Products – Introduction
V&P LLC designs and manufactures custom welded-design mobile hydraulic cylinders. By mobile, we mean that our cylinders can be used as a component on anything that moves, whether on tracks, tires, or some other form of locomotion. As indicated earlier, these cylinders are custom designed for use by original equipment manufacturers (OE’s) and their specific application. The OE initially designs their machine and then gives us finite parameters that our cylinders are designed around – bore and rod size, closed & open lengths, mountings, etc. This is differentiated from a method where the OE finds a standard or off-the-shelf cylinder and builds their designs around what is commercially available.
Product Overview
Listed below is a list of our current production capabilities:
- Bore diameters from 1.250” to 10.00” (Metric equivalents are also available)
- Strokes up to 20 feet (5” maximum bore for long stroke cylinders due to material handling limitations).
- Operating pressures up to & including 5000 PSI.
- Types - double action, single action, telescopic, rod-fed, & double rod.
- Custom mounting arrangements include threaded end, mounting foot, eye, clevis, pivot, & trunnion mounts. Virtually any mounting arrangement can be accommodated.
- Specialize in designs where integral load-holding valves and special testing are required.
- Hard Chrome plated, nitro-carburized, and stainless steel rods are available.
- Heat-treated steel, bronze, & plastic bushings are readily available.
Products – Suppliers & Inventory
Under our current business model, all new cylinders are designed and prototyped in our Lewis Center Ohio facility. Then, depending on the production order quantities and repetition of these orders, the parts required will either be made in-house, by local suppliers, or in our facilities in China. In general, low volume, less-repetitive cylinders will be made entirely in Ohio. On the other hand – higher volume cylinders with more predictable schedules will have their parts made in China but built in Ohio. Due to the extended delivery time from China (4-6 weeks by ship), higher inventories of component parts are required. Actual inventory levels are determined by the Lean Manufacturing process.
Product Research & Development
As part of our continuous improvement initiative, V&P is constantly looking for ways to improve the quality and extend the field life of our cylinders. In order to accomplish this, we are constantly in touch with our customers in an effort to get feedback on the reliability of our cylinders. Whenever possible, we travel with our OE’s to see their equipment (and our cylinders) in use in the field. We also closely monitor the fluid power industry through periodicals and by attending trade shows whenever possible.
