New High-Tech R&D Center Established in Pune

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Joint Venture of the Freudenberg Group and EKK Group, EagleBurgmann, opens state-of-the-art facility

PressReleasePoint: Pune, March 15, 2013.With the inauguration of the new Research & Development facility in Pune EagleBurgmann, a joint venture between the German Freudenberg Group and the Japanese EKK Group, invested Rs. nine crores in India. With state-of-the-art technology and seven new test beds a wide variety of products will be approved, e.g. dry gas seals for compressors for the oil & gas industry. The oil & gas industry has a high strategic priority for both companies. Research & Development in this market is crucial and this investment finds perfect conditions in the new facility.
The grand opening ceremony of the R&D center was hosted by Yasunari Unemura and Dr. Stefan Sacré, members of the EagleBurgmann Executive Board, and the General Manager of EagleBurgmann India, Jimmy Panthaki. The new facility offers manifold testing possibilities and will help to strengthen the company’s position as the market leader in the mechanical seal industry in India. The Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India, gave approval for the new R&D center.
                                                      
Most seals tested there are designed for the chemical and petrochemical industry, especially for the oil & gas segment. Thanks to the largest of the seven new test rigs wet seals can here be tested up to pressures of 150 bars and speeds up to 8,000 rounds per minute (rpm). Another test rig will equip the center as a dry gas seal test facility. It allows testing for dry gas seals up to pressures of 350 bar and speeds of 24,000 rpm. Four other pump test rigs are designed to work for testing of wet seals for pumps up to pressures of 150 bar and speeds of 5,000 rpm. These test rigs are designed not only for testing seals for special engineered applications but also with a view to using them for seal qualification testing as per the latest edition of the API 682 (American Petroleum Institute) standard.
 
 
 
State-of-the-art surveillance technology simplifies monitoring
All test rigs are fitted with wireless transmitters and the entire testing will be managed and viewed electronically via state-of-the-art control mechanisms. The high-tech control room will allow the test engineers to monitor all vital test parameters like pressure, temperature, flow, speed, vibrations and more. Every test bed will be fitted with an IP camera to monitor the running tests even from a remote location via the internet. The customized testing software allows capturing, recording and storage of live test data and the same can subsequently be used to interpret, analyze and further process the data for product development and upgradation. “With these state-of-the-art equipment components we bring our Research & Development activities to a new level”, says Jimmy Panthaki appreciates the manifold testing possibilities in Pune.
 
The new R&D center counts 700 m² and is also a good representation of the Green Initiatives at EagleBurgmann India, as the layout of the building and test areas allow maximum use of sunlight. Additionally the installation of more than 50 industrial LED lamps to illuminate the test area will lead to savings of about 15,000 kWh of electrical energy per year.
 
About EagleBurgmann
EagleBurgmann is one of the world's top suppliers of industrial sealing technology. The company's products are used wherever safety and reliability really matter - in the oil and gas, refinery, chemicals, energy, food, paper, water, marine, aerospace and mining industries. With their ideas, solutions and dedication, the Group's almost 6,000 associates ensure that customers around the world can rely on EagleBurgmann seals. The EagleBurgmann Group underlines its strong customer orientation with its TotalSealCare® modular seal service and offers custom-tailored services for every task. In 2011, EagleBurgmann, which operates from more than 70 locations worldwide, generated sales of more than €753 million.
 
The key industrial sectors EagleBurgmann India serves are the oil and gas industry, refineries and petrochemical plants, power plants and fertilizer industry. The manpower of EagleBurgmann India is about 800. EagleBurgmann has successfully developed and maintained its market leader position in India since 1984. The company has sales offices in 16 cities across India including metropolitan cities like New Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata and Bangalore.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
About Freudenberg in India
Freudenberg has held business ties with customers and partners in India for almost 100 years. The Group has a workforce of more than 3,007 employees at 28 locations. Freudenberg generated sales in India of 956 Rs. crores in the 2011 financial year. More about Freudenberg in India: www.freudenberg.in
 
About the Freudenberg Group

 
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