Kemppi Kempoweld 5500W is a transformer MIG/MAG power source with stepped voltage adjustment and built in liquid cooling. The current reaches 550 A, at a 60% duty cycle the machine gives the full 550 A, and 430 A it pulls without a break. The whole set weighs about 200 kg.
What this machine is for
This is a power source for production halls and shipyards, where heavy steel frames, large tanks and process pipelines are welded. It also goes to repairs of construction, mining and farm machines and to edge preparation by air carbon arc gouging. Large structures in classes EXC3 and EXC4 are the typical range of its work.
Instead of an inverter you have a heavy transformer with a copper winding and a rectifier bridge with high power diodes. Such a build takes metal dust and mains surges that harm complex electronics, and direct current at the output gives deep penetration in thick parts. Copper windings carry heat away and conduct current well, so the current and voltage characteristic of the power source is stable, and the machine holds its parameters at a high ambient temperature and in three shift work. With basic maintenance a build like this works for years, because it has no control boards that are sensitive to dirt.
550 A and a stiff characteristic let you run wires of 1.6 mm diameter, including cored and flux cored wires used in mining. 430 A at a 100% duty cycle sets the pace of continuous work, so you count the output of the station from it and not from the peak value. The power source works with external wire feeders from the Wire series, for example Wire 400. You move the feeder away from the power source, so you cover a large radius around the station, which matters when building bridges and ship sections. You will also weld aluminium, once you fit rollers for soft wire, a Teflon liner and a liquid cooled torch, under argon shielding.
Features and equipment
- Stepped voltage adjustment in 56 steps: each step matches a set arc voltage value, so you repeat a setting without a digital menu, and the operator keeps control over the pool dynamics and the penetration width.
- Mechanical range switches, resistant to damage and to electromagnetic interference that disturbs touch panels.
- No digital menu, which cuts the training of a new worker to a few minutes and lowers the risk of a wrong parameter setting.
- Transformer with a copper winding and a rectifier bridge with high power diodes, giving clean direct current and deep penetration in thick steel.
- Transformer insulation in a high thermal class, prepared for work at a high ambient temperature.
- Built in liquid cooling unit with a pump, marked with the letter W in the model name.
- A pump with a high working pressure pushes the coolant through the cable package and the torch neck, so contact tips wear more slowly and the wire does not bind.
- Heat exchanger with forced air flow, which holds the coolant temperature low in continuous work.
- Flow sensor wired into the logic of the power source: at a kinked hose or a lack of coolant it stops welding before the torch is damaged.
- Works with wire feeders of the Wire series, for example Wire 400, with a four roll drive made of aluminium castings.
- Steady power transfer to the feeder drive motor, so the wire feed speed does not jump during a bead.
- Large diameter rollers hold the wire firmly and without excess deformation, which matters with flux cored and aluminium wires.
- Adjustment of the gas post flow time, that is shielding of the crater until the weld cools.
- Burn Back adjustment of the wire stickout, which stops the wire from sticking to the weld or to the contact tip.
- Work with wires up to 1.6 mm diameter, including cored and flux cored wires.
- Air carbon arc gouging when preparing edges for welding.
- A calm transformer arc with little spatter, so you have less mechanical cleaning after welding.
Technical data
| Brand | Kemppi |
|---|---|
| Type | transformer MIG/MAG power source, stepped adjustment |
| Supply voltage | 3 x 400 V with a tolerance of 10% |
| Maximum welding current | 550 A |
| Duty cycle at 40 degrees | 550 A at 60%, 430 A at 100% |
| Voltage adjustment | stepped, 56 steps |
| Cooling | liquid, cooling unit built into the power source |
| Wire diameter | up to 1.6 mm, also cored wires |
| Set weight | about 200 kg |
| Wire feeders | external, Wire series, for example Wire 400 |
| Output current | direct |
| Applications | steel structures in classes EXC3 and EXC4, hull sections, pressure vessels, process pipelines, air carbon arc gouging |
What to watch out for
Supply 3 x 400 V with a tolerance of 10%, so pick the power connection and the cable section for the draw at full load. The set weighs about 200 kg, this is equipment for a fixed station: plan unloading and moving with a forklift, and the floor has to carry that weight. Stepped adjustment means you change the voltage in steps, without a smooth pass between settings, and you have to get used to it after working on a synergic machine. There are no programs for material and wire diameter here, so the welder sets the parameters, and repeatability comes from the noted step number, not from the memory of the machine.
The cooling system handles currents of 500 A and above, so check the coolant level and clear hoses, because the flow sensor will stop welding in the middle of a bead. In winter watch the type of coolant as well, if the hall is not heated. You put together the wire feeder, the cable package and the liquid cooled torch for your station separately, because the power source is sold here without them. For aluminium prepare rollers for soft wire and a Teflon liner, and for 1.6 mm wires rollers with the right groove. You have 550 A at a 60% duty cycle, in work without breaks stay at 430 A.
This unit is sold
This machine has already gone to a customer. Similar units are listed below, and if you want the same model, leave your contact details in the form and we will let you know when the next one arrives.