You can rely on Liebherr

Italian gear manufacturer Didimo Zanetti S.p.A., headquartered near Bologna, has been producing gears, shafts and gear components for agricultural, construction and commercial vehicles and other industrial applications since 1953. The company sets high standards for the quality of its products and these standards are ensured by over 200 employees at two sites in Italy. For the production of cylindrical gears and shafts, Zanetti uses gear shaping and gear hobbing machines from Liebherr-Verzahntechnik GmbH. The LS 380 E and the LC 380 are efficient and flexible, enabling universal contract manufacturing of various workpieces in different batch sizes.

First and foremost, Gualandi cites reliability and productivity as the most important features of Liebherr machines. Compared to other machines, Liebherr machines achieve up to 20% higher productivity. Reliability and flexibility are at least as important to him: “We produce in three shifts around the clock. For this, we need machines that are absolutely reliable with minimal maintenance requirements,” Gualandi stresses. He also highlights the short set-up times of Liebherr machines, as different workpieces can be flexibly produced in a single clamping operation. Machining larger workpieces is no problem either on the LS 380 E shaping machine with a stroke length of 120 millimeters.

Both sides fondly recall the beginnings of the collaboration: the joint development of the special software for the LS 380 E, which enables asymmetrical lead modifications such as crowning and taper. “At that time, a beta version of the software already existed at Liebherr, which we then tested extensively. With the software, we achieved the perfect workpiece geometry for asymmetrical gear teeth after heat treatment. The results convinced not only us, but also our customer, and ultimately tipped the scales in favor of purchasing the machine,“ Gualandi recounts. Peter Lindner, Project Manager at Liebherr-Verzahntechnik GmbH, adds: “From the very beginning, it was a collaboration, not an opposition. Zanetti not only gave feedback when something wasn‘t running, but also when it was. That hasn‘t changed to this day. And that‘s not necessarily a given.”