Custom Machine Bases & Skid Frames
Machine bases and skid frames put a machine, pump set, or packaged module true on the floor and carry it there in one lift. K-Display welds them to your equipment drawing with anchor patterns, foot plates, lifting lugs, and forklift pockets.
Machine bases and skid frames we build
We build machine bases for equipment that bolts down and skid frames for pumps, compressors, and packaged modules that are lifted in place. They are MIG or TIG welded from tube, channel, and plate in stainless steel, aluminum, or carbon steel, and ship bare or powder coated, with the machine pads masked and leveling feet and studs installed.
A frame that carries a drive or a process assembly on plates is Welded Frames & Weldments, and a frame that holds a part for a check is Test Stand & Fixture Frames.
The top pads take the machine, the projecting plates take the anchor bolts, and the side pockets take the forks. The three sit on different faces of the frame, so one drawing datum has to locate all of them.
Bases and skids we build
- Machine bases with floor interfaces
- Bases with machine pads, plates for leveling feet, and anchor holes on the pattern from your equipment drawing.
- Skid frames
- Perimeter skids for pumps, compressors, and packaged modules, with forklift pockets, drain stubs, and tie-down points.
- Pedestals and raised bases
- Column bases that carry equipment at working height on a floor flange, with a top plate and gussets.
- Lifting and handling features
- Lifting lugs, eye plates, and forklift pockets welded into the base where the lift requires them.
Where the base meets the floor and the lift
- Foot and anchor interface
- A leveling foot threads in as a stud or takes a bolt from the equipment, so the foot plate's hole and thickness follow that thread. A plate made for the wrong one cannot hold the foot.
- Lifting and moving
- A lug or pocket carries the full weight of the base, so plate thickness, hole size, and weld size follow the lift. A lug out of line with the sling is loaded from the side.
- Weld movement on long runs
- Shrinkage bows and twists a long frame, more when the welds are large, continuous, or on one side only. The machine pads and anchor pattern move with it, and pads that are not coplanar rock the machine.
- Pads, threads, and anchor holes
- Coating builds up on every face it reaches. An unmasked pad sits high, and a coated thread or anchor hole loses its fit.
Bare pads from weld to coat
The machine sits on bare pads, so the weld sequence and the masking are set around them.
Cut plates, set the pads
We laser cut the foot plates, anchor plates, and gussets, then fit the base up around the machine pads and the anchor pattern.
Weld in sequence
We MIG or TIG weld the base in a sequence that accounts for distortion at the pads and the anchor pattern, with each lug and pocket joint open to the torch.
Mask, coat, and fit
We mask the pads, threads, and anchor holes, powder coat the base or leave it bare, and install the leveling feet and studs.
Keep the mounting face in view
Reference the machine-pad pattern and the floor supports to the same base datums. Identify the faces that need finishing after welding and the areas that must remain bare, so leveling provisions and coating do not obscure the required mounting geometry.
The upper pad provides the machine’s mounting face; the foot below adjusts the base at the floor. Keeping coating off the specified pad face preserves the interface finished after welding.
What to send for a machine base quote
- Assembly drawing
- Tube, channel, and plate sizes, material grade, weld symbols, and datum faces.
- Machine and floor interfaces
- Machine mounting pattern, anchor or foot pattern with hole or slot sizes, and leveling foot part numbers.
- Lifting details
- Lug and pocket dimensions, fork dimensions, and sling arrangement.
- Finish and environment
- Coating color, faces and threads to keep bare, and washdown, outdoor, or hygiene design.
- Size and quantity
- Overall size, weight, quantity, and delivery date.