How do you design a solution for which there is no room?
And how can you make a product profitable when you sometimes
have to slit it open?
An implement carrier – what’s that?
The Danish company Egholm Maskiner develops and manufactures a so-called implement carrier – a small, highly manoeuvrable utility vehicle to which various implements can be attached for cleaning and maintaining parks, gardens and roads.
The implement carrier is an articulated vehicle with pivot steering. It has a turning radius of just 1.5 m, allowing it to be used in even the tightest of places.
Tired of home-made solution
The linkage between the two sections of the carrier contains the electric cables, enclosed in thin rubber tubing. Egholm wished to replace this system in the design of a new model of the carrier.
The trend is clear – customers approach us early in the design phase because they know our advice often results in better products, capable of being manufactured at lower cost.
The problem with the old system was that, whenever any of the electrical components needed repair, it was necessary to slit open the rubber tubing in order to gain access to the components. Otherwise, much of the vehicle had to be dismantled – an operation that was far too costly for relatively simple repairs.
After completing repair work, the electric cables were recovered by slitting a standard bellows lengthwise and rolling it onto the cables. A home-made solution with which our customer was not entirely satisfied. After all, the bellows stayed open.
Two thin covers – one with a zip
First and foremost, Egholm Maskiner wanted a more aesthetically pleasing enclosure of the linkage system. We solved the problem by designing an exceptionally thin-walled bellows, which even has a constriction at its centre to make room for a transverse swivel joint.
We also designed a "repair bellows" which in principle is the same as the original but has a zip along its entire length so that it can be opened and closed.
Our customer received a creative solution to a practical problem.
Now, when electric installations on the vehicle are to be repaired at the critical point, the bellows is cut open and the repair work performed. A "repair bellows" – the one with the zip – is then rolled into place over the cables and zipped up, enclosing the cables in a highly professional manner.
Creative and cost-conscious
Our customer received a creative solution to a practical problem. We not only optimised the basic design, we also ensured that the electric cables are professionally enclosed following repair.
The implement carriers are not "born" with a zipped bellows, as such bellows are far more expensive than the zipless version. We thus also took our customer’s costs into consideration when developing the product.
Better and cheaper products
There are, of course, many cases in which we need not develop a completely new product. We therefore also provide customers with advice on our standard range and ensure that they always receive the most suitable product for the task in question.
The trend is clear – customers approach us early in the design phase because they know our advice often results in better products, capable of being manufactured at lower cost. And this is something many manufacturing companies must think about in an ever more globalised world.