Test Stand Gearbox – 25+ Years Still Running!

AAE Aerospace, located in Brampton, Ontario, has 65 years of experience in the design, manufacture, repair & overhaul, and distribution of components for aircraft, naval ships, and ground support equipment. AAE uses a Cotta gearbox on their in-house stands used for testing aircraft generators, typically 60kVA to 90kVA. The gearbox has been extremely efficient, running for over 25 years without a major breakdown.

Some of the required design specifications for AAE’s gearbox included:

• Unit to be designed for bi-rotational rotation
• High speed shaft torque to not exceed 31500 RPM
• Continuous rating of 350 HP at 30,000 RPM
• Maximum acceleration to not exceed 700 RPM per second
• Oil temperature must be 90 deg F before reaching 6500 RPM
• After reaching 6500 RPM, increase speed by 1000 RPM every 20 seconds until 12000 RPM is reached
• After proper start-up procedure, maximum acceleration/deceleration rate to not exceed 4400 RPM per second

AAE’s Engineering Manager, Mark DeRoia, reflected on AAE’s relationship with Cotta Transmission.  He stated, “When we’ve ever needed a part or reported a service issue, Cotta is always responsive and meets our need within a week. They have a good, very consistent group of people there. We may need to install another test stand in the future. So, when we need a new high-speed gearbox, Cotta is who we’ll call.” Mark further stated, “AAE has specific requirements for stringent applications, like for running an F-18 aircraft generator at 26,000 RPM, and we can rely on high-quality results from their product.”

For over 50 years, Cotta has designed and manufactured a diverse line of high-speed gearboxes that are used by some of the largest OEM companies in the world for numerous R&D and production test stand applications for automotive, aerospace, and industrial components.  Cotta’s high-speed gearboxes are also applicable for speed management in non-aviation, industrial applications – from turbine reduction gears to centrifugal driers, to numerous other instances where a highly specialized, powerful, and reliable solution is needed.

VISIT:  AAE

QUICK LINKS:

High-Speed Gearboxes Catalog

View Complete Library of Product Specification Sheets

High-Speed Gearbox Application Data Form