Roof Tile Press Electric Motors

On a roof tile press the electric motor produces the movement that squeezes the clay slug coming from the extruder between the lower and upper dies. On a mechanical revolver press the motor turns a flywheel and a crank or eccentric shaft through belts and gears; on a hydraulic roof tile press the motor only drives the hydraulic pump and a cylinder does the pressing. Maker catalogues show 18.5–55 kW main drives on mechanical revolver presses and 22–46 kW installed power on hydraulic presses for accessory tiles.

DRG Motor is a manufacturer, supplier and seller of electric motors. We do not sell the press, the mould sets, gearboxes, hydraulic units and pumps, flywheels or inverters; what we supply is the motor turning them, a three-phase induction unit. The models are listed on Buy Electric Motors Online.

How does a revolver tile press work and where is the motor?

On a revolver press the lower dies sit on the faces of a pentagonal or hexagonal drum. The drum indexes one face per stroke; the upper die comes down with the crankshaft and presses the slug into a tile. On most machines the step-by-step drum rotation is taken from the main shaft by an intermittent mechanism such as a Geneva (Maltese cross) drive, so one main motor drives both the pressing and the indexing. The slug feed belt, the mould lubrication or soaping pump and the take-off belt for pressed tiles each run on their own small motors.

Main motor, flywheel and crank

The main motor stands beside or above the machine, foot-mounted (B3) and belted to the flywheel. The flywheel covers the short, very high torque demand at the moment of pressing from its stored energy; between strokes the motor brings back the speed the flywheel has lost. The main motor rating is therefore not calculated straight from pressing force; the machine maker sets it together with stroke rate and flywheel inertia. The first maker’s table states installed power as “AC + inverter”: the motor is fed from a drive and the stroke rate follows its speed.

Braking and positioning

For mould changes and faults the drum has to stop at a defined position. One press redesign describes a direct gear motor drive with brake together with a disc brake. Brake motors are not in our range; this function stays with the machine’s disc brake or the maker’s drive.

Hydraulic roof tile press: the motor drives the pump

On a hydraulic press a large cylinder carries the upper die. The electric motor sits on or beside the power pack tank, with a bellhousing and flexible coupling between motor and pump; pressing force comes from pump pressure and speed from flow. Stroke rates are lower than on mechanical revolver presses (10–12 per minute on the second maker’s data sheet), but deep and complex parts such as ridge tiles, ventilation tiles or three- and four-way fittings can be pressed.

Why is installed power given with decimals?

Data sheets show values like 21.75 kW or 31.87 kW. They are not the plate rating of one motor: main pump motor, cooling or filter pump, table rotation and tile take-off motors have been added up. When replacing a motor read the plate of the motor you remove and do not order the installed total as one motor. To find motor power from pump flow and pressure, use our hydraulic pump motor kW calculation article.

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How many kW is a roof tile press motor? Catalogue values

A) What roof tile press builders state for their main drives and power packs:

Depending on model, number of moulds and pressing force, mechanical revolver presses use roughly 18.5–55 kW main drives and hydraulic presses 22–46 kW installed power; small and older presses also show values such as 5 kW. Rating grows with the number of moulds and the pressing force; even with the same mould count, a model with higher force needs a stronger drive.

B) Where DRG fits: 18.5–55 kW main drive motors match our 4-pole cast iron 180M to 250M frames, and power pack pump motors fall in the same steps. Every value in the table lies inside our range. One maker does not publish the motor rating of its new 400-tonne generation, so we give no figure for that class; the motor is chosen from the plate and the machine documents.

Worked example: stroke rate, overall ratio and starting

Take a two-mould revolver press with 25 strokes per minute and a 30 kW main drive, using our DRG-200L-4 (1,475 rpm, 53.8 A at 400 V, Is/In 7.3; rated torque: DRG-200L-4, 194.2 Nm):

The crank torque in the table is a loss-free upper bound; the real peak at pressing comes from the energy stored in the flywheel. Lowering the stroke rate to 22 with an inverter reduces motor speed, but flywheel energy falls with the square of speed, so do not take the stroke rate outside the range given by the maker. A heavy flywheel means a long start: star-delta or a soft start through the drive protects the supply. Compare methods on our star-delta starting page and try pulley ratios with the pulley and belt calculator.

Wet clay, release fluid and motor protection

The press area gets dirty with release fluid and splashes of wet clay. IP55 protection suits this environment; still, keep the motor away from the splash direction, clean clay off the fan cowl regularly and check the terminal box lid gasket.

DRG motors for roof tile presses

Our 4-pole cast iron models matching main drive and power pack ratings (current at 400 V):

Each DRG motor is a three-phase IEC induction machine. Cast iron bodies start at 0.55 kW and climb to 355 kW, aluminium bodies run from 0.25 up to 11 kW; with 2, 4 or 6 poles they turn near 3000, 1500 or 1000 rpm, on feet, on a flange, both, or vertically. Single-phase motors, servo motors and medium-voltage motors are outside our range. For a replacement note plate power, speed, 400/690 V delta connection, shaft diameter and key, foot hole spacing and shaft height, and pulley diameter; we compare these with the press documents and confirm the fit with you, and we make no fit promise without dimensions. See our technical drawings.

Live price table

Prices of models in roof tile press main drive and power pack sizes come live from the shop:

DRG MOTOR motors are guaranteed against material and manufacturing defects for 2 years from the delivery date (warranty certificate).

Motors in this power range

• DRG-180M-4 – 18.5 kW – 1470 rpm – 180M cast iron
• DRG-200L-4 – 30 kW – 1475 rpm – 200L cast iron
• DRG-225M-4 – 45 kW – 1485 rpm – 225M cast iron
• DRG-250M-4 – 55 kW – 1485 rpm – 250M cast iron
• DRG-180L-4 – 22 kW – 1470 rpm – 180L cast iron

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Browse the products, ask for a quote: suitable motors for your press are on Buy Electric Motors Online. To start, a nameplate picture of the main motor plus one of its flywheel side over WhatsApp is enough; on the phone (+90 (542) 666 11 11) mould count and strokes per minute narrow the choice quickly.

Frequently asked questions

Does a bigger motor raise the stroke rate of a revolver press?

Not by itself. Drum, dies and slug feed timing limit the stroke rate; the question is whether the motor can bring the flywheel back up at that rate.

How do I tell a motor fault on a hydraulic tile press?

If pressure drops while motor current is normal, the cause is usually pump or valve; if current is high and the motor runs hot, check motor, connections and coupling alignment.

What does the price of a roof tile press motor depend on?

Rating, pole number and frame size; the live table pulls current figures straight from our online store.

For motor choice across the plant, our ceramic plant motor article also helps. Contact: +90 (542) 666 11 11 · info@drgmotor.com · contact page.