Bonfiglioli pushes into UK drives market from a new base

The Italian power transmission specialist Bonfiglioli has opened a new UK factory and is expanding its activities in the drives market with a new range of inverters. The developments mark a change in the company`s philosophy which, it hopes, will help it to double its UK business - currently worth about £12m - within a couple of years.

The 560m² factory (abvove) in Redditch incorporates semi-automatic assembly and test machinery, and will stock and assemble industrial transmissions and drives. It will deal directly with OEMs, while Bonfiglioli`s existing distributor, Amir Power Transmission, will handle distributors and end-users.

The company`s 930m² site in Warrington, established in 1991, will now concentrate on mobile applications.

Bonfiglioli, best known in the UK for its gear and motor products, is also making a push into the inverter market with a new line of products from the German manufacturer, Vectron, in which Bonfiglioli is the major shareholder. The Active inverters, first seen at this year`s Hannover Fair, cover three-phase ratings up to 18.5kW, and single-phase up to 3kW. Vectron also produces a more powerful range, called VCB, with ratings up to 355kW.

Bonfiglioli, which claims to lead the European worm gearbox and gearmotors market, as well as being number two in the planetary market, is now positioning itself as a supplier as almost all of the components in the power transmission chain.

At this month`s Drives & Controls Show, Bonfiglioli launched several new and enhanced ranges including:

.• an expanded range of helical, in-line gearmotors, covering torque ratings from 50-12,000Nm, and offering 160% more gear ratios, and torque levels that are 33-66% higher than before, at a price per Nm that is 17-38% lower;

• a new series of three-phase AC motors with ratings up to 30kW, that are suitable for inverter duties;

• a new series of speed variators with epicycloidal plates, which are said to be efficient, reliable and easy to use; and

• two new frame sizes to fill gaps in its 300 series of planetary drives.