Bevel-helical gear boxes B4 or flanged shaft only size or larger Type C Soli B4-HH18-B

Flender/Flender Gear Units/Bevel-helical gear boxes B4

tion, the increasing price of aircraft, and the shrinking demand for recreational aircraft. Firms such as McDonnell-Douglas, General Dynamics, Boeing, and General Electric purchase most of the gearing for their products. Other producers like Sikorsky and Bell manufacture gears in their own divisions, contract with other producers for some products, and, on occasion, because of price or time constraints, rely on small job shops and imports. Because gearing producers for the aerospace market are in some cases 3 to 4 tiers below the prime contractor or aerospace producer, the nationality of the gear producer may not be known to the ultimate consumer of the finished product Defense acquires gears from manufacturers, weapons systems producers, or subcontractors. As subcontractors, Rockwell, McDonnell-Douglas, Sikorsky, and Boeing have traditionally satisfied most of Defense' aerospace gear requirements. Subcontractors purchase gears from either domestic or foreign sources for inclusion in their defense-related projects. Marine Gearing Although the United States is no longer major producer of large ships except for defense purposes, the .. market for marine gearing is still significant. There are two primary types of gears produced for marine applications: custom- produced gears for large ships and smaller marine gears produced in large volumes for work boats, fishing boats, and pleasure craft. Factors Influencing the Market Large marine gears are primarily reduction gears for diesel or gas turbine-driven ships. The requirements for the two drives are significantly different. Gears for gas-turbine engines have very large diameter, with big reduction ratio because of the speed at which the gas turbine operates. These gears, therefore, require greater accuracy than do diesel units with respect to specifications. Recently, diesel propulsion has gained considerable advantage over the gas turbine, partially because of rising fuel c