EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. … Diversified industrial manufacturer Eaton Corporation today announced the addition of 168 new hose ends for 1- and 2-wire braid hydraulic hose to its Weatherhead® brand Z-Series product line. The new Z-Series hose ends are qualified for Weatherhead 1- and 2-wire braid hose styles that meet and exceed Euro Norm specifications.  The new offerings include 60 additional different terminal ends, 16 new hose end styles and a substantially increased offering of metric and jump size hose ends.

“With the expanded breadth and depth of the Z-Series hose end selection, Eaton also significantly improved the design of those hose ends,” said Doug Jahnke, Eaton product marketing manager.  “This was done by using non-brazed, one-piece nipples with full-flow elbows and an all-new captive nut incorporated in many of the designs.  These improvements are also being engineered into the existing 400-plus traditional Z-series hose ends to the benefit of current and future Weatherhead hydraulic hose users.

“Slip-over nuts are more resistant to over-torquing and also transmit less torque to the backup hex,” Jahnke said.  “The result is a more robust hose end and hose assembly with fewer potential leak-points and pressure ratings up to 6,000 psi.”

Z-series hose ends are available on qualified hose styles in Eaton’s recently announced Diamond Advantage program.  These hose ends meet and exceed EN ratings in many cases, including H190, H190H, H245L, H280, H290, H290H, H400, H421 and H145R hose styles.

“We have also added a significant number of metric hose ends to the Z-Series to support the sizeable inventory of metric-dimensioned equipment in North America,” said Jahnke. “These new hose ends include many widely-used metric jump sizes that were not previously available.”

The Diamond Advantage Z-Series hose ends are used in the general hydraulics marketplace, including mobile and industrial applications in construction, agriculture, mining, forestry, material handling and in-plant automotive, plastics molding, stamping presses, robotics and many others.

Eaton’s Hydraulics Group is a segment of the company’s Industrial Sector. The business is a worldwide leader in the design, manufacture and marketing of a comprehensive line of reliable, high-efficiency hydraulic systems and components for use in mobile and industrial applications. Mobile and industrial markets include agriculture, construction, mining, forestry, utility, material handling, earthmoving, truck and bus, machine tools, molding, primary metals, automotive, power generation, port machinery and entertainment. Eaton’s Hydraulics Group provides customer-driven solutions under product names such as Aeroquip®, Boston®, Char-Lynn®, Eaton®, Hydro-Line®, Synflex®, Vickers®, Walterscheid™, and Weatherhead®. For more information, visit www.eaton.com/hydraulics .

Eaton Corporation is a diversified power management company with 2008 sales of $15.4 billion. Eaton is a global technology leader in electrical components and systems for power quality, distribution and control; hydraulics components, systems and services for industrial and mobile equipment; aerospace fuel, hydraulics and pneumatic systems for commercial and military use; and truck and automotive drivetrain and powertrain systems for performance, fuel economy and safety. Eaton has approximately 70,000 employees and sells products to customers in more than 150 countries. For more information, visit www.eaton.com .