Allen-Bradley 1336F-BRF20-AA AC Drive – Obsolete 1336 FORCE Spare Part

Technical Dossier

Product Details And Specifications

Allen-Bradley 1336F-BRF20-AA AC Drive – Obsolete 1336 FORCE Spare Part

When a 1336 FORCE drive fails on the production floor, the clock starts immediately. This is not a component that can be sourced from a distributor shelf — Rockwell Automation discontinued the entire 1336 FORCE series years ago, and replacement inventory has been shrinking ever since. A single unplanned line stoppage caused by this failure can cost a facility tens of thousands of dollars per hour. A forced migration to a current-generation PowerFlex platform — including engineering, rewiring, parameter re-commissioning, and operator retraining — routinely runs into six figures. DriveKNMS maintains verified physical stock of the 1336F-BRF20-AA. This is not a listing built on broker speculation. If you are reading this, the part is available now.

Technical Specifications

Note: Only confirmed specifications are listed above. Parameters not independently verified are intentionally omitted to protect equipment safety.

Solving the Discontinued Hardware Crisis

The 1336 FORCE series was a workhorse of North American industrial automation through the 1990s and 2000s. Thousands of these drives remain embedded in active production lines — controlling conveyors, pumps, compressors, and process machinery that was engineered around this specific platform. The problem is structural: the drives are gone from the supply chain, but the machines they run are not.

Replacing a 1336 FORCE with a current-generation drive is not a simple swap. The DPI communication protocol, the parameter structure, and the physical form factor all differ from modern PowerFlex units. A forced upgrade requires a controls engineer to re-map every parameter, potentially re-wire the control cabinet, update the PLC program to accommodate new fault codes, and validate the entire system before restart. In a regulated industry — food processing, pharmaceutical, water treatment — that validation process alone can take weeks.

The alternative is straightforward: maintain a spare 1336F-BRF20-AA on the shelf. One unit held in reserve eliminates the downtime risk entirely. The cost of a verified spare is a fraction of a single day of lost production, and it extends the operational life of the surrounding system by years without any engineering intervention.

Facilities that have managed legacy automation assets successfully over the long term share a common practice: they treat critical discontinued components as capital assets, not consumables. A 1336F-BRF20-AA in storage is not an expense — it is insurance against a production crisis that, without it, has no fast resolution.

Condition & Reliability Assurance

Discontinued parts carry age-related failure risks that new production units do not. DriveKNMS applies a structured 5-step inspection protocol to every 1336 FORCE unit before it is offered for sale:

1. Electrolytic Capacitor Assessment: DC bus capacitors are the most common age-related failure point in drives of this era. Each unit is inspected for capacitor bulging, leakage, and ESR degradation. Units with compromised capacitors are not offered as functional spares.
2. Firmware Version Verification: The installed firmware version is documented and cross-referenced against known compatibility requirements for PLC-5 and SLC 500 integration. Mismatched firmware is a common source of communication faults on reinstallation.
3. Terminal and Pin Corrosion Inspection: Control terminals, power terminals, and DPI connector pins are inspected under magnification for oxidation and corrosion. Affected contacts are cleaned or the unit is rejected.
4. Functional Power-Up Test: Where test infrastructure permits, units are powered up and basic drive functions are verified prior to shipment.
5. Packaging and ESD Protection: Units are packaged with anti-static protection and impact-resistant materials appropriate for international freight.

Key Features for System Maintenance

• Drop-in replacement: The 1336F-BRF20-AA installs directly into an existing 1336 FORCE mounting position with no mechanical modification.
• No reprogramming required: Parameters stored in the existing system or a backup file transfer directly. There is no need to rebuild drive configuration from scratch.
• No engineering redesign: The DPI interface and I/O wiring remain unchanged. Maintenance staff familiar with the existing system can complete the swap without specialist contractors.
• Immediate production recovery: A pre-tested spare on hand converts a multi-day crisis into a same-shift repair.
• Cost containment: Avoiding a platform migration preserves the existing PLC program, HMI configuration, and operator training investment.

FAQ

What warranty applies to a discontinued part?
DriveKNMS provides a 90-day warranty covering functional defects identified under normal operating conditions. Given the obsolete status of this part, we recommend customers power-test the unit upon receipt and prior to placing it into long-term storage.

How do I know the unit is genuine and not counterfeit?
All units sourced by DriveKNMS are inspected for label authenticity, serial number format consistency, and internal construction against known-good reference units. We do not source from unverified secondary markets. Provenance documentation is available on request.

Should I buy more than one unit?
For any production line where this drive is a single point of failure, holding a minimum of two spares is a defensible position. The 1336 FORCE series will not return to production. Each unit that leaves the secondary market is one fewer available globally. Procurement cost today is fixed; procurement cost in two years — if units remain available at all — is not.

Can you source other 1336 FORCE variants?
Contact us with your specific part number. DriveKNMS maintains an active sourcing network for the broader 1336 FORCE family and related legacy Rockwell Automation hardware.