How TVH's test benches pave the way to sustainability

13 June 2022
Equipment
Mobile elevating work platforms
Small earth-moving equipment
Telehandlers
TVH test benches


At TVH, we highly value sustainability and environmental friendliness. We are firm believers of the circular economy and are convinced that waste should be avoided at all costs. That is why, rather than discarding malfunctioning or broken parts, we always try to repair them first. In that process, our more than 25 in-house developed test benches play a crucial role. They allow us to diagnose parts and repair them in the correct way. Every day, the skilled technicians and engineers in our Parts Workshop and Electronics Department make sure that remanufactured parts are of the highest possible quality.

 

4 main activities

electronics department

The in-house qualified TVH colleagues who work in the Parts Workshop and the Electronics Department are concerned with 4 main activities:

  1. Reconditioning of second-hand parts;
  2. Repairs;
  3. Assembly (or mounting) of parts;
  4. Quality control and testing.

Now what does that mean for you as a customer? 

When you are confronted with a faulty part in one of your machines, you always can contact us. We will check what we can do and if possible, our specialised technicians and engineers will repair the part for you. Those colleagues are also the driving force behind the vast range of remanufactured parts we have in stock. Both reconditioning and repairing are done according to strict standards, ensuring the parts are always of the highest quality.

Want to learn more about remanufactured parts? You can read all about them in our “Remanufactured parts” brochure.

 

Advantages of test benches

At TVH, we have been repairing and testing parts since the very beginning in 1969. Drawing on those 50+ years of experience, we have developed innovative testing procedures that enable us to test parts in simulated working conditions. Our test benches pose a number of advantages:

  • Quick and thorough testing;
  • Tested parts are of a guaranteed high quality;
  • Accurate detection of faults or defects;
  • Always a comprehensive and correct diagnosis.

 

Parts Workshop

parts workshop


In the Parts Workshop, various test benches are set up to test wear parts. Almost all of those test benches have been developed and constructed internally by our engineers, often in collaboration with technical students from various schools. Among our test benches, TVH has:
 

Hydraulic test benches

  • To test hydraulic piston pumps and motors, hydraulic valves, hydraulic cylinders, …
  • Developed in-house and designed to simulate the normal working situation.
  • Some are connected to a test truck, leading to test results that almost completely resemble reality.
     

Transmission test benches

  • For large automatic transmissions: connected to a V8 diesel engine.
  • For small automatic transmissions: connected to a hydraulic unit and the required electronics to continuously adjust the rotational frequency and gear.
  • Ability to test the operating pressure, the torque converter pressure, the pump pressure and the gear change pressure.
  • Also possible to check the pressure build-up or drop during gear changes.
     

Reductor test bench

  • To test the functioning of the gearboxes that provide the mechanical transmission between the electric motor and the wheel in electric lift trucks.
  • Testing always happens under load to simulate the actual working of machines.

 

Electronics Department

electronics department


Many parts can be tested in the Workshop. But when electronics are involved, the parts are transferred to our Electronics Department. That department also has a great number of test benches, which are in constant development.
 

Functional Test Benches (“test towers”)

  • To test smaller components, such as motor controllers, joysticks, displays, timer modules, …
  • Two possible results after the test: pass or error code. The error code gives the technician an indication of where the problem is situated, making it easier to find a specific solution.
  • Towers are equipped with “test boxes”, specifically designed (in-house) to test certain electrical parts of a machine.
  • One tower can test about 400 references!
  • 4 R&D-specialists are constantly working on the development of new test boxes to accommodate new parts.
     

Universal and Automated Power Test Benches

  • Universal Test Benches are used to test big parts under load.
  • Automated Power Test Benches are used to perform high-power functional and endurance tests on electronic motor controllers.
  • All are in development to be fully automated. This will cut out the “manual middleman” and each test will always be performed in exactly the same way.
     

Charger tester

  • To test all kinds of chargers by simulating the charging process of a battery.
  • In development to be fully automated.
  • Is currently being redesigned to be more economically friendly and sustainable: the supplied power will no longer be converted into (unnecessary) heat, but will be put back on the net.
     

Joystick endurance tester

  • To ensure that our joysticks are of the highest quality.
  • Joystick is continuously moved back and forth to check exactly how many working cycles it lasts.
  • To comply with TVH’s standard for the service life of a joystick, it must meet or exceed the quality level of a new part.

 

Departments in constant motion

department in motion

As already mentioned, our test benches are constantly in development. And while the test benches themselves are already quite an investment, so is their development. Not only does it require serious monetary investments, but it also takes a lot of time. However, TVH is quite happy to make those investments, since there is just too much to gain. The most important benefit is of course that test benches ensure that our customers only receive parts of the highest possible quality.

 

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