T&H Lemont ships heavy-duty, direct-replacement side stands

T&H Lemont recently shipped nine replacement side stands to a longtime customer using a T&H Lemont mill, model WU-40.

The customer recently made a change in the material it runs on this mill, an increase in the material’s minimum yield strength. To accommodate the new material, the customer ordered a complete set of heavy-duty side stands for the sizing section. The previous sizing section design used tie bars to support the roll shafts. The new design provides more support by using a beefy C-frame slide block rather than tie rods.

T&H Lemont’s engineering team developed the new units from scratch and designed them to be direct replacements for the old units. So, although the upgrade is a stronger, heavier-duty style, the stands have the same footprint and bolt pattern as the previous style. Because the mill doesn’t need any special accommodations or modifications, the customer can swap out the side stands with a minimum of downtime.

The customer also specified a quick-change option to help reduce downtime during product changeovers. To prepare each stand for a tooling changeover, the operator loosens one bolt, swings a C-washer out of the way, and flips the top open.