LIFE Project – PowerCylinder

Innovative system inside the hydraulic cylinder for demolition tools

Welcome to the home page of the LIFE PowerCylinder project that has received funding from the LIFE Program of the European Union (LIFE20 ENV/SK/000392).

The main objective of the project is to demonstrate lower emissions and higher efficiency in demolition machinery through the use of innovative hydraulic systems, specifically hydraulic cartridge pressure amplifier integrated in the hydraulic cylinder of the demolition attachment. The coordinating beneficiary of the project is PistonPower s.r.o. and our partners in the project are Idraulica Sighinolfi Albano S.r.l. (manufacturer of hydraulic cylinders) and Mantovanibenne S.r.l. (manufacturer of demolition attachments).

Main milestones of the project over its three year duration are:

• Development of 6 demolition attachments with PowerCylinders
• Testing them under controlled conditions and on real demolition sites
• Measurement of environmental impacts (fuel consumption, noise, dust)
• Marketing & technology transfer to new products & applications

The goals of the project are:

• Increasing efficiency
  Decrease of excavator fuel consumption and CO2 emission (2,300 l of diesel and 6.2 tonnes of CO2 saved) durign demolition work due to the possibility of using smaller excavators for the same job and getting the job done faster.
  
• Decreasing the size of hydraulic cylinders used
  Reduced weight, less raw material needed (327 kg less steel), smaller demand for harmful substances (31.5 l less hydraulic oil)
  
• More force
  Allowing to get the job done faster (10%) with less overall noise and dust exposure.
  
• Integrated solution
  Increased operator safety due to high pressure fully contained within the hydraulic cylinder.
  
  
  
  

Replications:
Mantovanibenne S.r.l. will replicate the PowerCylinder technology in its other demolition tools. Idraulica Sighinolfi Albano S.r.l. and PistonPower s.r.o. are both present in the horizontal hydraulics market, where the technology can be used by other customer, in other applications and market segments.

Transfer:
The technology is capable for downsizing, therefore, smaller cylinders with higher force may be used in light demolition machines / robots, hydraulic jacks, rescue shears and others. The decreased weight combined with increased peak force, might allow these systems to be powered by a battery.
The project will present the technology on fairs and use customer interactions to create the needed market awareness. The discussions with potential customers will lead to more market insights and help to develop unique selling points for additional applications. This will ensure to transfer the technology to new areas like presses, forestry and recycling.

We will keep you updated on this page about the progress of this project.