CNC Onsite Restores Power Plant Foundation With Precision Gantry Milling

CNC Onsite, a Danish precision machining specialist, successfully re-aligned a gearbox and new generator at a 10 MW power plant in Slagelse, Denmark, after a sinking foundation caused a seven-millimeter misalignment. The three-day project prevented months of potential downtime for SK Energy, which had contracted Siemens Energy to install the replacement generator.

Using a 3D laser scanner and its newly developed gantry milling machine, CNC Onsite milled select areas of the foundation to achieve a 0.1 mm flatness, ensuring a perfect fit between the gearbox and generator.

”We were impressed with this result and that the tolerance is actually lower than it was when we first installed the power plant 30 years ago. The technicians went about the problem using their technical skills and a fair amount of creative thinking to hit the nail on the head.  No foundations are the same and you really need to work together to identify the right process. My colleagues in Germany who selected the areas to mill were equally impressed,” said Peter Bang, service manager at Siemens Energy.

Foundation misalignment in aging power plants can cause vibrations and energy generation failures. CNC Onsite’s precision milling, developed in response to industry demand, has been utilized in Denmark and Sweden for wind turbine foundations, hydraulic presses and other industrial applications.