Airend replacement and exchange
Rebuilt airends from stock, fitted in a day.
When the airend has gone
The airend is the heart of a screw compressor and the most expensive single component. When bearings wear or rotor clearances open up, output falls and energy consumption rises, usually long before anything starts making a noise.
Rather than send yours away for six weeks, we fit a workshop-rebuilt exchange airend from stock, usually within twenty-four hours, and take yours back for rebuild.
What you get
Exchange from stock
Rebuilt units held for common models. Fitted next day rather than after a long repair.
New bearings, new seals, new rotors coating
Rebuilt to original clearances and performance tested before it ships.
Twelve month warranty
Parts and labour, same as a new airend.
Performance verified
Flow and power measured after fitting so you can see the machine is back where it should be.
When an airend is the answer
The airend is the heart of a screw compressor and the most expensive single part. When bearings wear or rotor clearances open up, output falls and power rises, usually long before anything makes a noise.
That is why the decision is made on measurements rather than on symptoms. Flow at pressure, power drawn and vibration together say whether an airend is finished.
We will tell you when a machine is not worth an airend. On an old unit with poor parts availability the honest answer is sometimes a new machine, and we would rather say it.
- Decision made on measured flow and power
- Vibration and oil analysis included
- Symptoms alone are not enough
- Honest answer when replacement is better
- Comparison against a new machine shown
- Downtime quoted before you commit
- Works on other makes as well as ours
- Warranty on the exchange unit
Exchange rather than rebuild
An exchange airend is on the shelf. A rebuild is weeks, because your airend has to travel, be stripped, be assessed, be parted and come back.
So we fit an exchange unit and your original goes back for rebuilding into the pool. The machine is running in days rather than weeks and the cost is usually lower as well.
Every exchange unit is tested before it ships, and the test result travels with it.
- Exchange unit on the shelf, not weeks away
- Machine back in days rather than weeks
- Your original goes into the rebuild pool
- Every unit tested before despatch
- Test result supplied with the unit
- Usually cheaper than a rebuild
- Fitted and commissioned by our engineers
- Performance verified after fitting
What happens afterwards
We test the machine after fitting and give you the flow and the power, so the improvement is a number rather than an impression.
Then we look at why. An airend that failed early failed for a reason, and cooling, oil or air quality is usually it.
The service schedule is adjusted in light of what we found rather than being restarted unchanged.
- Flow and power tested after fitting
- Result compared to the original specification
- Cause of the failure investigated
- Cooling, oil and air quality reviewed
- Service schedule adjusted, not just restarted
- Warranty on parts and labour
- Records kept against the serial number
- Follow up visit included
Frequently asked questions
What is an airend?
The compression element itself: the rotors, housing and bearings. It is the heart of a screw compressor and the most valuable single part.
How long should one last?
40,000 to 80,000 hours with correct oil and clean intake air. Machines that run hot, dusty or on the wrong oil fail far earlier than that.
What are the warning signs?
Rising vibration, unusual noise, falling output at the same power, and wear metals appearing in an oil sample. That is usually months of notice, if somebody is watching for it.
Repair or replace?
Below roughly 45 kW replacement is normally cheaper. Above that, a professional rebuild with new bearings and rotor re-profiling is often the better value.
How long does the work take?
One to two days for the change itself, plus lead time on the unit. We can supply a hire compressor to bridge the gap so production does not stop.
What causes premature failure?
Oil starvation, wrong oil, water in the oil, and dirt through a damaged intake filter. All four are preventable and all four are what we normally find.
Does the whole machine have to come apart?
No, the airend comes out as an assembly. What we always change alongside it is the oil, filters, separator and coupling, fitting a new unit into old contamination is pointless.
Is it worth it on an old machine?
Compare the airend cost with a new machine's price and its efficiency. On a fifteen-year-old fixed-speed unit a new variable-speed machine often wins on energy alone.
What warranty do you give?
Twelve months on a replacement airend, subject to using the specified oil and keeping the service schedule: the same conditions that make it last anyway.
Can you do it for any brand?
For the major brands, yes. We will tell you honestly if a particular unit is better returned to its manufacturer.
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Learn moreNot sure which model you need?
Send us your air demand, working pressure and running hours. Our engineers will size the machine and send a written recommendation, no cost, no obligation.