ebm-papst Fans, Blowers and Technology

A Better Way to Find the Fan of Your Dreams at ebm-papst

Posted on Thu, Sep 05, 2013
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by Phil Hartman, Senior Director - Marketing, ebm-papst Inc.

Among ebm-papst’s strengths are our expertise and service in diverse markets, as well as a broad range of quality air-moving solutions. But with our far reach comes a challenge: ensuring our website visitors don’t get lost in their online search for products relevant to the industry or industries they serve.

A first-time visitor to our website may not be familiar enough with our products and part numbers to know which one(s) he should consider for a new design. So how are we helping visitors better navigate and find the air-moving devices that are relevant to the market they serve? The answer is our new Market Solutions Tool.  

How it works

Users can quickly identify their market segment of interest and a relevant application, then click through to product information and data sheets for relevant fans, blowers and accessories. Let’s say your company manufactures boilers and you want to see which blowers are available for consideration in your new boiler design. You can simply mouse over the “Heating” icon, select “Boilers” from the drop-down menu, then choose “Condensing” or “Non-Condensing” to access catalogues of relevant air moving devices and accessories. After review of the data, a part number can easily be selected.

For those who are familiar with our products, there is still the “Products” tab on the homepage that can be utilized to find data sheets for particular air-moving devices. And as always, technical assistance is just an e-mail or phone call away.

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So… what do you think?
Whether you are a first-time or repeat visitor to our website, after you’ve had a chance to experience our Market Solutions Tool, let us know what you think. Did we achieve our goal of easier and quicker navigation to product selection? We welcome your feedback – leave a comment below.

Tags: Fan Technology, ebm-papst

Why Quality Matters for IT/Telecom Cooling Equipment

Posted on Thu, Aug 29, 2013
Pete Kimmett resized 600By Peter Kimmett, Business Development Manager – IT/Telecom, ebm-papst Inc.

With an all-time high demand for rapid deployment of IT and Telecommunications equipment-cooling solutions, sometimes there’s a tendency for equipment manufacturers and integrators to assume all fans are equal and that it’s safe to choose the lowest priced fan for up-front savings.  What is overlooked sometimes is the Total Cost of Ownership, where sometimes a product with higher up-front costs ends up costing less to maintain in the long run than a cheaper product.  Technical specifications such as power draw / energy savings and L10 (bearing life) data should be reviewed, as well as commercial aspects such as service & support available from the manufacturer.  Spotting a deal that’s ‘Too good to be true’ isn’t always easy.  Most fan suppliers have many years of experience and their products go through extensive testing prior to production.  But, sometimes the tests are based only on samples that are hand built by meticulous engineers in an environment that is tightly controlled, versus having a product made on an assembly line, which can lead to actual data that is inferior to the original estimate.   The costs of going the cheap-and-dirty route aren’t always worth the initially attractive prices.  Here are some things to consider when choosing a cooling solution:

Low quality equipment = unforeseen failures

-          Early and unexpected failures that likely could occur range anywhere from bearings and/or lubricant failures to electronic components being a potential weak spot to improper design and non-automated manufacturing defects. 

-          The potentially high fallout rates of cooling equipment due to early failures can lead to premature replacements during production or in the field.

Unreliable components = higher replacement costs

-          IT/Telecom equipment production builds must order new cooling equipment, which requires additional manufacturing time.

-          System tests must be repeated or equipment burn-in needs to be redone. Some of these tests take anywhere from an hour for system level testing to 24 hours for burn-in.

Replacement = re-installation and re-testing

-          Almost all IT/Telecommunications equipment is required to run 24/7.  Any downtime can be detrimental in this market resulting in loss of cell signal or your favorite website not functioning.  This downtime can result in loss of revenue or loss of customers.

-          If IT/Telecom cooling equipment fails in the field, a replacement fan or fan tray needs to be sent out with a technician to do all replacements and associated testing to ensure proper performance. Every time a technician needs to go into the field, the IT/telecom operator’s costs escalate.

Costs to determine ‘what went wrong’ adds up

-          Failed cooling units that are retuned from the field must be shipped back to the OEM for initial failure analysis – this adds on additional costs in shipping and lab analysis time.

-          If the failure is due to a fan issue, the fan is shipped back to the fan supplier for additional analysis. This requires additional lab time to determine the root cause.

Unforeseen costs are hard to document – but they’ll erode your profitability every time

-          Sending out field technicians. Re-manufacturing product. Re-testing and burning-in replacement equipment. Lab analyses. Shipping costs.

-          All of these unanticipated costs are very difficult to track and measure but will certainly affect your bottom line.

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By choosing a dependable supplier and partner at the beginning of your project, many of these unforeseen scenarios can be avoided.

·         Manufacturers of dependable cooling equipment offer the IT/Telecom market products that have been rigorously tested and certified to the industry’s highest performance standards. This translates to higher yield rates per installation and virtually eliminates the need for repetitive back-end, unforeseen costs.

·         Getting quality equipment in the first place also reduces the number of technicians that need to be sent in the field for early failures.

·         Choosing a long lasting cooling product helps reduce the number of replacements over the lifetime of the product installation.

·          Look beyond a supplier’s catalogue.  Ask for additional technical information that validates the expected life time that is published.  How were the figures calculated?

Have you experienced any of the above cooling failure nightmares in your IT/Telecom application? If so, how did you resolve them? What solutions did you choose moving forward? We welcome your feedback in the comments box below.

Tags: Fan Technology, ebm-papst, IT/Telecom

Why EC Motors Don’t Always Need Rare Earth Magnets

Posted on Mon, Jul 29, 2013
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Armin Hauer, Advanced Technology Manager

An article in a recent issue of Sustainable Business examines the potential impact of the uncertain supply of rare earth magnets on manufacturing EC motors, noting that EC technology is reliant on rare earth elements. But this isn’t always the case…  

The manufacturers of electric motors struggle to predict the future costs of rare earth elements. As a result, user circles often regard permanently excited electric motors, which are particularly energy-efficient, as expensive. But highly efficient electric drives don’t necessarily depend on strong rare earth magnets. For example, "simple", cost-effective and – above all – readily available ferrite magnets suffice for energy-saving EC fan motors with an external rotor design. In some cases, these reach motor efficiencies of more than 90 percent.

How an EC motor works

A brushless DC drive (BLDC motor), a BLPM motor or an electronically commutated (EC) motor – exactly which motors are in the rare earth element discussion? These are all actually different names for permanently excited synchronous motors. These motors use electronic drives that are either AC line-powered or that use DC power supplies. The BLDC/BLPM motors usually operate with square-wave currents (block commutation). In contrast, EC motors can operate with both square-wave currents and with sinusoidal currents (sinusoidal commutation). The latter method achieves a significant noise and vibration reduction over the block commutation method. The design with sinusoidal currents corresponds to the classic synchronous motor.

Fig 1 exploded view EC Motor

Exploded view: The permanently excited synchronous motor, also called brushless direct current motor or EC motor.

An EC motor always requires a drive electronic that includes an inverter for the control of sequential and reversing current flows in all cores of the armature. This electronic commutation determines the strength and rotational speed of the resulting magnetic field that the armature generates. The permanent magnet rotor responds by revolving synchronously with the rotary field of the armature. In contrast, the speed of AC line-powered asynchronous motors depends on the frequency of the supply voltage and on the motor load. The torque-speed characteristic of an EC motor mimics a DC shunt motor, because both motor voltage and shaft speed, as well as motor current and shaft torque, correlate linearly. The angular rotor position is continuously determined by either sensor hardware in the motor, or the inverter senses the so-called counter-electromotive force and the motor currents for resolving the position mathematically. The idle motor speed depends on the applied voltage and the number of turns of the armature windings. Within the physical parameters of output power, torque and temperature exposure, nearly arbitrary motor speeds can be reached slip-free and synchronously with the rotating magnetic field. These speeds are completely independent of the AC line frequency.

Dynamic requirements determine magnet choice

As a result of their unique motor characteristics, external rotor EC fans seldom need strong rare earth elements. That type of magnetic quality is really only needed to minimize the moment of inertia for very dynamic servo motors.

Why our EC motors don’t need rare earth magnets

ebm-papst GreenTech EC motors for energy-efficient fans remain undisturbed by rare earth element scarcity, because the armature of a GreenTech EC motor is located inside and is surrounded by the rotor.

Fig 2 Aussenlaeufer

Cutaway: Centrifugal fan with external rotor motor.

Our energy-efficient fans remain undisturbed by rare earth element scarcity because the arrangement with external rotor motor achieves a higher torque than an internal rotor motor of the same size, magnet system and magnet thickness. An internal rotor motor has a restricted magnet volume, a reduced air gap surface and smaller radius. External rotor motors that use hard ferrite magnets cleverly applied to fans and blowers attain torque and efficiency levels that internal rotor motors can achieve only with rare earth magnets, due to limited volume and size.

A fan motor design with an external rotor has an additional advantage: The fan impeller mounts directly to the outer rotor, directly to the motor "housing". The result is a compact axial length and superior self-cooling of the external rotor motor.

To further discuss how our EC motors are different, contact us.

Dr Jürgen Schöne, R&D Director of Aerodynamics and Motor Technology at ebm-papst Mulfingen,Werner Müller, Manager of Motor Development at ebm-papst Mulfingen, Armin Hauer, Advanced Technology Manager at ebm-papst Inc.

Tags: Fan Technology, EC motors, ebm-papst, Energy Efficiency, Brushless Motor, Rare Earth Magnets

ebm-papst present at Environmental Technology Prize

Posted on Fri, Jul 26, 2013

The leading technology supplier ebm-papst has again been successful at the Baden-Württemberg Environmental Technology Prize. The AxiTop diffuser made of epylen, a wood-plastic composite, was nominated in the category "Energy Efficiency."

The jury presided over by Prof Dr Dieter Spath (Head of the Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Engineering and Head of the Institute for Human Factors and Technology Management at the University of Stuttgart) chose the winners in four categories from amongst 118 entries. This year's prize was presented by Franz Untersteller, the regional Minister of the Environment, on July 11, 2013, at the Stuttgart "Wagenhallen".

The distinction was accepted by Dr Bruno Lindl, Managing Director Research and Development ebm-papst Group: "We were particularly delighted to receive this distinction, as the product was developed on the basis of our GreenTech philosophy, which aims to manufacture products designed for maximum energy efficiency whilst at the same time preserving resources."

The diffuser helps to significantly reduce noise and enhance efficiency in applications such as heat exchangers. Lower sound levels are particularly important for fans used for example in residential areas, where noise is a critical factor. Energy savings of up to 27% are possible with a simultaneous reduction in operating noise of 7.2 dB(A). No design modifications are required even on retrofitting. Thanks to the use of epylen, a wood-plastic composite developed by ebm-papst, the company was able to add the ecological finishing touch to the already excellent quality of the diffuser.

The Baden-Württemberg Ministry of the Environment, Climate Protection and the Energy Sector has been awarding the Environmental Technology Prize every two years since 2009 in recognition of outstanding and innovative products in the field of environmental engineering. To qualify, products must make particularly efficient use of resources and help to preserve the environment. They must either be coming up for market launch or not have been on the market for longer than two years. ebm-papst have already won prizes twice before.

Photo 2: The AxiTop in operation on a heat exchanger.

Tags: ebm-papst, Energy Efficiency

3 Benefits of Localizing Production of Larger Fans

Posted on Thu, Jul 18, 2013

Beauchemin Scott 051By Scott Beauchemin, VP of Engineering, ebm-papst Inc.

Our company’s product portfolio has expanded into much larger sizes over the past decade. Ten years ago, a large ebm-papst fan was 500mm to 630mm in diameter. Now, we’re selling fans up to 1.5 meters in diameter that are used in large-scale refrigeration and ventilation applications.

Because importing such large products from our manufacturing counterparts in Germany posed logistics and warehousing challenges, we at ebm-papst U.S. decided to take advantage of our 25+ years of value-added experience to localize production here in the U.S.

The ebm-papst fans we purchase from Germany are now built into larger sheet metal assemblies designed to meet specific customer needs. The majority of this customization happens at our Farmington, Conn.-based U.S. headquarters.

We began by localizing production of our larger axial fans, which are typically used in condensers for the refrigeration market or in chillers in the HVAC market. These fans consist of a GreenTech EC motor, HyBlade® axial fan blades, grill guard and sheet metal venturi. Our U.S. facility now produces the sheet metal venturi and the final fan assembly.

As a result, motors, blades and grill guards are now shipped from Germany in more densely packed pallets, increasing the amount of components sent in one container and helping to reduce our environmental impact.

The next step in the process was to localize production of RadiPac assemblies. A RadiPac is a backward curved impeller, driven by a GreenTech EC motor, contained in a sheet metal enclosure. As energy efficiency has become a hot topic in the U.S. market, demand for energy-efficient backward curved impellers using a GreenTech EC motor has increased significantly. These products are typically used in rooftop air conditioning units, computer room air conditioning units and air-handling units, just to name a few applications.

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RadiPac assembly

Localizing this production comes with many benefits. Three of the main ones include:

1. Products made to order

A major benefit to producing axial fans and RadiPacs locally is our ability to customize each product. Our sheet metal capabilities allow us to easily alter the venturi on an axial fan or the sheet metal enclosure surrounding a backward curved impeller. We have the ability to make specific mounting provisions for a customer. We can powder paint the venturi a customer-specified color. The end result is a product that exactly matches each customer’s requirement.

2. Quick turnaround

Beside allowing design flexibility, local production allows us to quickly react to customer demand. One example: We have several customers that use the same base fan in three different product variations. The differentiating factor is the sheet metal venturi. Without localization, we would have to import all three fan assemblies from Germany. Stocking the correct product mix would always be a challenge. By localizing production, we can stock the base components (motors and blades) and customize the sheet metal to each customer’s specs.

3. Reduced carbon footprint

By producing the sheet metal venturi and the final axial fan assembly, the motors, blades and grill guards are now shipped from Germany in more densely packed pallets, increasing the amount of components sent in one container and helping to reduce our environmental impact.

Localized production is a trend that makes sense on many levels: efficiency, customer service, development of skills and jobs in our communities. What other benefits do you see? What opportunities are still out there?

Share you thoughts below!

Tags: ebm-papst, engineering, Manufacturing, Energy Efficiency

Commercial Food Equipment Engineers Look to GARC Technology for Improved Cooking Performance!

Posted on Mon, Jul 08, 2013
Tom Costello
by Tom Costello, Market Manager - Appliance & Heating

Commercial food equipment engineers are always on the look out for opportunities to improve the cooking performance of their gas fired appliances; therefore, recent industry design trends are taking a page from the comfort heating industry’s, condensing boiler technology. For more than 20 years the comfort heating industry has been perfecting the gas-air ratio control (GARC) system to modulate the combustion energy to the heat demand of the home, optimizing efficiency and reducing energy consumption. Now these same GARC assemblies are being applied to today’s gas fired commercial cooking applications for combi-ovens, conveyor ovens, and fryers.oven application

Combi-ovens offer chefs the opportunity to utilize in one appliance three cooking modes while precisely maintaining the cooking temperature for (a) convective cooking, (b) steam cooking, and a (c) combination steam and convective cooking.  This multi-operational design is applied to counter-top to floor standing combi appliances that satisfy the demands of a small restaurant to a large institutional kitchen. The GARC technology allows for all three of these modes to existing in a fast acting but controlled release of energy that more efficiently cooks the food products.

Gas fired fryers also utilize the modulating GARC technology to respond to changes in load demand while offering precise temperature control of the oil for cooking and warm-up profiles. The GARC assembly is made of three main components: a premix ready gas blower, air-fuel mixer (venturi), and zero governor gas valve. The combination of all three of these components allows for the precise control of gas and air to be delivered to the burner in a constant ratio that also allow for variable gas-air input by speed controlling the blower.

GARC appl

GARC

Premix ready gas blower, venturi, and zero governor gas valve

 

This gas-air ratio control provides a pneumatic coupling between the blower and the gas valve via the venturi allow for the gas and air to be modulated by sending a variable speed signal to the blower motor. The result of this modulating combustion technology applied to cooking appliances is the precise temperature control, rapid response to load changes, and energy conservation during off peak hours that benefit either the restaurant owner, chef, or customer.

To learn more about this technology, please don’t hesitate to contact ebm-papst sales or marketing.

Tags: ebm-papst, GARC, appliances

Fan and Turbomachinery Nirvana in San Antonio

Posted on Fri, Jun 21, 2013
Armin Hauer
By Armin Hauer, Advanced Technology Manager 

Two weeks ago, I joined my German ebm-papst colleagues Katrin Schaake, Wolfgang Laufer and hundreds of scientists, researchers and engineers who swarmed San Antonio to attend three powerhouse events from June 3 - 7:     

As a longtime corporate member, ebm-papst has actively participated in AMCA’s events and worked on its committees. Because fans and turbomachinery play an important role in aircraft engines, power plant turbines and many other applications that would be discussed at IGTI and ASME, this year AMCA decided to co-locate and co-time its conference to allow cross-pollination of ideas and expertise with the other two events. 

The scope of fan sizes explored during the AMCA conference spanned 3.6  to 157 in., speeds from 750 to 10,500 rpm, and absorbed power from 30 W to 20 MW. We fan engineers loved it! 

The AMCA schedule included Wolfgang’s presentation, “Numerical Investigation of Axial Fans in Serial Connection,” that discussed his team’s research on two-stage setups of compact cooling fans, which are used widely in electronic telecom and computing equipment. These connected fans operate mostly at part load. If one fan fails, the remaining fan will speed up to avoid a local pressure drop or recirculation in the application. 

Using 3D numerical methods, the ebm-papst team of aerodynamics engineers, led by Wolfgang, studied various two-stage set-ups of axial fans with 85 mm impeller diameters. The goal was to measure and compare steady and unsteady calculations of different serial fan configurations and compare results. 

Our team proved how a proper arrangement of two axial fans will increase both fan pressure rise and flow rate. This type of arrangement would benefit air flow through the system & enhance cooling.

Dr. Michael Schmitz, manager of aerodynamics and simulation research and development at ebm-papst-St. Georgen, is a member of IGTI’s recently created Fans and Blowers Committee. The papers sponsored by this committee highlighted fan technologies in hovercrafts and fan sound reduction techniques for locomotives. One researcher provided bio mimetic studies involving fan blades with leading-edge bumps similar to the tubercles of humpback whales. Another analyzed the tip-clearance noise of axial fans, comparing experiments with numerical simulation. Another IGTI paper discussed inverse design methodology for fans and blowers driven by a genetic algorithm. 

instrumented fan blade

Other topics presented at the conference included computational fan development, innovations such as a carbon-fiber bladed fan for abrasive air streams and a pair of fire-resistant, reversible tunnel ventilation fans. 

Presentations also addressed the all-important testing and certification of fans. In addition to electrical safety, air performance, sound, overspeed, balance and vibration requirements, some fans must undergo seismic pre-qualification or high-temperature stress testing. 

A talk about permanent magnet fan motors provided a welcome refresher. In 2004, ebm-papst Inc. won the AHR Expo Innovation Award for incorporating magnetic drive technology in fans up to 50 in. diameter and 12 kW electrical input, which expanded products to a wide variety of HVAC/R applications that can benefit from these advances.  The exhibition rounded off our days with hands-on demonstrations, follow-up discussions and networking opportunities. 

Next year’s Turboexpo takes place in Düsseldorf, Germany, and we’re already looking forward to participating. 

What innovations in fan technology are benefiting your business environment? What areas can be improved for your application’s air-moving requirements? We’d love to hear from you – leave a comment and message below.

Tags: Fan Technology, ebm-papst, engineering, design, Axial

First impressions - A recent visit to ebm-papst in Germany

Posted on Thu, May 23, 2013
David Hillburn, Business Development Manager - Heating
by David Hillburn, Business Development Manager - Heating

Recently I joined ebm-papst as a Business Development Manager to support the North American heating market. My previous experience includes design of combustion systems for industrial furnaces and kilns; so when I joined the company I had a good foundation in the application of various combustion systems and components but not in the manufacturing of these components. In March I toured two of our German manufacturing facilities in Landshut and Mulfingen in order to gain a more intimate knowledge of our products and how they are manufactured. Besides a new found love for pretzels, wheat beer, and white sausage, courtesy of the Hofbrauhaus, here are some lasting impressions of the facilities and trip.

Landshut and Mulfingen, Germany

Landshut, Germany and Mulfingen, Germany

Landshut and Mulfingen an overview
Landshut, situated approximately 45 miles northeast of Munich on the Isar River, produces the majority of our gas blower products. This includes the RG, NRG, G1G and G3G series blowers along with the recently acquired GB055 and GB057 gas valve lines. Mulfingen, our world headquarters and largest facility, produces the large G3G250-MW premix gas blower, M3G series motors and electronics along with a plethora of other products including our axial fan line and centrifugal blower/impeller products.


A large vertically integrated company
My previous employers were small companies, so I now find myself giving presentations that show stats such as 10,564 employees worldwide at 18 production sites and 58 sales offices. While touring the factories it felt like I met all 10,564 of these employees and they were working busily in various functions. Be it die-casting motor brackets, winding motor bobbins, stamping motor stators, checking printed circuit boards or assembling complete blowers. The factories were are state of the art manufacturing facilities, very vertically integrated and very automated. I saw these automation capabilities firsthand with the NRG118 assembly line in Landshut which produces an impressive number of gas blowers daily.

Reinvestment and R&D
Another key to success is our reinvestment into our facilities. On the A tour of our Landshut factory I viewed an impressive collection of climate chambers, halt testing machines and a new gas laboratory. At our facilities in Mulfingen I saw one of the largest combination air flow and sound chambers I’ve ever seen (big enough to park a truck in). I also toured rooms with racks and racks of fans running life cycle tests. So when we talk about quality and reliability it’s clear that is derived from continuous testing and commitment to reinvesting.


A company is only as good as its people
While the settings may be different, Landshut a small European city with a slightly metropolitan feel and Mulfingen a quaint rural village, the corporate mentality and image bridged the gap. At both facilities the people I met were not only knowledgeable and polite but happy to talk and discuss what they were doing within the organization. When asked to explain a process or a facet of design, they not only took the time to explain it but would walk me through the process, show me every piece that went into it and then bring me to a board similar to the one below so I could study the part or assembly further.

Gas Valve Components

GB055 E01 Gas Valve Components

This level of cooperation and professionalism was displayed by all employees I talked to and it helped to make a business trip abroad a very productive and memorable experience. I look forward to future factory visits and traveling with my German colleagues to our heating customers in North America.

Tags: heating, ebm-papst, engineering, gas valves, Germany, gas blowers

Robotics, learning and leadership at ebm-papst Inc.: part 2

Posted on Thu, May 02, 2013

ebm-papst engineers tell it from ‘the pits’: part 2

Part 1

Hogan Eng and Bill Aston talk about the two FIRST Robotics Competition teams that ebm-papst supports in Farmington and Woodbury, CT. 

Q: This year's FIRST Robotics Competition, Ultimate Ascent, game requires robots to fling plastic disks (Frisbees) and climb a metal pyramid. How did your teams approach this challenge as students conceived, designed and built your robots? 

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Team Beta teacher-mentor Mike Murphy in the wrench costume - Richard Murkland Digital Photos

Hogan Eng: To help Team Beta understand the pros and cons of alternative strategies, we begin by simulating several rounds of the game. Students acted out behaviors of robots that would have certain characteristics, such as a long shooting robot, a climb-only robot or a defense-only robot. After discussions on what strategies could work, we brainstormed what kinds of mechanisms could be built for each strategy. We then voted on what approach was best given the six week time frame allowed to build the robot and the resources available. Our team worked in sub-groups responsible for developing the robot’s drive train, shooter, climber, programming elements and pit design. Each sub-group was composed of two mentors and a mix of veteran and new students. This provided the best support for new students while training our veteran students to be future mentors. 

Bill Aston: ebm-papst employee Matt Crossman, an alumnus of Farmington’s 2nd Law Enforcers, determined the team’s strategy for this year’s game. The team focused the robot on being able to effectively score points by throwing the discs. The robot’s design also had to allow it to climb the pyramid.  

Q: What, and how, did ebm-papst contribute to each team's robots in terms of design, engineering and production support?

Hogan Eng: While at the team meetings, I volunteered my experiences with program management and engineering design reviews. I also mentored the team’s shooter sub-group. When each group had robot parts that needed more sophisticated fabrication, I would bring the sketches to John DeMarco who would draw the part in CAD and tweak the design for better strength, manufacturability and aesthetics. The CAD information was then sent to   Bruce Thibodeau for programming the parts.  Tom Shimeld cut parts on the company’s laser machine. ebm-papst employee Mike Warner bent the parts. Employees on our production floor helped insert and paint components. 

In the meantime, another employee from ebm-papst Inc., T.J. Berti has come to our weekend meetings to train our students in TIG welding, making them quite accomplished welders! 

Q: The 2nd Law Enforcers have been around since 1997, and Team Beta's been around since 2009. How have each team's students evolved over these periods? How have they grown support from their schools and in their communities? 

Hogan Eng: Team Beta started out as a group of 12 sophomores at Nonnewaug High School. As the team's success grew in the school and in the surrounding community, we have grown to about 30 students and a dozen mentors. We’re now attracting students from other areas to Nonnewaug High who are joining our robotics team. During the team’s fund raising events, we displayed the robots and the students invite the community to ask questions. The team created the Connecticut Tech Fest, where we invite companies, other robot teams, universities, clubs and branches of our armed forces do display any really interesting mechanisms, inventions and products to the community. To promote careers in science and technology, the team actively engages other students.

team178
Group of 2nd Law Enforcers sitting on the floor - Richard Murkland Digital Photos

Bill Aston: When I started as a mentor ten years ago, Farmington High School only recognized The 2nd Law Enforcers as a club. Now they are a team, with the same benefits as the school’s sports teams. Every year the older members of the team pass down what type of CAD files and geometry that we need to effectively produce parts off of our equipment. ebm-papst internal mentors Matt Crossman, Dale Watson, and TJ Swistro help with trouble shooting and working parts through production. ebm-papst continues to provide materials, our shop equipment time and the resources of our people.

Q: Why do you continue to dedicate your expertise and support to these teams?

Hogan Eng: I really believe in the ideals of FIRST, which encourages students to go into technical fields where they can have the opportunity to improve their lives, our communities, the country and the world. FIRST Robotics believes that our young people have a much better chance of becoming an engineer and making something useful as opposed to becoming a pro athlete. I have loved science even as a child and have become successful as an engineer, so this is my way of giving back to the community, sharing and teaching what I know to students who may have the same kinds of interests.

Bill Aston: My focus has shifted slightly; most mentor expertise comes from Matt Crossman, who is an alumnus of Team 178 and now manages most of the team’s activities for me.

Q: What would you say is one major way the students' robots have evolved since you became involved with the FIRST Robotics Competition?

Hogan Eng: I originally helped start a different robotics team in Woodbury back in 1997. That program focused on a mechanical design challenge with some basic program writing to customize how the robot is controlled. Being an electrical engineer, I commented that there wasn't enough of an electrical component for the kids who may have more advanced interests in electronics. Well, 16 years later, I am amazed at the level of sophistication of the robots and the skills of the students in C++ programming of gyros, accelerometers, visual image recognition, target tracking and more! As the technical world gets more complicated, these students have risen to the challenge. FIRST Robotics has provided an accelerated path to lead them there.

Q: Tell us about one moment or experience associated with CT FIRST that is either your favorite and/or one you know you will never forget.

Hogan Eng: It was 2009, our team’s rookie year. We had built a beautiful robot and headed to our first competition in Hartford. We won the Rookie All Stars award for our presence as a unified team, our robot design, and how well the students presented to the judges. Other teams thought we were a veteran team! We were thrilled. We realized this is not all about building a robot. It’s really about what the team had achieved over the six weeks in technical, organizational, interpersonal, and social and communication skills. We had formed a tightly knit group that was more like a family.

Bill Aston: One of my first years I showed a sophomore female student how to use an ordinary drill. She ended up being a leader in the engineering/build department of the team by the time she was a senior. 

For additional information about CT FIRST programs, visit ctfirst.org. For additional information about FIRST, visit usfirst.org.

Tags: ebm-papst, engineering, FIRST Robotics

Robotics, learning and leadership at ebm-papst Inc. part 1

Posted on Fri, Apr 26, 2013

ebm-papst engineers tell it from ‘the pits’: Part 1

ebm-papst believes that experience-based learning is the best way to get our kids excited about science and technology…and have a blast along the way. Every year, our company and its employees devote time, resources and expertise to turning this belief into reality.
 
Along with like-minded organizations including United Technologies, General Dynamics-Electric Boat, Northeast Utilities and our state’s leading universities, we support high-school level FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) teams as they conceive, design, build, program and test robots that compete regionally and nationally.
 
FIRST stands for “For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology.” This year’s FIRST Robotics Competition Connecticut Regional, sponsored by UTC, was held March 29 and 30 at the Connecticut Convention Center.  

To get ready for the competition, ebm-papst manager Hogan Eng devoted nights and weekends to helping Woodbury’s FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) Team 2836, Team Beta at Nonnewaug High School.

 

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Photo of Team Beta with Hogan Eng getting ready for battle - David Everett Photography

Meanwhile, manager Bill Aston mentored Farmington High School’s FRC Team 178, the 2nd Law Enforcers.

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2nd Law Enforcers team members wheeling their 'bot onto the field - Richard Murkland Digital Photos
 

Hogan and Bill’s involvement with the two FRC Teams is backed by employees Matt Crossman, Dale Watson, TJ Swistro, John DMarco, Bruce Thibodeau, Tom Shimeld and Mike Warner who each contribute their engineering and manufacturing expertise to the two teams’ robots.
 
Together, ebm-papst’s engineering and manufacturing experts help students on the two teams master science and technology concepts while gaining valuable career and life skills that are carrying them to higher education and STEM-based careers.
 So how did the two teams fare at the CT Regional?

  • FRC Team 2836, Team Beta, received the Excellence in Engineering Award sponsored by Delphi

  • Rebecca DiSarro, a member of Team Beta, was named Connecticut’s finalist for the FIRST Dean’s List.

  • FRC Team 178, the 2nd Law Enforcers, received the CT Regional Competition’s Engineering Inspiration Award.

  • Tim Barron, lead mentor for Team 178, received the Woodie Flowers Finalist Award for Connecticut.

Stay tuned for our next blog, where we catch up with Hogan, Bill and the ebm-papst team as they talk in depth about this year’s competition, the game, Team Beta and the 2nd Law Enforcers.

Tags: ebm-papst, engineering, FIRST Robotics