Complete refurbishment of an industrial compressor.

For several weeks in the workshop, three technicians worked extensively on a 1977 Sulzer-Burckhardt compressor to give it a new lease of life.

The Nord Motors workshop in Éperlecques put its refurbishment expertise to work on a compressor dedicated to gas re-liquefaction for a petrochemical plant. Such a complete maintenance operation is typically carried out every 8 to 10 years, depending on the machine’s operating hours.

The dismantling, inspection, machining, and reassembly phases require a precise method and strong technical expertise. For this project, our mechanics team also benefited from the technical support of a brand specialist.

After complete disassembly, each component is individually inspected and assessed

Wear parts and seals are replaced. All components, whether new or original, undergo systematic adjustment. This manual fitting phase — involving measurements, machining corrections, and clearance checks — is crucial. Some parts allow no more than one tenth of a millimeter of clearance, requiring extremely precise adjustments. The technicians’ expertise and craftsmanship are essential to minimizing the risk of future breakdowns or mechanical failure.

The crankshaft, connecting rods, bearings, and all mechanical components are then reassembled. Instrumentation equipment, such as pressure gauges, is replaced, and the compressor is sealed once again to restore airtightness before nitrogen pressurization.