Univex PM91 Power Drive Unit, #12 Hub, 1 HP, 115V

The Univex PM91 is a 1 hp power drive unit: a motor, a reduction drive and a #12 attachment hub on a powder-coated 10-gauge steel base, built to run Univex’s slicing, shredding and grinding heads from one footprint. Twenty-four inches high on a 19" × 26" base, 82 lbs., and powered from any 115 V single-phase outlet.

How the drive works

A capacitor-start motor turning at 1,740 rpm drives a poly-V belt through a 7:1 reduction, which brings the output shaft to 266 rpm and the attachment itself to 250 rpm. The belt is the deliberate part of that chain: it slips rather than shears when an attachment jams, which is a cheaper failure than a stripped gear.

What this buys a kitchen is one motor instead of three. A prep cook shreds cheese, swaps to the slicer for vegetables and fits the grinder head for meat, all on the same base, and the counter gives up the space for one machine rather than a row of them. Because the attachments are Univex’s own standard #12 fitting, the grinder head takes the same plates as the company’s countertop grinders.

The prep container

The PM91 is supplied with a prep container 5" deep and its cover. Univex gives the container’s volume as 20 quarts and its material as plastic on the product page and in the operator manual rather than on the specification sheet, which lists only the depth — so the 20-quart figure is Univex’s, but it comes from the manual, not the sheet.

Why Operators Choose It

• One base, three jobs. The #12 hub takes the VS9 slicer, the VS9H shredder and the ALMFC12 meat and food grinder.
• Belt drive, not gear drive. A 7:1 poly-V belt reduction to 250 rpm at the attachment, so a jam costs a belt rather than a gearbox.
• Keyed off. The operator key is removable, which takes the machine out of service between shifts without unplugging it.
• Resettable, not replaceable. The overload breaker resets by hand; there is no fuse to find.
• Built in the USA. Univex prints "Made in the USA" on the PM91 specification sheet.

Controls

A single-speed motor switch, a removable operator key and a manually resettable overload breaker. There is no speed selection: the drive runs at one output speed and the attachment determines the result.

Ideal For

Delis and sandwich shops, pizzerias shredding their own cheese, school and hospital kitchens, caterers working out of limited counter space, and any operation that wants grinding, slicing and shredding without buying three motors.

Specifications

Safety and restart behaviour

Two things protect the machine and the operator: a removable operator key, so the drive cannot be started by anyone who does not have it, and a manually resettable overload breaker. Note what Univex does not claim — there is no no-volt release. The operator manual states that the unit restarts when power is restored, so the switch must be turned off before the key is pulled or a cutting attachment is changed.

Certification

Univex publishes no NSF, UL, cETLus, ETL or CSA mark for this model. We list what the manufacturer documents and nothing more.

What’s Included

• Power drive unit with #12 attachment hub
• Prep container, 5" deep
• Container cover

Factory Options and Accessories (Additional Cost)

• VS9 vegetable slicer with adjustable knife
• VS9H vegetable shredder with plate holder and 3/16" plate
• ALMFC12 meat and food grinder for the #12 hub
• 1000450 plastic cover

Warranty

One year, on-site parts and labor.

Specifications per Univex data; subject to change by the manufacturer.