Unitread now offers its Flat Face Plus Quick Release Couplings (QRC), which has been tested for 800 hours of protection from red rust, and is available in Zinc nickel-plated steel or 316 stainless steel in multiple thread sizes and connection types.

The new Flat Face Plus is a more durable, robust alternative for demanding environments such as mobile hydraulic equipment, pharmaceutical, medical, and electronic cooling applications etc.

Early feedback from customers indicates that the design is simpler to use than other designs, with it “easy and smooth, requiring minimal force to connect and disconnect. Others said the zinc nickel plating, 316 stainless steel and high-grade, hard-coated aluminum for cooling systems are key innovations.

These materials are critical when hydraulic equipment may sit idle for a night, through a storm, or through a change in seasons. With ordinary quick connects, fluid can seep into the openings and cause rust. Rust will then provide a pathway for contaminants to enter, and contamination is the number one cause of failure and downtime in hydraulic systems.

Adaptors and fittings can also create leak points that lead to fluid contamination. With multiple thread sizes and connection types, the Flat Face Plus eliminates the need for adaptors or fittings.

These types include:
• BSP, Metric,NPT and ORB thread types and customized fittings
• Zinc Nickel-plated steel body sizes from ¼ to 11/2 in. (ISO 06 – 40)
• 316 stainless steel body sizes from ¼ to 1 in. (ISO 06 – 25)
• Hard coated Aluminium for cooling applications with water glycol size 6-25

Additionally, a special design is available that allows for safe connection under pressure, and its flat face design reduces leaks and spillage.

Connect Under Pressure plugs are available in three different body sizes: ISO 10, 12, and 19.

When an operator is in a hoist lift bucket repairing utility lines, they’re typically using hydraulic power tools. When they change tools, there must be no spillage because it would prevent them from completing their work as well as causing a slippery, unsafe work area. The Flat Face Plus prevents spillage because two flat surfaces meet to connect without any gaps or pockets that would allow a path for fluids to escape.

The Unitread Flat Face Plus helps streamline machinery, making for more compact designs. Agricultural and forestry vehicle hydraulic attachments such as land rollers, air seeders, and planters can be a challenge to connect due to limited pockets of space. There’s no room to add adaptors or fittings for a proper connection. The Unitread Flat Face Plus’s multiple thread sizes and types offered within a body size prevent the need for conversion fittings that take up space and could create a leak point.

Additional product features include:
• Minimises air inclusion upon connection
• Sleeve-lock helps prevent accidental disconnection
• Bi-directional flow
• Two-way shutoff, easily wiped clean
• Valve configuration prevents fluid loss on disconnection
• Many thread jump sizes within each body size
• Viton seals are available
• Custom versions can be developed

Unitread has also developed application specific QRC for handling high vibrations and surge flows specially for hammers and destruction equipment working upto 350 Bar.

For electronic cooling applications using water glycol as the media, the company has hard-coated special grade aluminum couplings, cost effective to Stainless Steel and lighter in weight.

The Unitread Flat Face Plus in 316 stainless steel is the right choice for construction equipment, agricultural vehicles and equipment, mining equipment, nuclear power plants, utility companies, railway maintenance, food processing equipment, pharmaceutical production, and chemical plants. The Zinc nickel-plated steel version of the Flat Face Plus is perfect for corrosive fluid environments like oil and gas, fracking, ship building, among other salt water environments.

For more information, www.unitread.co.in