Industry

Hydraulics / Fluid power

Country

Austria

Software

ANSYS — coupled thermal-structural

Duration

4 weeks

Thermal FEA of hydraulic manifold — root cause found after two years of field failures

The situation

A hydraulics manufacturer had experienced repeated field failures in a manifold block under extended high-pressure operation. The failure mode was progressive seal leakage appearing after a period of continuous use at elevated load. Two rounds of material substitution had been attempted without resolving the problem. The working hypothesis before the FEA engagement was that the material was insufficiently resistant to the operating conditions — a third material change was being considered.

What GFE did

GFE ran a coupled thermal-structural analysis of the manifold block under the reported operating conditions. The analysis identified the actual failure mechanism: thermal expansion of the block under load was causing 0.12mm deformation of the seal grooves — sufficient to cause progressive leakage regardless of material. The material was not the problem. GFE proposed repositioning of the cooling bores to reduce the thermal gradient across the seal areas, validated the redesign in simulation, and the client implemented the change. No field failures have been reported since.

Results

Root cause

confirmed in simulation

0.12mm

seal groove deformation

Redesign

validated before prototype

Zero failures

after design change

We had been changing materials for two years. The problem was geometry, not material.

Why GFE for FEM and strength analysis

GFE works in ANSYS, Dlubal RFEM, SolidWorks Simulation, and LS-DYNA — matched to the analysis type and client environment.

GFE has resolved field failures where standard corrective measures had already been exhausted — identified through simulation.

Analysis reports are structured for CE technical files, insurance submissions, and TÜV review — not internal calculation notes.

All team members are fluent in English, with additional language skills in German, Italian, Spanish, and more.

Need a structural calculation or CE documentation support?

Discover our case studies

Contact us

Tell us about your project

Head office

30, Estrady, Warsaw, Poland 01-932

Phone: +48 798 763 604

For general enquiries: info@gfe-solutions.com

For sales enquiries: inquiry@gfe-solutions.com

Back office

201/203, Kharkivske shose,Kyiv, Ukraine 02121

Email: info@gfe-solutions.com

Phone: +38 098 237 0047

Our customers

Our company produces safety-relevant welding assemblies for the chemical and pharmaceutical industry.

Due to the fact that it has become increasingly difficult to find good engineers and designers for our design department at our location in rural Münsterland, we set out at the end of 2018 to look for new external solutions in the service market.

 

Christian Menke

CEO V. KRANZ GmbH, Dülmen

I really appreciate GFE’s flexibility and openness for new challenges. They are not afraid to start a new journey.
If I think about the external circumstances of the project we started together, we reached a learning curve and relating results that I did personally not expect.

Daniel Ilge

Head of Technology & Product Management at WALDRICH COBURG GmbH

We required additional capacity and professional support for our R&D Team especially for a new product development.

And GFE Solutions offers capable support by very well-educated engineers. High professionalism. On time delivery and great communication (native German speakers).

Frank Pfister

CEO of CVS engineering GmbH

We are the company in constant need for plants for research or pilot projects of our clients. Last year we were working over the order in the field of medical technologies, which we succeeded to realize, including thanks to efforts of GFE Solutions team.

Dr. Thomas Bauer

Chief operating officer and member of the Board of DIENES Apparatebau GmbH

We were in need of help with our design department ressources and we had to move fast, internal ressources were not available and GFE was able to help quickly and competent. GFE works with dedication to the very needs of its customers, has a variety of specialists and has offered a fair price on a transparent basis.

Sebastian Schuelke

Managing Director at SICON GmbH

We were looking for additional engineers to expand our construction capacity. You seemed to be a young, motivated Team and except your professional expertise, your personal commitment made me confident to work with you. The cooperation has been seamless and very productive from the start. We are happy with the results.

Lukas Jochimek

Technical Manager at Schauenburg Maschinen- und Anlagen-Bau GmbH

en_US