenberg plant in Lucerne and will soon start production facilities in North and South America.