KWS Bolt Pads

Question

I was touring the KWS facility and noticed multiple screws in manufacturing with bolt pads. KWS bolt pads look completely different than anything I’ve seen from your competitors. Most bolt pads are square and have a center hole. Why are KWS bolt pads round and thicker than other manufacturers’ bolt pads?

Answer

Great question and thanks for being so observant! KWS has studied screw conveyor failures and determined that a better designed bolt pad significantly increases the torque rating of a screw and reduces failures. The purpose of bolt pads is to increase the bearing area of the pipe and coupling bolts. Increasing the bearing area increases the torque rating of the bolted connection.

KWS bolt pads are machined in CNC lathes from 1045 carbon steel round bar with a center hole that has a tolerance of less than 0.002-inches. Our standard thickness is 3/8-inch, providing more bearing area and the highest torque rating in the industry. Most of our competitors use ¼-inch thick flat bar stock that is sheared with a hole punched in the center. The hole is not accurate due to punching and ¼-inch provides much less bearing area and a lower torque rating.

KWS bolt pads are an engineered solution and another competitive differentiator in the market. Our customers appreciate a better design when it reduces downtime and headaches!