Hydraulics and Pneumatics Benefit a Range of Industrial Applications

Industrial applications continue to rely on hydraulics and pneumatics because of the power density, durability and other performance benefits these systems can provide. These benefits, along with the many technological developments taking place in the industry, are enabling fluid power to remain a technology of choice in applications such as packaging, semiconductor production, robotics, and many more.

In this first of a three-part Q&A series, members of the fluid power industry offer their insights on what makes hydraulics and pneumatics a good fit for the industrial sector as well as the applications in which they see these systems being utilized.

Power & Motion: Are hydraulics and pneumatics still an important technology of choice in industrial applications (such as machine tools, packaging machinery, etc.)?

Andrew Aurand, Director of Sales & Marketing, Clippard: Absolutely. While other technologies have emerged, hydraulics and pneumatics remain fundamentally important and, in many cases, the superior choice for industrial automation. The core value proposition of fluid power is undeniable: it offers an unmatched combination of high power density, robustness, and cost-effectiveness.

For applications requiring immense force and power, such as stamping presses, injection molding machines, or heavy-duty machine tools, hydraulics provide a level of force in a compact package that is simply not feasible or economical with electric alternatives.

Dan Detweiler, Value Added Systems and Technical Services Manager, Parker Hannifin: Yes, hydraulics and pneumatics are still relevant although more efficient designs are being requested by our customers. Force density is still a driving factor for fluid power in industrial applications. Pure electromechanical solutions still struggle to have the same power and cost ratio for the same space claim in high power machines. We have seen many attempts to displace hydraulics with electromechanical (EM) solutions that have failed because of either reliability or cost or both. 

Localized power is gaining in popularity where the linear or rotary actuator has its own self-contained hydraulic power unit (HPU), moving away from a single central HPU. Another area to consider is some machines/industries will have hazards classification levels that may be challenging for EM solutions. Pneumatics provide fast actuation at a lower cost than hydraulics, and without any of the problems that oil/leakage pose to a facility.

Shalom Kundan, Division Marketing Manager, Parker Hannifin: Yes, pneumatics remains a vital technology in industrial automation. It continues to be the preferred choice where simplicity, reliability, speed, and cost-effectiveness are critical. For applications requiring repetitive motion, quick actuation, or harsh environments, pneumatics still provide advantages over electric or hydraulic alternatives.

John Fenske, Director of Marketing, Tolomatic: Absolutely. Fluid power systems continue to offer unmatched advantages in force density, speed, and simplicity. They can also be very economical, particularly if the infrastructure is in place (HPU, compressed air).

Power & Motion: Are there certain types of industrial applications where you’re seeing hydraulics and pneumatics being specified more than others? If so, which ones and what are the benefits of using fluid power in these applications?

Andrew Aurand, Clippard: Yes, we are definitely seeing certain "sweet spots" where fluid power excels. For pneumatics, our specialty at Clippard, we see significant growth and specification in:

• Medical Device and Life Sciences: This is a major growth area. The need for precise, clean, and reliable control of gases and fluids is critical. Our miniature electronic and proportional valves are used extensively in ventilators, anesthesia equipment, dialysis machines, and laboratory automation for analytical instrumentation. The benefits here are precision, repeatability, small package size, and the use of inert materials.
• Packaging and Bottling: The sheer speed and repetitive nature of these applications make pneumatics the ideal choice for actuating gates, diverters, fillers, and labelers. The components are fast, cost-effective, and easy to maintain, which is crucial for minimizing downtime in high-throughput operations.
• Semiconductor and Electronics Manufacturing: In applications like pick-and-place for delicate components or wafer handling, pneumatics (and vacuum) provide a gentle touch, high speed, and a clean method of actuation.

For hydraulics, the primary applications remain those that require extreme force and durability, such as metal forming, injection molding, heavy mobile equipment, and large-scale industrial presses.

Read “Why Pneumatics are a Good Fit for Semiconductor Production” to learn more about the benefits pneumatic systems offer semiconductor production applications.

Jacob Paso, Delta Motion: While hydraulics are specified in a vast array of applications, we see hydraulics specified especially in sawmill machinery, steel mills, metal forming such as large presses, and testing machines. Sawmill machines experience high shock and vibration and require high speeds and precision, all of which hydraulics excel in. The energy density of hydraulics allows the machine itself to be smaller. Large presses require the load capacity of hydraulics, as well as precise position and force control.

The high accuracy achieved by pancake hydraulic cylinders has led battery film rolling presses to achieve higher accuracy than with electric, resulting in fewer hot spots in the film, with corresponding fewer battery failures and fires. Testing machines may require millions of cycles, for which the long cycle life of hydraulics is well suited, or testing may require precisely controlled large forces, also served exceptionally well by hydraulics. Similarly, steel manufacturing and metal forming require heavy forces and accurate control.

Cindy Cookson, Gates Corp.: We continue to see hydraulics specified in the heavy-duty and high-articulation applications. Think boom arms, lifting equipment, forestry, or CNC and injection molding machinery. In these spaces, flexible hoses are critical for tight routing and constant movement. Gates’ MXT and MXG hoses, which are 40% more flexible than legacy hoses, are designed precisely for these kinds of applications where reliability and ergonomics matter most.

Michelle Gladysz, Moog Industrial Group: We certainly have a lot of applications in the power generation market still. We've seen, especially globally, that there's more demand for our power generation systems, which include hydraulic actuators and valves on the turbines. As countries like China are continuing to grow and expand, there's more demand for those power generation facilities, and the power and efficiency of the hydraulic systems to control those efficiently really can't be matched by electric systems. There's still a strong demand in the U.S., but even more globally, and those power generation facilities still require hydraulics.

Another example is the plastics industry. A lot of injection molding equipment relies on hydraulics as well. They require a consistent, very stable force; hydraulic controls in our valves really provide that level of precision that is hard to achieve with electrical systems.

We have a lot of pneumatic applications in the semiconductor industry these days, that certainly is growing. The precision and control that you can get from a pneumatic device in things like wafer handling or assembly in semiconductors really is difficult to get with any other technology. There are some other niche applications; one of my favorites uses our smaller valves in subsea applications, in oil and gas exploration robotics undersea. It's really amazing that what we can do in a very small package, when it's required for those special applications.