Other titles that came to mind for this post were "Never judge a book by its cover" or "It's what's under the hood that counts".
Let me explain.
Recently a customer returned a couple of mixers to us for a "tune-up". The mixers still worked, the customer just wanted us to give them a quick evaluation.
When the mixers arrived on our receiving dock, we were blown away! These mixers were shipped back in 1987 and have led a hard life. They are used in a picking process for a galvanizing company, and operate in an extremely caustic and corrosive environment.
The pickling process involves using a dilute solution of hot sulfuric acid to remove rust and mill scale to provide a clean metallic surface. Next, the item goes to the fluxxing tank, where it is dipped in ammonium chloride. Finally, the galvanizing process involves dipping the product into molten zinc, which is heated at 820 to 850 F. These processes create quite a corrosive environment!
So after 25 years of service in this harsh environment, these mixer drives were returned to us for refurbishing, with an emphasis of keeping costs down for our customer who was operating under a tight budget.
What did our evaluation find? The shaft bearing and seal on each unit, which are subjected to the corrosive vapors directly above the pickling tank, were in need of replacement - that was it! These mixers still have their original motors and gearboxes (including original gearing and bearings), and will continue to use these original components as they are returned to service.
This customer will only purchase Sharpe mixers due to our proven track record in their facility.
