APMEN Jan-Feb 2016

MARKET OUTLOOK 2016 • RAMPING IT UP: WORKING WITH ALUMINIUM January - February 2016

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CO N T E N TS

Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News โ ข January - February 2016

METAL CUTTING

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Making New Impressions

Ricky Payling, application specialist at Dormer Pramet, outlines the growth of stainless steel, how the cutting tool industry has evolved to machine the material, as well as providing a summary of some of its most common grades.

C-Level Talk:

Taking Success Forward

Mr Reinhard Banasch, the global CEO of the Hoffmann Group shares his thoughts with Syed Shah on the developments and milestones since his appointment to the role in 2014.

Ramping It Up

Aluminium is one of the most important materials in the aerospace industry. Furthermore, typical components are extremely machining-intensive and therefore require long production times. Tools designed to precisely suit these requirements, such as a ramping cutter from Walter AG, help to reduce machining times and costs. Gan Shu Lim, Walter marketing, explains.

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GREAT GEAR & SYSTEM

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The Right Aluminium Saw For Every Application:

Something For Everything

Aluminium is used for a wide range of purposes in construction, including faรงades, blinds and window elements. But it has applications in many other areas of manufacturing as well: ships, aircraft, motor vehicles, machines and household goods. Having the correct machining tools for aluminium is imperative. By Stephanie Riegel-Stolzer, member of the board of management, Kasto Maschinenbau.

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Upping The Gears Of Productivity

Robotic technologies are gaining popularity across the world, especially Asia, with their improving features and functionalities. Small and medium-sized enterprises are also gaining increased accessibility to these robots as they become more affordable and simpler to implement. By Shermine Gotfredsen, general manager, APAC, Universal Robots.

IN DESIGN

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The Future Of Aerospace Manufacturing:

Flying Forward

The civil aerospace is currently experiencing unprecedented demand for new aircraft, with both Boeing and Airbus predicting a need for well over 30,000 new passenger and dedicated freighter aircraft in the next twenty years. Peter Dickin shares his thoughts.

Shop Floor Communication:

Talking To The Floor

Easily generate in-process inspection instructions and 3D digital documentation from simulated in-process machined features. Bryan Jacobs, marketing communications manager, CGTech shows us how.

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Probing With Precision

Frederick Wong, machine tool products manager, Renishaw Far East, shares with APMEN the role of machine tool probes play in the increasingly competitive automotive world.

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CO N T E N TS

Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

FAST FAB

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Optimising Plate Fabrication with Oxy-fuel & Plasma Cutting:

Shaping The Cut

Agnes Tong, product marketing manager, APAC, ESAB demonstrates how mechanised oxy-fuel and plasma cutting technologies can complement each other in heavy fabrication applications.

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Behind The Facade Of Counterfeit Consumables

Lester Lee, regional marketing manager, Hypertherm Asia Pacific, Mary Allen, IP protection manager, Hypertherm Inc, Sanjay Kumar, consumables sales manager, Hypertherm India give their thoughts on counterfeits and what manufacturers need to know when purchasing plasma torch consumables.

FEATURES

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Powering The Automotive Supply Chain

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As Indonesia moves towards an age of increased digitalisation and connectivity, there is an increased expectation of the automotive sector to improve on its productivity and swing around an otherwise lacklustre 2015. ‘Moving Into Industry 4.0: The Power Of PLM In Your Automotive Supply Chain’ tackled some of the concerns of the Indonesian automotive players. Syed Shah reports from Jakarta.

Market Outlook 2016:

Through The Looking Glass

Industry players and analysts give their expert opinion on emerging trends at the metalworking front and the manufacturing sector for 2016 and beyond. By Syed Shah.

Hexagon Live Hong Kong 2015:

EVENTS & EXHIBITION

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The Coming Of The Metalex-pansion

2016 will see an expanded Metalex exhibition in Thailand once the expansion works at BITEC is completed. Syed Shah reports from Thailand.

Event Review:

Manufacturing Indonesia & Machine Tool Indonesia 2015

ASIA PACIFIC METALWORKING EQUIPMENT NEWS (M.E.N.) is published 8 issues per year by Eastern Trade Media Pte Ltd 12 Hoy Fatt Road #03-01 Bryton House Singapore 159506 Tel: (65) 6379 2888 • Fax: (65) 6379 2885 SUBSCRIPTION RATES: M.E.N. is available to readers on a per annum subscription basis depending on location: Singapore: S$60.00, Malaysia: S$60.00, Asia Pacific/America/ Europe/Others: S$100.00. Refer to the subscription card in each issue for further details. For change of address, please notify our Circulation Manager.

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Ushering A New Era

Taking on a rebranding, sporting newer acquisitions and most importantly, having more offerings for its customers; this was the feel that Hexagon Live Hong Kong (HxGN LIVE) brought about. Syed Shah was in Hong Kong to get a feel of the excitement.

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China Machine Tool & Tool Builders' Association (CMTBA)

Machine Tool Club (MTC)

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21 Tannery Road, Singapore 347733 Tel: 65 6741 8880 • Fax: 65 6741 8998 • E-mail: ogpindo@smartscope.com.sg Singapore • Malaysia • Indonesia • Hong Kong • South China Thailand • Myanmar • Philippines • Vietnam • Taiwan • Australia New Zealand • Middle East

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EDITOR’S NOTE Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Published by:

EASTERN TRADE MEDIA PTE LTD

Looking

(a fully owned subsidiary of Eastern Holdings Ltd)

Reg No: 199908196C

senior editor

Syed Shah

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business development manager

For The Calm In 2015, I attended at least six metalworking trade events, reconnecting with old business partners and making more new ones and the one constant thing I have heard from most of them is this – optimistic but cautious. Here’s the lowdown: no one wants to commit to saying revenue is going to go through the roof even if that’s the target. Then again, that was the target a decade or two back was it not, or rather, that is always the target. Seeing as how 2016 has kicked off for the global economy with raw material companies suffering from their worst start to a year in almost a decade, China stock markets coming to a stuttering halt (literally), should that be the canonical context we should be taking?

The Bloomberg World Mining Index has plunged a record 6.2 percent since the end of last year with slumping prices for all industrial metals, led by nickel and zinc. I would think that investors are staying away from metals amidst the Chinese stock market gloom and coincidentally, the world’s biggest consumer. According to analysts, there has been a lot of concern about the weakening yuan and what the motivations of the Chinese central bank.

Nearby, North Korea’s continued shenanigans with their rumoured hydrogen bomb detonation that did more than send a 5.2 or so Richter scale ripple with commodities getting rattled amidst rising geopolitical tensions.

However things might not be all that bad especially for the metalworking scene. There are some glimmers of hope despite record shrinkages in manufacturing growth in Singapore in 2015.

The aerospace sector increased its output by 6.1 percent with many more jobs created within the industry. Over in Indonesia, the Nikkei survey showed that contraction in the manufacturing sector has slowed down with the latest PMI measuring in at 47.8 – just short of the 50 boom or bust line as compared to 46.9 previously. This comes with the recent stimulus packages injected into the Indonesian economy.

Taking the first shot at 2016, I would advise that it is impossible to see the immediate results of measures taken in 2015 or before to see fruition immediately in the first few months of the new year. We are in the midst of the start of fourth industrial revolution and people, especially in the Southeast Asian region are just realising the need and the importance of connectivity on the shop and business floors. For manufacturing, the waves of revolution hit hardest at the start and it would be foolhardy to think that the business paradigm shift from the old ways to the new would be a calm one.

The revenue is there to be earned. In fact it has always been there and the treasure trove is growing – it’s just that the routes to it have changed, quite drastically if I might add. So my challenge to the readers is this: wallow in despair over the market gloom and say there is no more money to be earned or reinvent and innovate to find new, undiscovered revenue sources. Manage the wave and the calm will follow afterwards.

Randy Teo

randyteo@epl.com.sg

writer

Nyi Nyi Thet

nyithet@epl.com.sg

editorial assistant

Sharifah Zainon sharifah@epl.com.sg

graphic designer

Jef Pimentel

jeffreypimentel@epl.com.sg

circulation executive

Nurulhuda binte Suhaimi nurulhuda@epl.com.sg

contributors

Agnes Tong Bryan Jacobs Frederick Wong Gan Shu Lim Lester Lee Mary Allen Peter Dickin Ricky Payling Sanjay Kumar Shermine Gotfredsen Stephanie Riegel-Stolzer

All rights reserved. No portion of this publication covered by the copyright herein may be reproduced in any form or means – graphic, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, taping, etc – without the written consent of the publisher. Opinions expressed by contributors and advertisers are not necessarily those of the publisher and editor.

Printed in Singapore by Fabulous Printers Pte Ltd MCI (P) No. 047/06/2015 PPS 840/09/2012 (022818) ISSN 0129/5519

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BUSINESS NEWS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

MC3 Jon Husman

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Japan Secures $15 Billion Bullet Train Project In India

Demand For Lubrication To Rise Yearly Through 2019 Cleveland, US: A new report by Freedonia, a market research firm, tallies the current and historical demand data, while outlining the growth of lubricants in the coming years.

Overall, the world demand for lubricants is projected to rise two percent yearly through 2019, with the fastest gains expected in the Asia/ Pacific region. Developing countries in the Central, South American and the Africa/Middl-East region are also expected to post healthy gains in the face of economic strides.

More mature markets, such as Western Europe, Japan and the United States are expected to stay fairly flat through 2019, though the stricter regulations on the usage and disposal of lubricants will fuel the consumption of lubricants derived from re-refined base oils.

The developing world will see an increase in motor vehicle ownership, but the longer drain intervals imposed by manufacturers keen to keep down maintenance costs for their customers will tamper with growth in engine oils.

Process oils on the other hand, will be the fastest growing product category, supported mainly by gains in the manufacturing output from the Asia/Pacific region and other industrialising regions.

Furthermore, the fact that processed oils is often a component of a finished manufactured product makes it harder to reduce the volume, even with increased quality, due to the stringent nature of performance requirements.

Demand for hydraulic fluids, metalworking fluids and other lubricants will also be positively impacted, though less so than the process oil category, with bio-based hydraulic and metalworking fluids expected to see heavy gains thanks to environmental and safety regulation.

Mumbai, India: Japan will build India’s first bullet train project between the western cities of Ahmedabad and Mumbai, a distance of 505km, simultaneously providing a US$12 billion financial package that utilises a low-cost, long-term loan to help finance India’s first bullet train.

The loan is expected to cover 80 percent of the US$15 billion project, and will be granted at an interest rate as low as one percent, on condition that India purchases 30 percent of their required equipment, including coaches and locomotives, from Japan.

The project is expected to cut down travel times by up to five hours, with the train having a projected speed of between 300 to 350 km/h.

The two main beneficiaries of the project are most likely Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Limited and Hitachi Limited.

Indian Railway Board chairman AK Mital said: “There are several (players) offering the high-speed technology. But technology and funding together, we only have one offer. That is the Japanese.”

This is seen as Japan’s answer to China’s recent high-speed rail contract in Indonesia.

Japan is also par tnered with Taiwan High Speed Rail in overseas high-speed rail markets amid protests from China. Japan isn’t done however, having their sights firmly set on securing a bullet train deal to run from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur.

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BUSINESS NEWS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

China’s CNC Market Still Has Room To Grow

China’s Premier Sparks A Resurgence In Steel And Coal

New York, US: In 2014, the CNC machine tool output in China reached a high of 308,000 sets, a spike of 26.7 percent from the year earlier. However, the surge didn’t carry over to 2015, due largely to the economic downturn, ultimately resulting in a decline of economicaltype CNC machine tools and weak downstream demand that saw CNC machine tool output dropping to an estimated 207,000 sets.

Despite the setback, the Chinese CNC machine tool machine market is still extremely promising. For one thing, the current CNC machine tools add up to around 30 percent, which is still a long way off more developed countries like United States, Japan and Germany, all coming in at around 85 percent.

Made In China 2025 placed CNC machine tools under the key development umbrella, signalling the increased likelihood of high policy incentives, potentially leading to an uptick to 40 percent in 2018, and 60 percent in 2025.

To achieve these targets, the state will focus on supporting high efficient, intelligentized development of equipment. Enterprises such as Dalian Machine Tool Group and Shenyang Machine Tool Company have already begun shifting their focus to the development of these inteligentised products.

Despite the positives, there are still plenty of obstacles holding China’s CNC development back. Firstly, their reliance on imports is too high, with over 80 percent of high-end CNC machine tools and over 90 percent of high-end core components imported from Japan, the United States, and Germany.

The second obstacle revolves around the lack of competitiveness in the industry. Most core components, such as servo motors and

China: China’s steel and coal producers enjoyed a continuing resurgence on the back of Premier Li Keqiang’s assurance that the impact of job cuts will be softened in the country’s bid to trim overcapacity.

The government has set up funds to help coal miners and steelmakers more easily cut workers and dispose of bad assets. These funds will be dependent on companies cutting production capacity.

Johnson Hu, an analyst at UOB-Kay Hian said that “Li’s remarks open the door for companies to lay off workers as a tool to cut capacity and improve efficiency,” further adding that Li had provided “good news for coal mines and steel mills as the policy may help them solve their biggest headache, which is how to handle some of the redundant workforces.”

Michelle Leong, a Bloomberg Intelligence analyst in Hong Kong, viewed the move as a push for those at local governmental levels to accelerate the closing of mines, saying “The excess capacity has been huge”. Referring to the raw coal capacity of 4.8 billion metric tonnes compared to demand hovering around 3.1 billion tonnes.

The country will also stop approving new coal mines for the next three years, while continuing to trim its production capacity. This measure follows plans made by Hebei to cut its steel and iron production by 18 million tonnes. motor spindles, are in the hands of a few foreign companies. In fact, Siemens and Fanuc held more than 60 percent of China’s CNC system market in 2014.

The lack of competitiveness extends to the local markets too, as Dalian Machine Tool Group and Shenyang Machine Tool Company hold more than 50 percent of market share.

And lastly, there’s the issue of uneven regional distribution. CNC lathe and machining centre are mostly concentrated in Northeast and East China, grinders and functional components are manufactured mainly in the Yangtze River Delta Region and Central, while East China and Central China deals in the metal forming machine tools.

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BUSINESS NEWS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Indonesia Looks To Implement Reference Price For Steel

German Manufacturing Orders Surge Due To Strong Domestic Orders

Munich, Germany: German manufacturing orders rose for the second straight month in November, riding on strong domestic demand and a recovery in industrial activity after a weak third quarter.

Foreign demands nudged forward at 0.6 percent in November, the rise was fuelled by a robust 2.6 percent growth in domestic demand.

Overall, Germany’s manufacturing sector rose 1.5 percent on the month, dwarfing expert predictions of a more modest 0.3 percent. This follows a strong October which saw manufacturing rise 1.7 percent.

Analysts attributed the growth to a more domestic oriented shift in manufacturing, ensuring the sustainability of growth while global recovery remains weak.

A survey by the Lfo economic institute found that German manufacturing enterprises planned to increase their investment by six percent in the coming year, two percentage points higher than in the previous year.

Employment in the manufacturing sector also saw an increase for the 15th straight month in December, due to strong expansions in the production sector.

The economy ministry commented on the manufacturing sector saying: “After the decline of new orders in the third quarter, the impression of a modest recovery in manufacturing is reinforcing, sentiment indicators of the industry also send positive signals.”

Chinese Steel Magnate Expelled From Communist Party For Multiple Offences China: Deng Qilin, former chief of Wuhan Iron and Steel Corporation, has been expelled from the CPC for a multitude of offences that include graft, hindering investigations and “practising superstitious activities.”

China’s Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) further accused Deng Qilin of disciplinary violations and for misusing his influence for his own, as well as his relatives, private interests.

Deng resigned from Wuhan in June 2015, after serving as chairman since August 2001, and working there in other capacities since 1970. Deng also held other prominent roles in the steel industry; notably as the head of the China Iron and Steel Association. He had been placed under the CCDI surveillance since August 2015.

This arrest follows an ongoing crackdown by president Xi Jingping on graft and corruption that has led to the arrests of a host of senior officials and state enterprise executives. Most recently, fashion tycoon Zhou Chengjian and China’s “Warren Buffet” Guo Guangchang.

Wuhan Iron and Steel has not been doing much better than their former chief, with an expected 6,196 layoffs to be finalised by the end of February 2016.

Jakarta, Indonesia: The Indonesian government has revealed plans to determine a reference price for foreign steel.

The proposed measure is in response to the influx of cheap steel products flooding in from China. The Industry Ministry’s director general for metal, machinery, transportation equipment and electronic industries, Gusti Putu Sur yawirawan, said: “To prevent our steel industry from bankruptcy due to cheap imported steel, there has to be a reference price, a fair price.”

Putu also commented on the disparity of market prices for steel, pointing out PT Krakatu Steel’s conundrum when it had to charge US$380 per tonne despite production costs being nearly double that amount, further stating that the steel reference price would hopefully resolve these issues, as well as enforce any domestic quota steel companies need to fulfil.

The reaction to proposed measures have generally been positive, with some claiming that it would create a more equal playing ground between local and imported steel. Indonesian Iron and Steel Industry Association (IISIA) executive director Hidayat Triseputro however pointed out that the measures “needs a thorough review on what pricing mechanism will look like, as it will involve interests of both upstream and downstream industries.

China, for its part, is expected to lower crude steel output by 23 million tonnes in 2016, but even that according to Putu will result in around “100 million” tonnes worth of excess steel output.

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BUSINESS NEWS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Hebei To Cut Iron, Steel Production By 18 Million Tonnes

Continuing Commodities Turmoil Forces More Cuts On Oil And Mining Firms

Hebei, China: In a bid to combat the overcapacity in steel and iron production, the northern province of Hebei, which produces a quarter of China’s steel, has pledged to cut down iron production by 10 million tonnes and steel by eight million tonnes.

This turnaround comes in the midst of worsening air pollution in the region, blamed primarily on the production of steel, cement and glass. The reliance on heavy industries such as iron and steel has also left Hebei vulnerable to the ongoing dip in domestic and foreign demand for capital goods.

The production cuts, in addition to previous concessions that included a proposed cut of 160 million tonnes in steel, cement and coal, will likely ease the problem of over-capacity but affect Hebei’s economic growth, which most recently saw a 6.8 percent growth for 2015, in the short term.

New York, US: Oil and mining companies that had expanded during the community run-up last decade have already cut tens of thousands of jobs and postponed billions of dollars of projects in the face of ongoing commodities tumult that erased billions of dollars in shareholder value.

The problem does not seem to be easing up anytime soon according to Paul Mumford, a fund manager with Cavendish Asset Management whose funds hold shares of oils and mining companies, claiming: “You can’t say a good thing about the oil price” The current commodities rout might be part of a global shift in market dynamics that results in a ramping up of spending, even if prices rebound in the future.

According to Bernstein analysts “Oil company spending will remain capped even if oil prices rise” raising the possibility that the current mind-set of spending rise with oil price may have to be fundamentally altered to adapt to a new era of frugality.

For miners, the situation is even direr. Glencore Public Limited Company and Anglo American Public Limited Company slashed their dividends after seeing stock prices plunge over cash-flow and debt concerns.

Even the world’s biggest miner, BHP Billiton Limited, is facing the consequences of a deadly mine-dam breach in Brazil last year which could dent the company’s bottom line.

Concerns over the Chinese markets were primarily responsible for the losses from prominent oil and mining companies, with Shell losing 2.8 percent and mining giants BHP and Rio Tinto falling 5 and 3.4 percent respectively.

The response to these conditions has come in the form of layoffs and shut-ins of projects. In December 2015, Shell lowered its projected spending for 2016 from US$35 billion to US$33 billion, which was in addition to US$12 billion worth of cost cuts in 2015.

The mining sector is in for a tough year as well according to Macquarie Research mining analyst Alon Olsha, who said: “2016 is going to be another tough year, we have still not seen sufficient capacity and product rationalisation”

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BUSINESS NEWS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

A P P O I N TM E N TS

Cadillac Appoints LongTime BMW Executive As Sales Chief China’s $1 Trillion Aircraft Deficit China: China needs US$1 trillion worth of aircraft over the next 20 years, and according to Domhnal Slattery, the chief executive officer of lessor Avolon Holdings Limited, they have under-ordered by more than 750 planes.

Domnhall said in a Bloomberg interview: “The Chinese market is driven by demographics, if we look at Asia there’s 600 million to 700 million in the middle class. That’s going to grow in the next 20 years to 2.6 billion people. That’s 400 percent growth.” He further speculated that more orders lie ahead for Boeing and Airbus Group.

Boeing and Airbus predicts that China will become the largest air travel market over the next 20 years. The boom in Asian air travel has played a major part in lifting aircraft sales in recent years, leading to Boeing experiencing record breaking sales over the last three years.

China’s aircraft fleet is expected to rise to 7,210 planes by 2034, more than double the current amount, 2,570, of planes. To achieve that haul, Boeing predicts China will require 6,330 new planes, worth US$950 billion each, over the next two decades.

When pressed on the impact that the ongoing financial situation in China might have on the figures, Airbus strategy chief Marwan Lahoud doesn’t expect any major revisions to forecasts but will continue to closely watch China.

Schaeffler Group Acquires Latvian Start-Up Herzogenaurach, Germany: Schaeffler Group acquired Latvian start-up SIA Naco Technologies on December 10, 2015.

Naco Technologies, helmed by professor, Valery Mitin, is an expert in the development of new coating systems, as seen in their development of the fastest process for physical vapour deposition (PVD), which ably complements Schaeffler’s own PVD and plasma-based processes currently used in high volume production.

The acquisition of Naco is seen to be Schaeffler’s attempt at securing knowledge of their relevant field, while adding a team of highly-trained specialists into their fold. Professor Peter Gutzmen, deputy CEO and CTO, considers the move to be an addition to their Schaeffler’s key competencies, saying: “It underlines our claim to technology leadership in coating technology.”

Professor Mitin also welcomed the acquisition of his company, especially the chance to work with the specialists over at Schaeffler. He commented on his goals following the acquisition: “I would like to contribute my knowledge and the results of our work at one of the most innovative and leading global companies for surface technology.”

Mitin added “Together we will be able to advance the development of new and even better coating systems and achieve a quantum leap for production methods.”

Michigan, US: Dan Creed, former BMW executive, will take over from Jim Bunnell as vice president of sales operation effective January 16.

Creed will be in charge of sales and service in North America. Cadillac president Johan de Nysschen commended Creed’s “solid track record in the luxury sector” and his ability to “provide valuable input to the crafting of Cadillac’s sales and service strategy” They will need every ounce of his expertise.

Cadillac is coming off a substandard year where they saw growth, 2.6 percent, but nowhere in line with the average 7.7 percent gain in the luxury market.

The restructuring is part of Nysschen’s broader strategy to ramp up the level of service and sophistication of Cadillac dealerships. Speaking of the current standard in Cadillac, Nysschan commented that dealers “might be delivering to a standard, but it’s a standard way short of what a future Cadillac buyer will demand.”

India’s Steel Imports Experience 23 Percent Surge In December New Delhi, India: India bucked the worldwide steel inertia with a massive 23 percent rise in December 2015. This follows a 35 percent decline in November.

Total steel imports came up to 0.94 million tonnes, an increase compared to the previous month, but a decline of 1.4 percent compared to the same month in 2014. This surge in imports defied protectionist measures, which included a hike in import and safeguard duties, put in place by the government since June 2015.

The seeming failures of the measures can be traced to China’s circumvention through lowered prices in tandem with the policies. In all, imports of total finished steel during the April- December period came up to 8.389 million tonnes, a 29.2 percent increase compared to the same timeframe during 2014.

The Indian government though would not be deterred as more protectionist measures are expected to be carried out in the coming months, including a provisional safeguard duty of 20 percent on import of hot-rolled flat products of non-alloy and other alloy steel.

BUSINESS NEWS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Britain’s Largest Steelworks On The Verge Of Collapse Port Talbot, Britain: The British steel industry took yet another blow as Tata’s steelworks plant at Port Talbot, Britain’s largest steelworks, appeared to be in imminent danger of closing down, leaving its 4500 employees in an uncertain future.

This continues the worrying trend in an industry that has seen thousands of workers retrenched in the last three months, thanks in no small part to the downturn in the global market and the cheap exports being dumped

by China.

The town has called on Tata for a comprehensive plan to stem the current £1million (US$1.46 million) per week losses and prevent the same fate as Scunthorpe and Redcar, who had their steelworks shut down, leaving over 2500 staff unemployed.

The fallout has provoked many to call on more of a protectionist stance for British Steel in the face of the deluge of under-priced Chinese steel. Other measures being suggested in a bid to salvage the British steel industry include lowering environmental levies and business rates.

The community trade union has said it would be meeting Tata Steel to discuss talks of impending retrenchments, and how best to create a sustainable steel industry.

When asked for comment, a spokeswoman for Tata said: “We have no announcement to make at present”

Tesla Continues Testing Automotive Limits California, US: Tesla introduced the new 7.1 software that handily builds on the autopilot features from last October’s 7.0 software update.

Specifically, Tesla 7.1 expands on the autopilot functionality and doles out Summon, which is a new feature intended to auto park your car once you reach home, and auto summon it the next morning.

The update, released on January 10 and available to about 60,000 of their current vehicles will allow the driver to use the key fob or Tesla app to direct the car to park it. The new innovation continues Tesla’s pursuit of a car that is fully automated, expanding on the autopilot functions introduced in earlier updates.

Drivers are currently advised to utilise the parking function on their own private properties, due to Tesla 7.1’s inability to recognise some

Lloyd’s Register Launches Guidance Notes To Additive Manufacturing London, England: Lloyd’s Register launched a goal-based Additive Manufacturing (AM) guidance notes to industry, giving operators and manufacturers in the energy and marine industries confidence in metallic equipment and components produced using AM. AM is seen as the next industrial revolution for manufacturing, and Lloyd’s Register, in conjunction with engineering research and technology firm TWI, believes their guidelines will be an important step in the commercialisation of AM. Several industries have already been integrating AM into their manufacturing process. Rolls-Royce has been exploring AM technology for over half a decade, mainly for component manufacture and repair.

The benefits according to Derek Jones from Rolls-Royce’s Research and Technology programme are massive. “Shortening the manufacturing time by almost a third gives us more time to design, which is always a benefit.”

The automotive industry is also investigating hybrid production that incorporates AM technology with the end goal of minimising its outlay on high-value material.

The positives aren’t limited to just the automotive industry. Sectors as varied as pharmaceuticals and aerospace are also looking into using AM in their day to day business.

The oil and gas sector especially, where cost savings and efficiency gains are crucial in remaining ahead of the curve and restoring investor confidence could see the increased usage of AM components.

Roger Fairclough, principal project leader at TWI, is hopeful that their collaboration with Lloyd’s Register will be a gamechanger, stating “This joint industry project between Lloyd’s Register and TWI will bridge the gap for the project participants and enable them to bring AM parts quickly and safely into the industrial marketplace.”

obstacles, such as bicycles and cardboard boxes.

Tesla’s owner Elon Musk outlined the end goal of his product during a conference call, saying: “In two years you’ll be able to summon your car from across the country, if your car is in New York and you are in Los Angeles, it will find its way to you.”

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BUSINESS NEWS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Iron Ore Slump Threatens $2 Billion Mine

POSCO Unveils Advanced Automotive Steel Technology At Detroit Car Show Detroit, US: South Korean steelmaker POSCO is expected to unveil 30 futuristic car components and automotive steel technology during the North American International Auto Show that’s taking place in Detroit, Michigan, from January 11- 24, 2016.

The company is mainly focusing on its own advanced automotive steel technologies, including twinning induced plasticity steel (TWIP) and hot press forming (HPF) steel with enhanced strength and elasticity. Their TWIP steel withstands up to 100 kilograms per square millimetre, with over five times more formability.

The company’s HSF steel is also notable for its tensile strength which reaches 2 GPa, dwarfing over the industry standard of 1.5 GPa, allowing POSCO’s HSF steel to withstand 200 kilograms per square meter.

The company will also introduce the PosM-XF, their TWIP that further improves forming ability, and the recently developed 1 GPa TRIP steel, which emits 50 percent less carbon dioxide than conventional steel frames of cars with internal combustion engines and nine percent less carbon dioxide than conventional steel frames of electric vehicles with the same size.

An official from POSCO claimed that: “The automotive body is 26.4 percent lighter but safer than conventional steel frames of mid-sized sedans.

It has received a ‘five-star’ rating in European new car assessment program tests and a ‘Good’ rating in the U.S.’ Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) tests.”

Hybrid Planes Gets A Boost From NASA Cleveland, US: Researchers at the NASA Glenn research centre are working on a hybrid plane that functions in the same vein as hybrid cars. The plane will rely on both fossil fuels and electricity to function.

They have already started work on all aspects of the new airplane, from the hybrid electric engine to smaller pieces such as insulation around the aircraft wiring.

The advances currently being made are thought to have the potential of making airplanes nearly 30 percent more fuel efficient, a huge reduction for an industry that guzzled more than 8.9 billion galleons of fuel in America last year.

Touching more on the structure of the plane, Amy Jankovsky, a NASA engineer said that “These systems use electrical motors and generators that work together with turbine engines to distribute power throughout the aircraft in order to reduce drag for a given amount of fuel burned.”

NASA is definitely not the only proponent of the electrical plane, with other concept plans already being heavily discussed throughout the year, such as the Progress Eagle and the PAK TA.

Pilbara, Australia: Gindalbie Metals Limited could very well be the next casualty of the continuing slump in iron ore prices.

Their partner, Anshan Iron and Steel Group Corporation has engaged a third party in a bid to determine the viability of their Karara iron ore mine in Western Australia in light of the predicaments currently plaguing the steel sector.

The Karara situation is nothing new for a sector that has seen iron ore slip 39 percent in 2015 to cement three years of straight losses, leading to major mining operations across Australia shutting down and iron ore bottoming at US$38.30 a metric tonne.

BC Iron Limited for example suspended its Nullagine joint venture with Fortescue Metals Group Limited, Australia’s third largest producer, due to lower prices. Even anticipated foreign investment such as Baosteel’s proposed project in Western Australia has been indefinitely delayed.

Some experts claim that the near collapse of iron ore prices might actually be much needed shot in the face of the inertia that has seeped into the sector, prompting the closure of many large mines that should have been shuttered off even earlier.

Matthew Hodge, a Sydney based analyst, is one of them, bemoaning the need for more closures in the sector, saying: “Some of them should potentially go and that’s a positive, but we are only at the beginning, while there’s that oversupply out there, the market needs more pain.”

Gindalbie has already requested formal notification from Ansteel for reassurance on their long term support for Karara, but has yet to receive a response, the Australian company said in the statement.

BUSINESS NEWS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Manufacturing Takes A Hit Following Uncertainty Over China Slowdown London, England: The FTSE 100 index began the New Year in a flurried state, losing £38 billion (US$55.36 billion) as global stock markets stumbled midst continued uncertainty over the China economy.

The fallout originated from China, where news of a weakening factory sector and faltering Yuen led to Chinese shares on the CSI300 index tumbling seven percent, halting trading an hour and a half early, and further adding to the pressure caused by the anticipation of an end to the ban on share sales by big stakeholders this week.

The news from China also resulted in a complete collapse in the price of copper, which is intrinsically tied to the Chinese market, slumping to a two week low and causing UK-listed miners to dip into the red.

The drop in Chinese stocks comes on the heels of a business survey that suggested manufacturing activity in China contracted for the temth successive month in December.

Confidence in Britain’s manufacturing sector also took a hit in the face of China’s waning growth. The shakeup in confidence was compounded by a survey confirming that manufacturing in 2015 was slower than 2014.

British manufacturers also faced the slowest pace for new overseas orders over the last five months. The main activity index slipping to 51.9 in December, slightly off the 52.7 forecast by a Reuters poll of economists.

Britain was not the only European market to be affected by the situation in China; Germany’s Dax was down more than four percent, while France’s Cac fell by two and a half percent.

Morgan Teams Up With Yongda To Establish New Manufacturing Facility Wuxi, China: In a slight tweak to the trend of Chinese companies investing in US based companies, Morgan Ceramic Core Technology has teamed up with integrated corporation group, Yongda Technology Group to establish a manufacturing facility in Wuxi, China.

The nine month, US$1.45 million dollar partnership expands Morgan’s presence in China’s industrial gas turbine and aerospace sectors. The facility will ultimately employ around 160 staff, providing a much needed employment boost to the stagnating Chinese manufacturing sector.

Dr Pete Raby, CEO of Morgan Advanced Materials, officially opened the branch. The opening ceremony was also attended by senior Morgan executives from Greater China and across Asia, as well as guests from both Yongda and their subsidiary, Suvast.

Expressing optimism for the future of the partnership, Raby said: “This joint venture has created a facility which is ideally placed to serve the developing needs of key industrial sectors in China and further afield. Our partnership with Yongda has been a close and mutually beneficial one to date and will continue to be so as the facility now moves into full production mode” This isn’t the first time Yongda has teamed up with an American company; in March 2015 they secured an auto discount and financing accord with San Francisco transport network giant, Uber.

BOC Aviation Orders 30 Airbus A320s

Singapore: Singapore-based aircraft leasing firm BOC Aviation has ordered 30 Airbus A320s, which totals up to more than US$3 billion at list price, in order to keep up with increasing demand.

The order, which included 18 A320s with new engines and 12 A320s that are using current engines, was made at the end of December. 18 of the A320 came in at US$106.2 million each, with the new engines bumping the price up from US$97 million for a standard A320.

The new purchases follow November’s haul of 22 B737s worth US$2.27 billion at catalogue prices. According to Robert Martin, BOC Aviation chief executive, this move signals BOC Aviation’s commitment to Boeing as well as providing their customers with further choices in their short and medium haul routes.

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BUSINESS NEWS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Graphite Hit By Dip In Chinese Markets

Electric Cars Charging Ahead New York, US: Electric cars might not be doing as well as proponents might have wished for, but there is no slowing the industrial push to bring new battery-powered vehicles to the market.

General Motors is just one of the many companies focusing on electric vehicles, and their production version of the Chevrolet Bolt exemplified the ongoing strategic investment by many companies in cars that run on sustainable energy.

The Bolt is widely considered by many to be a significant stepping stone in the popularisation of the electric car, promising long range, 322km on a fully charged battery, at an affordable price, US$30,000. The significant upgrades might still not be enough though, as consumers could be tempted to stick to their larger vehicles by the current US$2 a galleon situation.

Disappointing sales, unfortunately, aren’t new to electric and hybrid vehicles, which have experienced mostly lacklustre sales so far. The electric and hybrid car sector accounted for only 2 percent of the automotive sector, with individual models like the Nissan Leaf receding by 43 percent in 2015 compared to the year before, and the Toyota Prius suffering an 11 percent drop.

Industry analysts are unsure over whether electric cars will catch on anytime soon, particularly during low gas prices, but Ms Mary Barra, GM’s chief executive, states that GM is “committed to electrification” despite hiccups in sales so far.

GM is far from the only company that is keeping faith with the new electric/ hybrid trend. Tesla, perhaps the most well know purveyor of electric cars, is starting production on their Z model soon, Audi recently showcased an electric SUV called the e-tron and BMW rolled out an electric car just last year.

As Mr Ricky Hudi, a senior executive at Audi, said: “Electrification, connectivity and autonomous driving are the trends.”

Most automotive company’s seem to be on board with that philosophy, and are willing to bear present deficit in sales and less than stellar consumer engagement because as Ms Barra admitted: “The way people get around is changing forever and we get that”

London, England: In the worldwide frenzy caused by the turmoil in Chinese markets, graphite’s woes might have been severely downplayed.

The graphite industry, like many other sectors, has been experiencing a consistent updraft caused by the continued surge of Chinese steel, due primarily to its use as a key raw material in electrodes and refractories.

And, like many other sectors, they are seemingly rushing headlong into a crisis caused by the contraction of the Chinese market. The primary lifeblood of the synthetic graphite industry, electrodes for electric arc furnaces (EAFs), has been hit hard. 2014 saw a six percent drop in EAF steel production, and 2015 continued that downward trend.

Natural graphite has not fared much better, with demand for refractories, by far the most significant market for natural graphite, falling every year since 2011. The slide is projected to continue all the way up till 2020.

There’s a silver lining hidden among all the doom and gloom though and it comes in the very portable form of lithium-ion batteries, more specifically, in the anodes of lithiumion batteries.

China has become somewhat of a breeding ground for electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in electric vehicles. In fact, 2015 sales accounted for more than half of all EV sales in China’s history. Much of this demand can be attributed to the Chinese governments push to put five million new energy vehicles on the road by 2020, through a variety of measures from EV subsidies and exempting EVs from rush hour restrictions.

The push towards EVs isn’t restricted to just China alone, visionary manufacturers such as Tesla have done incredible things to up the demand of EVs, creating sleek, battery efficient cars at surprisingly low prices. All this, in addition to growing awareness of the environmental deficits caused by traditional cars have seen a surge in demand for EVs. Growth in the graphite industry, both synthetic and natural, depends heavily on this surge in the coming years, as well as the adoption of new sectors that might come up in the near future.

Together we move the world The Schaeffler Group is a leading global integrated automotive and industrial supplier. The company stands for the highest quality, outstanding technology and strong innovative ability. The Schaeffler Group makes a decisive contribution to “mobility for tomorrow” with high-precision The Schaeffler is ina engine, leadingtransmission global integrated automotive and components andGroup systems and chassis applications industrial supplier.

The company stands for the highest quality, outstanding as well as rolling and plain bearing solutions for a large number of industrial technology strong innovative network ability. The Schaeffler Group makes applications.and It has a worldwide of manufacturing locations, a decisive tofacilities “mobility tomorrow” withat high-precision research andcontribution development andforsales companies approximately components systems in engine, transmission and chassis applications 170 locationsand in 50 countries. as well as rolling and plain bearing solutions for a large number of industrial applications. It has a worldwide network of manufacturing locations, research and development facilities and sales companies at approximately 170 locations in 50 countries.

Together we move the world

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Regional HQ: Schaeffler (Singapore) Pte Ltd . 151 Lorong Chuan, #06-01, New Tech Park, Lobby A, Singapore 556741 . Tel: +65 6540 8600 . Fax: +65 6540 8668 . marketing_sg@schaeffler.com

Vietnam Indonesia Malaysia Philippines Thailand PT. Schaeffer Bearings Indonesia Schaeffler Bearings (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd. Schaeffler Philippines Inc. Schaeffler (Thailand) Co., Ltd. Schaeffler (Vietnam) Co., Ltd. Regional HQ: Schaeffler (Singapore) Pte 5-2 LtdWisma . 151 Fiamma Lorong Chuan, #06-01, New Tech Park, LobbyOptima A, Singapore +65Exchange 6540 8600 . Fax: marketing_sg@schaeffler.com Lippo Kuningan 5th Floor Bldg. 556741 . Tel:388 Tower, 34th+65 Floor6540 8668 6th. Floor, TMS Building.

Salcedo St. Legaspi Village Unit 3403-3404 172 Hai Ba Trung Street, District 1.

19th Floor Unit A & F No 20 Jalan 7A/62A Ho Chi Minh City Jl. HR Rasuna Said Kav B - 12 Bandar Menjalara Makati City 1229 Sukhumvit Road, Klongtoey Jakarta 12920 52200 Kuala Lumpur Tel: +63 2 7593583 Bangkok, Vietnam.

Vietnam Indonesia Malaysia Philippines Thailand 10110 Malaysia Fax: +63 2 7798703 Thailand Tel: +84 8 222 02 777Co., Ltd. Tel: +62 21 29110280 PT. Schaeffer Bearings Indonesia Schaeffler Bearings (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd. Schaeffler Philippines Inc. Schaeffler (Thailand) Co., Ltd. Schaeffler (Vietnam) marketing_ph@schaeffler.com Tel: +662 697 0000 Fax: +84 8TMS 222Building.

02 776 Fax: +62 21 29110281 Tel: +603 6275 06 20 5th Floor Optima Bldg.

388 Exchange Tower, 34th Floor 6th Floor, Lippo Kuningan 5-2 Wisma Fiamma marketing_vn@schaeffler.com marketing_id@schaeffer.com Fax: +603 6275 64 21 Fax: 697 0001 172 Hai Ba Trung Street, District 1.

19th Floor Unit A & F No 20 Jalan 7A/62A Salcedo St. Legaspi Village Unit +662 3403-3404 marketing_my@schaeffler.com marketing_th@schaeffler.com Jl. HR Rasuna Said Kav B - 12 Bandar Menjalara Makati City 1229 Sukhumvit Road, Klongtoey Ho Chi Minh City Jakarta 12920 52200 Kuala Lumpur Tel: +63 2 7593583 Bangkok, 10110 Vietnam.

Malaysia Fax: +63 2 7798703 Thailand Tel: +84 8 222 02 777 Tel: +62 21 29110280 marketing_ph@schaeffler.com Tel: +662 697 0000 Fax: +84 8 222 02 776 Fax: +62 21 29110281 Tel: +603 6275 06 20

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METAL CUTTING Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Ricky Payling, application specialist at Dormer Pramet, outlines the growth of stainless steel, how the cutting tool industry has evolved to machine the material, as well as providing a summary of some of its most common grades.

Editorial

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Making New Impressions S

tainless steel is a vitally important rosion and oxidation increases in line with chromaterial for many industries around mium content. Other alloying elements, such as the world. Even though it was created nickel and molybdenum, can be added to change more than 100 years ago, use of the the structure, increase corrosion resistance and material has increased significantly since the improve strength. turn of the 21st century.

This increase in production and consumption According to the International Stainless Steel has coincided with advancements and new develForum (ISSF) the global demand for stainless steel opments within the cutting tool industry. Due to products has nearly doubled in the last 20 years, the difficult process of machining stainless steel, and continues to grow five percent each year. manufacturers have invested a huge amount of In 2014, almost 42 million metric tons of staintime and resources in finding new ways to try to less steel was produced worldwide – a 70 percent combat the numerous application challenges. increase from 2005 (24 million metric tons). This Recent introductions include changes to the growth is predominantly achieved by an increase cutting tool design, new geometries, improved in China, where production has grown from a 13 coolant and developing stronger coatings to percent share of global output in 2005 to more improve performance and tool life. than 52 percent in 2014.

Drills with thin margins for example, reduces This rapid development is not only to meet the contact with the hole surface, minimising worldwide demand, but also to support increased friction between the cylindrical land and the hole use within China, where stainless steel is conwalls, decreasing work hardening and temperasumed in household metal products, building tures generated. materials and machinery.

Positive point geometries ensure excellent Stainless steels’ anti-corrosive qualities chip breaking and evacuation, while a specially make it perfect for use in a huge range of environments and components, such as aerospace, general engineering, consumer, oil and gas, medical and marine industries.

Its versatility is reflected by the fact that there are more than 150 different grades.

Co m m o n s t a i n le s s steels include ferritic, martensitic, austenitic, super-austenitic and duplex. More details of which are covered below.

The main alloying element is chromium, which forms an ultrathin oxide film on the surface. As a general The Pramet face milling range is ideal for machining stainless steel. rule, resistance to cor-

METAL CUTTING Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Pramet OEHT octagonal inserts for milling stainless steel.

designed web combines the benefits of maximum rigidity with space for efficient chip removal, reducing machine downtime.

Coatings and coolant Significant heat is generated during machining of stainless steel, resulting in plastic deformation and severe crater wear. Therefore, a generous flow of cutting fluid removes heat from the cutting edge, helps chip breaking and improves dimensional stability of the component.

When using flood coolant, it is important to ensure a plentiful supply as any period of coolant starvation can cause temperature fluctuations.

This can cause thermal cracking, resulting in reduced tool life. Cutting tools with through coolant also provide an instant reduction in temperature and supports chip evacuation.

Meanwhile, a titanium aluminium nitride (TiAlN) coating is ideally suited for machining stainless steel as it holds its hardness at higher temperatures due to a layer of aluminium oxide, helping to transfer the heat away from the cutting tool.

The high strength of stainless steels combined with their high ductility makes chip breaking more difficult. This increases the risk of vibration, which can affect surface finish quality and reduce the service life of the tool or insert.

To address this, always make sure tooling and work pieces are stable and well clamped. Always keep tool overhang to a minimum, especially when drilling or internal turning. To help reduce vibration, use sharp tools or inserts with a small nose or corner radius.

Ferritic & Martensitic From a machinability point of view, ferritic and martensitic stainless steels are classified as ISO P: Steel. Normal chromium content is 12 to 18 percent, with only small additions of other alloying elements.

Ferritic materials are used in shafts for pumps, steam and water turbines, nuts, bolts, hot water heaters, and in the pulp and food processing industries. Martensitic steels can be hardened and are, as a result, used for edges in cutlery steel, razor blades and surgical instruments.

Machinability of ferritic and matensitic stainless steels is good and very similar to low alloyed steels.

Austenitic & Super-Austenitic Austenitic stainless steels are the most commonly used ISO M material, accounting for 70 percent of all stainless steel machined. This is due primarily to their very good resistance to corrosion.

The most common composition is 18 percent chromium and eight percent nickel. Steel with greater corrosion resistance is created by adding two to three per cent molybdenum, often called “acid-proof steel� or type 316. Super-austenitic stainless steels have a nickel content of more than 20 percent.

Austenitic and super-austenitic stainless steels are used where good resistance against corrosion is required. Typical industry sectors include the chemical, pulp and food processing industries. It is also used in aircraft exhaust manifolds.

Did You Know?

Austenitic stainless steels are the most commonly used ISO M material, accounting for 70 percent of all stainless steel machined.

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METAL CUTTING Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Duplex materials have a high tensile strength and maintain very high corrosion resistance. Super-duplex and hyper-duplex indicate higher content of alloying elements and even higher corrosion resistance

Dormer’s R459 drill is suited to machining a variety of materials, including stainless steel.

Austenite stainless steel produces tough, long, continuous chips that are difficult to break. It is prone to work hardening during machining, producing hard surfaces and chips which lead to notch wear. It also creates adhesion and produces built-up edge, resulting in poor surface finish and reducing tool life.

To minimise this, avoid using tools with worn edges which could accelerate tool wear and cause breakage. Make regular checks for signs of wear and change tools or inserts regularly.

Also, try to avoid any dwells or pauses in the cutting process as this will cause heat build-up and increase work hardening.

A high rake angle reduces heat generated during milling, minimising work hardening.

Duplex Adding nickel to a ferritic chromium based steel will form a mixed base structure containing both

ferrite and austenite. This is known as a duplex stainless steel.

Duplex materials have a high tensile strength and maintain very high corrosion resistance.

Super-duplex and hyper-duplex indicate higher content of alloying elements and even higher corrosion resistance.

Chromium content between 18 to 24 percent and nickel content between four to seven percent are common in duplex steels, producing a ferritic share of 25 to 80 percent.

Duplex stainless steels are used in the chemical, food, construction, medical, cellulose and paper making industries, and in processes that include acids or chlorine. They are often used in equipment related to off-shore oil and gas applications.

Machinability of duplex is generally poor due to high yield point and high tensile strength.

Higher content of ferrite – above 60 percent improves machinability.

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METAL CUTTING Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

C-Level Talk:

Taking Success

Forward

R Editorial

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einhard Banasch was responsible for 2008 to 2014 as a board member of the Rational AG marketing and sales. Before this, he was previously European sales director and regional director southern Europe at Pilkington. After working in sales and product management at Nixdorf Computer AG, he worked eleven years at Mars Incorporated in various international Sales and General Management functions.

Under his stewardship, the Hoffmann Group has achieved the one billion euro revenue mark for the fiscal year of 2014, which according to the Hoffmann Group, is the company’s best annual result in its entire history. This represented an increase of 8.9 percent compared with the previous year.

What were your thoughts when you took on the role of CEO of the Hoffmann group and how have things progressed for you moving on a year forward?

Before I was appointed as the CEO of Hoffmann in 2014, I have held several positions previously

Mr Reinhard Banasch, the global CEO of the Hoffmann Group shares his thoughts with Syed Shah on the developments and milestones since his appointment to the role in 2014. which include serving as a board member of the Rational AG marketing and sales. I was also the European sales director and regional director for southern Europe at Pilkington. Hoffmann deals with quality tools and its mission is to make its customers more successful by reducing the costs and simplifying the process of tool procurement which will in turn lead to increased productivity. This is one of the main attractions of Hoffmann for me - from a marketing and sales point of view, the company is very close to its customers. Developing customer advantage is out of the product offerings because I believe a company’s success is determined by how well you understand your customer’s needs.

The first 100 days in the job comprised of training and working very closely with my colleagues in getting me up to speed with the company operations. I believe that stepping in and changing an excellent business structure of a successful company is not the way to better the business. There have been two major drivers in this company which have made it very successful. The first is the internationalisation

METAL CUTTING Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

In terms of the availability of tools with the increasing demand for them in this part of the world, we always make sure that there is enough of each specific tool in the distribution centres anywhere.

of the company with its consultative approach towards as part of the service to the customer in an increasingly complex business environment.

The second one is digitalisation by making the interface of our offerings to the customer as efficient as possible.

What are Hoffmann’s key priorities for the Asia Pacific region and your strategy towards achieving those opportunities including potential growth areas?

Our main target in the region is to become the system partner in the point of view of our customers that we are not just a company that produces a catalogue or just a pure cutting tools manufacturer but instead something that is a combination of the strengths of both portions.

We strive to improve the productivity of our customers so we are offering what we offer elsewhere in the world to this part of Asia too. We also seek to bring our services in the e-business to the fore with our online product ordering service. This, together with our consultancy service is one of the cornerstones of strength for the Hoffmann group. So the message that we want to bring to our customers in this region is to instil a sense of trust in them about us – that we are the right company to provide them with a comprehensive set of solutions for their tooling issues.

In terms of the availability of tools with the increasing demand for them in this part of the world, we always make sure that there is enough of each specific tool in the distribution centres anywhere. Of course, while we do our best to ensure delivery, there might be issues with customs clearance depending on which country you are bringing your goods into which are out of our hands.

Most businesses are heavily dependent on the economy and the past few years have seen a volatile world economy. So how does the Hoffmann Group manage to stay profitable and keep positive growth?

Our strategy of internationalisation and our reach into the more established economies have “softened” the impact of the multiple global downturns in the last few years. This has enabled us to “even out” the revenues amongst the subsidiaries and ensure that the company stays in the black even in the most difficult of times.

Another strategy is our diversified offerings to the manufacturing sector. With diversification, if one segment might be facing a tough market during a trying time, then the other areas of focus would be able to make up for that pressure.

This means as long as a company is producing or maintaining something, there is always a business opportunity to be working together with us. This means that we can be selling not only

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METAL CUTTING Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

markets were suddenly more open to more ways of doing sourcing for materials and services that we could provide to help them.

Garant is one of the leading names in cutting tools today.

With it, we are driving our expertise into Industry 4.0 making sure our products are integrated into the production processes of our customers and ensuring that throughout its service lifecycle that those products perform at their best.

to automotive makers or energy companies but we will also be having our reach in other areas like chemicals.

So I would say that we are in the position to be a very healthy company for many years.

Currently we have 130,000 customers and will be a 1.1 billion euro revenue company. Crisis is a matter of how big your market penetration is already so I believe that there is always an opportunity if you stay close to your customers.

In addition, sometimes having a crisis might be a good thing because then it spurs creativity when exploring segments of the market that have otherwise been previously unexplored. For instance in the European economic crisis, some

Could you share a little more on some advances in cutting tools that Hoffmann has recently released and will these offerings be marketed here in ASEAN especially?

Garant is one of the leading names in cutting tools today. With it, we are driving our expertise into Industry 4.0 making sure our products are integrated into the production processes of our customers and ensuring that throughout its service lifecycle that those products perform at their best. Cutting tools is about the speed and the durability of the product (how long it is going to last in service). If the tool is going to last three to four times longer than the competition then the return of investment for a slightly pricier tool with superior workmanship is worth it. Performance is defined by the cutting tool itself and in a 4.0 environment you know exactly at what stage of the lifecycle the product is.

It has always been amazing for me when I know that you can still drill or mill when while understanding what the challenges of materials are and how much you can achieve when you put together the latest aspects of technology in machining today together and one such product is the Garant MasterSteel HPC milling cutter.

The requirements in vertical markets such as aerospace and the automotive sectors are very high because they require high end and the

METAL CUTTING Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

most modern cutting machines. These machines would then in turn require the highest grades of cutting tools. If you have a high end machine that has substandard cutting tools, then it will be no point. I would liken this to driving a Lamborghini that has been fitted with a saloon car’s engine which is wrong because it would not justify the cost of investment. Thus you need high grade cutting tools to get the cutting machines to perform perfectly. With 25,000 or so tools offered, we have a wide range of tools to suit specific needs of these industries.

from Germany. How does this fit into our business? All our products would be made available with ready content for the customer to choose in the e-shop. The next thing is to make sure that these products are moving smoothly in the production cycle. We seek to keep track on how well our products are performing (serving our customers’ needs) on the automated floor without manual interference. What we do is that we position our offerings to fit into the increasingly automated processes in today’s manufacturing paradigms.

It has been a long standing issue for manufacturers in the region about the standard of the knowledge for machine tools. What can regional players learn from their European counterparts?

How well a customer is able to utilise the best tools very much depends on the manufacturer’s ability to connect with the customer as mentioned earlier. As such, the consultative sales for us is the most important thing – finding out their challenges, having salespeople that are equipped with expert knowledge of the products who are able to communicate and advise customers accordingly. This is something that Hoffmann is very strong in plus I would say that the salespeople we have are well informed and have been keeping abreast of technological developments on the factory floor like Industry 4.0.

With this, I have no doubt that customers will be getting the latest and most relevant advice on their product lifecycles and operations regardless of their locations.

But for everything else, I would say that we cannot really be differentiating the expectations of the European or Asian customers because the expectation for the quality of the tools is very much similar. It is not a question about learning anymore but instead it’s about getting together and making sure that we can provide outstanding consultancy where we work with the customers and potentially develop tooling solutions to suit their specific needs. In terms of production processes for the manufacturing in Europe and in Asia, we feel that the standards are getting pretty similar today because we feel that standards and requirements are high and sophisticated.

What is your style of leadership and what do you hope this style brings to the business?

As mentioned, I have found that the company has been extremely successful in the past and first of all one need to adopt the style of the company and not vice versa. From a leadership point of view, I think it has to be a perfect balance between celebrating the success of the team and being eager to move forward because standing still means falling back. So my standpoint is that the role of the CEO is to always challenge the way of the working style of the people within the organisation. My principle in life is that I like to give an idea of what I would like to achieve for the business and be surprised by the people in my organisation in realising that idea.

So far this has worked out very well in Hoffmann since I have taken over.

I am a great fan of communication so what I think is right is for the leader to know what the people in the organisation is thinking so in this sense, the door to my office is always open. In other words I would like to say that I am definitely reachable. To sit in an ivory tower is a sure way to distance one’s self from those on the ground – the very people that makes the organisation tick. I also feel what is important is to give people in the organisation a sense of ownership of the company because if they do not feel connected to the organisation they are working for, then it would be impossible to look to grow the company in the long run.

The advances of technology have stepped up a gear when it comes to productivity and cost savings. Could you give us some thoughts on Industry 4.0 in this respect and how tooling comes into the picture?

I would like to think that it is heartening to know that the businesses in this region are familiar with the term Industry 4.0 since its initial origins

Some final thoughts for the coming year for Hoffmann in terms of growth and expansion.

We are in the budget phase for 2016 and overall we are feeling bullish for the global economy despite the few challenges in specific markets.

We still need to be still cautious about this but the overall expectation for the company points towards growth and investments. There will be more exciting announcements within 2016 when the new catalogue for our products is out. There is a huge competition for our suppliers to be in our catalogue so I think that things are definitely looking up for us come 2016.

So my standpoint is that the role of the CEO is to always challenge the way of the working style of the people within the organisation.

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“Aircraft components made of aluminium alloys have machining volumes of up to 90 percent, as pockets of varying sizes and depths need to be milled out of the material depending on the size of the component.”

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Ramping It Up

Aluminium is one of the most important materials in the aerospace industry. Furthermore, typical components are extremely machiningintensive and therefore require long production times. Tools designed to precisely suit these requirements, such as a ramping cutter from Walter AG, help to reduce machining times and costs. Gan Shu Lim, Walter marketing, explains.

W

e are seeing an increasing demand for high-performance tools for machining aluminium, particularly in the aerospace industry,” says Wolfgang Vötsch, senior product manager for milling at Walter AG in Tübingen. “New aluminium-lithium alloys are gaining in popularity, and these materials quickly overwhelm conventional tools.”

Aircraft components made of aluminium alloys have machining volumes of up to 90 percent, as pockets of varying sizes and depths need to be milled out of the material depending on the size of the component. The components must be machined using the “High Speed Cutting” method (HSC) at cutting speeds of up to 3300 m/minute to ensure cost-effective and high-quality manufacturing.

If the cutting data is too low, this leads to build-up on the cutting edge and therefore rapid wear and frequent tool changes, resulting in high costs due to longer machine running times. Machining operators who specialise in aluminium therefore have good reason to demand outstanding cutting data and tool life from their tools, to say nothing of the fact that

high-speed machining in particular requires the highest levels of process reliability.

The tool developers at Walter had these exact requirements in mind when developing the new M2131 ramping mill. They equipped the 90° milling cutter with a new class of indexable inserts that represents the current pinnacle of machining technology for aluminium wrought alloys. The grade designation of these indexable inserts is “WNN15”. This refers to an entirely new PVD variant, manufactured using the “HiPIMS method”. HiPIMS stands for “High Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering”, which is a technology based on conventional cathode sputtering using magnetrons.

The special feature of this physical coating process is that it produces an extremely thick and smooth PVD coating. The advantage of this is that it provides a huge reduction in friction, thereby reducing the tendency to form built up edges. It also provides extremely high resistance to flank face wear and high cutting edge stability. As a result, it provides the best conditions for ensuring the maximum metal removal rate. “Field tests have confirmed the technological advantages of the new indexable

METAL CUTTING Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

The surface is very smooth and has very low friction, which minimises build-up on the cutting edge during aluminium machining, leading in turn to very high tool life.

inserts in comparison to standard types. Our application engineers have achieved increases in tool life of up to 200 percent with ease. In one case, we even succeeded in reaching an increase of almost 400 percent!” Wolfgang Vötsch mentions.

To ensure that HSC machining is reliable, Walter manufactures the tool body of the M2131 with the highest possible concentricity. The indexable inserts are provided with integrated protection against centrifugal force. The milling cutter is also pre-balanced. To complete

this range of features designed specifically for meeting the exacting requirements of aluminium applications, the tool has internal coolant channels that are suitable both for emulsion and for minimum quantity lubrication. Wolfgang Vötsch concludes: “The aerospace industry is one of our most important key sectors. We have been supplying it with high-performance tools for years. In some cases, we have also developed these tools in collaboration with machine manufacturers. This was the case with the new M2131 as well.”

Indexable insert with the new “WNN15” HiPIMS coating: The M2131 ramping mill is equipped with ZDGT1504/ZDGT2005 – indexable inserts with corner radii of 0.4-4 mm or 0.8-6.4 mm. Their geometry is optimised for pocket milling. The special feature of this cutting material grade is that WNN15 is a PVD coating applied using the HiPIMS process.

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HBE DYNAMIC The dynamic way of sawing

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Behringer and Behringer Eisele - world leading producers of high-performance band- and circular sawing systems offer a wide range for every kind of metal - including stainless and special alloys.

The HBE Dynamic series by BEHRINGER provides performance, ease of use and energy efficiency.

Use the potential of innovative High-Performance Band- and Circular Saws of BEHRINGER and BEHRINGER EISELE. Experience machines and solutions for high precision and profitability.

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GREAT GEAR & SYSTEM Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

The Right Aluminium Saw For Every Application:

Something For Everything Aluminium is used for a wide range of purposes in construction, including façades, blinds and window elements. But it has applications in many other areas of manufacturing as well: ships, aircraft, motor vehicles, machines and household goods. Having the correct machining tools for aluminium is imperative. By Stephanie Riegel-Stolzer, member of the board of management, Kasto Maschinenbau.

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O

wing to aluminium’s special characteristics, the rules for sawing it differ from those for other materials such as steel. Cutting speeds must be higher and cutting forces lower. To ensure clean, exact cuts, it is especially important to have an optimum cutting geometry along with good lubrication and cooling. Chips can readily

cause problems owing to the high speeds and must be removed in an effective manner. Users who saw aluminium on a regular basis are therefore advised to purchase a machine that is specially designed for this purpose.

The Kasto portfolio includes a wide selection of machines in all sizes, from semiautomatic floor-standing circular saws for

GREAT GEAR & SYSTEM Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

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Figure 1: There are semi-automatic mitrecutting circular sawing machines in the Kastoalu U line are especially good for cutting tubes and profiles to length.

Figure 2: The Kastospeed M line was developed for low-cost, highvolume cutting of aluminium, copper and brass.

workshops to gantry-type band sawing machines for aluminium mills. Kasto, based in Achern-Gamshurst, Germany, is a company that provides solutions for sawing tubes, profiles and solid materials as well as sheets, plates, ingots and castings. The range includes versatile multipurpose saws for various materials, plus saws that are optimised for machining aluminium.

The Kastoalu range comprises a number of floor-standing circular saws for use in workshops. They are especially suitable for aluminium, other light metals and plastics. Their high-performance carbide saw blades have trapezoidal flat teeth with a positive cutting angle, ensuring perfect results even at low cutting pressures. Users have a choice of saw blades with different numbers of teeth depending on the panel and plate thickness. This allows the creation of reproducibly precise, burr-free cut parts. Less work is required for reworking, and the parts can be further processed or installed right away.

The range includes the semi-automatic models E 12 / U 12, U 14 and U 20, which cover a cutting range from 100 to 200 millimetres (for tubes and profiles), as well as the fully automatic, numerically controlled Kastoalu A 13 with a cutting range of 100 millimetres (likewise for tubes and profiles).

The semi-automatic saws are capable of straight and mitre cuts, with an increment-free mitre angle between ±45° and ±90° depending on the machine. There are models which, in contrast, are suitable only for straight cuts. All the models have a hydropneumatic, infinitely adjustable saw feed plus

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GREAT GEAR & SYSTEM Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Figure 3: There are band saw options for all common aluminium materials up to a diameter of 830 millimetres like the Kastotec M bandsaws.

Figure 4: There are also options for efficient sawing of small aluminium ingots, plates, castings and test strips.

pneumatic horizontal and vertical clamping elements. An efficient micro-spray lubrication system and an integrated air gun come as standard, and a connecting sleeve for installing a chip suction unit is standard as well. Various roller tracks and measuring systems are available as optional accessories.

The company also produces as separate line for low-cost, high-volume cutting of aluminium, copper and brass. This circular saw is available in two versions, with a cutting range of up to 90 millimetres or up to 152 millimetres (round stock). The robust machine construction with an obliquely meshing spur gear mechanism, combined with a hydraulically damped measuring stop and a bar pusher that can be moved rapidly into position, ensures precision cutting and very high output. Depending on the application, high-speed steel, carbide tipped or PCD saw blades are used. Material feeding and sorting can be adapted to the customer’s requirements by means of a well-designed modular system.

The company also has a series that provide a quick, economical solution for all common aluminium materials up to a diameter of 830

millimetres (round). A spindle-driven material advance slide exactly positions the material to be sawn. Precision-balanced drive elements permit very high cutting speeds in combination with smooth running that is kind to the tools. Specially designed blade guides support the tool and form short chips that are easy to dispose of. It also has a self-explanatory control system with a clearly structured interface that makes operation much easier and reduces set-up times.

The company also of fers solutions for efficient sawing of small aluminium ingots, plates, castings and test strips with a maximum height of 600 millimetres and a length of up to 1,250 millimetres. A moveable material support table ensures quick, safe handling of stock. Precision-balanced drive elements and specially designed blade guides permit cutting speeds of up to 100 meters per minute and high cutting performance while ensuring a smooth sawing process with minimal tool wear and an optimal operational lifetime. Technologies include a bandwheel housing is designed to optimise the path of flying chips to a suction device. The cutting speed and feed rate are continuously adjustable.

For material with large dimensions, there are also options for users like the Kastomaxcut.

The gantry-type band sawing machine is suitable for fully automatic sawing of aluminium plates with a thickness of six to 2,000 millimetres. Depending on the version, there are bandsaws can handle ingots with cross-sections of up to 2,200 x 850 millimetres and lengths of up to 4,100 millimetres. Its heavy-duty design makes it suitable for medium-scale to verylarge-scale production. The cutting speed is continuously variable from 300 to 3,000 metres per minute. Even so, the saw runs very quietly and without vibration. The machine can be operated with both bimetallic and carbide blades.

This heav y-dut y machine is used in aluminium mills and other facilities. For example, Gleich Aluminiumwerke GmbH & Co. KG in Kaltenkirchen, Germany, uses the saw to manufacture aluminium plates from ingots measuring 2,000 x 4,000 x 800 millimetres. The company supplies customers in the mechanical engineering, tool-making, aerospace, automotive and construction industries. The machine has significantly increased saw blade lives and reduced downtimes. Moreover, thanks to fully automatic operation the company was able to increase its production while maintaining consistently high quality. The machine is equipped with strong roller tracks and transverse conveyors plus a vacuum transfer unit to handle the ingots, which can weigh up to 15 tonnes.

GREAT GEAR & SYSTEM Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Upping

The Gears Of Productivity Robotic technologies are gaining popularity across the world, especially Asia, with their improving features and functionalities. Small and medium-sized enterprises are also gaining increased accessibility to these robots as they become more affordable and simpler to implement.

By Shermine Gotfredsen, general manager, APAC, Universal Robots.

T

he rise in global demand for robots is a strong indicator that manufacturing industries are growing highly competitive. Asia currently sits at the top spot for being the fastest growing market in the world with the number of robot units sold forecasted to double by 2018. As the robot adoption rate continues to accelerate within the region, staying ahead will require manufacturers to be more efficient and productive than before.

Challenges In Manufacturing Manufacturers that cater to either domestic or export demand today, face stiff competition with bilateral and multilateral free trade agreements becoming increasingly common. Major trade agreements such as the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) and the recent Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) are also exacerbating competition between companies and brands. To stay

ahead, manufacturers are looking to optimise their production, enhance output quality and maximise their resources.

In addition to global competition, manufacturers also face production challenges with product life cycles growing shorter over time. The constantly shifting marketplace of goods is becoming the norm across many industries. To keep up with today’s “High Mix, Low Volume” manufacturing environment, reducing time-to-market is crucial in gaining a competitive advantage.

Increased Quality Standards To stand out among competing goods, manufacturers need to be able to deliver quality products consistently. This is especially crucial for products that require high-precision assembly and careful handling, such as solid formed embossed parts manufactured by Germany-based Ferd. Wagner Profile is an example where the

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GREAT GEAR & SYSTEM Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

With the use of robots, human operators not only benefit from safer working environments but also from the creation of more jobs.

The size and weight of the robot are big factors that contribute to the ease of integrating robots into production lines.

company deployed two industrial robots to take over the complex soldering and welding process, which involve feeding metal components into a tack-welding machine and a high-frequency soldering station.

Robots equipped with customised gripping tools are fine-tuned to handle these parts as these components have fragile decorative surfaces and any damage renders them unusable.

By employing the same torque and pressure each time, robots can ensure high quality output with minimal human errors made. As a result, there is reduced wastage of raw materials, leading to lower overall production costs.

Reduced Time To Market Factories operating at optimised productivity are not only able to reduce time-to-market but also stand to gain from lowered production costs. For example, robots can be assigned to automate the process of machining aluminium castings into hubs. The robotic arm takes unfinished castings from a bin onto the lathe, removes them after machining and then hands them over to an automatic broaching machine where the groove is cut. Deploying robots to perform such assembly applications that involve tending to two machines at a time can accelerate feed input and shorten the time taken to replace the machine parts. Manufacturers will ultimately benefit from savings in production costs and increased capacity.

Built For Speed In an ever-shifting landscape of goods and services, time is becoming a pivotal factor in the production line. Industrial robots today are built in consideration of this, with the average initial set-up time including unpacking, mounting and programming spanning less than a day. Manufacturers deploying robots for the first time can be assured that downtime will be minimal, although

there could be an initial settling-in period of customising the right gripper for the particular application depending on the end-user.

Industrial robots are not only quick to set up, but also easy to program. The latest wave of robots includes built-in interfaces that are easy to operate with intuitive 3D visualisation available on the screen. This allows even operators with no prior programming experience to manoeuvre the control software easily. For example, to program a set of actions, the employee would only need to move the robot arm along desired waypoints or alternatively, use the arrow keys on the touchscreen.

Features like flexibility and easy programming are especially important for manufacturers in the metal and machining industry as the production output for various components can range from small volumes to over a hundred thousand units per year. Easily programmable robots can be repurposed quickly across different production lines. Such manufacturing flexibility can provide businesses with a competitive advantage that differentiates themselves from their competitors. The userfriendliness of the robots also contributes to lower integration costs as workers can program robots independently with little reliance on external technical support.

Built To Fit The size and weight of the robot are big factors that contribute to the ease of integrating robots into production lines. Robots have advanced from their bulky forms to the current modernised, lightweight model that is easily portable and occupies a relatively small footprint. For example, robotic arms with a payload of three kilograms can weigh as little as 11 kilograms while its footprint can be as narrow as five inches. Even with these robots, manufacturers will have the liberty to reconfigure machinery around the factory easily to find the best production flows.

In some cases, manufacturers in the metal and machining industry operate on a “High Mix, Low Volume” basis as the component parts such as drive shafts, industrial gearboxes or drill bits are engineered-to-order. These units are produced when required, to prevent a cluttering of the workspace and also because sales forecasts tend to be unreliable. Depending on the spare parts that need to be stocked, the lead-times and due dates can vary widely from a matter of days to a span of a few months. Having robots that can be easily shifted and easily fit along changing production lines will help manufacturers reduce time-to-market, which will be crucial in gaining a competitive advantage.

GREAT GEAR & SYSTEM Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

The Robot-Human Collaboration Advanced technology has made it possible for robots to work side by side with humans today.

In previous years, industrial robots in factories were usually fenced up to ensure the safety of the human operators. However, now the use of safety fences may be deemed to be unnecessary after prior risk assessments have been conducted. Automation with these robots would still be possible for factories with confined workspaces.

Robots are now built with advanced forcesensing features that will trigger the machine to halt its action when it senses an obstruction in its path. Unfenced robots will be able to come into closer contact with workers and function alongside them in tight spaces. This will enable robots to perform a wider range of capabilities as they are better integrated into the production process.

Safety First Metalworking manufacturing environments usually entail carrying of heavy materials or working with hazards such as welding fumes or flying shards. Apart from streamlining processes, robots also help create a safer and more attractive workplace for workers by liberating them from jobs requiring physical exertion, precision or repetition. This will not only greatly help reduce risk of accidents but also improve the motivational levels of these workers. Employees will be freed up and reassigned to focus on higher-level operation tasks, undergoing skills upgrading in the process.

Human operators not only benefit from safer working environments but also from the creation of more jobs. According to a 2013 report by Metra Martech, over two million jobs will be generated in the next eight years because of industrial robots. These robots are predicted to be required mainly for industry expansion and downstream job development. Higher-skilled jobs have also become more accessible as workers are reassigned to perform managerial tasks for example.

Strategic Investment Option The industrial robot has evolved technologically and functionally, culminating in a prototype that offers significant benefits to manufacturers and companies ranging from large enterprises to small medium enterprises (SMEs) worldwide.

In addition, the process of integrating robots has become easier and quicker. The robot’s advanced safety settings also make it easier for companies to manage an employee workforce of a hybrid nature. Additionally, investing in robots will help factories achieve higher production stability, as robots are able to ensure consistent, high quality product output with its

In addition to global competition, manufacturers also face production challenges with product life cycles growing shorter over time.

Industrial robots are not only quick to set up, but also easy to program.

precise movements. This is especially important for production lines that require high accuracy or involve costly materials. These are points manufacturers can consider when deciding on investing in robots.

Embracing Change In a day and age characterised by volatile economic and financial conditions, it is imperative for businesses to stay ahead by securing competitive advantages for their operations. Companies are increasingly susceptible to fluctuating global demands and face challenges in the form of shortening product life cycles and increasing global competition.

Similar to what computers are to humans, industrial robots are tools that the businesses can leverage to perform tasks better. Manufacturers looking to take their operations to the next level can turn to robots as a viable alternative with their ability to optimise factory productivity.

Already, governments around the world have begun to recognise the benefits of robots with the number of grants made available to companies to encourage automation. Robots have been built to complement well with factory assembly lines, and will ultimately help contribute to the success of companies willing to adopt them.

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The Future Of Aerospace Manufacturing:

Flying Forward The civil aerospace is currently experiencing unprecedented demand for new aircraft, with both Boeing and Airbus predicting a need for well over 30,000 new passenger and dedicated freighter aircraft in the next twenty years. Peter Dickin, marketing manager, Delcam, shares his thoughts.

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he growth in the aerospace industr y is driven mainly by increased demand from the growing middle classes in Asia but is also supported by the desire in North America and Europe to replace the existing fleet of aircraft with more fuel-efficient models.

At the same time, new methods for the design and manufacture of aircraft components are becoming available. New design techniques enable more efficient designs to be produced, so saving weight and, therefore, contributing to lower operating costs. Equally, new manufacturing methods allow faster,

IN DESIGN Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

more automated produc tion and so help suppliers to ramp up and meet the increased production rates that are being demanded.

The ‘Bionic Partition’ In an innovative developments, Airbus, a top aircraft manufacturer, has collaborated with 3D design and engineering software provider Autodesk to create the world’s largest 3D printed airplane cabin component.

Dubbed the ‘bionic partition,’ the component was created with custom algorithms that generated a design that mimics cellular structure and bone growth, and then produced using addit ive manufac turing techniques . This pioneering design and manufacture process renders the structure stronger and more light-weight than would be possible using traditional processes.

The partition is a dividing wall between the seating area and the galley of a plane and holds the jump-seat for the cabin attendants. As with many aircraft components, the partition has incredible design and structural requirements, including specific cut-outs

and weight limit s, making the generative design approach particularly appropriate.

In air travel, reducing weight means reducing fuel use. Designed in a structurallystrong, but lightweight micro-lattice shape, Airbus’ new ‘bionic partition’ is 45 percent (30 kg) lighter than current designs. When applied to the entire cabin and to the current backlog of A320 planes, Airbus estimates that the new design approach can save up to 465,000 metric tons of C02 emissions per year, the equivalent of taking about 96,000 passenger cars off the road for one year.

The new par tition uses Scalmalloy, a second-generation aluminium-magnesiumscandium alloy created by APWork s , an Airbus subsidiary focused on additive manufacturing and advanced materials. Scalmalloy is specif ically designed for use in 3D printing and offers outstanding mechanical properties, meaning that it will stretch more before breaking. This is the first time it has been used on a large scale inside an aircraft component.

The ability to harness infinite numbers of CPUs (central processing units) through cloud computing have made possible incredible advances in design and engineering.

Generative design capitalises on the cloud to compute very large sets of design alternatives – hundreds to thousands – that meet specific goals and constraints. Generative design can explore new solutions that even experienced designers might not have con-

Many parts for the ‘bionic partition’ can be produced in a single additive build.

The ability to harness infinite numbers of CPUs (central processing units) through cloud computing have made possible incredible advances in design and engineering.

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IN DESIGN Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

The need for increased production, coupled with the health and safety problems of repetitive strain injuries, has prompted increased use of robots to replace manual operations in aerospace manufacturing.

The ‘bionic partition’ is the world’s largest 3D printed airplane cabin component.

sidered, while improving design quality and performance. Because the designs created are nearly impossible to manufacture using traditional methods, additive manufacturing techniques like 3D printing are critical to generative design’s success.

“Generative design, additive manufacturing and the development of new materials are already transforming the shape of manufac turing and innovative companies like Airbus are showing what is possible,” said Jeff Kowalski, chief technology officer of Autodesk. “This is not just an interesting hypothetical experiment – this is a fully functioning component we can expect to see being deployed in aircraft in the very near future. We’re looking forward to further collaboration with Airbus on new components and designs for current and future aircraft.”

Peter Sander, vice president of emerging technologies and concept s at Airbus, expanded: “At Airbus we are always looking to push the boundaries of new technologies and explore how we can best innovate. The collaboration with Autodesk, APWorks and Concept Laser has proved very successful.

Autodesk brings generative design technolog y and a real understanding of additive manufacturing, which is crucial to turning great concept s into real produc t s. These technologies will ultimately revolution-

ise the way we design and build aircraf t, enabling improvements in fuel ef f iciency, passenger comfor t and a dras tic reduction in the environmental footprint of air transport overall.”

The first phase of testing of the partition has been successfully completed. Fur ther testing will be conducted in 2016, including a test flight.

The ‘bionic partition’ project is a joint collaboration between Autodesk, Airbus, APWorks and The Living, an Autodesk studio which specialises in applying generative design and new technologies across a wide range of fields and applications.

Robot Blade Polishing The need for increased produc tion, coupled with the health and safety problems of repetitive strain injuries, has prompted increased use of robots to replace manual operations in aerospace manufacturing. One example of these developments is a system for the polishing of aeroengine turbine blades by robot, which has been developed

by Delcam Professional Ser vices in association with Finland-based JOT Automation.

The system uses an ABB robot driven by a combination of Delcam software including the PowerMill robot programming system and the PowerInspect inspection software.

IN DESIGN Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

During the development of the process, simulations were undertaken in PowerMill robot to ensure that the robot could complete the progress of the blades around the cell without any collisions or any singularities resulting in erratic movements.

As well as showing how the use of a robot could replace manual operations, the cell provides an example of the available adaptive machining technology. As with other adaptive processes, the polishing operation is altered for each blade individually on the basis of inspection data collected at various stages in the process. This is essential to give accurate results as the shape of the individual blades will have been distorted by the heating and cooling cycles experienced in the engine during each flight.

Each blade is transferred into the cell on a conveyor and picked up by the robot. The robot completes an initial pattern of measurements on the blade surface by lifting the blade towards a fixed probe. These measurements are passed into PowerInspect to determine the amount of stock material remaining on the blade. The information is used to produce the polishing paths in PowerMill robot.

For the polishing operation, the blade is moved against a disk within the cell. Once the routine is complete, a fur ther series of probing measurement s are taken to check that the required amount of material has been removed and that the blade is within the specified tolerances. If it isn’t, further polishing can be undertaken until the blade conforms to the standard.

A similar sequence is followed to machine the tip of the blade. Probing measurements are made along the tip and any excess material machined away by moving the blade against a milling cutter.

Typically, one or two passes across the grinding wheel and the milling cutter are sufficient to bring the blade into tolerance, although the loop can continue through more cycles until compliance is reached. The polished blade is then returned to the conveyor for removal from the cell, ready to be fitted back into the engine.

Faster, Cheaper Blisk Machining While generative design, additive manufacturing and robotics might gain more headlines, there are still many developments under way in the more traditional areas of programming strategies and cutting-tool design that can benefit aerospace manufacturers. In one such example, Delcam and tooling supplier Technicut partnered to produce a novel method for blisk machining that delivers remarkable savings in both time and cost.

Blisks machined from a single disc of material are used increasingly for aircraft engines in place of a series of individual blades fixed into a central hub. They offer advantages in weight, efficiency and through-life servicing but are challenging to manufacture because of their highly complex shapes and the hardness of the materials used, usually titanium or nickel alloys.

The new method covers the machining of the blisk from start to finish and combines new tooling concepts from Technicut with advanced machining strategies in

ENQUIRY NO 019

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join the best — welcome to the world’s leading trade fair for the tube, wire and cable industry! Those who wish to find comprehensive information about the latest innovations both in wire and tube manufacturing and processing need look no further. It can all be found here at the world’s most important exhibitions. A focal point of wire 2016: the growing importance of copper wires in automotive engineering, in telecommunications or electronics. Special focal point at Tube 2016: Plastic tubes. A special area is reserved for them, because the question of materials is becoming more and more important.

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IN DESIGN Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Simulations in PowerMill robot ensure that the polishing can be completed without collisions or other problems.

A combination of PowerMill’s unique toolpaths and Technicut’s novel cutting tools reduced the cycle time to manufacture this blisk by over 50 blisk.

Delcam’s PowerMill programming software for the rough, semi-f inish and f inish machining of integrally-bladed rotors. In one example, based on a typical aerospace design, the cycle time was reduced to 35 hours, less than half the time that would have been needed using conventional methods, while the costs for milling were reduced by 45 percent. The initial billet was 804 mm diameter Ti6-4 titanium, while the completed blisk had 31 blades, each 84mm in length with a root radius of 4mm and scallop height of 10µm.

With the process, the initial rough machining operation cuts between the blades with a series of slotting cuts using Technicut’s new Titan X-Treme Ripper endmill. As well as removing the bulk of the material between the blades, this operation relieves any stresses in the billet introduced during the forging process.

Both the semi-f inishing and f inishing operations on the individual blades are then undertaken in a series of vertical sections, working from the tip downwards. The lower sections are left in the rough state to maintain the stiffness of the blade in the area being machined and so to minimise push-off of the blade tip by the cutter.

In addition to the specific toolpaths for blisk machining in PowerMill, the key to the new method is the use of barrel cutters from Technicut for both semi-finishing and finishing. The tooling designs incorporate a much larger radius on the cutting sur face than the ball-nose cutters that would normally be used and so can achieve the same cusp height with a stepdown up to three or four times as large. This larger stepdown means fewer cutting passes are needed to achieve the target smoothness in the surface, meaning that machining times can be reduced significantly.

Future Of The Supply Chain While these new technologies might be developed by the major aerospace manufacturers, they will need to be adopted throughout the supply chain in order to meet the current demands for higher productivity and lower costs. The more complex shapes being specified to reduce weight will require the more widespread use of more sophisticated machine tools and of additive manufacturing.

Companies wishing to continue to supply the aerospace industries will need to invest in these advanced technologies to preserve their place in the future of aerospace manufacturing.

IN DESIGN Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Shop Floor Communication:

Talking To The Floor

Easily generate in-process inspection instructions and 3D digital documentation from simulated in-process machined features.

Bryan Jacobs, marketing communications manager, CGTech shows us how.

M

istakes on the shop floor can be expensive, and it is critical that the machine operator and numeric control (NC) programmer communicate effectively. The implications of poor communication go well beyond wasted programmer and machine time. Something as simple as a poorly defined set-up instruction sheet can result in scrapped parts, broken cutters, or a damaged machine. Worse yet, a late delivery can result in the loss of future business. When all of these risks are combined, it’s difficult to quantify the value of good communication.

There are many benefits of accurate and

detailed shop reports, which can be supplied in either physical or digital formats. In addition to avoiding the costly risks already mentioned, good reports increase operator confidence, requiring less babysitting of the NC machine, and less reason to turn down the feed rate. Good reports improve communication and reduce production time by providing clear instructions. They can help to formalise what is already being done and provide timely information that accurately represents the real process across all departments. Good reports can also be provided to customers, helping to establish or maintain a positive reputation.

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There are many benefits of accurate and detailed shop reports, which can be supplied in either physical or digital formats.

There are many ways machine shops currently create inspection instructions and other reports. Some machine shops create shop documentation using an Excel spreadsheet and screen captures from their CAD/ CAM software. But many reports require an “in-process� model. Creating these models in a CAD system is a manual process that requires a certain degree of technical exper tise and engineering time. Not only is it time-consuming, it is prone to error and redundant. Many machine shops are unaware that they can simply use their NC simulation software to automatically generate the necessary reports for them.

Many machine shops already rely on simulation to prevent costly mistakes from get ting to the shop f loor. By simulating the post-processed code (G-code), the NC programmer can spend less time visually proving out the data. Machining a part in a virtual environment is quite similar to setting up and running an actual prove-out on the machine tool. First, the user specifies the stock from which the part will be cut, either by entering dimensions into the sof tware

or using a CAD model. Then, after selecting cutting tools, the NC program is used to simulate the motion of the tool removing material from the stock. The programmer can watch the material removal process and see details of how each cut changes the shape of the part. This eliminates having to try to imagine how cuts from the current operation will affect subsequent operations.

During the cutting simulation, the software automatically detects problems such as fast feed errors, gouges and collisions that could potentially scrap the part, break the cutter, or crash the machine. If an error is discovered, the programmer easily identifies the offending NC program record by mouse clicking on the error. The problem can then be fixed in the CAM software so that an error-free NC program is sent to the machine.

Examination of the simulated cut par t delves deeper into the verification process.

Is the resulting part dimensionally accurate?

Does it match the final desired shape? Detailed measurement tools enable the user to verify and document dimensions such as wall and floor thickness, hole diameters, corner radii, scallop heights, depth, gaps, distances, angles, volumes, etc. The software even allows the user to optionally highlight features, such as all planes on the same level. The user can also view and measure all tool collisions, even after subsequent machining operations have removed them from the screen.

Some verif ication sof t ware al so provides the ability to automatically compare the as-cut part with the original design. By embedding the CAD design model inside the stock, the user can automatically compare the design to the in-process workpiece to reveal any dif ferences such as gouges or excess material not removed by the machining processes. If there are any violations or features out of tolerance, a report will tell the NC programmer exactly where in the NC program the problem was caused.

NC simulation sof t ware is the key to automatically generating shop documents because an in-process model of the part is created during simulation. When a simulated model has been created from the actual geometric data from G-code, there is no need to create an in-process model in a CAD system.

Creating shop documentation can be quick and easy to automate, thereby significantly reducing engineering time. For example, the NC programmer can see and report the part in the as-machined condition, as opposed to the direct net requirements. Reports can be created during roughing operations that

IN DESIGN Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

The review files can also be displayed using a free iPad application downloaded from the Apple App store.

leave stock material, and the operator can then see exactly how much, and where, material remains. These types of reports are very useful and appreciated by both the shop and quality assurance (QA).

There is an almost unlimited number of reports that can be automatically created using NC simulation software. The layout of each report is completely user-configurable with a simple user interface. Using information from the simulation session, pictures, operator instructions, and other information can be automatically generated and inserted into the report. No programming is required and the reports can be output in HTML or PDF format. For example, set-up sheets with dimensions can help operators ensure that each set-up is correct. And when working with multiple set-ups, it is very helpful when the set-up sheets show the in-process state of material.

The QA department can also benefit from repor t s generated from the NC program.

A significant percentage of manufacturing time is spent inspecting the workpiece. The user can simply click on cut model features in the simulation to create in-process inspection sequence instructions. The sof tware will automatically identify where and what to inspect.

For the ultimate repor ting capabilit y, Machine shops can now go beyond 2D reports by using a free 3D simulation reviewer. Previously an operator would need to visit the programming office to view a program being simulated. But now it is possible to create and save a “Reviewer� file at any point in a

simulation session. The saved file can then be sent to the shop floor. By using a standalone reviewer, shop supervisors, technicians, machinist s and machine operators can review a 3D machine simulation of the NC program without leaving the shop floor.

The 3D reviewer is a very powerful tool that also helps improve communication with customers, suppliers, and anyone else that can benefit from having access to a 3D simulation. The user can play the 3D simulation forward and backward to see material being removed or replaced. Error messages and NC program text is highlighted when a collision on the stock or fixture is selected. Cutting conditions and a tool path line display can be optionally shown. The user can rotate, pan and zoom and the cut stock can be measured using a variety of measurement tools.

The review files can also be displayed using a free iPad application downloaded from the Apple App store. Reviewer files are transferred to the Reviewer iPad App through iTunes, Dropbox for iPad App, or email. In addition to the 3D simulation, the user can embed traditional reports in PDF format that can be easily accessed from within the app.

Creating repor ts is a required process for any machine shop, and generating set-up sheets, in-process inspection instructions, and other documentation from simulated inprocess machined features saves time and improves accuracy. Additionally, machine shops looking to cut down on paper reports are no longer limited to a 2D world. A 3D simulation review file can eliminate virtually any surprise, in a virtual world.

The 3D reviewer is a very powerful tool that also helps improve communication with customers, suppliers, and anyone else that can benefit from having access to a 3D simulation.

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Probing

With Precision

T Editorial

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he automotive industry is fiercely competitive with tier-one car manufacturers are constantly looking for breakthroughs in areas such as performance, safety and innovative design, all of which places ever stricter requirements on the processing of metal components. SuperAlloy Industrial Company Ltd. (SAI), headquartered in Taiwan and with sales and support offices in USA, United Kingdom, Germany, China and Australia, is a supplier of high-quality lightweight forged metal products.

The forged wheel and car chassis components SAI produce are used by the world’s top car manufac turers that demand spe-

Frederick Wong, machine tool products manager, Renishaw Far East, shares with APMEN the role of machine tool probes play in the increasingly competitive automotive world.

cialised technologies and services, such as BMW, Mercedes‑Benz, VW, Porsche, Ferrari, Ducati, Bentley, Audi, Rolls Royce, Jaguar, Land Rover, Ford, Chrysler, Toyota, GM and Honda. Renishaw machine tool probe systems, including the OLP40, RMP60, OMP60, and the NC4, are examples on how SAI’s quality standards and demands are met, allowing SAI to make substantial progress on the route to high end precision manufacturing.

The forged wheel production process is a complex one, particularly for low‑volume, high‑diversit y produc tion. SAI produces more than 200 types of wheel which requires the utmos t produc tion f lexibilit y. Stric t

IN DESIGN Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

standards are applied to workpiece setting, reference measurements and key dimension detection during metal processing, as the precision requirements for machining wheel mounting surfaces exceed the requirements of even the aerospace industry.

Dr Henr y Shih, CEO of S AI, explains: “ When we entered the European market in 2008, we realised that our high‑end car manufacturer clients’ quality, dimensional stability and precision requirements for metal products were extremely high. While our equipment at the time was able to meet their volume requirements, we needed to enhance product quality and reduce the amount of rework and corrections during processing so as to achieve high quality levels. We discovered machine tool probe measurement solutions could deliver in‑process measurement control and real‑time data feedback on our existing CNC machines, thereby providing effective precision manufacturing control. This was a massive help in terms of increasing production efficiency and precision.”

Aluminium Wheel Rim Production SAI currently has 600 CNC machine tools working on wheel rim production, including 150 Victor Taichung lathes and 450 YCM milling machines. All these machine tools are engaged in production on a three shift

process five days per week. These are the steps that the company takes to ensure that the precision and stability of 600 machine tools remains consistent.

In order to increase production precision and reduce scrap, SAI equipped the relevant lathes with Renishaw OLP40 touch probes, which use optical signal transmission and are adapted for turning processes. The CNC milling machines were equipped with RMP60 machine tool probes which use wireless radio transmission to measure workpiece position and reference height, as well as providing in‑line key dimension detection, thereby increasing production performance.

Mr. Y. C . Kao, Senior Manager of SAI’s Wheel Produc tion Depar tment , explains: “The automated workpiece setup enabled by Renishaw’s machine tool probes allows us to ensure that the cutting dimensions remain stable and consistent when we are producing wheel rims, as well as effectively reducing human error. For example, the air valve hole cutting thickness Process Capability Index (CPK) rose from 0.71‑1.13 to 1.35‑1.43 when using the machine tool probes.”

Wheel styling design has moved from flatter surfaces towards more 3D effects in recent years, causing wheel rims to become ever larger, and placing increasingly stringent demands on processing precision. Until

The forged wheel and car chassis components SAI produce are used by the world’s top car manufacturers that demand specialised technologies and services.

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The OLP40 probes allows the carry out in‑process measurement control to achieve tolerance of less than 0.02 mm.

In order to increase production precision and reduce scrap, SAI equipped the relevant lathes with Renishaw OLP40 touch probes, which use optical signal transmission and are adapted for turning processes.

2011, SAI’s acceptable tolerances for wheel rim production (with the flatter designs used at the time) were 0.05‑0.10mm. However, the tighter tolerance requirements of the current 3D designs has gradually increased cutting times and processing. Wheel rim appearance processing takes as long as 180 to 240 minutes, with the final 3D appearance process taking 27 minutes, that any rework imposes considerable pressures in terms of both production time and cost.

The OLP40 probes allows the carry out in‑process measurement control to achieve tolerance of less than 0.02 mm, and can replace human measurements and updates to workpiece coordinates. This greatly improves cutting and efficiency for surface precision processing after coating. Even more importantly, it reduces rework by 80 percent, as before the introduction of in‑line measurement systems wheel production generally had to be processed twice to achieve the necessary precision. When combined with Renishaw software, the Renishaw probes not only play a role in guidance during production, but also provide in‑process control and real‑time feedback, immediately updating and correcting data during metal cutting, and efficiently monitoring and controlling dimensions and deformations.

Renishaw machine tool probe system has significantly increased finished component accuracy and improved production efficiency by reducing scrap rate from 2-3 to zero percent, as the position of each part can now be checked before any machining takes place. The ability to automatically measure key features during the cutting process resulted in a 48 percent reduction in the 3D appearance processing time.

The real-time size/position of key features can now be fed back to the CNC control automatically, allowing toolpath offsets to be updated if necessary.

IN DESIGN Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

The automotive industry has already evolved from focusing on basic safety requirements and performance towards enhanced driving comfort, improved fuel efficiency and reduced emissions.

Car Chassis Production The automotive industry has already evolved from focusing on basic safety requirements and performance towards enhanced driving comfort, improved fuel efficiency and reduced emissions.

The safety and stability of lighter vehicles moving at high speed is closely connected to the manufacturing of the car chassis. The higher the precision of chassis produced with aluminium alloys, the safer and more stable the car is when travelling at speeds as high as 200 km/h, and the more comfortable the driving experience. The lighter the chassis, the lower the fuel consumption, and thus the easier it is for the vehicle to meet environmental requirements.

SAI has continually improved its forging and mechanical processing technology. The company moved into the processing and production of precision car chassis in 2011. The company now has 38 high end five-axis CNC machine tools, all of which are equipped with Renishaw OMP60 optical machine tool probes and NC4 non-contact laser tool setters. Unlike wheel rim production, chassis production tends to involve high volume and lower diversity, but nevertheless still requires high-precision metal cutting and processing.

The OMP60 optical machine tool touch probes use advanced modulated optical transmission to provide 360° signal transmission. The probe simplifies measurement and calibration

SAI now has 38 high end five-axis CNC machine tools, all of which are equipped with Renishaw OMP60 optical machine tool probes and NC4 non-contact laser tool setters.

processes, thereby achieving high-precision measurement for workpieces with complex profiles. The NC4 uses innovative laser technology to perform high-speed, high-precision measurement of cutting tools as small as 0.2 mm, and to perform tool breakage detection on cutting tools as small as 0.1 mm. Its non-contact method avoids the potential for causing wear or damage of cutting tools. Production times for car chassis are relatively short, and can generally be kept within 20-25 minutes.

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Optimising Plate Fabrication with Oxy-fuel & Plasma Cutting:

Shaping The Cut

Agnes Tong, product marketing manager, APAC, ESAB demonstrates how mechanised oxy-fuel and plasma cutting technologies can complement each other in heavy fabrication applications.

A

dvancements in cutting technologies have opened the door to more choices in heavy plate fabrication for fabricators and steel service centres around the world. Two of the primary technologies considered for CNC shape cutting systems, oxy-fuel and plasma cutting, can serve as complementary technologies – either as separate processes or in a single, integrated system – to optimise heavy plate fabrication from a capability, quality and cost perspective.

To optimise plate fabrication, start with asking the fundamental questions: Editorial

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• What is the application?

• What are the cutting needs for the application (i.e., edge quality, production rate, material types and thicknesses, etc.)?

• What restrictions must be assessed (budget, floor space, etc.)?

In evaluating the cutting needs for the application, consider the traditional capabilities for each technology: Process Capabilities: Oxy-Fuel Cutting The oxy-fuel cutting process is simple and relatively inexpensive. Equipment investment is minimal and the consumables used are common, low-cost fuel gases such as acetylene, propane, and natural gas. Generally used to cut mild steel plate 76.2mm or greater, some fabricators cut up to 203.2mm plate using this method. As an oxygen-based process, this technology requires carbon to effectively cut, restricting its use to mild steel applications.

Only low carbon steel and some low alloys have oxides with a lower melting point than the base metal, so they can be cut with the oxy-fuel process.

When adjusted properly, oxy-fuel cutting results in a smooth, square cut surface. There is little slag on the bottom edge, and the top

FAST FAB Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

edge is only slightly rounded from the preheat flames. This surface is ideally suited for many applications without further treatment.

Fundamentally, oxy-fuel is a slow cutting process. However, in many applications, increased productivity in oxy-fuel cutting is accomplished using multiple torches cutting simultaneously. Generally, system configurations include four to six cutting torches, but high production applications such as steel service centres may use up to eight cutting torches.

When cutting thicker mild steel and applying multiple cutting torches, oxy-fuel could easily have a productivity advantage over other technologies such as plasma cutting.

Process Capabilities: Plasma Cutting Plasma process technolog y offers greater versatility than oxy-fuel. It can be used to cut any electrically-conductive material, including carbon/mild steel, stainless steel, aluminium, copper and brass. Plasma technology can also be used to gouge, mark (neither of which are processes for oxy-fuel), or cut metal with scale, rust or painted/primed.

Though not necessarily reaching the precision cut quality levels of waterjet or lasers (CO2 and fibre), considering all thermal cutting processes, plasma offers the best cut quality across the broadest range of materials using a range of current ratings, most commonly 30A to 450A with higher current used for thicker stainless steel and aluminium cutting.

Slag/dross, surface finish, cut angle, top edge rounding and heat-affected zone (HAZ) are key when judging gauging cut quality. Plasma technology has progressed to the point of pro-

ducing a virtually “dross-free” cut. Plasma also has a much smaller heat-affected zone that oxy-fuel, which reduces effects such as plate warping and discoloration.

Add to this plasma’s high cutting speed, and this technology provides an optimal mix of productivity, cut quality and capacity. These capabilities combined with current levels of process automation, make plasma a predictable precision technology, attractive for a host of industries and applications.

While the use of multiple torch configurations in oxy-fuel cutting provides high productivity, the cut quality produced by plasma can, in many applications, eliminate secondary processes like weld prep that may be necessary after an oxy-fuel cut. By eliminating a secondary step and reducing overall process time, a fabricator may be able to justify a slower cutting operation. While it’s feasible to plasma cut with multiple torches at once, the additional cost factor usually limits this to no more than two torches.

Changing Technologies: Art vs Science Both oxy-fuel and plasma technologies have advanced in the past decade, but plasma has done so at a much faster pace. Traditionally, parts thicker than 25.4mm were cut with oxy-fuel.

Today, plasma cutting is able to cut materials up to 76.2mm thick. Inherently a more automated technology than oxy-fuel, plasma cutting is becoming even more automated. Improvements in CNC and CAD/CAM/ nesting software have also helped further these technologies.

It takes a skilled worker to consistently produce a good oxy-fuel cut. An experienced

While the use of multiple torch configurations in oxy-fuel cutting provides high productivity, the cut quality produced by plasma can, in many applications, eliminate secondary processes like weld prep that may be necessary after an oxy-fuel cut.

COMPLEMENTARY TECHNOLOGIES

Material Thickness

THICK

OXY-FUEL Wide range of thicknesses, primarily focused on thicker materials (2 in. or greater) Lowest operating cost compared to plasma Use of multiple torches increases cutting productivity Not effective on stainless steel or aluminum

PLASMA

Wide range of thicknesses (gauge to 3 in.)

Provides a strong mix of cut quality, productivity and operating cost Effective on mild steel, stainless steel, and aluminum

THIN

LOW

Cutting Volume and Feature Requirements

HIGH

Complementary Technologies chart: A multi-torch oxy-fuel configuration can be highly productive; plasma offers precision cutting on a range of material types and thicknesses.

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Oxy-fuel can cut plate 76.2mm or greater (lancing up to 152 to 203mm).

In many cases, a multi-torch oxy-fuel system can produce more parts in less time than a single plasma torch.

Oxy-fuel Cutting: Material thickness: 76.2mm or greater (lancing up to 152 to 203mm) Material types: Mild steel Cut edge quality: Smooth, square cut surface Piercing: Up to 152mm Cutting speed: Relatively slow process, up to 558.8mm per minute on 25.4mm material

operator can achieve consistent quality cuts by making the necessary process adjustments to gas flow, standoff, and speed.

Plasma cutting is less of an art and more of a configured science, less dependent on operator skill. Plasma cutting systems offer different process levels, part programs are predefined and built-in features and parameters such as pierce cuts, cut speeds, cut heights, standoffs and automatic arc ignition greatly simplify machine operation. The easy-to use nature of plasma processes coupled with technology advancements in a number of areas such as cut-to-cut cycle times and arc voltage sensing for consistent cut quality and increased consumables life have helped fuel its aggressive growth. It can be argued that plasma cutting technology provides cut quality approaching that of laser and waterjet without the maintenance intensity and costs of those systems.

Oxy-fuel technology has realised advances in torch capabilities. Modern oxy-fuel cutting systems are equipped with features such as internal ignition torches with flame sensing, and electronics integrated into the torch for a more “intelligent” cutting process. The electronics allow for and control such features as integrated height sensing, which requires no separate height sensor to keep the correct distance between the cutting nozzle and blank; integrated ignition that eliminates the need for and maintenance of external ignition devices, and quick nozzle change, technology to rapidly change

nozzles without tools, thus minimising setup.

Side by side, in terms of market adoption, plasma technology has gained the most ground on a global scale. Demand for this cutting technology continues to grow, especially in emerging markets such as China, South America, Southeast Asia and India. In these regions, oxy-fuel cutting has historically been the thermal cutting method of choice simply because it’s a simple, low-tech process that requires a small investment. Many of these shops are migrating to plasma cutting because of the opportunity of increased productivity, better cut quality, ease of use and increased confidence in the predictable cutting results this technology delivers. This trend is possible as infrastructure to support these technologies has grown with more access to the consumables, gases, as well as to support and service resources.

Driven by the changing landscape of the machine operator, higher operator turnover rates resulting in a diminished experience base at the CNC, and the natural evolution of productivity, both oxy-fuel and plasma processes have become more dependent on the manufacturer or system integrator to create a machine tool that’s easy to use and requires less operator intervention.

Efforts by machine manufacturers to integrate components will continue to enable advancements of the technologies. This has also led to better integration in a multi-process system.

FAST FAB Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Compared to oxy-fuel, plasma cutting produces a much narrower heataffected zone, which reduces effects such as plate warping and discolouration.

Leveraging Capabilities In Combination Leveraging the capabilities of each technology is possible in an integrated, multi-process cutting system. Combining technologies offers the ability to choose the strengths of each and augment the weaknesses of the other.

Fabricators or steel service centres who need the ability to cut a wide range of materials will often look to machines equipped with two or more cutting processes. If a shop does not have the work capacity or the floor space to warrant dedicated oxy-fuel and plasma systems but needs the flexibility of both technologies, a combination machine is an alternative. Combining technology provides: High productivity at lower cost: A multi-process cutting system gives these fabricators the best of both worlds, even to the point where both technologies can be applied to a single part. An advantage of multiprocess cutting is the ability to use the slower, more accurate process for some contours, and then switch to the faster, less costly process for other contours. The result is achieving the required part accuracy at a far lower cost than if the high accuracy process was used to cut the entire part.

Essentially, the combination plasma/oxyfuel system promises the highest productivity using the tool that’s best for the job. It also gives the fabricator free reign to think outside the box for ways to optimise cutting results with the

flexibility to optimise each part to the requirement: users can optimise cut quality, operating cost or productivity, depending on what’s most important to their operation.

More capacity using fewer resources: Five years ago economic conditions forced many fabricators to reduce production shifts. As business improved, fabricators have chosen to invest in technology such as multi-process cutting systems that provide the flexibility and added capacity without increasing labour.

Advancements in technology and automation for both plasma and oxy-fuel cutting have taken the burden off the operator. In a multiprocess system this means a single operator is often capable of running both processes.

A smaller footprint: A multi-process cutting system also makes better use of floor space, which is a particular concern for fabricators in emerging markets where floor space is at a premium. Combining technologies also offers costs sayings from the simple standpoint that one cutting table is less expense than two.

Strengths and weaknesses: There are downsides to any multi-process system. While a multi-process cutting system is versatile, generally, it’s not practical to cut concurrently with both technologies. It is choice of either or.

Plasma Cutting: Material thickness: Best suited for 6.35mm up to 76.2mm plate, a range of materials Material types: Mild steel, stainless steel, aluminium Cut edge quality: Higher cut quality than oxy-fuel technology Piercing: Up to 50.8mm Cutting speed: Faster cutting speeds than oxyfuel; better cutting speeds than other thermal cutting processes in mild steel material ranging between 6.35mm up to 63.5mm

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Using both plasma and oxy-fuel on the same table allows fabricators to take advantage of the strengths of each process.

Depending on the application, oxy-fuel and plasma can be complementary plate cutting processes.

In combining technologies there is a new set of requirements that need to take into consideration table size, machine accuracy and precision for both processes.

A plasma cutting system used to cut thinner materials at fast speeds with high cut quality is not dependent on a large or robust table to hold 101.6mm mild steel plate, but does require precision machine motion (acceleration and deceleration) to achieve a narrow kerf width (the width of material that the process removes as it cuts through the plate) and thus good cutting results.

Because oxy-fuel cutting equipment han-

dles thicker plate materials, it requires a larger, more robust table. The larger kerfs and slower cut speeds of this process make this equipment less sensitive to machine motion and acceleration aspects, so components need not be high precision (ball screw and rack and pinion versus linear drives).

In combining the two technologies, a larger table with higher precision capabilities is needed.

The system integrator plays a vital role in providing the total cutting solution. When considering a multi-process system, look for a manufacturer that is familiar with both technologies and with the complexities that are part of integrating multiple technologies for a single cutting solution. A vertically integrated manufacturer – one that designs the components to work together and then integrates those components to form a complete cutting tool – has the most control over the outcome of the process.

Flexible, Custom-Made Solution Gaining flexibility to match individual plate fabrication requirements using both mechanised oxy-fuel and plasma cutting – either operating in parallel as stand-alone systems or in a combination, multi-process machine – can optimise cutting operations. As these technologies advance, fabricators can produce their parts smarter, faster, with the highest quality and at less cost. The choice to use these technologies in parallel or in combination is as individual as the application requirements.

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FAST FAB Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Original

Lester Lee, regional marketing manager, Hypertherm Asia Pacific, Mary Allen, IP protection manager, Hypertherm Inc, Sanjay Kumar, consumables sales manager, Hypertherm India, give their thoughts on counterfeits and what manufacturers need to know when purchasing plasma torch consumables.

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Counterfeit

Behind The Facade Of Counterfeit Consumables A

sk any original equipment manufacturer (OEM) to share their critical business challenges, and they are likely to raise common issues such as quality control, efficiency levels, budgeting, and inventory management. However, with the advent of technology and globalisation, modern OEMs are now faced with yet another area of concern – the proliferation of counterfeit products.

Counterfeiting has evolved over the years, from being largely localised operations into highly profitable global businesses with mass production facilities, international sales, and complex global distribution networks. According to the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the value of global counterfeit goods is expected to exceed US$1.7 trillion by 2015.

In the past, counterfeiting used to be more prevalent in consumer goods, but counterfeiters have started to target highly sophisticated and engineered products in recent years, and B2B companies are similarly at risk to product piracy. One such example is in the consumables of plasma cutting systems, such as nozzles, electrodes, and swirl rings.

Counterfeiting In Plasma Cutting Consumables Plasma cutting makes use of an electrically conductive gas, such as nitrogen and oxygen, to cut

through conductive materials. A typical plasma cutting system consists of the power supply, an arc starting circuit, and a torch. The torch serves as the holder for the consumable nozzle and electrode, and provides cooling (either gas or liquid coolant) to the consumables, while the nozzle and electrode constrict and maintain the plasma arc.

Today’s high precision plasma cutting systems are capable of producing cut parts of higher quality at faster speeds, with little or no post-production processes. Yet, a plasma system is only as good as the consumable parts in the torch. Even with the latest advances in technology and torch design, a high performance plasma system can become mediocre when inferior consumables are used.

So what constitutes a counterfeit? Counterfeits are products made in exact imitation of something valuable or important, with the intention to deceive or defraud a customer into thinking that the product is an original. There are various reasons as to why an end user would unknowingly purchase counterfeit consumables.

More often than not, the relatively lower price is what attracts them, as counterfeit consumables are known to sell for minimally 30 percent lesser than the original. As counterfeits are usually close copies of the genuine product in appearance, at times, end users may actually

FAST FAB Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Counterfeit

HT Cu+

353

1327

262

76 No. of Meter Cut be unaware of their counterfeit purchase, and are misled to think that they are getting a good bargain instead.

No. of Meter Piercing

1. Quality Non-genuine consumables are manufactured only with quick profit in mind. Often times, they are manufactured with techniques that focus primarily on rapid mass production instead of quality. Counterfeit suppliers lack the stringent manufacturing processes found in original products, and they simply replicate the parts used in the most popular manufacturing equipment with no proper quality control and checks. They also tend to use the lowest cost materials that are more prone to wear and tear. As a result, the copies may look the same but they lack the quality and durability that original consumables offer, often resulting in poor cutting capabilities. In most cases, the performance of the counterfeit consumable is inconsistent and unreliable, which significantly increases downtime.

factured to extremely tight tolerances with critical dimensions. Any deviations from the original measurements will have an impact on the overall cutting performance of the plasma system. While these counterfeit consumables still allow end users to cut metal, there are clear differences or inconsistencies in cut part quality, cutting speed, and consumable life when compared to the originals. Incorrect manufacturing of the consumables may cause internal torch damage or failure.

In addition, OEMs often utilize patented or proprietary technologies in the design of their consumables. For instance, Hypertherm’s “CopperPlus” electrode that doubles the consumable life of standard electrodes, and “CoolFlow” nozzle technology that improves cooling to help maintain the size and shape of the nozzle orifice for longer life. Counterfeit consumables lack the enhanced performance and features associated with these proprietary technologies, which means that customers end up not enjoying the benefits conferred by these technologies, and not realizing the full potential of the plasma system. Hence, the use of counterfeit consumables significantly impacts the overall cutting performance of the system.

Results of an actual cutting trial conducted by an end user with Hypertherm, that compares the cutting performance using Hypertherm’s CopperPlus™ electrodes versus its counterfeit. The trials were conducted simultaneously on 2 separate cutting tables under similar conditions, on mild steel plate of varying thickness (8mm, 10mm, and 12mm).

It was found that the original consumable performed up to 5 times better in terms of cut length and number of pierces.

2. Performance Plasma torches are precision devices and the corresponding consumables are manu-

3. Safety During cutting, a large amount of energy is required to generate the plasma arc, and tem-

Going Original Unlike the OEMs, most customers are probably unaware of the dangers and consequences of using counterfeit consumables. It may also be a challenge for them to identify the counterfeits.

Poor equipment performance that is directly due to the counterfeit consumable is mistakenly attributed to the product’s brand instead. In turn, this creates the false impression that the original equipment is unreliable, which negatively impacts the company’s branding, credibility, and reputation.

Here, we highlight five reasons why the use of counterfeit consumables can be more counterproductive than beneficial.

There is a need to choose genuine torches and consumables for your original plasma cutting system to protect your investment and ensure optimal performance.

Impact Of

Counterfeiting End-users

• Poor performance (life, quality and speed) • Potential downtime • Liability and safety • Increased prices versus aftermarket • Increased cost versus genuine products

Business Partners

• Lost sales • Poor credibility with end user • Legal risks • Lost profit • Decreased brand value

OEM

• Decreased brand value • Weakened DVP to channel partners • Lost profits, revenue and market share • Lost credibility with end user

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Photographs taken at an actual counterfeit consumable manufacturing facility that was shut down in 2014. The factory is unkempt and appears to be poorly maintained. There is a noticeable lack of quality and safety testing equipment.

Actual photographs of the manufacturing facility of an OEM (Hypertherm). In comparison, the factory is well organized with clearly segmented work areas, and well-maintained equipment.

Purchasing Tips To avoid purchasing counterfeit consumables unknowingly, end-users can look out for the following signs: • Poor or inconsistent consumable performance when compared to a genuine product (e.g. only getting 50 percent of normal life) • Having to pay an abnormally low price for “genuine” consumables or software • “Genuine” consumables from an unauthorized distributor, an unknown agent, or off the internet • Discrepancies in the physical appearance of the label, packaging, or product, when compared to that of the original consumable End-users who suspect that they have purchased counterfeit products should contact the OEM immediately to determine the authenticity of the product and seek proper assistance.

peratures can go up to 25,000 degrees Celsius.

To reduce costs, counterfeiters manufacture their consumables with low quality metals.

Unlike the originals, the counterfeits may not be able to withstand the high temperatures emitted during plasma cutting, and the torch could possibly overheat as a result. Apart from the choice of materials, consumables that are out of tolerances may also be prone to overheating. Consequently, this might cause the torch or plasma system to malfunction or breakdown, which will significantly increase downtime.

4. After-sales support Most OEMs provide post-sales technical support for their products. Unfortunately, troubleshooting may not be possible if unknown parts were used in the lead up to a damaged torch or plasma system. Some manufacturers do not provide warranty for torches if the damage was caused by the use of counterfeit consumables, while some OEMs may even revoke the warranty for the entire system.

Companies who choose to purchase counterfeit products will inevitably find themselves at the losing end in such situations.

5. Overall costs Counterfeit consumables may cost a fraction of the price, but they typically also last only for a fraction of the cutting lifespan when compared to the genuine products. As such, frequent replacement becomes a necessity.

Additional post-cutting processes like edge reworking may also be necessary due to the

poor and inconsistent cut quality rendered by the cheap copies. Irrevocable damage may also occur from the use of counterfeit consumables, causing impairment to a valuable piece of equipment, which could result in irreplaceable production downtime and loss of business.

The true cost of cutting metal is multifactorial and it includes: the quantity of consumables used over a period of time; the time and labour spent on changing the consumables, and on fixing poor or inconsistent cuts; the cost of lost production (during changeovers), lowered productivity, as well as business loss associated with the use of counterfeit products. Factoring in these costs, the initial savings at the time of sale becomes insignificant when compared to the additional expenses in the long run.

Ensuring Optimal Performance For all the perceived costs savings, counterfeit consumables are, in fact, a huge liability to businesses and are more trouble than what they’re worth. Using genuine torches and consumables for your original plasma cutting system is the only way to ensure optimal performance. Not only do the original products last longer and perform better, they are also machined to the highest quality standards and offer superior results with the latest performance-enhancing technologies. Purchasing a plasma cutting system is a significant investment in itself so why risk it for something that offers so few benefits?

The only way to protect your investment is to only use genuine consumables.

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Powering

The Automotive Supply Chain

As Indonesia moves towards an age of increased digitalisation and connectivity, there is an increased expectation of the automotive sector to improve on its productivity and swing around an otherwise lacklustre 2015.

‘Moving Into Industry 4.0: The Power Of PLM In Your Automotive Supply Chain’ tackled some of the concerns of the Indonesian automotive players. Syed Shah reports from Jakarta.

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A

t the ‘Moving Into Industry 4.0: The Power Of PLM In Your Automotive Supply Chain’ seminar co-organised

by Siemens PLM Software, Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News (APMEN), and Industrial Automation Asia (IAA), ideas on harnessing the power of Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) software were put to the GIAMM (Gabungan Industri Alat Alat Mobil & Motor) members who attended the event held at the Holiday Inn Kemayoran, Jakarta, Indonesia.

Attendees ranged from OEM automotive parts makers to representatives from larger automotive corporations.

During the seminar, Rajiv Ghatikar, VP and GM, ASEAN/Australasia, for Siemens PLM Software, brought up points with regards to managing increased complexity across the entire life cycle of a vehicle in a cost effective and streamlined manner and how this is a crucial period in the economic cycle to increase productivity.

This is where PLM solutions come in and these solutions are essential in today’s increasingly complex and digital world.

“Indonesia is coming more into the light now for us because after the Jokowi administration took over, there has been more focus than ever in driving business. Aside from the somewhat sluggish second half of 2015 for the automotive sector in the country, the footprint that Indonesia has in the region is quite a distinct one that has the potential to grow,” said Mr Ghatikar.

Ir Hadi Surjadipradja who is the Secretary General of GIAMM and keynote speaker for the event mentioned: “The Indonesian automotive scene is currently experiencing a downturn but there are many opportunities in technology that we can be exploring in order to ride the uptick when it comes along. The key for us is not to be left behind and adopting PLM solutions to our existing processes is essential.”

Mr Surjadipradja also added that the old mindsets of yesterday’s production are still prevalent but the need for a change in momentum has to come as quickly as possible. “What we do not want is to lose our competitiveness and it is true that only the most flexible and efficient manufacturers out there will survive.”

The Road To PLM Adoption During the seminar, Mr Ghatikar stressed that people need to be prepped for the technology.

Touching upon the maturity of the Indonesian market, he remarked that there is still a lot of catching up to do.

Events such as this one aim to set off the wheels of innovation about the importance of innovating change because the automotive industry elsewhere is changing and they need to keep up with the global tempo. From Siemen’s point of view, PLM is the answer and they are equipped to provide the solutions to take companies to the next level.

However, the infrastructure needed to sup-

FEATURES Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

port such technologies could be an issue in a country like this. But Mr Ghatikar believes that this is just a minor hurdle that can be easily overcome.

“I believe that our solutions can be connected even on different architectures and some can do without connectivity – installed locally and then run. One might face an issue with connectivity when implementing cloud solutions down the road but right now I do not think that is the main concern.”

Collaborative Platforms To Power The Automotive Sector When asked about what is one of the most critical elements in the automotive supply chain, Mr Ghatikar mentioned that collaboration in an increasingly fast paced environment where quicker and better products are to be churned out is highly important. In order to do that, critical information sharing is paramount.

“Teamcenter is one of the modules that we offer and one of the reasons why companies should adopt us – the collaborative aspect of the solution that allows people to work across locations simultaneously. While connectivity is important, it is also varied in a sense that you can connect people on a wide variety of platforms today and could be as sophisticated as a multi-site Wide Area Network (WAN), a broadband based one or even a cloud based one,” remarked Mr Ghatikar.

Continuing he said: “While the issue of the infrastructure to support the connectivity might not be as stable as let us say a fully developed economy like the US, in the connected world we live in now, the need for connectivity in the manufacturing world, I think that Indonesia will upscale itself quickly enough to meet these needs.”

Another concern of automakers is the migration of design platforms. In response to this, Mr Ghatikar explained that the NX product has all the elements of the base design like CAD/CAM/ CAE simulations that one needs.

PLM & The IoT Since the global manufacturing sector is moving towards the ‘smart’, ‘connected’ factory floor, solutions in the factory space look to be on board this trend.

Mr Ghatikar explained that the Internet of Things (IoT) phenomenon is essentially about making everything within an ecosystem become a smart object and getting them connected. He gave the example of an object playing a role in a production process, there should have a way to increase the intelligence of the overall system that can then be designed to give feedback on

The seminar ended on a lighter note with a lucky draw amidst more pressing matters like the need to invest in a PLM solution.

certain metrics or performance criteria that says it is performing its functions faithfully as to what it was originally planned to do.

“This means that in the IoT, if objects are to be smart, then there is a need to digitise them smartly in a way that they can interact, give feedback and in other ways become intelligent enough to, for example, pre-empt the user to potential issues that might arise in the process through monitoring. PLM on the other hand is a process that can seek to connect these smart objects and can work hand in hand with the IoT concept. To have a ‘smart’ PLM implies that there is an IoT system in which the PLM solution operates,” explaining where and how the PLM solution fits into the whole IoT set up.

The Rationale For The PLM Solution The obvious takeaway at the end of the seminar is that the local automotive manufacturers need to look at being able to project where one’s business needs to be in two to three years’ time. They also need to stay informed of the major global market trends in the manufacturing sector to stay competitive on the global scene, in terms of innovation, effective cost management, and productivity.

Mr Ghatikar’s parting advice was that: “If you do not have a PLM system, then it is time to get one! Those who have not come on board yet should not be afraid because the adoption of PLM is a journey that could take years to adapt to. But the most important thing is to be on that journey. It is like the stock market – if you want to reap the benefits of a good stock, you first have to buy and invest in it. So the message is embark on the journey and we at Siemens PLM will help you along with your Return-On-Investment (ROI) planning to make sure that the investment in PLM will be paying out.”

“To have a ‘smart’ PLM implies that there is an IoT system in which the PLM solution operates.”

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Market Outlook 2016:

Through The

Looking Glass Industry players and analysts give their expert opinion on emerging trends at the metalworking front and the manufacturing sector for 2016 and beyond. By Syed Shah.

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FEATURES Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Continued Growth In ASEAN Sandvik Coromant‘s will continue to strengthen our operations and presence in different ASEAN countries. We have planned to further strengthen our position in this region with a strong conviction that this is one of the few regions globally that we could expect better than average growth in the coming years.

In 2016, we will continue to drive ONE business idea which is to help our customers to be more competitive in their businesses by improving productivity and reducing downtime in their productions.

Every year, we introduce over 2500 new products to the market through our established global new product introduction process. Our recent product releases include CoroMill® 390, Inveio™ Grade series 4325, CoroCut® QD Parting & Grooving and CoroMill® Plura.

Sandvik Coromant will continue to spend a substantial percentage of our global revenue into R&D to develop new metal cutting technology and products as well as more efficient production technology.

Customers in this region can expect Sandvik Coromant to continue to support metal cutting industry with our ground breaking product technology as well as our knowledge in manufacturing production. Our sales engineers and authorised distributors within the regions will continue to work closely with our customers so that their needs will be met in one way or another.

We believe that the ASEAN region will grow in 2016. We are aligning our Business Strategy with the expected growth in this region so that we can further strengthen our market position. Most importantly, this is to meet the increasing expectations of our customers and this is our promise!

Lee Ee Sian General Manager Sandvik Coromant South & East Asia

Keeping The Focus On Core Strengths In recent years, we noticed a shift in demand among our customers, from contact to non-contact measurement methods. This can be attributed in part to the popularity of additive manufacturing, as well as the rise of automated in-line inspection in the factory environment. Besides, across market segments, a preference for more complex, curvy shapes (as opposed to ‘boxy’ designs primarily formed with straight lines) is increasingly commonplace. All of these factors have played a part in the proliferation of non-contact measurement techniques.

In fact, Faro launched several devices with laser scanning capabilities – such as the Faro Edge ScanArm HD and Faro Freestyle3D/3D X Series – in order to respond to these market needs. Going into 2016, we expect this trend to further develop and we’ll remain close to our customers, in order to best understand and address their measurement needs.

In the last 12 months, Faro products have been well received by its customers, and we are heartened by the response that we’ve seen. For instance, the Edge ScanArm HD’s matchless scanning capabilities and the Freestyle3D’s novel applications are some of the success stories that we are proud of, to name a few. This was made possible because of the close relationships that we hold with our customers. It was through this approach that Faro came up with disruptive technology known as the Faro Laser Scanner Focus3D X Series today. Moving forward, we are confident of pushing out even more devices that address real, felt needs.

We recognise that the major economies of the world are facing a slowdown, which will have an impact on manufacturers across the Asia Pacific region. This, in turn, has an effect on Faro’s growth as well. However, we will continue to focus on our core strengths of servicing the automotive and metalworking industries, as well as look into offering solutions for ‘new’ industries, such as the law enforcement and energy sectors. The former would involve making improvements to our FaroArm and Faro Laser Tracker product lines, whereas the latter would be about unconventional applications for the Faro Scanner Freestyle3D. As mentioned earlier, Faro believes that its solutions address customers’ real needs, which evolve with the passage of time. A product that used to work for manufacturers may become obsolete in time to come, which could be as a result of competing technologies that claim to be more efficient.

Joseph Arezone

Managing Director Europe, Middle East, Africa & Asia Pacific, Faro

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Market Outlook 2016: Through The Looking Glass New Technologies The Key

Taveesak Srisuntisuk

Managing Director Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence Thailand

With the change in name, we at Hexagon are expanding the breadth of our offerings to the manufacturing sector as a whole. Slowly, we shall be sensitising our customers to our rebranding which came along with our Q-Das and Vero acquisitions. In the events and exhibitions to come, we will be bringing more products associated with these brands to be at our booths.

Within Thailand, our main customer base is the automotive sector and our market share is consists of 70 percent of the total sales. With some models, the buying decision comes from headquarters abroad but we still provide after sales services. It is time for Thailand, in the production to be concerned about the throughput, cycle time and so forth. With labour costs rising, there is a need to adopt new technologies and methods to offset this problem especially in the adoption of more automation to increase productivity in line production.

Automotive companies are already looking to venture into other territories like Vietnam and Indonesia. So Thailand cannot rest on its laurels even though it is the largest automotive supplier in the region. I think the ongoing trend that is gaining even more momentum is speed, aside from cost.

Hexagon is well placed to be an integral part of the automotive industry. Besides our product offerings, we have excellent after sales service, which is something very important that a lot of providers forget. Hexagon is acknowledged for excellent after-sales service, because we compete by using a ‘Next Day Service’ policy – a policy which sees us answering to any customers’ needs by the next day, regardless of the size of the business.

Looking ahead, Indonesia might look to be challenging Thailand’s dominance in the automotive manufacturing scene despite improving quickly. Vietnam might be a potential challenger to the manufacturing powerhouses in the region.

Getting Ahead Of The Game

Alexander Tjioe President Schunk Asia

The beauty of the Schunk offerings is that it can cover so many industries that include metalworking. Right now we have a focus on automation in manufacturing. In the factory space where there tends to be a work hazard, automation would be the solution and we have solutions right across the board for any of those needs.

When we talk about automation, people always tend to think of what is going to happen to their jobs if robots, let’s say take over their roles. So where is their place on the manufacturing floor? It is without doubt that companies are looking for more output coupled with efficiency and it is also true that a machine with a robot can produce the output of maybe four people for the same amount of time. However, companies should be thinking beyond just cutting the labour costs since it would be senseless to be just pushing buttons – there are definitely expanded roles for people with specific expertise. What more companies are doing today is the retraining of employees to expand their skillsets so that they do not go obsolete in a world of robots. As the industry evolves, so does the workplace. It is not always about employing less but what I think should be the way to go is: “what can the company do to utilise the expertise of employees in an automated workspace?”

While Europe is at the forefront of technology in the manufacturing space with Industry 4.0 taking shape steadily in businesses Southeast Asia is not very far behind. What I feel is that the players in the various industries here have quite a good sense of the European developments and are eager to learn and adopt more of those technologies. This is because the world economy is moving and evolving as we speak and businesses are already feeling the heat of change – one that requires new business concepts in which a large part involves the procurement of more advanced machine floor products and services. Industry players would do well to be able to see the golden opportunity of catching the worm early before the global economy recovers and businesses pick up. What I mean is that you don’t just want your business to pick up, you want to be relevant and at the same time be the innovator because that’s where the business value lies. And here at Schunk, we are ready to

FEATURES Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

give customers this early headstart with our wide range of offerings mentioned earlier.

2016 is going to be something exciting for Schunk and we have recruited people in the Southeast Asian region. We now have a technology centre in Indonesia in Tangerang – a strategic location and this centre is 750 sq m where training and demonstrations will take place for our customers. We will be opening one in either Thailand or Vietnam this year where we are strengthening our presence.

Getting A Cut Through Innovation The TRUMPF Group can look back on a very good fiscal year (2014/2015). We continued to grow in order to optimally position ourselves in important fields, markets, and product segments of the future. The last year has confirmed that the strategy of growth through innovation, regional diversification and customer care is a successful one. We were able to boost our sales significantly.

Nowadays it is getting more important to get machines connected through software. If we take a closer look to the trend of smart manufacturing that involves the use of advancements in communication and information technology in order to increase the degree of automation and digititalisation of processes we can see that this trend opens up entirely new opportunities for our customers and TRUMPF. For us it is clear that we will be taking the production connectivity into our own hands. In order to follow this trend we focussed on a new company called AXOOM GmbH, which was founded by TRUMPF. It is developing an operating system with preinstalled apps for the world of production. The open, vendor-neutral platform enables reliable data transportation as well as data storage and analysis. At the same time, it offers solution modules for seamless order processing within a production operation. Our main focus in this region the next year is to boost our customer’s businesses with the new software called TruTops Boost.

This new software solution gives our customers the opportunity to merge into a single system all the steps needed to generate sheet metal manufacturing programs from part design and data import to nesting and even writing NC programs for cutting, punching and bending.

In order to commit further to the Southeast Asian market, we have further expansion plans in the region such as establishing a new TRUMPF subsidiary in Thailand. Also we will be closer to the market with an own TRUMPF branch in the Philippines. This will allow us to offer full service capacity and sales support in each market throughout the region. All subsidiaries are supported by the regional TRUMPF headquarters in Singapore with its spare parts logistic hub and in-house service support.

TRUMPF never stands still when it comes to innovations (The R&D ratio in relation to sales for TRUMPF stands at almost ten percent). Thus we are looking forward to launch new products and even new technologies in the Southeast Asian market in 2016.

Siemens PLM 2015 Year-End Roundups And 2016 Outlooks

2015 saw the markets within the AP region move away from low-skill and low-cost production. The manufacturing climate saw several contractions across countries such as China, Korea and Singapore – with global metalworking giants such as China and Japan taking the hardest hit.

However, through the formation of ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) in 2015, the metalworking sector in Asia began to slowly enjoy greater access to markets and freer flow of goods, services and labour.

With ASEAN’s efforts to lower barriers for organisations to regionalise, businesses have started to take heed to upgrade their capabilities by investing in smart technology.

The uptake of IoT by local manufacturing firms also improved in 2015 as countries such as Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia are increasingly seen as important global players in the space. While the countries were chosen because of low labor costs, but locally run vendors and OEMs remain proactive when it comes to technology implementation within their factories to overcome productivity inefficiencies.

Mr. Joerg Ellerkmann

Managing Director TRUMPF Asia Pacific

Pete Carrier

Senior Vice President and Managing Director for Asia Pacific Siemens PLM Software

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Market Outlook 2016: Through The Looking Glass

Bob Gill,

In a world of smart, connected products, where entire markets can vanish with a single innovation, manufacturers must watch how products are being used, and feed data back from product utilisation into product ideation and development in order to anticipate trends. The realisation phase of innovation is vital in this new era.

Organisations are recommended to groom three types of talents to stay on top: 1) workers with deep analytical skills to execute big data studies that will provide invaluable insights on consumer demand that will benefit metalworking, 2) managers and analysts to examine these studies and make them into smart, actionable insights, and 3) supporting technology personnel to enable execution based on these insights. Smarter decisions will help build the right product by reducing manufacturing costs, increasing quality performance and enable more frequent development of complex products done right.

New technologies such as digital manufacturing and data analytics will gain traction across Asia. Emerging markets such as Thailand and Indonesia are expected to recover from their business climate in 2015 and take over giants such as China. Digital manufacturing will be the key point of integration between PLM and various shop floor applications and equipment, enabling the exchange of product-related information between design and manufacturing groups. Meanwhile, manufacturers should look to data analytics to optimise factory operations to maximise equipment utilisation and product quality. For example, McKinsey pointed out the use of digital tools to make step-change improvements in throughput in a major metal plant. The company expects to use condition monitoring and predictive maintenance, in conjunction with process controls and automated material tracking made possible with big data analysis, to drive a 30 percent increase in production without a substantial increase in operational costs.

Moving forward, PLM will play a larger role in all verticals, given the rise of software to align all divisions together to realise innovation, connecting virtual development and production planning with the real production environment and lifecycle support. For example, Siemens PLM’s Solid Edge 8 applies synchronous technology for sheet metal parts design enabling new levels of productivity to sheet metal design environments. Users can create models with less pre-planning and make revisions with ease and edit data providers more effectively. By implementing high technology systems to run metalworking operations, this will aid in enabling success in the manufacturing sector.

General Manager, Southeast Asia, ARC Advisory Group

Connecting Machines In An IoT World ARC Advisory Group research indicates that the proportion of machine tool time actually taken up by cutting metal is less than 40 percent and can even be as low as 25 percent. But with most machine shops performing manual, post-production data collection processes, it can be difficult to accurately pinpoint the causes of all that non-productive machining time.

However, against the backdrop of the promise of the everythingconnected world of the Internet of Things (IoT), comes MTConnect, which heralds a new era of automated, real-time data collection and much greater visibility into manufacturing operations. As an open, royaltyfree protocol, MTConnect enables plug-and-play connectivity to machine tools, unlocking production data previously too onerous to extract in a multi-vendor machine environment.

The collaboration between Mazak and IoT evangelist Cisco to develop the new Mazak SmartBox is evidence of the connectivity trend set to gain momentum in 2016.

SmartBox integrates with any machine tool (not just Mazak’s) and has MTConnect software running directly on Cisco’s Industrial Ethernet (IE) 4000 switch. The real-time information that it makes available, particularly that related to machine idle time, is highly valuable to manufacturers looking to resolve downtime issues and improve overall productivity.

FEATURES Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Automation In Welding In 2016 ESAB will continue to build on the strength of a diverse welding and cutting product portfolio that includes the brands of ESAB, Victor, Tweco, Aircair, Stoody and Cigweld. Having such a broad offering helps us better meet customer needs – with a total system package – bundled solutions that improve productivity and performance and lower the cost of production.

An area that continues to be a key focus for ESAB is welding automation. Based on “Voice of the Customer” research we’ve conducted – which is core to our product development efforts – we know that automation is critically important to our customers to help reduce cost, increase output and keep them competitive on a global scale, especially in response to the impact of the business recession in the Asia Pacific market.

In addition, the welding industry is applying advanced technologies such as robotics, lasers and cloud-based communication to make the “smart factory” of the future possible. ESAB is taking a leading role in this (Industry 4.0) with the launch of new online data management software. An increasing demand for thick and exotic materials, and the strict requirements associated with their use, will also drive our business in Asia. In this respect, ESAB is especially well-positioned to provide proven and mature processes, advanced technology and equipment to our Asian customers who work with thick plate, mission-critical applications, exotic materials, and the like.

Our customers are also considering new processes and solutions that are more efficient and environmentally friendly. For ESAB, this is a continued priority.

From a welding industry point of view and for all the trades, there is the ongoing challenge of finding adequately trained workers. Automation solutions will help in this respect. ESAB is also able to provide the necessary training to help customers make a smooth transition to a more automated process, as well as develop a more skilled labour force.

Stanley Chew Vice President and Managing Director ESAB Asia/Pacific

Taking Advantage Of The IoT Proliferation In 2016, DHL Supply Chain will continue pursuing its vision of helping manufacturers to become connected enterprises, facilitating the convergence of plant-floor operations technology (OT) and business-level information technology (IT). By enabling a myriad of remote sensors and devices to collect and exchange data, people and processes across the enterprise and throughout the entire supply chain are connected using a secure, standards-based industrial ethernet/IP network. Our company is taking advantage of the proliferation of smarter in-factory and field devices, big data/analytics, cloud computing, virtualisation, mobility and security, so that our customers are further productive and the world is more sustainable.

The key to achieving the connected enterprise is the ability to converge IT and OT, two independent architectures and systems, into a single, unified design. However, to do so, there are a number of technical and cultural challenges that need to be addressed. Moreover, security is a critical obstacle to any Connected Enterprise, with data showing 70 per cent of businesses had some type of IT security breach last year.

We expect to see a continual merging of technolog y and communication networks, as well as streamlined networks in business and the industrial environment s, as the ethernet becomes the net work of choice because it is easy to unders tand and deploy. There is an estimated US$14 trillion in additional value that businesses can unlock and enjoy by simply ma ximising top line grow th and minimising cos t s through IoT adoption.

William Meahl

Chief Commercial Officer DHL

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FEATURES Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Market Outlook 2016: Through The Looking Glass Meeting Asia Pacific’s Needs And Expectations

Cliff Purser Managing Director 600 Machine Tools

The 600 company has its roots in British engineering and with a century of experience is now taking its expertise to the expanding markets of the AsiaPacific region. Sydney-based 600 Machine Tools has been providing world-class metalworking machines to engineering workshops throughout Australia for more than half a century.

The backbone of the company’s offering is lathes and machining centres, notably the globally-renowned brands of Colchester and Harrison and, more recently, the powerful machines from Clausing of the USA. All three companies, each with an impeccable pedigree, are key members of the UK-based 600 Group.

Driven by innovation, the company is combining its renowned design skills and engineering quality to develop new machines for specific markets and tasks. The continuously updated Colchester-Harrison portfolio, is now complemented by a broad range of machines from Clausing which has become available worldwide. The company has more than 250 distributors in North America, and its salesvolume delivers economies of scale that filter through to end-users.

Many of these sturdy, accurate, and reliable machines are ideal for the workshops and conditions found in Asia-Pacific. The 600 Group executives from UK and the Asia-Pacific regional office in Sydney visited several expanding markets during 2015, and put in place the building-blocks of an expanded regional network.

Our technology incorporates vast knowledge gained in the demanding markets of Europe and US but, importantly, is supported locally by national distributors who understand the specific needs of their customers throughout the Southeast Asian region.

New Opportunities For Growth

Chandran Nair Vice-President (Asia Pacific) National Instruments

In regards to technology, we spend about 16 percent of our revenue on R&D and a large part of it goes towards software and of course hardware platform development. On the software side in 2016 we can expect improvements in our core products, like LABView, which will increase connectivity to smart devices which will increase the analytics capabilities so that people can use the data in more effective ways. We will also see a lot of improvements in software tools that can make our customers more productive so what that really means is to be able to use common frameworks across different applications by a click of the button.

These kind of software technologies will be made available in the next one and two years.

In terms of growth opportunities, If you look at NI’s business there are two major competences, one is the test side of our business and the other is the embedded side of our business. On the test side of our business we see a lot of growth whether it be smart devices or consumer Internet of Things.

All the devices need to be tested so there is a lot of growth there. Almost every single device that comes out nowadays is multifunction. There are at least two or three technologies converging in that device.

A bicycle is still a bicycle but if you just look at the technology in the bicycle you get anything from a $50 bicycle to $15,000 bicycle, so as devices get more complex the testing increases a lot and that itself is an increasing market for us.

Now on the other side, the embedded side, yes we have the Industrial Internet of Things, that is one side, but you also have machines that continuously require improvements in their machine condition monitoring. For example, we see the ability to monitor a large number of assets, for instance, railways. In Singapore, if you have a better way to test the tracks before they get spoilt, whether it is an electrical or a mechanical device. To be able to monitor these large number of assets and be able to map that to improvements.

ENQUIRY NO 016

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FEATURES Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Hexagon Live Hong Kong 2015:

Taking on a rebranding, sporting newer acquisitions and most importantly, having more offerings for its customers; this was the feel that Hexagon Live Hong Kong (HxGN LIVE) brought about.

Syed Shah was in Hong Kong to get a feel of the excitement.

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Ushering A New Era H eld in Hong Kong at AsiaWorld-Expo with a reported 3,500 attendees on site, Hexagon touts the HxGN LIVE conference is the “world’s largest event” that is a marquee showcase of Hexagon’s technologies. Of course, the main exhibition like “The Zone” (a little more on that later), covered pretty much the whole nine yards of Hexagon’s technology offerings.

A point to note is that as you know, there are many business units that the Hexagon brand holds which are exciting in their own right, but APMEN’s business there was focused on the former Hexagon Metrology brand, which is now known as Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence.

I would say that this is a pretty timely change of name to suit today’s evolving manufacturing landscape – the move towards the intelligent manufacturing floor where massive amounts of data and analytics seem to be the crux of accuracy.

The event was organised along five tracks - geospatial; geosystems; metrology/manufacturing; process, power & marine and synergy under the theme “Great Stories Start Here”. Day one kicked off with the opening of “The Zone” that held together exhibits and demonstrations for the five tracks with 85,000 sq m of presentations and live demos showcasing the strength of Hexagon’s full range of offerings.

The first keynote of the conference was opened by none other than Hexagon President

and CEO Ola Rollén with the message “Why Shape Matters to Hexagon.” He talked about how IT has shaped the world today, influenced creativity and transforming opportunities into action. Indeed today, the IT age has become so deeply embedded in the DNA of manufacturing that we simply cannot function without it. The demand for accuracy and speed in measurements is constantly increasing and companies would find themselves at a road block if they do not upgrade. Moreover, integration of previously silo-ed processes in the value chain are now coming together in the name of increased productivity. In my opinion, the business paradigm has changed according to the new wave of technology on the factory floor – the industrial internet of things.

In a breakfast meeting with the media, Norbert Hanke, CEO of Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence shared with APMEN a little bit about why Hexagon Metrology rebranded its name and image. “With the needs of the customers changing and becoming more demanding, naturally we have to evolve in tandem with them. This means a real need to think ahead of the game and come up with an offering that puts us at the forefront of the market. Like I have mentioned before, how we are is a reflection of what we can offer our customers. So to achieve this, we have taken significant steps forward with our range of offerings through innovation and strategic acquisitions.”

FEATURES Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Hexagon President and CEO Ola Rollén kicks the show off with the message “Why Shape Matters to Hexagon.”

Earlier in 2015, Hexagon had acquired Q-Das and Vero Software in a bid to strengthen its manufacturing based offerings.

He further explained that there was a need to expand their statistical process control and CAD/CAM offerings and skills in order to market a suite of products as a potential “one-stop” solution. I would be led to think that this is quite a key step in the metrology side of things since most of the market still offers rather one dimensional solutions instead of what seems to be a multidimensional one here. We will be observing closely how this strategy will pan out this year and the next.

“The Zone” The Zone practically covered a large portion of the Asia World Expo Hall. While I have not personally recce-ed the entire building, I would still say that the space covered was impressive.

Browsing through the exhibits and demonstrations, I believe that Hexagon has pretty much nailed it in terms of the ease of understanding portion. Staff who mended the booths surely knew what they were talking about simply because their explanations were well, simple – the mark of confidence.

While in The Zone, attendees seized the opportunity to check out the interactive product demonstrations that showcased the impressive portfolio of innovative products Hexagon businesses have to offer.

Data seemed to be on the minds of many attendees at the event. Ola Rollén had earlier mentioned on how data can close the gap between ‘what is’ and ‘what should be’. Earlier I had mentioned that this is the case and how we cannot just do without it (data) and in this case, Big Data.

There is an immense business value just waiting to be ploughed into with Big Data from a manufacturing standpoint. Immediately, we are talking about faster processes and improved

Today, the IT age has become so deeply embedded in the DNA of manufacturing that we simply cannot function without it.

The Zone featured many of Hexagon’s offerings amongst the various business units.

productivity. This in turn leads to increased revenue through cost savings. The value is high due to the nature of the industry sectors such as automotive, aerospace and electronics, whose high-value assets production lines churn out products worth billions of dollars per year.

Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence and other Hexagon businesses address big data challenges as companies accumulate larger and larger data sets. Investment in technology and enterprise-scale software systems aims to provide better management, interoperability, and analytics. This way, critical insights enabled

by Big Data would indeed significantly improve operational performance.

At the end of it, most attendees left quite satisfied with what they got at the event and so was I. Until Anaheim, US, for the next HxGN LIVE event this year, 2016!

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EVENTS & EXHIBITIONS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

The Coming Of The

Metalex-pansion 2016 will see an expanded Metalex exhibition in Thailand once the expansion works at BITEC is completed.

Syed Shah reports from Thailand.

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t the 2015 edition of Metalex, organiser Reed Tradex Company announced that the event is set to meet the expectations for expansion for the 2016 edition which will see the space expand from six to nine halls.

Next year’s show would increase its exhibit areas by 40 percent to 64,000 sq m from this year’s 46,000 sq m by occupying the new extended areas now under construction with more than 100,000 visitors expected.

Reed Tradex, the organiser said that is closely related to the growing economy in the region and the investment is continually growing despite some economic setbacks.

With more space also comes more pressure to fill them. Chet Burchette, Reed Tradex’s chief executive officer expressed a buoyant mood for the event as well as the Thai industries.

“Thailand is a bright spot for exhibition industry with steady growth for us while other key markets like Europe and China see slowdown,” Mr Burchette said.

“The event will be renamed as the Grand Metalex 2016. Our good news is that 90 per cent of all exhibit space is already booked,” he added.

Preecha Sananvatananont, co-founder and a director of Reed Tradex, a member of Reed

Exhibitions, said the CEO’s visit signified the strong commitment of the parent company to put more effort into Thailand as the hub of the growing Asean region, particularly after the full implementation of the Asean Economic Community at the end of this year.

Reed Tradex believes the key is to help exhibitors understand the role they are playing in the manufacturing sector in ASEAN and their endeavours in bringing in top technologies has a direct impact in the growth of the region.

Thoughts From The Floor The organiser can be very proud of this result considering that the first half of 2015 is by no means a peaceful one in the country. Looking forward to 2016, he feels things will get gradually better, both on the business and political fronts.

“While the economy was not doing too well in 2015, we are hoping for rosier things in 2016. For us here in Thailand, we have had a steady stream of customers and our presence in the event is important since we have popular machines that have always been highly marketable. So this confirms our business in Thailand is still growing and sustainable. There is of course R&D going on consistently to keep up with today’s market trends but with the Southeast Asian market still

EVENTS & EXHIBITIONS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

The event will be renamed Grand Metalex 2016 this year.

Pinaki Banerjee, managing director for Hoffmann Asia Pacific/India.

CP Chuah, general manager, commercial operations Asia Pacific, Wenzel Asia.

adapting to the latest phases in manufacturing technologies, our current offerings will suffice for now. However, when it does mature (and it will eventually), we will be ready,” said CP Chuah, general manager, commercial operations Asia Pacific, Wenzel Asia.

While the political situation is currently stable, the sentiment going around is confident that the export business will hold up in the unlikely event that sees the country fall into around period of uncertainty seen in early 2015. Moreover, despite a weakening automotive factor, external demand for vehicles has still remained robust.

“Even if we have problem inside the country, the export section is still going up. We achieved more than a million pickup cars to export. At the moment, all of those cars still need replacement parts so we will need a lot of export for the replacement parts,” an attendee was quoted as saying.

Pinaki Banerjee, managing director for Hoffmann Asia Pacific/India shared his thoughts on the market as well saying that he is looking forward to 2016 for the major markets in the region like Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia and also how important it is to be seen in large regional shows such as Metalex Thailand.

“Metalex Thailand is the show to be seen

in for the metalworking and tooling industry in the region, hence it would be of strategic importance to keep being seen in this show moving forward. At Hoffmann, we are very particular in keeping our lead sheet because it is very easy to create leads at an event and then have poor follow ups – this would then be a waste of time. For us, the response has been fantastic throughout the show, hence we have generated a large amount of leads and I intend to convert as many of these leads into business opportunities. We already have an impressive tooling line up and tooling catalogue so it would be a waste if we do not capitalise on an already impressive product.

My personal commitment to the company is that I am looking for a triple digit growth by 2017 and I think that the platforms to help Hoffmann Asia achieve that are in place.”

In view of the positive prognosis, the future events of Metalex look set to break new grounds showing what the Southeast Asian market needs.

Although the show may not be the place to see world premieres of the most complex machine tool, it is a place that shows visitors what they need. Let’s see what Grand Metalex 2016 has to offer with the expanded grouds on the 23rd to the 26th of November 2016.

Metalex Thailand BITEC 18 – 21 November

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EVENTS & EXHIBITIONS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Event Review:

Manufacturing Indonesia & Machine Tool Indonesia Jakarta International Expo Centre Jakarta, Indonesia December 2 – 5, 2015

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anufacturing Indonesia and Machine Tool Indonesia have attracted 37,579 trade attendees over a four-day period, says the organiser. For them, the results garnered during the events’ 26th and 29th editions have reaffirmed its reputation as buyers came from 36 countries/regions.

Organised by PT Pamerindo Indonesia, the event occupied close to 35,000 sq m of exhibit space and hosted more than 2000 exhibiting companies from 40 plus countries, proving that the show is the sourcing platform of choice for Indonesia and the region.

Indonesia’s growing demand for innovations in manufacturing, machine tools and precision engineering was clearly seen at the shows. A diversity of manufacturers and distributors attended the event to gain up-to-date information about viable technologies and solutions that are practical for improving efficiency, increasing productivity and reducing operational costs.

“The enthusiastic turnout of exhibitors, buyers and industry stakeholders has been encouraging.

Indeed, it reinforces on the stature of this annual show as an important platform for manufacturing and precision engineering community to tune in, on the evolving and dynamic operating environment here in Indonesia. From feedback given by exhibitors, they have seen the value of their presence and are optimistic on the continuing prospects of the market,” said Maysia Stephannie, senior project manager of PT Pamerindo Indonesia.

“The four-day event concluded with a positive note on sales transactions. Many of the exhibitors have found valuable contacts and interested buyers that are looking for practical and viable solutions for their manufacturing needs. Notably, the manufacturing, machine tool and precision engineering sectors were intensely engage on ensuing developments from aerospace, automotive, precision engineering, electrical and electronics, marine & shipbuilding, medical, oil & gas, bulk process engineering, plastics & rubber, building and construction, pipe & wire, tools, dies & moulds as well as contract and sub-contracting manufacturing sectors in Indonesia. With direct contacts and dialogues established between suppliers and buyers during the show, the path is paved for subsequent collaboration and business growth,” she continued.

Ir Hadi Sujardipradja, secretary general of GIAMM had positive remarks when he mentioned that the event had achieved many goals including that of bringing in quality visitors to the show and presenting them with effective platforms that culminate engineers, manufactures, decision makers and other professionals from various industries to explore on potential technology, application and solution leverages relevant for their manufacturing requirements.

The 27th and 30th editions of Manufacturing Indonesia and Machine Tool Indonesia will return on 30 November – 3 December, 2016.

PRODUCT FINDER Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

ENQUIRY NO 020

Efficient, versatile and easy to use Featuring a bar capacitiy of 25.4 mm diameter, the Tornos Swiss GT 26 is a Swiss-type lathe equipped with six linear axes and two C axes.

Versatility, high performance in value-added operations, and ability to work with or without a guide bush make the Swiss GT 26 a comprehensive bar turning solution.

Discover more : www.tornos.com

Your advanced machining solution

Swiss GT 26 We keep you turning

ANCA Machine Tools: Linear Motor

The LinX Linear Motor from ANCA Machine Tools overcomes all problems related to flatbed linear motors with its cylindrical design.

The machine’s design eliminates attractive forces between the forcer and shaft, reducing the loading requirement on support bearings, and allows an impressive standalone thermal stability because of its thermal Editorial Got a Question? barrier design that separates and Make An Enquiry. removes heat from the motor. This ENQUIRY NUMBER reduces power usage and saves on space as a chiller is not required.

The simple construction offers Turn to page 80a to enquire or log on to: improved and efficient performance www.equipment-news.com at a lower cost.

1601

Behringer HBE Dynamic Series

The Behringer HBE Dynamic series is available in six model types 261A, 321A, 411A, 511A, 563A and 663A with corresponding cutting ranges, covering an extensive field of applications in the steel trade, machine and tool building and in high-end metalworking businesses.

With a superb service life of well in excess of 400 sawing cuts in 42CrMo4 200 mm diameter Editorial Got a Question? materials, the HBE Dynamic series Make An Enquiry. from Behringer comes with a dou- ENQUIRY NUMBER ble vice as standard. The machines’ feed gripper is designed in a rugged gantry version and mounted in Turn to page 80a to enquire or log on to: floating bearings.

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www.equipment-news.com

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PRODUCT FINDER Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Chicago Pneumatic: CP75XX Angle Grinder

Chicago Pneumatic has launched a new angle grinder, the CP 75X X for indus trial maintenance, repair and operations (MRO).

The product features a 1.1 HP governed motor with a high material removal rate, to help users reduce the time taken for their MRO. There bevel gears and design contribute to durability, allowing 1000 hours between maintenance.

It weighs 3.5 lb. (1.6kg), meas- Editorial Got a Question? ures 10.6 inches (270mm), features Make An Enquiry. an adjustable steel wheel guard ENQUIRY NUMBER combined with a streamlined safety lever and a 360 degree swivel air inlet. It comes in 4, 4.5 and 5 inch Turn to page 80a to enquire grinding wheels, cutting wheels and or log on to: www.equipment-news.com flap wheels.

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Delcam: R2 ArtCAM Pro

Delcam has introduced the R2 ArtCAM Pro, with improvements that includes creating structures for 3D Printing, easier designing with vectors, more design options with real-time updating and faster machine simulations.

The accuracy will also be enhanced due to the addition of rulers in the 3D view to aid in creating more precise artwork and positioning elements of the piece.

There are also two new op- Editorial Got a Question? tions available in the 3D of fset Make An Enquiry. s t r ateg y. The abilit y to spir al ENQUIRY NUMBER from the outside in or from the centre out , reducing tool wear and giving better surface finish, Turn to page 80a to enquire and on-surface links that reduces or log on to: www.equipment-news.com machining time.

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CGTech: VERICUT 7.4

CGTech and MachiningCloud have announced an enhancement for VERICUT that lets existing customers import an entire tooling package into VERICUT in one simple step.

VERICUT 7.4 allows users to directly download all the tool assemblies within the package and use it within VERICUT with fewer steps compared to manually configuring a tool for use in a simulation session.

The process includes building a Editorial Got a Question?

MachiningCloud job containing your Make An Enquiry. tool assemblies, downloading the ENQUIRY NUMBER job to your local computer, clicking within VERICUT once to import all the tools from the job and finally Turn to page 80a to enquire simulate using your tool assemblies or log on to: www.equipment-news.com just created in the system.

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Dynabrade Incorporated: Extension Die Grinders

Dynabrade Incorporated has launched a new line of 0.4 Horsepower Extension Die Grinders that allow for efficient finishing within long pipes, castings, and other places where an extended reach is needed.

The tools come in either a front or rear exhaust configurations, run at 25,000 revolutions per minute, and feature extended three-inch and six-inch shafts. They also feature a safety-lock level to prevent ac- Editorial Got a Question? cidental start-up of the tool, power Make An Enquiry. optional carbide burrs and mounted ENQUIRY NUMBER points for deburring, grinding, etching, cleaning and other functions.

Running at 72 decibels, the tools Turn to page 80a to enquire make for a comfortably quiet and or log on to: www.equipment-news.com conducive working environment.

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PRODUCT FINDER Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Renishaw: DDS600 Long Travel Stage And MLS203 Microscopic Stage MachiningCloud: MachiningCloud App

MachiningCloud is a new app that aims to reduce the time it takes to find, select and assemble tools by at least 75 percent.

The app offers cutting tool and workholding product data. It helps provide a single source of access to current product data from a variety of sup- Editorial Got a Question? pliers, in digital format, available Make An Enquiry. right from your personal desktop.

ENQUIRY NUMBER In addition to the product data, the app provides an integrated toolset to easily and speedily put the Turn to page 80a to enquire or log on to: data to work, allowing assemblies www.equipment-news.com to be built at a more efficient pace.

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Thorlabs, an optical equipment company, has chosen to equip Renishaw’s TONIC encoders with both its DDS600 600 mm long travel stage and the MLS203 microscope stage.

The DDS600 runs on a linear motor that eliminates the need for mechanical couplings, allowing for a backlashfree operation that enables highly repetitive operations.

A compact encoder redhead was also specified to allow integration with low profile motion stages while keeping Editorial stage rigidity.

Got a Question?

The MLS 203 is equipped with Make An Enquiry. the same linear motor, and utilises ENQUIRY NUMBER Renishaw’s Tonic encoder system to achieve minimum 100nm step-size, ±0.25 μm bi-directional repeatabilTurn to page 80a to enquire or log on to: ity, ±0.25 μm homing accuracy and a www.equipment-news.com maximum speed of 0.25 m/s.

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ENQUIRY NO 017

ARNO®-SE-Grooving System

Mastercam: Onshape App Store

Mastercam, in conjunction with Onshape, has launched a private beta app for selected individuals. The app is expected to cater to CAD users in general.

The Onshape App Store is an open marketplace offering a wide product selection of engineering apps. Mastercam aims to provide one central locale for consumers to find and purchase apps. The app aims to provide flexible Editorial Got a Question? pricing schemes in tandem with exMake An Enquiry. tensive market range and streamlined ENQUIRY NUMBER accessibility that doesn’t require any negotiating with resellers.

The company plans to open the Turn to page 80a to enquire or log on to: app store to the general public by www.equipment-news.com early 2016.

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The SE groove turn system with through tool coolant ( A C S 1 = A R N O ®- C o o l i n g System) for radial grooving applications is available in groove width from 2–6mm and groove depth from 12 or 21 mm. Due to the double prism insert seat secure location is guaranteed.

The fixed stop ensures precise insert repeatability. The inserts are available in 3 geometries and 5 grades. The M2 geometry is especially designed for grooving, turning and copy turning in steel and stainless steel materials, the T1 geometry is for machining steel and cast materials. Both these inserts are precision sintered. A ground-ALU geometry will be offered for aluminium machining.

All tool holders are available with through tool coolant (ACS1).

ARNO Werkzeuge S.E.A. PTE. LTD. 25 International Business Park #04-70A German Centre Singapore 609916 Tel.: +65 65130779 Fax: +65 68970042 E-mail: info@arno.com.sg

www.arno.com.sg

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PRODUCT FINDER Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Sandvik Coromant: CoroDrill 880 Indexable Drill

Sandvik Coromant has launched a reinforced variant of its indexable drill, designed to improve production economy in large diameter hole-making applications.

The reinforced CoroDrill is equipped with an enhanced drill body that is 30 percent stiffer than its predecessor and can be used for applications of up to four or five times the diameter. The combination of the Editorial Got a Question? drill body, in addition to the new Make An Enquiry.

Sandvik grade chain for steel and ENQUIRY NUMBER cast iron, results in a longer tool life.

The drill covers hole diameters from 12 to 84mm off the shelf as Turn to page 80a to enquire or log on to: well as engineered solutions of up www.equipment-news.com to 129 mm.

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Seco: Quattromail Face Mailing Cutter

Seco has released their general-purpose face milling cutter in a new close-pitch version that features a new centre-locking insert screw design and increased strength and density.

Instead of locking from the front, Seco’s insert screw locks from the back of the insert pocket, which eliminates the need for wedges and other extra parts, leaving room for more inserts per cutter diameter.

Editorial Got a Question?

The product is also free cutMake An Enquiry. ting, features positive cutting rake, ENQUIRY NUMBER negative radial rake geometries and accommodates a wide ranging of standard inserts, allowing it to be Turn to page 80a to enquire used in both stable and unstable or log on to: www.equipment-news.com machining conditions.

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Schaeffler: Mancrodur Carbonitrided Steel

Schaeffler has released a new steel coating that increases the operating life of FAG multi-row tapered roller bearings.

The X-Life quality and seal are two elements of bearing performance that can be improved according to requirements.

Carbonitriding allows the surface layer of the bearing rings to be infused with more carbon and nitrogen, resulting in a higher resistance to wear and Editorial Got a Question? an overall higher surface hardness.

Make An Enquiry.

The new coating also offers a ENQUIRY NUMBER longer operating life in the face of overrolling and mixed friction as well as an increased fatigue Turn to page 80a to enquire or log on to: life under favourable lubrication www.equipment-news.com conditions.

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Walter Tools: Walter Titex DB133 Micro Drill

Walter Tools has launched a new micro drill, Titex DB133. The usage of grades WJ30EL and WJ30ER, developed specifically for micro drills, provides wear resistance.

The uniform finish on the drill cutting edge and tight tolerances ensures a good surface finish on the workpiece.

The special flute geometry allows the swarf to be evacuated, leading to hole depths of up Editorial Got a Question? to 8 x Dc. Make An Enquiry.

The solid carbide micro twist ENQUIRY NUMBER drills can be used on many different materials in ISO material groups P, K and N. Diameters range from 0.5 Turn to page 80a to enquire or log on to: to 2.85mm. Oil or emulsion can be www.equipment-news.com used as a coolant.

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CALENDAR 2016 Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

MARCH 30 – 31

22 – 25

Singapore EXPO Hall 1B

Bangkok International Trade & Exhibition Centre (BITEC)

IoT Asia 2016

1 Expo Drive, 486150, Singapore Singex Exhibition Ventures

APRIL 6–8

Manufacturing Expo Hanoi 2016

I.C.E. Hanoi (Cung Van Hoa) Cultural Palace

91 Tran Hung Dao Steet, Hanoi, Vietnam Reed Tradex

APRIL 26 – 28

Manufacturing Expo 2016

88 Bangna-Trad Road (Km.1), Bangna Bangkok 10260, Thailand Reed Tradex Company

Jakarta International Expo (JIExpo)

88 Bangna-Trad Road (Km.1), Bangna Bangkok 10260, Thailand Reed Tradex Company

Saigon Exhibition & Convention Center (SECC)

MTA Vietnam 2016

799 Nguyen Van Linh, District 7, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam Singapore Exhibition Services Pte Ltd

Intermach Thailand 2016, Sheetmetal 2016, Subcon 2016

27 – 30

503/23 K.S.L. Tower 14th Floor Sri Ayuthaya Road Kwaeng Thanon Phayathai Khet Rajathewee, Bangkok 10400 Thailand UBM (Thailand) Co Ltd

JL. Walikota Mustajab Kusuma Banja, Surabaya 60272 Indonesia PT Pamerindo Indonesia

17 – 20

Metaltech Malaysia 2016

Putra World Trade Centre (PWTC) 41, Jalan Tun Ismail, 50480 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Trade Link ITE Sdn Bhd

JUNE 22 – 25

Intermold Thailand 2016

Bangkok International Trade & Exhibition Centre (BITEC) 88 Bangna-Trad Road (Km.1), Bangna Bangkok 10260, Thailand Reed Tradex Company

799 Nguyen Van Linh Parkway, District 7, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam Reed Tradex

Bangkok International Trade & Exhibition Centre (BITEC)

Nepcon Thailand 2016

91 Tran Hung Dao Str., Hanoi, Vietnam Singapore Exhibitions Services Pte Ltd

UBM ASIA (Thailand) Co Ltd.

Saigon Exhibition & Convention Center (SECC)

25 – 27

MTA Hanoi 2016

MAY 11 – 14

Metalex Vietnam 2016

22 – 25

JULY 5–8

I.C.E. Hanoi (Cung Van Hoa) Cultural Palace

OCTOBER 6–8

Manufacturing Surabaya 2016

Grand City Convention & Exhibition Centre

SEPTEMBER 22 – 24 Manufacturing Myanmar 2016

Myanmar Event Park

Shin Saw Pu Rd, Yangon, Myanmar Singapore Exhibition Services

Indometal 2016

Gedung Pusat Niaga Lt. 1 Arena PRJ Kemayoran Jakarta 10620 Indonesia Messe Dusseldorf Asia

25 – 29

Euro Blech 2016

Deutsche Messe Hannover Messegelände D-30521 Hannover Germany Mack-Brooks Exhibitions Ltd

NOVEMBER 23 – 26

Metalex Thailand 2016

Bangkok International Trade & Exhibition Centre (BITEC) 88 Bangna-Trad Road (Km.1), Bangna, Bangkok 10260, Thailand Reed Tradex

DECEMBER 2–5

Manufacturing Indonesia 2016

Jakarta International Expo (JIExpo) Gedung Pusat Niaga Lt. 1 Arena PRJ Kemayoran Jakarta 10620 Indonesia PT Pamerindo Indonesia

To be considered for inclusion in the calendar of events, send details of event to:

The Editor (APMEN)

Eastern Trade Media

12 Hoy Fatt Road, #03-01 Bryton House Singapore 159506 Email: syedshah@epl.com.sg Tel: (65) 6379 2888 Fax: (65) 6379 2885

79

80

ADVERTISING INDEX Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • January - February 2016

Page Number

Enquiry Number

ARNO WERKZEUGE S.E.A. PTE LTD

77

017

BEHRINGER GMBH

31

013

BENIGN ENTERPRISE CO LTD

15

008

BYSTRONIC PTE LTD

09

014

HEXAGON METROLOGY ASIA PACIFIC PTE LTD

07

005

HOFFMANN QUALITY TOOLS ASIA PACIFIC PTE LTD

03

007

ISCAR LTD

IFC

012

KENNAMETAL INC

BC

166

MESSE DUSSELDORF GMBH (WIRE & TUBE 2016)

41

019

OKUMA CORPORATION

IBC

003

OPTICAL GAGING (S) PTE LTD

05

011

Advertiser

SCHAEFFLER (SINGAPORE) PTE LTD

21

009

SINGAPORE EXHIBITION SERVICES PTE LTD (MTA HANOI 2016)

55

018

SINGAPRE EXHIBITION SERVICES PTE LTD (MTA VIETNAM 2016)

69

016

TAEGUTEC CO

13

015

TAIWAN EXTERNAL TRADE DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL / MT DUO 2016

33

010

TORNOS TECHNOLOGIES ASIA LTD

75

020

TUNGALOY SINGAPORE (PTE) LTD

01

004

UBM ASIA (THAILAND) CO LTD (INTERMACH 2016)

25

001

UBM ASIA (THAILAND) CO LTD (SUBCON 2016)

59

002

WALTER AG SINGAPORE PTE LTD

FC

006

WENZEL ASIA PTE LTD

11

021

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ASIA PACIFIC METALWORKING

No. 1 2016

The Engineering Journal For Manufacturing,Automation & Quality Control

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Forging Rolling Die Casting Welding Turning Coil Forming

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TYPE OF BUSINESS (Please ✔ ONE box only) Do you use METAL in your production/manufacturing process?

Do you use machine tools and related equipment?

Do you use automation systems & equipment?

❑ Yes ❑ Yes ❑ Yes

❑ No ❑ No ❑ No

YOUR METAL PROCESS USED ? (Please be specific) ❑ 300 ❑ 303 ❑ 306 ❑ 309 ❑ 315 ❑ 318

CNC Machining Milling Gear Cutting Grinding Stamping Shearing

❑ 321 ❑ 324 ❑ 301 ❑ 304 ❑ 307 ❑ 310

EDM/ECM Inspection/Measuring/Testing Design with CAD/CAM Drilling/Boring Tapping/Threading Lapping/Honing

❑ 313 ❑ 316 ❑ 319 ❑ 322 ❑ 302 ❑ 305

Forging Rolling Die Casting Welding Turning Coil Forming

❑ 308 ❑ 311 ❑ 314 ❑ 317 ❑ 320 ❑ 323

Broaching Plastic Moulding Pressworking Automated Assembly Beading Electroplating

❑ 350 OTHERS (Please specify)

YOUR BUSINESS ACTIVITY (Please be specific) ❑ 221 ❑ 150 ❑ 222 ❑ 120 ❑ 223 ❑ 122

Basic Metal/Foundaries/Mills Electrical & Electronics production Telecommunications Equipment Manufacturing Aircraft maintenance/components mfg.

Dies & Moulds mfg.

Motor Vehicles Parts

JOB FUNCTION (Please be specific) ❑ 021 Senior & Middle Management ❑ 023 Maintenance Engineering ❑ 025 Research & Devt

❑ 123 Shipbuilding ❑ 160 Design & Consultancy Services ❑ 180 Govt bodies, Trade Assns, Exhibitions Cos. ❑ 200 Agent/Distributor/Trader of Machine Tools & Accessories ❑ 224 Mechanical, Fabrication and all other metal engineering works ❑ 078 OTHERS (Please specify)__________________________________

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❑ 026 Design Engineering ❑ 029 Purchasing/Sourcing

ENQUIRY NO 003

Simply a smarter insert. That’s Beyond Drive.

That’s ™

™

With Wear Detection Technology Black Insert

Hard to detect wear.

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At Kennametal, our inspiration is driven by asking “what if?” Engineering a complete portfolio of inserts that utilizes advanced wear detection technology while also increasing metal removal rates — is a result of that drive.

A simply smarter insert. Now That’s Different Thinking, That’s Better Thinking. That’s Kennametal.

Beyond™ Drive™ inserts coupled with NOVO ™ — our suite of powerful digital tools — will lead to increased performance. To receive your FREE Test Insert, call +1 800 835 3668 or visit www.kennametal.com/BeyondDrive

ENQUIRY NO 166 ©2015 Kennametal Inc. l All rights reserved. l A-15-04413EN

www.kennametal.com/BeyondDrive