What is a servo press?

A servo press uses servo motors for precise force and position control during forming operations.

How do I calculate servo press tonnage?

Use our free tonnage calculator at servopress.club/tonnage-calculator.html

How to Commission a New Servo Press: Complete Checklist

admin

Commissioning a new servo press correctly sets the foundation for years of reliable operation. Rushing this process leads to problems that are difficult to diagnose later.

## Pre-Installation Checks

- Foundation bolts torqued to specification
- Leveling verified with precision level (0.02mm/m)
- Electrical supply voltage and phase verified
- Air supply pressure and flow rate confirmed
- Cooling water flow rate and temperature verified

## Mechanical Checks

- Slide parallelism measured and recorded
- Gib clearance set per manufacturer specification
- All lubrication points filled
- Counterbalance pressure set for slide weight
- Brake and clutch function verified
- Safety guards installed and interlocked

## Electrical Checks

- All cable connections tight and labeled
- Earth/ground continuity verified (<0.1 ohm)
- Insulation resistance test on servo motor (>1 MOhm)
- Control voltage levels verified (24VDC, 5VDC)
- Emergency stop circuit tested — verify all E-stops cut power
- Safety relay function verified

## Servo Drive Setup

- Motor parameters entered (from nameplate)
- Encoder type and resolution configured
- Current limits set to motor rating
- Velocity and position loop gains tuned
- Regenerative unit enabled and tested
- Parameter backup completed

## First Motion Tests

1. Jog at 10% speed — listen for abnormal noise
2. Run 10 cycles at 20% speed — verify smooth motion
3. Check slide position at BDC — verify repeatability (should be <0.01mm)
4. Run at 50% speed for 30 minutes — check temperatures
5. Full speed run — verify all alarms clear

## Load Test

- Install test die
- Run at 25%, 50%, 75%, 100% of rated tonnage
- Verify load curve shape at each level
- Check for abnormal vibration or noise

## Documentation

Record all measurements, settings, and test results. This baseline data is invaluable for future troubleshooting.

jim_applications

As someone who commissions presses for a living, the most common mistake is rushing the foundation cure time. Epoxy grout needs 72 hours minimum at 20?C before you put load on it. I've seen shops try to start production after 24 hours and end up with cracked grout and a press that won't hold alignment.

raj_maintenance

Add to the checklist: verify all safety functions BEFORE running any production. I mean actually test every light curtain, every interlock, every e-stop. Not just check that they're installed —trigger each one and verify the press stops. We found a miswired interlock on a brand new press during commissioning. Could have been a serious incident.

mike_chen_eng

Great checklist foundation. The safety verification point cannot be overstated - we make it a separate sign-off step with a dedicated form. But I want to add something most commissioning guides miss: the servo tuning verification under load. Factory default servo gains are set for a generic load. Your actual die weight, tooling mass, and process forces will be different. During commissioning, run the auto-tuning routine WITH the production die installed and at the actual operating speed. Then do a test run and check the position error monitor (on most drives this is a following error or position deviation parameter). If you're seeing more than 0.02mm deviation at working speed, the gains need manual adjustment. We had a press that passed all commissioning checks perfectly but produced parts with inconsistent draw depth. Took two weeks to figure out the servo was hunting at BDC because the gains were tuned with an empty press. The inertia ratio with the 800kg die installed was completely different. Five minutes of auto-tuning with the die would have caught it on day one.