Cool and precise

Autarkic and space-saving measurement room in the new Kaufbeuren plant of HAWE Hydraulik. The compact design of Weiss's climate technology enables cost-efficient and economical use of the typically limited space: The cooling system for refrigeration is integrated into the recirculating air climate system.

Measurement room of Weiss Klimatechnik at HAWE Hydraulik: The measurement of tolerances in the tenths of micrometers range requires the highest level of stability concerning environmental conditions such as air flow and purity, as well as room temperature.

Weiss Klimatechnik planned and delivered the project turnkey – from conception to acceptance measurement with calibrated measuring equipment.

For the new construction of the HAWE plant in Kaufbeuren, Weiss Klimatechnik designed and built two autonomous measurement rooms. In March 2014, the cleanroom and climate specialist handed over the cost-effective rooms turnkey.

Precision is the dominant paradigm in the manufacturing process of the mechanical engineer. For quality management in the new plant of the Munich-based hydraulic developer HAWE, this means that the accuracy of the products must be constantly verified precisely through measurement according to plant standards and customer requirements. This initially takes place in the measurement room for incoming goods: Here, the machine builder checks delivered parts for dimensional accuracy. In a second measurement room, quality assurance is carried out during and at the end of the manufacturing process.

The manufacturing-related measurements serve ongoing control of internal processes: Regularly, components are measured – feedback must be as quick as possible, as Jörn Winkler explains, who is responsible at HAWE Hydraulik among other things for the technical requirements of the measurement technology for the measurement rooms. The hydraulic valves produced in Kaufbeuren, for example, are intended for the mobile hydraulics sector, such as construction machinery and concrete pumps. The manufacturing tolerances to be measured are sometimes around one micron, says Jörn Winkler. Accordingly, the control measurements must be extremely precise – and this is only possible under tightly defined and as fluctuation-free as possible environmental conditions: In particular, parameters for air circulation, temperature, and air purity must be maintained.

The optimal measurement room

HAWE Hydraulik has already built several manufacturing plants and has extensive experience with setting up measurement rooms. So far, the machine builder has designed and built these in collaboration with building services companies and its own staff, as Andreas Gilnhammer, project manager for plant new construction in Kaufbeuren, reports. However: The environmental quality requirements could not be met here. Therefore, it was decided to plan an "optimal measurement room for HAWE from scratch and tailored to the specifications of the measurement technicians," says Gilnhammer.

With the definition of these requirements, an engineering office was initially commissioned – followed by a tendering process for the project, in which Weiss Klimatechnik from Reiskirchen near Gießen in Hesse emerged as the winner. "The solution presented by Weiss Klimatechnik convinced us both in terms of concept and cost structure – and by the company's overall professional appearance. During discussions with Weiss employees, we quickly got the impression that we had found a partner we could work with trustfully – and the result confirmed this impression," says Andreas Gilnhammer.

Concept to employee training – from a single source

Subsequently, Weiss Klimatechnik took over the detailed planning and construction of the two measurement rooms for quality control and calibration of the in-house measurement equipment. They have decades of experience in creating highly precise climate conditions for production processes and cleanrooms.

The Weiss Klimatechnik team handled the construction of the two measurement room cabins from the very beginning, based on the measurement room class III according to VDI/VDE 2627 – from technical conception to equipment with highly efficient precision climate technology. For this demanding project, realized during the plant's construction, Weiss Klimatechnik needed just under three weeks of pure construction time until handover and employee training.

Compact, space-saving, efficient

In the technically identical measurement rooms, particular emphasis was placed on a space-saving solution – a challenge only a few providers on the market can meet. Here, especially, the compact design of Weiss Klimatechnik's climate systems proved advantageous.

Weiss works with space-saving Ultraconstant climate units of its own manufacture. These single-module climate compact units were specifically developed by the manufacturer for versatile use in different climate and cleanroom requirements.

Space-saving is especially achieved by integrating the cooling system for the air conditioning into the recirculating air climate unit – a unique feature on the market, emphasizes Hans-Joachim Weitzel, project manager for cleanrooms at Weiss Klimatechnik. "The compact design of our climate technology enables cost-efficient, economical use of the typically limited space. For example, there is no need for a separate autonomous air conditioning system for dehumidifying outside air."

Basically, the system ensures constant and tolerance-accurate room conditions within the specified values according to the technical guideline VDI 2627: a temperature of 22 degrees with a maximum deviation of +/- 0.4 Kelvin over time and 0.5 Kelvin spatially – with 50 percent relative humidity and a deviation of plus/minus 10 percent. This guarantees the precision of the calibrated measuring devices in the two measurement cabins.

A reliable partner

HAWE Hydraulik is very satisfied with the execution and results of the project. In particular, the crucial accuracy and stability of the climate values are praised by HAWE employees. An important plus point for the machine builders was the smooth process and overall service: turnkey construction of the measurement cabins, including electrical wiring for the climate technology, up to the acceptance testing with calibrated measurement equipment from Weiss Klimatechnik and training of the specialist staff – all from a single source.

“Our plan to have a complete solution for our measurement rooms designed and built by a reliable specialist partner from a single source has fully succeeded,” summarizes Andreas Gilnhammer. “Weiss Klimatechnik essentially executed the entire project as a general contractor. The support from Weiss project manager Hans-Joachim Weitzel was smooth and on schedule from start to finish – up to the acceptance test including proof that the environmental conditions were precisely maintained.”

Universal, reliable, compact – Weiss Klimatechnik's Ultraconstant climate compact units

The single-module climate compact units are designed for a wide range of climate and cleanroom requirements. They combine compactness and innovative technology – and ensure long-term operational cost benefits.

Features at a glance:

- Nominal volume flow of 2,000 to 22,000 m³/h
- Upflow and downflow versions
- Full climate function with heating, cooling, humidification, and dehumidification
- Meets VDI 6022 standards
- Filter class: F7 standard, F9 as a second stage possible
- Pumped chilled water or active cooling
- Integrated control cabinet
- Temperature: ± 0.2 K
- Humidity: ± 2 % r.F.