Application Equipment: Hydraulic press for automotive component stamping (used in a Tier 1 auto parts factory in Bavaria, Germany)
Operation Duration Before Failure: 5 years (approx. 8,200 working hours)
Failure Trigger: Sudden hydraulic system pressure surge (caused by a faulty relief valve) leading to internal impact damage to the servo valve
Fault Description
In October 2025, the factory reported a complete functional failure of the hydraulic press equipped with this servo valve, with the following critical issues identified after initial inspection:
Core Component Damage:
The original valve spool was irreparably damaged—visible cracks on the spool surface and severe deformation at the control edge, rendering it unable to regulate oil flow.
The solenoid coil failed completely: no electrical resistance detected when tested with a multimeter (standard resistance for this model: 28±2Ω), and the coil winding showed signs of burnout due to abnormal current.
Internal valve structure collision damage: The valve’s internal cavity wall had visible dents and scratches, and the integrated position sensor (used for spool position feedback) was shattered—no output signal detected during electrical testing.
Secondary Issues:
Oil leakage at multiple valve connection ports due to damaged internal seals.
The external valve housing plate (aluminum alloy material) had slight deformation and a 2mm crack at the mounting hole, affecting assembly precision.
The press remained inoperable, causing a complete production line shutdown.
Maintenance Process
1. Disassembly and Comprehensive Inspection
The servo valve was removed and disassembled in a cleanroom (class 1000) to avoid further contamination. Key findings after detailed inspection:
Valve spool: Cracks across the spool body (length: 3mm) and irreversible deformation at the flow control notch—unrepairable, requiring full replacement.
Position sensor: Sensor housing cracked, internal circuit board damaged—output signal interrupted.
Internal cavity: 4mm-deep dent on the cavity wall and residual metal debris from the collision.
Housing plate: Deformation at the mounting edge (0.8mm offset) and a 2mm longitudinal crack at the upper mounting hole.
2. Targeted Repair Actions
(1) Core Component Replacement
Replaced the damaged valve spool with a genuine Parker OEM spool (part no.: D3FPE-SPOOL-50Y), ensuring matching dimensional precision (tolerance: ±0.005mm) for flow control.
Installed a new compatible solenoid coil (Parker part no.: D3FPE-COIL-24V) with 24V DC rating, and conducted insulation resistance testing (result: 500MΩ, meeting the ≥100MΩ standard).
Replaced the shattered position sensor with a Parker original (model: D3FPE-SENSOR-POS) and calibrated its signal output to 0-10V (matching the valve’s feedback system).
(2) Internal Cavity Restoration
Removed metal debris from the internal cavity using a high-pressure air gun (0.6MPa pressure) and polished the dented cavity wall with 1200-grit abrasive paper to restore smoothness (surface roughness post-polishing: Ra 0.15μm).
Flushed the entire internal passage with ultra-clean hydraulic oil (ISO VG 46, particle count: ≤10 particles/mL for ≥5μm) to eliminate residual contaminants.
(3) Housing Plate Repair
Repaired the housing plate deformation using a precision hydraulic press (pressure: 50kN) to correct the 0.8mm offset, ensuring parallelism with the valve body (tolerance: ±0.01mm).
Repaired the 2mm crack at the mounting hole via aluminum alloy welding (using ER5356 welding wire) followed by grinding and drilling to restore the original hole diameter (12mm) and thread integrity (M12×1.5).
Conducted a pressure test on the repaired housing plate (test pressure: 300bar, duration: 30min) to confirm no leakage.
(4) Final Calibration
Mounted all replaced/ repaired components onto a Parker-approved test bench (model: 8910A) for system calibration:
Adjusted the solenoid coil current to 1.8A (rated value) to ensure stable magnetic force output.
Calibrated the position sensor to achieve spool position feedback accuracy of ±0.002mm.
Optimized the valve’s flow rate to 50 L/min (rated for D3FPE50YB9HB7047P00) and verified pressure regulation stability within ±0.3bar.
3. Post-Repair Testing & Validation
Reinstalled the servo valve into the hydraulic press and performed a 6-hour continuous operational test:
No oil leakage detected at any connection port; internal pressure remained stable at 200±0.2bar (set value).
Solenoid coil operated normally with no overheating (surface temperature: ≤45℃, standard: ≤60℃).
Position sensor provided accurate feedback, enabling the press ram to achieve positioning precision of ±0.05mm.
The press resumed full functionality, with ram response time restored to 0.25s (meets production requirements of ≤0.3s).
Conducted a 3-week follow-up: No recurrence of faults; the automotive component stamping line maintained a 99.8% yield rate (up from 0% during the shutdown).
Customer Feedback
The factory confirmed that the comprehensive repair resolved all critical issues, minimizing production downtime to 48 hours (vs. an estimated 7 days if replacing the entire valve). The use of genuine Parker components and targeted repairs reduced costs by approximately €8,500 (vs. purchasing a new servo valve at €12,000). The factory also highlighted that the repaired housing plate’s structural integrity and calibrated sensors ensured long-term operational reliability.