This year too, Fendt is a contender for a silver medal at the Agritechnica exhibition. The German Agricultural Society (DLG) has already announced that Fendt won over the jury with the merits of its new modular hydraulic coupling design with a flat-face seal. “This new system ushers us into a new era of hydraulic couplings. This new coupling isn’t just more environmentally friendly and energy-efficient, it also allows for very convenient connection and disconnection,” explains Jürgen Knobloch, head of Fendt’s hydraulic system development department, with pride.
Thanks to the flat-face seal on Fendt’s new two-way hydraulic coupling, which connects under full pressure, oil leakage is prevented, eliminating soil contamination as a result. What’s more, pressure loss and the associated fuel consumption are significantly reduced. Conventional hydraulic couplings are very difficult to keep clean. Preventing dirt from getting into the whole system is difficult. “The completely flat surface of the newly developed hydraulic coupling with its tight seal makes cleaning significantly easier, and because only minimal dust gets in, it noticeably extends the filter-replacement interval.” Ease of repair is ensured by the fact that the coupling can be disassembled into individual parts. Repair work related to damaged couplings and connectors will, thanks to this new system, become the exception.
One hydraulic block – couplings of various sizes
“With our system, a customer can equip their hydraulic block with couplings of various sizes, depending on their production needs. In addition to the most commonly used ½-inch couplings, ¾-inch and the new 5/8-inch flat-face seal coupling are also available. An enterprise doesn’t have to switch to the new system overnight, it can happen step by step,” said Jürgen Knobloch. The supplied fittings of various sizes have a screw connection, so they’re convenient and easy to replace. “We’ve taken the well-proven functions of the previous hydraulic coupling and adapted them for the new system. So the lever still provides convenient connection and disconnection without requiring much effort. This system naturally connects under pressure on both sides. As before, an anti-shear-off protection system is built in.” The new hydraulic coupling system also uses the well-proven colour-coded connections. A connector plate prevents hoses from being connected incorrectly. “To guarantee the connector plate is installed correctly, our new system has centring holes.”
33 silver medals at the Agritechnica exhibition
Out of more than 300 registered innovative developments submitted for the Agritechnica exhibition, an independent panel of experts singled out and awarded four developments gold medals and 33 silver medals. Silver medals are awarded to developments designed to significantly improve a function or process. Fendt’s new system fully meets these criteria. Here’s what the jury had to say about the new hydraulic coupling system: “In one universal coupling block, you can, at the customer’s request, combine a standard ½-inch, ¾-inch, or an additional flat-face coupling (‘Flatface’ or FFC). Customers can also order a retrofit or upgrade of a standard coupling to a flat-face-seal coupling. The coupling block, combined with FFC, ensures a leak-tight seal on disconnection, guaranteeing minimal oil loss and contamination in the hydraulic system. It becomes possible to connect and disconnect under pressure with no oil loss.”
