Research Activities
Design Unit: Our Services
Design Unit is one of the largest gear research groups in Europe. Our team of 23 engineers and technicians are experts in gear research, development, design and troubleshooting.
Our research
Design Unit’s research interests include:
- gear fatigue testing, including bending and mico-pitting
- improving fatigue strength via higher quality gear steels, heat treatment methods and surface modifications such as shot peening and coatings
- component and system level efficiency measurement
- lubricant testing and scuffing
- bearing fatigue
- gear metrology
- gear manufacture
- gear noise, vibration and optimisation
- optimised wind turbine gear measurement
- 3D gear surface measurement
- Geometrical Product Specification (GPS) compatible measurement strategies
- manufacturing process characterisation
Our industrial collaboration
Design Unit works closely across all industries, including:
- Aerospace: testing the highest quality alloying gear steels for aerospace applications
- Automotive: substantial experience with high speed gearing for electric vehicle applications
- Rail traction: gearboxes for EMUs, DMUs and locomotives
- Wind energy: speed up gearboxes for aero-generator
- Power generation: gearboxes for gas turbine and water turbine driven generators