The suction cups on a vacuum lifter need to be replaced from time to time as they age and their load-bearing capacity decreases
There are numerous manufacturers of vacuum cups. A replacement type is quickly found. Perhaps the purchase price is lower and available more quickly. The diameter is the same, and some of these suction cups look completely the same. It's just the way it is when something good is copied. What can I do wrong, says the buyer. The supplier may also specify a load capacity. Everything looks great. Where is there a mistake? I've done everything right, haven't I?
Not necessarily, because it depends on the basis for this statement of load-bearing capacity and the other properties. In glass transport, which is predominantly vertical, everything depends on friction. As we have learnt, friction is an incalculable variable that is a decisive factor in terms of safety. We test our suction cups with a static load over a period of 5 minutes. And for such a test, 5 minutes is, as it turns out, a very long time in which a lot can happen. This is the particular difference to many other claims made by our competitors. There is no other way to evaluate the results of our tests.
As the suction cups are largely responsible for the load-bearing capacity of a vacuum lifter, this is a safety component and must not be replaced by third-party products. In order to maintain the product characteristics specified by the manufacturer, only suction cups from the manufacturer may be used.
As part of our product monitoring obligation and in order to be able to carry out good maintenance, we also test third-party products found during maintenance. We have carried out our stress tests with such suction cups and documented some of them in video recordings. Some of the results are worrying. This leads us to warn our customers against using such replacement products.
Below you can take a look at some of these stress tests on individual suction cups. Perhaps this will convince you and you will think carefully about what you can afford for your health and that of your employees before it is too late. Because some damage can no longer be repaired. Here you can find the results of the relevant suction cups in the video recording:
The result of our stress tests
Here you can also look at individual tests with different, new, unused suction cups, perhaps you will then understand why it is so important for Your safety and the safety of others is so important to use only the original suction cups.
Find it on YouTube:
Tensile test with a new suction cup 388
Find it on YouTube:
Tensile test with a suction cup 388-4N/TR that is 6 months old
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Tensile test with a new Eurotech suction cup BLSP.280.111.001
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Tensile test with a Eurotech suction cup BLSP.280.111.016, which is 10 months old
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Tensile test with a new Eurotech suction cup BLSP.200.111.007
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Tensile test with a new Eurotech suction cup BLSP.200.111.012
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Tensile test with a new Wood's PowrGrip suction cup G3370
We often cannot agree with the information provided by other manufacturers. We can only warn you against replacing the suction cups on our vacuum lifters with third-party products. This can considerably reduce the load capacity of the vacuum lifter. This change will inevitably lead to the expiry of the declaration of conformity and the CE mark. The person who replaces the vacuum lifter thus becomes the manufacturer from a legal point of view, as they have replaced a safety component! Do you realise this? Suddenly you are working with a non-compliant vacuum lifter and if something happens, it will be difficult for the person responsible. Nobody in the EU is allowed to work with non-CE-compliant devices.
The only way to prevent this is to use the manufacturer's original suction cup. Not everything that looks simple is simple. And if safety is no longer guaranteed because the load capacity is too low. Work safety decreases or may no longer exist at all. This is very dangerous and can have unforeseeable consequences for you. After all, your safety is at stake! A falling load can jeopardise your safety. This is not an area where you should cut corners. Only use original suction cups!