APMEN Jul-Aug 2016

GETTING AUTOMOTIVE-ATED p25 • DRIVING FOR A BETTER TOMORROW p44 July-August 2016

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THE MILLING

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ISCAR HIGH Q LINES ISCAR JAPAN 1-5-3 Shinsenri-Higashimachi Toyonaka-shi, Osaka 560-0082 Tel + 81 6 835 5471 Fax + 81 6 835 5472 iscar@iscar.co.jp

ISCAR TAIWAN 395, Da Duen South Rd. Taichung 408 Tel + 886 (0)4 247 31573 Fax + 886 (0)4 247 31530 iscar.taiwan@msa.hinet.net

ENQUIRY NO 091

ISCAR THAILAND 57, 59, 61, 63 Soi Samanchan-Babos Sukhumvit Rd. Phra Khanong, Khlong Toey Bangkok 10110 Tel + 66 (2) 7136633 Fax + 66 (2) 7136632 iscar@iscarthailand.com

ISCAR VIETNAM (Representative Office) Room D 2.8, Etown Building, 364 Cong Hoa, Tan Binh Dist., Ho Chi Minh City, Tel + 84 8 38123 519/20 Fax + 84 8 38123 521 iscarvn@hcm.fpt.vn

SINO TOOLING SYSTEM Blk 502, Jurong West Ave 1 #03-813 Singapore 640502 Tel + 65 6566 7668 Fax + 65 6567 7336 sinotool@singnet.com.sg

MESCO Reliance Corner Brixton St. Pasig City Metro-Manila Philippines Tel + 63 2631 1775 Fax + 63 2635 0276 mesco@mesco.com.ph

CV MULTI TEKNIK Ruko Gsa Blcok B No. 8 BN-BP, Podomoro City JL.Letjen S.parman Kav.28 Jakarta Barat 11470 Indonesia Tel + 62 21 29206242/44/45/59 Fax + 62 21 29206243 multi@centrin.net.id

PT. Tungaloy Indonesia Ruko Celebration Boulevard Grand wisata., Blok AA.10 No.3-5 Tambun selatan – Bekasi 17520, Indonesia Tel: (021)8261 5808 • Fax: (021)8261 5809 www.tungaloy.co.jp/id

Tungaloy Singapore Pte. Ltd. 62 Ubi Road 1, #06-11 Oxley BizHub 2 Singapore 408734 Tel: (65) 6391 1833 • Fax: (65) 6299 4557 www.tungaloy.co.jp/tspl/

Tungaloy Malaysia Sdn Bhd 50 K-2, Kelana Mall, Jalan SS6/14, Kelana Jaya, 47301 Petaling Jaya, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia Tel: +603-7805-3222 • Fax: +603-7804-8563 www.tungaloy.co.jp/my

ENQUIRY NO 095

2

CO N T E N TS

Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

METAL CUTTING

25

30

Getting Automotive-ated

25

Constantly changing factors such as unstable oil prices, ever more demanding environmental protection legislations and the evolution of more efficient technologies ensures a continually changing global automotive market place. These factors also increase the ongoing competition between car makers and OEMs and dictate today’s automotive industry manufacturing trends. By Oleg Eliezer, Iscar’s automotive industry manager.

Light At The End Of The Tunnel

More and more travellers use modern train services because of their ease, cost effectiveness, comfort and safety. All these are only possible when the right tools are utilised at the manufacturing stage. Tomáš Hantek, the international application manager for railway at Dormer Pramet shares his thoughts on rail production.

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36

Upping The Precision

36

Producing components for modern gas turbines is a challenge that machining experts are familiar with; they are often faced with the task of machining difficult-to-cut materials such as titanium alloys and superalloys and creating shapes such as onion-shaped profiles and flutes. This difficulty is compounded by the fact that the turnaround time for machining the components must be as short as possible, while the process must be incredibly precise. Lim Gan Shu, marketing manager, Walter AG shows how precision tools, developed machining concepts and optimised tools set new standards in the field.

The Milling Evolution

Multiple factors determine the results of metal cutting processes. Among the most important and the least understood factors is the “thickness of the chips” cut by the cutting tool. Patrick de Vos, corporate technical education manager, Seco Tools, explains.

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GREAT GEAR & SYSTEM

40

Rolling On Forward

With more autonomy to the Southeast Asian operations, Schaeffler hopes to get a further foothold in the region with its offerings. Syed Shah speaks to Mark Gabel, VP industrial and aerospace, Schaeffler Southeast Asia, to get his inputs on the company’s plans and directions for the region in 2016 and beyond.

IN DESIGN

44

Driving For A Better Tomorrow

With time at a premium but quality crucial, Aviel First, director sales and marketing, white light and automation at Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence, explains how a global vehicle manufacturing group has used white light scanning to improve productivity.

48 52

Right On The Mark

Eddy Lek, Product marketing manager, Asia Pacific, Faro Technologies explains to us the importance of measurement accuracy within the metalworking industry.

Getting The Costs Down

Having an effective CMM machine makes a difference when it comes to large scale machining in order to keep material and production costs down. Contributed by Renishaw.

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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

ENQUIRY NO 009

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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CO N T E N TS

Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

56

Turning Additive Manufacturing Into Business

60

Smart Machines Need Smart Engineering

63

It’s clear that we’re entering a new industrial revolution.

In the industrial machinery market, the impact of new technology will see manufacturing computerised – with production lines featuring smarter, more connected and more complex machines. Mirko Bäcker, marketing director EMEA, manufacturing engineering, Siemens PLM Software, explains how this, and other trends, means that the industry needs new ways to work that are more collaborative, versatile and flexible.

Smart Sensors Are Bringing About A Paradigm Shift In Production

Many advances have been made with regards to machining titanium but has the full potential of the material been really exploited? By Syed Shah.

EVENTS & EXHIBITIONS

SolidWorks World 2016

72

Overcoming Difficulties With A

REWARDING MATERIAL

THE MILLING

EVOLUTION

Cover credit: Seco 8/7/16 11:00 am

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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The smart factory employs smart sensors to intelligently detect and process data to improve productivity. By Michael Kaspar, product manager for photoelectric sensors & fibres, Sick.

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July-August 2016

FORWARD

MCI (P) No. 031/06/2016 • PPS 840/09/2012 (022818) • ISSN 0129 5519

FEATURES

GETTING AUTOMOTIVE-ATED p25 • DRIVING FOR A BETTER TOMORROW p44

Rolling On

VOL. 30 NO. 5 JULY-AUGUST 2016

The current state of technology adoption in regards to additive manufacturing will be presented, as well as the business value created, and challenges encountered as experienced by and discussed with a group of forty business and technology leaders during a Think Tank session held at the High Tech Campus in Eindhoven, The Netherlands in October 2015. By Saswitha de Kok, senior consultant, and Corwin van Heteren, senior manager, PricewaterhouseCoopers.

ASIA PACIFIC METALWORKING EQUIPMENT NEWS

FAST FAB

SolidWorks World 2016 took place from January 31 to February 3, 2016, at the Kay Baily Hutchinson Convention Center in Dallas, Texas. Mark Johnston reports on some of the announcements made during the event.

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IoT Asia 2016

IoT Asia 2016 returned with its third and largest edition held from March 30 to 31, 2016 at the Singapore Expo Convention and Exhibition Centre. APMEN was at the show to report on the latest IoT trends in Asia.

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EDITOR’S NOTE Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

LIVE WELL & PROSPER

Head Office & Mailing Address: Eastern Trade Media Pte Ltd 12 Hoy Fatt Road #03-01 Bryton House Singapore 159506 Tel: (65) 6379 2888 Fax: (65) 6379 2885 Email: apmen@epl.com.sg Web: www.equipment-news.com

managing director

Kenneth Tan senior editor

According to a recent report by the The Economist Intelligence Unit, it identified Singapore as the third most competitive global city and the highest ranked Asian city out of a field of 120 global markets and will look to stay that way for up to 2025. This comes as no big surprise since the city-state has, for the last decade, ranked particularly well in the categories of physical capital, financial maturity, institutional effectiveness and global appeal.

Attributing the country’s favourable ranking to its appeal as a global business location the Singapore government has repeatedly pointed out how Singapore’s competitiveness has made it attractive as a strategic location for MNCs and global mid-sized companies to grow their businesses in Asia. Recently at a business conference, I overheard different C-Level personnel from some of the best known MNCs around say how easy it is to set up a business in Singapore as compared to certain other countries in the region. To this, I have to admit, has been true but with the ASEAN Economic Community now in motion, I live in the hope that ASEAN can assimilate the ease of doing business from Singapore.

Automation technology company Pilz established their service and application hub in Singapore, further emphasising the country’s ability to attract and compete. Mrs Renata Pilz echoed what many foreign MNCs in the past have mentioned before – the ready manufacturing infrastructure that presents the next level in opportunities for regional growth.

So to learn from what was just mentioned, on a global scale, to be attractive, one needs to be competitive. This of course is the only sense I think one can make – no one will seek to invest in a place or company that does not emit the competitive ethos.

In a ‘dog eat dog’ world, the least competitive party is most likely to be made redundant or relegated. It is therefore important to be the cheapest, fastest and the best all at once. The desire to race ahead of everyone else can however be detrimental at times. A sprinter may pull his hamstring, a racer may crash his car into a corner or operators may cut corners at a workplace and injure themselves.

These analogies are all applicable to an organisation or even a country. Balance, therefore, is the key to being competitive without having to pay a high price for it. Certain issues like staff morale, operational reliability and safety may not be quantifiable on first glance but they can be a factor in the long run.

At the end of the day, the message here is we got to do what we got to do to survive and compete but there is more than one way to be competitive. Like a plane, reducing weight is not the only way to fly efficiently, enhancing fuel consumption in engines and the aerodynamics of the plane can be just as effective.

Syed Shah

syedshah@epl.com.sg

writer

Ho Peiying

peiying@epl.com.sg business development manager

Randy Teo

randyteo@epl.com.sg

editorial assistant

Sharifah Zainon sharifah@epl.com.sg

graphic designer

Jef Pimentel

jeffreypimentel@epl.com.sg

circulation executive

Chang Pei Yu

peiyu@epl.com.sg

contributors

Mark Johnston Michael Kaspar Mirko Bäcker Saswitha de Kok Corwin van Heteren Eddy Lek Aviel First Lim Gan Shu Tomáš Hantek Patrick de Vos Oleg Eliezer

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.

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Syed Shah Senior Editor

MCI (P) No. 031/06/2016 PPS 840/09/2012 (022818) ISSN 0129/5519

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Walter AG Singapore Pte. Ltd. Tel.: +65 6773 6180 walter-tools.com ENQUIRY NO 090

8

BUSINESS NEWS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

Siemens PLM Software Given 5-Star Rating In CRN’s 2016 Partner Program Guide

German Machine Tool Industry Reached Record Production In 2015 Germany: The German machine tool industry achieved a record in production last year, generating €15.1 billion (US$16.7 billion) with machinery and services, according to the German Machine Tool Builders’ Association (VDW). This is a four percent increase from 2013.

The domestic market and exports made equal contributions of over four percent each. The domestic market generated orders for €5.7 billion, while exports totalled €9.4 billion.

Germany took third place with machinery production at €11.2 billion, falling behind China and Japan. The value is a five-percent increase from last year. World machine tool production reached a value of €67.3 billion in 2015, excluding parts and accessories.

Commenting on the expectations for next year, VDW chairman HeinzJurgen Prokop said: “For 2016, we expect moderate growth of one percent.

Strong growth in orders above all in the last quarter of 2015 gives cause for confidence.”

There was also positive news from the Precision Tool Association in the German Engineering Federation (VDMA). “The precision tools industry increased its production by a total of three percent to around €9.6 billion in 2015,” reported Federation chairman Lothar Horn. “The manufacturers of metal-cutting tools contributed to the record production figures with an increase in sales of approximately one percent, while chucking tools and tool construction each rose by around five percent.”

The Federation only anticipates a minimal increase in output for 2016, however.

Over half of the production of machine tools is expected to lie mainly in North Rhine-Westphalia, which has been the case for the past few years.

In order to stay ahead of the game, Dr Prokop remarked that it was necessary to provide solutions that competitors are not able to offer.

Referring primarily to digitalisation under Industry 4.0, he said that the industry should think in terms of holistic solutions to production problems.

United States: Siemens’ product lifecycle management (PLM) software business has been given a 5-Star rating from CRN, a brand of The Channel Company, in its 2016 Partner Program Guide, the 10th straight year that Siemens PLM Software has received this designation.

In addition, Jef f Zobrist, Siemens PLM Software’s vice president of global solution partner sales was also recognised by CRN as a 2016 CRN Channel Chief.

The annual Par tner Program Guide is a listing of technology vendors that offers solution providers the information they need to evaluate the IT vendors they already work with or are considering partnering with. The 5-star rating recognises companies that offer solution providers the best partnering elements in their channel programmes.

To determine the ratings, The Channel Company ’s research team accessed each vendor’s application based on investments in programme offerings, partner profitability, par tner training, education and suppor t, marketing programmes and resources, sales support and communication.

“Solution providers have more choices than ever before when it comes to selecting vendor partners. Identifying the right vendor with the right technologies and the right channel approach can mean the difference between successful adoption of a new technology or business model and an awkward, unnecessarily difficult integration,” said Robert Faletra, CEO of The Channel Company. “Our annual Partner Program Guide and 5-Star ratings recognise the best channel programmes available in the market today and serve as a valuable resource for solution providers looking for the right fit.”

Commenting on the recognition award to Siemens PLM Software, Mr Zobrist said: “With initiatives like Industry 4.0 changing the course of the manufacturing sector, commitment to customer value and deep industry expertise have become essential to successful partnering in the PLM market.

We mark this decade of CRN recognition by acknowledging the contributions of our loyal partner community and by delivering programme innovations for partner specialisation and evolution. Our focus is to leverage new products, services and delivery offerings to enable existing partners to uncover fresh opportunities and to attract key forward-thinking solution providers.”

EuroBLECH 2016

The New Generation of Sheet Metal Working

25 –29 OCTOBER 2016 HANOVER, GERMANY

Sheet metal, Tube, Sections

Handling

Finished products, Parts, Assemblies Flexible sheet metal working Composites

R&D

Tools, Dies

Tube/ Section working

Surface treatment

Safety at work

Factory and warehouse equipment

Controlling, Regulating, Measuring, Inspection

www.euroblech.com

Separation, Cutting

Joining, Welding

Machine elements

Additive Manufacturing

Data capture /processing

Forming

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ENQUIRY NO 094

Organisers: Mack Brooks Exhibitions Ltd

24th International Sheet Metal Working Technology Exhibition

10

BUSINESS NEWS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

Global Metalworking Fluids Market To Reach US$11.99 Billion London, UK: The global metalworking fluids market is expected to reach US$11.99 billion by 2022, according to a new report by Grand View Research Incorporated.

Growing demand for met alworking fluids in automotive and heav y machiner y owing to it s proper ties of increa sing e f f icienc y is e x p e c te d to dr i ve mar ke t growth. Competitive pricing due to a large number of small suppliers in the market is expected to be a key feature of the industry over the next seven years.

The repor t noted that the market size was estimated at US$9.34 billion in 2014.

Synthetic fluids are expected to witness sig ni f ic an t g r o w t h on accoun t o f t heir capabilities such as increasing tool life and providing excellent surface finish. However, customers in the Asia Pacific region are still consuming mineral oil-based fluids due to their price sensitive nature.

Miner al oil-b a s e d is t he t r adi t ional met alworking f luid and cons tituted 52.1 percent share by volume in 2014. They can be produced in large quantities owing to their abundant availability and their cost ef fectiveness.

A sia Pacif ic has been leading the demand for metalworking fluids due to the presence of a large-scale consumer base, par ticularly in India and China.

A s the largest market , A sia Pacif ic is expected to witness gains at a compound annual grow th rate (CAGR) of 4.4 percent from 2015 to 2022. Increasing produc tion volumes in various sec tors including automobile, defence, marine and aerospace are expected to be a major factor driving the market in the region.

In Europe, the bio-based metalworking f l u i d s m a r k e t w a s v a l u e d a t U S $ 2 7 7. 5 mill ion in 20 14 . Eur op e i s e x p e c t e d t o witness a strong demand for the bio-based products in the face of strong government r e g u l a t i o n s . H o w e v e r, t h e e x p e n s i v e nature of these produc t s is expec ted to hinder growth.

Corrosion preventive oils demand was a t 514 .4 k ilo tonne s in 20 14 . Cor ro sion p r e v e n t i v e o il s ar e u s e d in m a c hinin g operations where possibility of damaging the tool is ver y high. These oil s are responsible for improving the sump life which eventually leads to reduction in the

Sato Makes Organisational Changes To Strengthen Indonesia Business Tokyo, Japan: Sato, a global provider of auto-ID solutions announced the restructuring of its Indonesia business. It renamed its Indonesian labels production unit to PT Sato Label Indonesia. Its production is now housed in a new plant. Sato has also established a new sales unit named PT Sato Label Solutions. This organisational restructuring is in view of the growing Indonesian market.

The new 9,366-square metre plant started operations in May this year and is located on the outskirts of Jakarta. New equipment was installed to enhance the plant’s output capacity over the previous facility. It is equipped with a positive pressure system to maintain a higher pressure than the external environment, preventing insects and dust from entering the production area. ​Production of Sato labels in Indonesia was previously conducted by Sato Nagatomi, which was established in 2012 to facilitate the realisation of the Sato Group’s DCS & Labeling business model in the country. With this model, the company integrates data collection systems (barcode printers, software and maintenance service) and labelling (printer labels) to provide auto-ID solutions.

The Sato Label Solutions unit was set up to enhance Sato sales capability in Indonesia and will operate in five locations around the country: Jakarta, Bandung, Semarang, Surabaya and Denpasar. It will handle sales of software and hardware including barcode printers, hand labellers and more.

Sato Label Indonesia and Sato Label Solutions head Hirotaka Wada commented on the new organisational changes: “Our new labels plant meets the stringent sanitation and quality demands that healthcare, food and beverage and industrial manufacturing customers have for labels. Our cutting edge production technology ensures globally consistent levels of label quality. We intend to couple this capability with an enhanced sales presence to meet the high demands of customers in Indonesia.” overhead costs for manufacturers. This has resulted in increasing demand from small scale manufac turers on account of their tight cost structures and low volumes.

Key industr y players include Chevron Corporation, Quaker Chemical Corporation, British Petroleum, Ex xonMobil Corp, Royal Dutch Shell, and Houghton.

Intensive research and development inves t ment s by or g anis ations including Cimcool, Fuchs, Blaser Swisslube, Total S.A., ENI S.p.A, Ashland and Croda International are expected to propel market demand.

50

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increase in page views since January 2016

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ENQUIRY NO 097

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BUSINESS NEWS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

Markit PMI Data For June Reveals Asia’s Manufacturing Activity

Beckhoff Automation Increases Sales By 22 Percent Germany: Beckhof f Automation, a provider of open automation products based on industrial technologies, has released a statement for it s 2015 f inancial year. The company repor ted a successful f inancial year, which saw global sales increased by 22 percent to reach €620 million (US$691.4 million). Represented in more than 75 countries, Beckhof f ’s expor ts in 2015 accounted for 65 percent of total sales.

This rise takes af ter the similarly successful 2014 f inancial year, which saw sales rose by 17 percent.

According to managing director Hans Beckhof f, the reasons for the increase in sales can be attributed to an increase in market share. “Our PC Control technolog y is increasingly the acknowledged market standard,” he explained. He also attributed the positive sales to the favourable euro exchange rate.”

E xpor t s in 2015 accounted for 65 percent of total sales. Mr Beckhof f commented: “Asia is contributing strongly to our growth.

However, subsidiaries in southern Europe and Nor th America are also per forming quite well.”

The company present s an optimis tic outlook for 2016, and anticipates continued double digit sales growth. “We have strong and growing levels of incoming orders,” Mr Beckhoff said. To prepare for this growth, the company’s headquar ters at Verl will expand by 27,000 square metres this year.

The Beckhof f sales and distribution network will also expand fur ther in 2016, with regional of f ices in Hesse and Nor th RhineWestphalia, as well as new representative of f ices in Argentina, Columbia and Thailand. The company plans to invest fur ther in research and development by setting aside €45 million in funds.

On the technological side, the hardware and sof tware por tfolio will expand in all Beckhof f PC-based control technolog y product g roups . “Indus t r y 4 .0 is be coming a reali t y. Idea s are being transformed into real products that enable machiner y to be used far more productively to manufacture more goods in higher quality,” stated Mr Beckhof f.

United Kingdom: According to the PMI data released by Markit Economics, the manufacturing conditions in China continued to contract and dropped to its weakest level in three months, while that of Indonesia remained in expansion mode. Like China, Malaysia’s manufacturing conditions too, deteriorated further to a fivemonth low.

The Caixin Manufacturing PMI in China fell to 49.2 in May from 49.4 in the previous month, a reading that was slightly below market consensus.

It was the weakest reading since February this year as output fell fractionally while new orders shrank for the first time since February.

Experts said that China is unable to sustain the momentum of the first quarter and is still in the process of bottoming out.

“Overall, China’s economy has not been able to sustain the recovery it had in the first quarter and is in the process of bottoming out.

The government still needs to make full use of proactive fiscal policy measures accompanied by a prudent monetary policy to prevent the economy from slowing further,” said Zhong Zhengsheng, the director of macroeconomic analysis at CEBM Group.

On a similar vein, Malaysia’s headline PMI posted 47.2 in May, where little has changed since April’s f ive-month low. The reading indicates a solid deterioration in operating conditions at Malaysian manufacturers.

The latest figure was below the average over the current 14-month sequence of contraction according to Markit. The May reading reflected contractions in output, new orders and stocks of purchases.

Experts at Markit said the impact of the recent weakness in the Malaysian currency was mixed as far as manufacturing conditions are concerned.

“New exports orders benefitted from the weak ringgit which improved firms’ global competitiveness. However, the weak ringgit meant that impor ted raw material cos t s increased, leading to a rise in input prices. In fact, purchasing prices rose at the sharpest rate since February,” said Amy Brownbill, an economist at Markit.

In Indonesia, the Nikkei Manufacturing dropped to 50.6 in May from 50.9 in April. While output stagnated following two consecutive months of growth, new orders rose at a slower pace, details from the data showed.

In Indonesia, both employment and buying

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Hoffmann Group Vietnam Representative: GSI Viet Nam Industrial Equipment Co, Ltd. Hanoi Office: 47/69 Bui Huy Bich Str, Hanoi, Vietnam | Tel: +84-4.3987.8707 HCMC Office: 382 Nguyen Cong Tru str, District 1, HCMC, Vietnam. | Tel: +84-8.3914.6382 Website: www.gsi.com.vn | www.gsi-tools.com.vn Hoffmann Quality Tools Asia Pacific Pte Ltd: +65 6562 8163 Email: asia-pacific@hoffmann-group.com

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BUSINESS NEWS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

activity were up and stocks were accumulated.

Growth of preproduction inventories was only slight, while an increase in holdings of finished goods was sharp and the quickest since April 2011.

On the price front, input costs increased at the strongest rate in 2016 so far, while charge inflation was at a three-month high, Markit said, adding that the outlook is encouraging.

“The outlook, however, appears encouraging as businesses continued to take on additional workers and scaled up their buying activity to the greatest extent since July 2014, suggesting that a pick-up in demand is expected,” said Pollyanna De Lima, an economist at Markit.

Elsewhere in Asia, South Korea’s manufacturing PMI rose slightly to 50.1 in May from 50.0 in April.

Japan and Taiwan’s manufacturing PMI both registered a dip. The former dropped to 47.7 in May from 48.2 in April, while the latter fell to 48.5 in May from 49.7 in April.

TM Robotics Partners With Caionix To Sell Toshiba Machine Industrial Robots In Egypt C airo, Eg ypt and Her t fordshire, UK : TM Robotics and Toshiba Machine have announced a par tnership with Caionix, a distributor of indus trial robot s in Eg ypt . With this collaboration, Caionix is now responsible for providing the country’s industrial market with the pre-sale, sale and after sale services for Toshiba Machine’s Cartesian, 6-axis and Scara robots, which are used in a wide variety of industries that include pharmaceutical, packaging, and automotive.

The THL Scara models satisfy a growing demand for affordable, flexible automation in applications outside of traditional robot industries. Because the lightweight system generates low inertia, a simplified gearbox has been used.

“We’ve been working with Caionix since the beginning of this year and so far have experienced great interest in the Egyptian market,” said Nigel Smith, CEO of TM Robotics.

“We’re looking for ward to expanding our footprint in Africa as we work with Caionix to increase our reach in the area.”

Ahmed Abdeldayem, chief marketing and sales of f icer of Caionix spoke about the partnership: “We chose to work with TM Robotics because we knew Toshiba Machine Industrial Robots provide flexibility, high performance and a simple design that suits a wide variety of applications.”

Renishaw’s Resolute Absolute Encoders Now Support Symetrie Hexapods Nimes, France: Renishaw’s Resolute series of absolute encoders now supports Symetrie’s Ground Integration and Calibration Support (GICS) and Zonda hexapods, designed for two types of advanced component validation testing in the manufacture of the Meteosat Third Generation (MTG) weather satellites, due for launch from 2019.

The MTG satellite series will comprise four imaging (MTG-I) and two sounding satellites (MTG-S) that will capture data from the geostationary earth orbit. Both of these applications require that the actuators are individually controlled by stiff servo-loops using absolute encoder feedback.

Renishaw’s Resolute encoder system with ZeroMet (FeNi36) Rela linear scale is installed on each strut, providing high-precision metrology with near-zero thermal expansion scales, five nanometre resolution, minimal noise, low cyclic error, and high translational speeds.

Matthieu Cuq, principal mechanical engineer at Symetrie explained the choice: “We chose Renishaw’s Resolute absolute encoders because of their high level of metrology performance. These absolute encoders work reliably in high vacuum conditions. Moreover, the encoder scale is made of low expansion ZeroMet material, which makes our hexapods less sensitive to temperature variations. Thermal stability was a critical requirement for these space optics projects.”

One of the key advantages of having the Resolute includes a dependable and reliable data output due to its high tolerance to dirt, scratches and grease that can cause other encoders to miscount. An independent position-checking algorithm also ensures that any potential problem is flagged before any servo control problem can develop.

As hexapods need high precision and stability, the low noise, of typically less than 10 nanometre, RMS helps to improve displacement sensitivity and increases the hexapod stability via servo-loop stiffness.

Due to their parallel kinematic structure, hexapods necessitate a particularly complex control system. Resolute’s accuracy combined with fast encoder response time as a result of the BiSS interface can help to optimise both the controller and hexapod performance.

Resolute as a single-track absolute optical encoder, also allows for wide installation tolerances and its integral setup LED also simplifies installation during hexapod manufacture and servicing.

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BUSINESS NEWS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

Platts China Oil Analytics: China Oil Demand Fell 1.3 Percent Year Over Year In April

Bombardier Transportation Unveiled New Testing And Commissioning Facility at Derby, UK London, UK: Rail technology provider Bombardier Transportation unveiled a new testing and commissioning facility at its UK design and manufacturing site in Derby. The facility was formally opened by the secretary of state for transport, Patrick McLoughlin.

Speaking at the launch event, Mr McLoughlin said: “I am delighted to open this new testing and commissioning facility in Derby, which will ensure passengers benefit from cutting edge trains with improved capacity and comfort. The government is making a record investment in our railways and it is fantastic to see firms such as Bombardier, who are delivering a £1billion (US$1.46 billion) contract for Crossrail as well as London Overground, make the most of the opportunities this brings. This new facility will help secure jobs in Derby, at the heart of the UK rail industry, and help to drive the Midlands engine for growth.”

Measuring over 10,000 square metres, the new testing and commissioning facility features four train roads taking trains up to 250 metres in length.

Each train road has full-length overhead lines, and vehicle servicing and inspection pits and is fully accessible by rail at both ends, connecting it to the existing test track and production facilities. The facility is fully flexible and multifunctional, capable of being configured for both initial engineering type-testing on multiple trains and for final acceptance testing and validation.

Richard Hunter, managing director of Bombardier Transportation UK noted that the new £12-million facility was one of the biggest investments in the company’s Derby site. “‘V’ Shop (as the finished test facility will be known) will be a fundamental part of both our current projects and future train builds, enhancing our ability to deliver all the stages of a new train product from a single UK site. It increases our capacity to deliver high volume orders within short timescales, ensuring we meet the future requirements of the UK market,” he added.

The new test facility forms part of an overall £20-million investment by Bombardier in its Derby Litchurch Lane premises, in support of both future deliveries and the new trains currently being constructed for Transport for London’s new Elizabeth line (Crossrail) service.

V Shop will initially be used for testing and commissioning the fleet of 66 Class 345 electric multiple units (EMUs) for the Crossrail project, based on Bombardier’s new Aventra platform. Each Elizabeth line train will comprise nine 23-metre vehicles, giving a length of over 200 metres for a complete trainset. The new facility will enable the nine-car trainsets to be tested complete, without the need to separate them.

Singapore: China’s apparent oil demand contracted by 1.3 percent in April 2016 from a year earlier to 11.36 million barrels per day (b/d), according to an analysis of Chinese government data by S&P Global Platts, a provider of information and benchmark prices for the commodities and energy markets.

Refinery throughput in April averaged 10.93 million b/d, according to data from China’s National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on 14 May. This was a 2.3-percent increase year over year and a 3-percent rise month over month.

Net imports of key oil products however slumped to 48.1 percent from a year earlier to an average 430,000 b/d in April, driven by sustained exports of transport fuels, data from China’s General Administration of Customs showed.

The contraction in oil demand in April represented the third consecutive month of negative growth and was largely attributable to a considerable decline in gasoil and fuel oil demand, amidst a slowed Chinese economy.

Over the first four months of 2016, apparent oil demand averaged 11.15 million b/d, down 0.3 percent. This is compared with 8.4 percent expansion during the January to April 2015 period.

China’s oil demand growth is expected to moderate significantly in 2016 as gross domestic product growth slows on the back of economic rebalancing. China’s government data shows the economy expanded by 6.7 percent in the first quarter of this year, a decline from 6.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2015.

China’s 2016 apparent oil demand is forecast to grow by less than 2 percent, according to Platts China Oil Analytics, an online platform for supply/ demand and trade data of S&P Global Platts.

Gasoil exports hit record high volumes in March and April as refineries grappled with domestic oversupply and muted consumption.

The fuel is used in the industrial and heavy transport sectors. Demand has taken a hit in recent years, given the stagnation in the manufacturing

BUSINESS NEWS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

sector amidst China’s transition towards more service sector led economic growth.

“Despite the fact that refineries have reduced domestic gasoil production by 2 percent on a year over year basis in 2016, exports have more than quadrupled during the same period, at the same time refiners have reported sluggish domestic sales of gasoil,” said Song Yen Ling, a senior analyst with Platts China Oil Analytics.

In April, gasoil apparent demand fell 8.8 percent from a year ago, signalling the eighth consecutive month of decline.

Apparent demand for gasoline climbed to a record high of 2.89 million b/d in April, up 7 percent from a year earlier, according to S&P Global Platts’ calculations. The growth in the apparent demand figure was due to an 8.8-percent increase in domestic production, which more than offset a 35.5-percent rise in exports.

So far this year, gasoline apparent demand in China has increased by 7.9 percent to an average 2.83 million b/d.

Passenger vehicle sales rose 6.1 percent from January to April this year, with SUV sales rising 46.3 percent. The higher growth was likely attributed to the new tax incentives introduced late last year to encourage small car ownership. Conversely, passenger vehicle sales rose just 2.8 percent in the first four months of 2015.

Platts China Oil Analytics forecasts a gasoline apparent demand rise of 6.4 percent in 2016, but notes that rising oil prices could limit growth in gasoline consumption this year.

China’s fuel oil apparent demand in April declined by 35.4 percent on a year-over-year basis to 672,000 b/d. The country’s fuel oil consumption has fallen since late 2015, following the government’s move to allow more independent refiners to import crude oil. Prior to this, such refiners had limited access to crude oil and therefore tended to import fuel oil as their main processing feedstock. However, since the second half of 2015, Beijing has approved more than 1 million b/d of crude oil import quotas for independent refiners.

With fuel oil not as popular with refiners as processing feedstock, consumption is mainly focused on the bunker market. Fuel oil apparent demand this year has dived 19 percent year on year to 705,000 b/d.

In contrast, independent refiners’ appetite for crude oil has surged significantly in 2016.

China’s crude oil imports over the first three months of this year have increased 10.9 percent to an average 7.49 million b/d, with at least threequarters of the growth attributed to independent refiners. Consequently, fuel oil imports into China have fallen 40 percent over January to April to 286,000 b/d.

US Cutting Tool Year-To-Date Consumption Down 10.3 Percent In April United States: US cutting tool consumption totalled US$173.64 million in April according to the US Cutting Tool Institute (USCTI) and the Association For Manufacturing Technology (AMT). With a year-to-date total of US$689.76 million, 2016 was down 10.3 percent when compared with 2015.

This total, as reported by companies participating in the Cutting Tool Market Report (CTMR) collaboration, was down 5.7 percent from March’s US$184.08 million and down 15 percent when compared with the total consumption of US$204.34 million reported for April last year.

These numbers and all data are based on the totals reported by the companies participating in the CTMR programme. The totals here represent the bulk of the US market for cutting tools.

The CTMR is jointly compiled by AMT and USCTI, two trade associations representing the development, production and distribution of cutting tool technology and products. It provides a monthly statement on U.S. manufacturers’ consumption of the primary consumable in the manufacturing process – the cutting tool. Analysis of cutting tool consumption is an indicator of both upturns and downturns in the US manufacturing activity, as it is a measure of actual production levels.

Steve Stokey, president of USCTI, said: “The cutting tool numbers continue to be negative in scenarios – month over month, year over year and year to date. While there is not much good news on the horizon as we head into the typically soft summer months of the business cycle, there is some optimism with the PMI moving over 50, but there is definitely a sense of caution as we move into the next 90 days.”

“The cutting tool sector took a step backwards in April after showing some modest improvements over the last few months. Demand levels continue to reflect a movement to stabilisation in a generally weak environment for manufacturing. This reflects the sluggish global economic growth with minimal gains in US industrial production, the strong dollar, weak agriculture, oil and gas activity, and the rising election uncertainty,” said Eli Lustgarten, senior vice president at Longbow Securities.

“Current headwinds are likely to continue in the near term with some added pressure from relatively flat automotive demand, material weakening in heavy truck production and ongoing significant weakness in coal mining. Despite talks of a possible interest rate increase from the Fed, we expect some modest improvement in the second half of 2016 as US economic growth drives robust consumer spending and housing activity,” he added.

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Stratasys Appoints IBM Veteran Tim Bohling As Chief Marketing Officer

Well-Received Response For Trade Show Lamiera Bologna, Italy: The 18th edition of Lamiera concluded successfully. Hosted by BolognaFiere from 11 to 14 May 2016, the event registered a 10-percent increase with 20,395 visitors when compared to the 2014 edition.

There were 386 exhibitors at this year’s trade show, where 30 percent of the companies were from outside Italy. The exhibition covered an area of 35,000 square metres, which was also a 10-percent increase compared to the previous edition.

“These figures, compared with those of the previous edition, confirmed the interest of the sector operators in this trade show and highlighted the positive situation of the metal forming field and non-conventional technologies,” said Luigi Galdabini, president of Ucimu-Sistemi per produrre, the Italian machine tools, robots and automation manufacturers’ association.

As part of the exhibition, an area dedicated to the supply chain of steel, metal alloys and non-ferrous materials was set up called Blech Italy, first held in the previous edition of Lamiera. It was conceived in order to better enhance the two industries: the machine tool sector and the machinery for processing steel and other alloys.

Running concurrently was Lamda 4.0, a conference where R&D and industry players shared their know-how, experiences and practical needs. This year’s conference involved 400 participants and illustrated the commitment of the sector to the study of industry 4.0.

The workshops in the conference surrounded the theme of smart factory and machines for laser processing. There were also numerous discussions and meetings focusing on economics and technologies, one of which was a presentation concerning the results of a survey carried out by Ucimu-Sistemi per produrre on the total machine tools and production systems of the Italian industry. The association also shared the results of the competitiveness study, which compared systems and industries between Italy and Germany.

There were also 500 bilateral meetings organised between the Italian exhibitors and foreign delegates, who were invivted by Ucimu-Sistemi per produrre, the Ministry of Economic Development and the ICE-Italian Trade Agency. The foreign guests came from Austria, Germany, India, Iran, Poland, Russia, Spain, United States, Switzerland, Turkey and Mexico.

Lamiera will return at a new venue next year. The next edition will run from 17 to 20 May 2017 at fieramilano-Rho in Milan, in an attempt by the organisers to attract more foreign visitors.

Minneapolis, US and Rehovot, Israel: St r at a s y s , t he 3D print ing and addit ive m an u f a c t ur in g s o lu t i o n s co mp an y h a s named IBM veteran Tim Bohling as its chief market ing of f icer. Mr Bohling joins t he company’s leadership team and will lead Stratasys worldwide marketing strategies to drive growth and deliver the company’s value promise to its customers.

Mr Bohling has served as vice president and head of Nor th America marketing at HCL Te chnolo g ie s , an IT g lob al s er v ice provider, where he was charged with both formulation and execution of a marketing strategy designed to strengthen existing client relationships, fuel new signings, and elevate the HCL brand. He has also spent more than 10 years at IBM, engineering successful digital marketing and demand generation efforts as vice president of worldwide performance marketing at IBM Global Technology Services and as vice president of marketing at IBM Global Technology Services, Growth Markets.

A frequent gues t speaker at indus tr y conferences and whose research has been published in sever al scholarly journal s including Marketing Science and the Journal of Marketing Research, Mr Bohling’s experience extends from helping organisations make and shape market s and transition from b e i n g p r o d u c t- o r i e n t e d c o m p a n i e s t o integrated solutions focused companies to developing tested methodologies across a range of disciplines such as branding, digital marketing, end-to-end demand generation and market insight.

“Tim is a transformational market leader whose experience f it s per fec tly into our long-term strateg y. A respec ted voice in the IT industry with a strong track-record, Tim will play a critical role as we accelerate Stratasys’ position as the driving force and dominant player in 3D printing,” said Joshua Claman, chief business officer of Stratasys.

Commenting on his new appointment and role, Mr Bohling said: “Stratasys has been at the forefront of the 3D printing industr y since its inception and I believe it has tremendous future growth potential.

This is an exciting time to be in the market, and I look forward to helping elevate the Stratasys brand to even greater heights and contributing to the company’s growth and market leadership.”

BUSINESS NEWS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

SAIL: India To Top Global Steel Consumption In 10 Years, Fuelled

By Infrastructure Investment New Delhi, India: India will become one of the top global steel consuming nations in the nex t 10 years if there is a sustained government spending on infra s t ruc ture like roads, railways, power and housing, according to India’s s teel g iant S AIL chairman P K Singh.

“If you look at the massive infrastructure push by the government , even going by conservative estimates, steel demand will grow a lot. India will equal the global per capita consumption in 10 years,” said Mr Singh.

“Look at the road sector; more highways are being built , which means more steel will be used. Similarly, more railway tracks are to b e l aid; w e e x p e c t a huge jump in spending there. Power sec tor is al so expanding, which again will boost demand for the metal,” Mr Singh added.

Steel demand is also expected to grow in the automotive sector as the demand for commercial vehicles and passenger cars is expected to rise.

In dia i s c ur r e n t l y t h e w o r ld ’s t hir d largest producer of the metal. Per capita steel consumption in the countr y stood at 59.4kg per person in 2014, against a global average of 216.6kg, data from industry body World Steel Association showed.

Mr Singh’s remark s echo a repor t by the Working Group on Steel for the 12th F i v e Ye a r P l a n . T h e r e p o r t n o t e d t h a t the potential of raising per capita s teel consumption in India is being suppor ted by several factors. These include an estimated infrastructure investment of US$1 trillion, a projected growth in manufacturing at 11 to 12 percent, a rise in urban population, and an emergence of the rural market for steel.

Singh, however, cautioned against the r ising overc ap aci t y in s te el acros s t he globe, especially in China. “ We hav e t o b e c au t io u s ab o u t t h e excess capacity in the world and in China.

Some countries are dumping their products in India at cheaper rates and adversely impacting the health of domestic producers.

The steel industry is of strategic importance and is the barometer of grow th for the countr y,” he said.

Boeing Introduces Greater Automation For 737 Production Paris and New York : B o eing i s in t r o duc ing a f a s t er l ay er o f automation into its 737 factory, adding a new robotic system to drill holes in the main beams inside each wing known as spars.

The introduction will deepen Boeing’s move into automation, in line with the plane maker’s plans to boost the output of its bestselling airliner, Reuters repor ted.

Last year, Boeing star ted using an automated system known as the Panel Assembly Line (Pal) to drill holes and install fasteners in wing panels of 737 jet s at it s Renton, Washing ton plant. The upcoming system, known as the Spar Assembly Line, or Sal, will not carr y out all the tasks per formed by Pal but will speed drill and install bolts in the wing spars in about half the space used by an earlier generation machine.

Boeing says greater automation will cut the amount of “rework” caused by production glitches, reduce injuries and suppor t sharp increases in output at factories such as Renton, where wings pulse through the assembly hall ever y 5.3 hours.

Sal will make sub-assemblies that go into the wings. Each 737 wing has two spars, front and back, running the leng th of the wing and to which panels are attached.

“We are really pushing the envelope in terms of how to be more productive,” said Pat Shanahan, the senior vice president of supply chain and operations at Boeing.

He welcomed the imposition of a provisional minimum impor t price (MIP) o n 17 3 s t e e l p r o du c t s an d h o p e d t h a t government will continue with it beyond August this year, when it expires.

As per government data, steel impor ts declined by 41 percent to 0. 5 4 6 million tonnes in May this year compared to the year-ago period. This was triggered by MIP and other measures like safeguard and antidumping duty. In April too, steel impor t s were down 15. 5 percent year-on-year at 0.654 million tonnes.

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Industrial Robot Sales Hit New High

Enerpac SE Asia Stages Roadshows To Share Knowledge About New Technologies Singapore: Enerpac SE Asia, a manufacturer of high-pressure hydraulic products, is making inroads into the industry in Asia with a series of roadshows to showcase how their tools can be applied in industrial settings.

The roadshows, first held in Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia in April, are designed to demonstrate the technologies in real life settings so users can witness first-hand for themselves the features of the tools. It also presented an opportunity for the company to learn how their potential clients prefer to use the hydraulics.

The first roadshow in Kemaman, Malaysia, organised by Enerpac SE Asia in partnership with their Malaysian distributor SLS Malaysia, was a full-day event that demonstrated the safety features of Enerpac products to an estimated number of 60 participants from industries such as mining and energy, manufacturing and materials handling, oil and gas, construction and infrastructure, power generation and maintenance.

The roadshow covered the company’s online resources, main markets, and applications of its range of hydraulic and pneumatic equipment, bolting tool capabilities, safety features and provided an introduction to their new Pneumatic Torque Wrench and X-Edition wrenches.

The Pneumatic Torque Wrenches feature torque capabilities from 1,356 to 8,135 Nm and are designed to optimise service life and minimise downtime.

These square drive wrenches incorporate low-friction planetary gearboxes to minimise wear and extend uptime. They also feature commonality of motors and parts to facilitate maintenance in demanding industries.

The new X-Editions of Enerpac’s S-Series square drive and W-series low profile hexagon torque wrenches feature a more durable and safer connection between tool body and manifold. It comes with a dual plane swivel manifold that features interlocking arms to increase robustness and safety. They also comprise tough upgraded handles featuring one-piece design with metal inlays for positive location, as well as an optional ergonomic straight handle design to ensure safety and avoid potential pinch point situations for operators.

During the roadshow, qualified experts from the company also provided a series of product demonstrations to give users a greater understanding of the features and benefits of each product.

“The event ran very well, and the first introduction of the Pneumatic Torque Wrench and X-Edition wrenches were well-received by customers,” said Francis Koh, sales and marketing manager of Enerpac SE Asia. “[The participants] appreciated the fact that we were prepared to invest our time and save theirs by bringing a broad range of productivity and safety concepts they could see in one place. And we appreciated their feedback, which helps us to serve them better through our wide regional service network.”

Frankfurt, Germany: The worldwide sales of industrial robots reached a new record number of 248,000 units in 2015, according to a research by the International Federation of Robot s (IFR). This is a 12-percent rise, compared to 2014’s sale numbers of 221,000 units. According to the IFR, more than one in every four of those units went to China.

T h i s r i s in g t r e n d o f au t o m a t i o n o n factory floors is a continuation of the global automation boom, which began in 2009.

Since then, sales figures for industrial robots have increased almost four-fold.

These positive f igures and the global surge of industrial robots, observed the IFR, were driven by highly automated emerging countries, and by regions that are already highly developed economically. The IFR also predicted in its 2016 World Robotics Statistics that by 2018, some 2.3 million units will be deployed on factory floors, more than twice as many in 2009 at 1 million.

In Europe, the total sales f igures for industrial robots in 2015 rose by 10 percent to 50,000 units, compared to the previous year. The strongest individual market s in Europe are Germany (20,000 unit s), Italy (6,700 units) and Spain (3,800 units).

Grow th in the Americas proved to be more dynamic, with sale figures increasing by 15 percent to a total of 37,000 units. The US heads the list with 27,000 unit s sold, while Mexico saw sales more than doubled to 5,500 units. The reason underlying this development is the investment s made in the automotive industr y, the product s of which Mexico exports to the USA and South America.

A s i a , h o w e v e r, i s s t i l l t h e w o r l d ’ s strongest growth market. This region saw a total of 156,000 units sold in 2015 – a rise

BUSINESS NEWS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

of 16 percent. With some 68,000 industrial robots sold, China alone surpassed the total market volume for Europe.

G r o w t h in C hina w a s a t 17 p e r ce n t .

Foreign-based robotic manufacturers hold a 69 -p ercen t mar ke t share in ter m s o f profits, with domestic competitors taking a 31-percent of the pie.

Elsewhere in Asia, the robotics market in South Korea and Japan continue to occupy second and third places in global sales behind China with 37,000 units and 35,000 units respectively.

The top five countries in industrial robot sales are China, South Korea, Japan, the US and Germany. These five countries account for three-quar ters of the global sales of industrial robots.

In sector terms, the automotive industry holds the lead in automation using industrial robots. During 2015, a rise of one percent saw some 95,000 units sold in this segment. The sectors that posted the strongest growth in 2015 were the metal industry at 63 percent grow th, the plastics and rubber industr y at 40 percent growth and the electronics industry, which saw a rise of 16 percent. “ T he w ave of dig i t al t r ans for mat ion and automation will continue to drive the robotics boom forward until 2018,” said Joe Gemma, president of the IFR. “Revolutionary developmen t s in IT conne c ted w i t h all a sp e c t s o f t he In ter ne t o f T hing s , and new net worked ser vices are changing the producing indus tries fundamentally.

Machines, logistics and production plants are merging into integrated cyber-physical systems. The aim is to use smart factories to work more flexibly, more cost-efficiently and more productively.”

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New Launches Ease Integration With Universal Robots’ Applications Odense, Denmark: Universal Robots (UR), the Danish company that manufactures flexible and safe industrial robots that advocate humanrobot collaboration, has launched Universal Robots+, a series of plug and play application solutions to offer companies a fuss-free, simple integration process when installing the UR robot applications.

Within Universal Robots+, distributors and end-users can choose accessories, end-effectors, and software solutions to enhance the applications. The system ensures that applications will run well from the start, saving time in the integration process from concept to operation of UR’s collaborative robots (co-bots).

Together with Universal Robots+, the company has also introduced the +You, a free developer programme to offer a marketing and support platform for the eco-system of UR-robot application developers.

Universal Robots+’s own eco-system enables applications revolving around the co-bot arms UR3, UR5 and UR10 to be developed and showcased.

These accessory components that extend the UR robots’ capabilities are called URCaps, and can consist of customised hardware components, software plug-ins, or a combination of both. The aim is to reduce implementation periods, increase user comfort and reduce costs for all parties involved.

“Universal Robots+ enables us to create a win-win-win situation for the developer community, our distribution partners and our end customers,” said Esben H. Østergaard, chief technology officer and co-founder of UR. “Participants in the developer programme +You will receive support from UR at no cost when developing URCaps. In addition, by integrating the accessory components showcased at the Universal Robots+ showroom, our distribution partners and end users can reduce spending time on application development and testing.”

A new software update for the robot arms’ operating software has also been released. The new release, Software Version 3.3, includes updates such as the Profinet IO device functionality to open up additional areas of deployment and activities for robots.

“A key feature of the update supporting the Universal Robots+ platform is the ability for providers to now offer solutions that interface seamlessly with the UR software,” said Mr Østergaard.

Until now, the software enabling communication between developer applications and the UR robot arms had to be implemented using a timeconsuming and complex script code, which difficult for the majority of endusers to handle.

As the Software Version 3.3 consist in part of open source software, developers can apply their software as an add-on, significantly reducing the time needed for implementation at the end customer’s premises, thus decreasing both price and potential risks.

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Toyota And Mitsubishi To Invest In Automotive Production In The Philippines

Phil ippin e s : M i t s u b i s h i Motors Philippines Corporation (MMPC) and Toyota Motors Philippines Corporation (TMPC) have announced that they will be investing approximately P8 billion (US$172 million) under the Philippine government’s Comprehensive Automotive Resurgence Strategy (CARS) programme by 2018.

CARS is an initiative intended to boost car manufacturing in the country and to prime the country as a regional automotive manufacturing hub. The programme is expected to generate economic activity worth around P300 billion and at least a 1.7-percent growth in national GDP (gross domestic product).

“The government has set a high level of ambition for the CARS programme, targeting the need to promote an economically-viable scale of production that will allow our auto sector to compete within the region for specific auto models,” said trade assistant secretary Rafaelita Aldaba.

L a s t December, the Board of Inves tment s (BOI) is sued the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) for the CARS programme.

According to the BOI, prospective local car assemblers may apply for fiscal support not exceeding P27 billion by locally producing three vehicle models or P9 billion per model. Each participant is given six years to produce 200,000 units each.

The BOI has conf irmed both MMPC and TMPC as par ticipants in the programme.

As part of its participation under CARS, Toyota and Mitsubishi are also required to localise the production of body shell and large plastic parts and components. At present, these are all imported, making the local car manufacturing industry uncompetitive.

MMPC is committing P4.3 billion to establish a local production line for its sedan Mirage and Mirage G4 models, which are expected to be operational by early 2017.

This investment by the Japanese automaker also includes a P2-billion stamping facility in Laguna. The plant, which has a capacity of 30,000 units per shift, would be used to produce the large body shells for the hatchback and sedan units of the Mirage. The current assembly plant in Laguna currently produces Mitsubishi’s Adventure and L300 lines.

“Under the CARS programme, our projected production volume is 200,000 units within a period of six years. In order to meet this target volume, MMPC plans to increase its plant’s capacity by adding another work shift,” said MMPC president and CEO Yoshiaki Kato.

“Given that automotive industry associations and economists predict total industry sales will reach the 500,000 units mark by 2020, MMPC hopes to remain one of the country’s partners towards the nation’s economic growth and development,” MMPC said in a statement.

Following a similar move, TMPC is making an initial investment of P3.22 billion starting this year for the manufacturing of its Vios subcompact sedans. Production will begin by 2018 and there are plans to manufacture around 230,000 units within six years.

The CARS programme also calls for new investments in parts manufacturing such as large car body panels, bumpers, instrument panels, headlamps, shock absorbers, plastic fuel tanks, automotive fabric and others.

LaserBond Expects Rise In Demand For Its Laser Coating Techniques In Economic Slump Australia: A downturn in the mining industry is helping to fuel demand for LaserBond’s products, as manufacturers look to maximise productivity.

T h e A u s t r al ian s ur f ace en g in e er in g company has been using thermal coating techniques – laser cladding – to produce hardwearing components and products for the mining, power generation, manufacturing and agriculture industries.

LaserBond chairman Allan Morton said the company’s laser-applied coatings typically tripled the life of a product.

“This is ef fec tively 3D printing using industrial robots and industrial lasers to add material to existing substrates to create better performing products,” he said. “The economic benefit is not so much that the components are lasting longer; it’s that you don’t have to shut the system down to change components so they’re getting longer cycles out.”

Mr Morton remarked that the economic downturn was one of the reasons why there wa s growing interes t for the company ’s lasers. “When everything was going fine in our boom times, people said ‘we will not pay that because even though we might have four times the life, the price is doubled.’ But now companies are looking at costs, and the cost of downtime overwhelms any incremental cost of a higher-performing component.”

Founded in New South Wales, the company has about 65 staff and a plant in South Australia since 2013. It has recently formed a research collaboration with the University of South Australia’s Future Industries Institute and is establishing a new “laser cell” in Adelaide featuring a 16kW laser, which it hopes to have up and running in September this year.

“With these lasers, we make a 60-percent energy saving, resulting in higher efficiency and less waste. We currently have the three most power ful lasers in Australia in this industry, and the one we’re buying will be twice as big – it will be the highest power laser beam used for laser cladding in the southern hemisphere,” said Mr Morton.

LaserBond predominantly manufactures for the mining industry and exports about 80 percent of its products to countries including Chile, Mongolia and South Africa.

Products are typically made from steel and then applied with materials such as nickel

BUSINESS NEWS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

alloys, tungsten, titanium carbides and ceramics.

Manufactured items include mining picks, furnace doors and “down the hole” hammers.

“Basically any new metal component that wears we can apply a surface to make it last longer; we can also make an old part with surfaces that are better than new,” Mr Morton enthused. The high power laser is used to metallurgically-bond a surfacing material to a substrate to provide high performance surfaces to new parts for extended operating life.

Mr Morton expects the new laser to allow the company to double its production. “We’re able to deposit material quicker than we currently do.”

South Australia is set to be the company’s base for research and development as well as the division for product manufacturing, according to founder and executive director Greg Hooper.

Launch Of New Platform For Sharing Information And Expertise Munich, Germany: The Hoffmann Group has launched the Hoffmann Group TV online channel as an outlet for its film content. Through this new video portal, the company, which offers 70,000 tools from an inventory of manufacturers, is giving customers a quicker and more convenient way to obtain information on professional machining, milling, drilling, turning, measuring, grinding, workstations and storage solutions within a single platform.

Industry trends, expert tips, the latest company news and the product and service portfolio from the Hoffmann Group make up the cornerstones of the portal. The platform will also cover reports on the social projects undertaken by the Hoffmann Group Foundation and the 2016 DTM season, while an e-mail push service keeps viewers informed of the latest additions to the portal.

“As a successful family company, we help to solve problems for our customers and partners over the long term. Our extensive range of video material is now making a valuable contribution to achieving this aim,” commented Olaf Mörk, director marketing at the Hoffmann Group.

“By bundling our video content on our own dedicated TV portal, we have now made it even easier to access the latest product news and helpful videos, which means we can pass on our expertise even faster. The portal is also linked directly to our e-shop and the newly introduced detailed product pages there, so our customers can quickly obtain further product information and find out about the relevant conditions.”

SUNY New Paltz Opens New Additive Manufacturing Superlab Minneapolis and Rehovot: The Hudson Valley Advanced Manufacturing Center (HVAMC) at The State University of New York at New Paltz (SUNY New Paltz) has opened an additive manufacturing superlab. The superlab, which is defined as employing high-end 3D printers of both PolyJet and FDM technologies, has received a designation by 3D printing and additive manufacturing solutions company Stratasys as a “SMART lab”, that is, a Stratasys MakerBot Additive Research and Teaching laboratory.

The HVAMC provides expert advice on 3D printing processes, materials and design for both student education and the Hudson Valley business community.

Its 3D printing lab is set to be one of the country’s most advanced 3D printing superlabs. The lab features a suite of advanced Stratasys 3D printers, including an industrial-grade Objet260 Connex multi-material 3D printer, a Fortus 400mc production 3D printer, two dimension units, and over 40 MakerBot 3D printers.

The lab will be open to the entire campus from engineering and art students to English and philosophy students, as well as educators. It will also serve as a central 3D printing service centre for the surrounding communities and business, helping to grow the Hudson Valley economy.

“Our designation as a SMART lab is huge step for the HVAMC,” said Dan Freedman, the dean of the School of Science and Engineering and director of the HVAMC. “The combination of our unique focus at the interface of art, engineering and science, and the recognition and support by the world’s leading manufacturer of 3D printers, will move us to an unparalleled interdisciplinary educational experience, help us support regional businesses, and give our faculty the tools and expertise to do cutting-edge scholarship in art, engineering and design.”

In cooperation with the Hudson Valley Economic Development Corporation, a comprehensive resource for business in the area, the HVAMC at SUNY New Paltz is set to attract new businesses and economic growth to the Hudson Valley area. The corporation had previously played a key role in working with the university to lay the groundwork for the additive manufacturing and mechanical engineering programmes that are currently available to all students, local businesses and community members.

“We’re continually impressed with the industry partnerships SUNY New Paltz is engaged in. The investment they have made in industrial-grade additive manufacturing equipment in the SMART lab, combined with its expert staff, has allowed increased access for all,” said Gina Scala, director of global marketing at Stratasys Education. “It’s exciting to see economic development for local industry and academic development collide, creating fireworks of innovation and benefit for all.”

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Schaeffler Supplies Key Components For New Panama Canal Panama City and Schweinfurt: After a nineyear construction period, the new, third channel of the Panama Canal has opened to allow ships with a maximum length of 366 metres and a width of around 50 metres travel this shortcut between the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans. Until now, the passage was restricted to ships that were no more than 290 metres long and 32 metres wide. Bearing solutions from Schaeffler keep the lock gates and valves moving.

Components made by Schaeffler play a key role in the operation of the lock gates. The locks are necessary both on the Atlantic and on the Pacific side so that ships can overcome a difference in height of 26 meters and pass through.

This is achieved by three consecutive locks that are flooded with water from adjoining reservoirs. The lock gates are made of reinforced concrete and have enormous dimensions. For safety reasons, two gates have been installed for each barrage that open to the side. The mechanism for opening and closing the gates was developed by Italian engineering company Cimolai Technology.

To open and close the gate, each has two main drive units that drive a cable winch. The drums of the steel cable winches are supported by spherical roller bearings made by Schaeffler. Since very high torques of up to 330,000 Nm are required to move the gates, there is also a gearbox on each that increases the torque of the electric motors by almost 280 times.

The gearboxes developed by PIV Drives, a company owned by the Brevini Group, are equipped exclusively with tapered, spherical and cylindrical roller bearings made by Schaeffler. Most of the bearings have been coated with Schaeffler’s Triondur C to prevent wear and ensure their operation for 35 years.

Both at the top and at the bottom of the reservoirs, two “carriages” guide the gates that weigh 3,100 tons. Here, guide pulleys that must be able to withstand not only the gates’ dead weight but also the pressure of 430 million litres of water per reservoir are used. The guide pulleys are equipped with spherical roller bearings supplied by Schaeffler.

One important feature of the new Panama Canal is its three reservoirs that are located next to each barrage. They ensure a resource-conserving water cycle, where several valves open in a channel below ground to drain the water from a barrage. The channel connects the water saving basins and the barrage. Due to the large size, the valves supplied by Hyundai Samho have also been designed as gates. The steel guide pulleys for these gates are equipped with bearings made by Schaeffler. The bearings used here are chromium-plated, making them particularly resistant to corrosion.

Different variants of the Durotect coating developed by Schaeffler are used for this application.

Schaeffler engineer Francesco Capittini described the challenges behind the bearing solutions for the Panama Canal: “The slow motion causes a quasi-static load in the bearings with very high forces.” In addition, the operation of the Panama Canal must work reliably round the clock, due to its significance for world trade. Maintenance intervals are scheduled only once every five years.

ABB Acquires SVIA Automation Solutions

Zurich, Switzerland: ABB announced it has acquired SVIA, a provider in the fast-growing market of robot automation cells for machine tending.

SVIA, headquartered in Jönköping, Sweden, builds automated solutions for machine tending processes, using robots to feed components to lathes and mills, and to secondary processes like assembly, washing and part marking. The company has a portfolio of over 800 machine tending cell solutions which integrate robotic automation to increase the productivity, flexibility and quality of manufacturing.

Together with ABB’s expertise in the Internet of Things, Services and People (IoTSP), the acquisition is set to provide a distinctive set of value propositions to industrial customers globally.

ABB will integrate SVIA into its robotics business in its Discrete Automation and Motion division, and will make the latter its global application centre for machine-tending.

The acquisition expands ABB’s machine tending portfolio with a wider variety of advanced and vision-integrated applications for industries including automotive, plastics and electronics.

SVIA’s machine-tending cell systems, combined with ABB’s software, will significantly reduce engineering costs pertaining to installation of new machines. The expanded offering is beneficial for both machine OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) and established CNC (Computer Numeric Control) machine users as well as ABB’s global network of channel partners.

“SVIA’s pioneering automation solutions fit perfectly into ABB’s leading global robotics business unit. SVIA already uses ABB robots across its innovative portfolio of machine tending solutions. We co-developed ABB’s FlexMT robot automation cell which can increase machine tool utilisation by up to 90 percent, compared to 50 percent utilisation with manual machine tending,” said Pekka Tiitinen, president of ABB’s discrete automation and motion division. “Together, we will enhance growth through our strong commitment to customer focus and by providing integrated, complete solutions based on the IoTSP. This approach has been the cornerstone of SVIA’s success and is a key part of ABB’s next level growth strategy.”

The growing interest in robotic machine tending automation is being driven by the need to enhance productivity and flexibility as production moves towards smaller quantities of more diverse products. Robot automation can improve safety by protecting workers from fast-moving machinery.

METAL CUTTING Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

GETTING AUTOMOTIVE-ATED Constantly changing factors such as unstable oil prices, ever more demanding environmental protection legislations and the evolution of more efficient technologies ensures a continually changing global automotive market place. These factors also increase the ongoing competition between car makers and OEMs and dictate today’s automotive industry manufacturing trends. By Oleg Eliezer, Iscar’s automotive industry manager.

T

oday ’s eng ine s are becoming smaller, lighter, more economical and env ironmen t-f r iendly, increasingly ref ined and quieter, whil s t delivering 2 5 to 30 percent more power and torque than previous generation power units.

The now ubiquitous turbocharger plays a key role in Internal Combustion Engine

(ICE) optimis ation. A turbochar ger uses the engine’s previously wa s ted exhaus t gases to rotate a turbine that ac tivates an air compressor. When propelled into the engine’s combus tion chamber s , the re sult ing air/f uel mi x t ure sig ni f ic an t ly increases the engine’s per formance, and vastly improves its ef f iciency.

An unwelcome consequence of the use

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Additional time savings are gained from the elimination of several standard operations by the provision of a single, combined and multifunctional tool.

of a turbocharger is that the heat generated increases turbine housing temperatures to 900 deg C in diesel engines, and up to 1,100 deg C in gasoline powered units. As it is crucial that these components function e f f ic ien t l y a t s u c h hig h t emp er a t ur e s , turbine housings are manufac tured from austenitic, heat-resistant cast steels, which have relatively high-creep streng th, good thermal stability and excellent castability.

This material solution would be perfect if turbine housings could be machined easily; however many turbocharger manufacturers face problems when using standard tools for machining turbine housings. Standard c ar bide in s er t s ar e o f t en onl y able t o machine a few par ts before failing. In many cases these tool breakage problems can lead to crash downs and machine and other expensive equipment damages.

I s c ar ’s au t o m o t i v e d ep ar t m en t w a s called upon to assist in rectifying the above issues. Essentially, there were two main problems to solve: To prolong the life of the tool’s cutting edge and to design special cut ting tool s to minimise the machining times of these complicated par ts.

L on g er t o o l l i f e minimi s e s mac hin e downtime and makes the proces s much more ef f icient. As a result the company’s R&D depar tment ha s developed several advanced new carbide grades which are able to run at extremely fast cutting speeds and to last much longer than those of other

Figure 1: For example, the Ø100mm face milling cutter SOF45 8/16-D100-10-32R, equipped with 10 standard inserts S845 SNHU 1305…MS32 easily removes up to 6 mm stock of a heat resistant austenitic cast steel at Vc=150 m/min and f=3mm/rev and reaches a tool life of 2530 parts. Competitors’ products barely achieve 12 parts per an edge.

brands. A combination of the latest carbide grades, geometries and revolutionar y pre and post-coating treatments guarantee that the tools’ cutting edges last much longer and that machining times are slashed.

The MS32 grade is intended mainly to be used in rough and f inish milling. A carbide subs trate provides an excellent balance between hardness and toughness, and in combination with a superior CVD coating M S 3 2 , prov ide s ne w le vel s o f abr a sion resistance. This advanced new grade has been proven in dr y, we t and even MQL machining environments.

A d di t i o n a l t im e s a v in g s ar e g ain e d from the elimination of several standard operations by the provision of a single, combined and multifunc tional tool . For example, the tool shown below on the right is able to perform five different operations; rough boring , f illeting , f inish boring , counter boring and chamfering in one single axial move. Assuming that each operation takes an average of f ive seconds of f the machining time by using the illus trated tool, the user can save 20 valuable seconds per cycle.

A s a consequence of the above, addit ional unfores een s aving s are al s o achieved by the elimination of tool changing times. Assuming that each tool change takes approximately f ive seconds , another 20 seconds from the cycle time is cut.

To summarise, by implementing such effective tools, there is an elimination of 40 seconds from cycle times, which contributes directly to customer’s prof itability. These conser vative f igures do not t ake into account other advantageous factors such as energ y savings, set-up times, machine and equipment amor tisation savings, etc.

Cylinder Blocks Approximately 10 to 15 years ago, the most commonly used cast iron cylinder blocks were largely replaced by bi-metal blocks (aluminium blocks with inserted cast iron liners). Today, more and more car makers have replaced this method with thermal spray processes called cylinder bore coating (CBC), a special co at ing l ayer, which is applied direc t ly on aluminium c y linder walls. There are a few dif ferent thermal spray methods: Plasma Transferred Wire Arc Spraying (PTWA), Atmospheric Plasma Spray (APS), Thermal Wire Arc Spraying (TWA), etc.

These coatings deliver many advantages to engine/car per formance, the two most important being:

METAL CUTTING Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

• Weight – Engines are much lighter without the presence of heavy cast iron liners.

• Lubrication – Friction between cylinders and pis tons is reduced due to the coatings’ microstructures.

A major manufac turing issue with the CBC coating is that its hardness is relatively high and its thickness is relatively uneven.

Therefore, a cylinder honing operation to achieve the f inal size can be a long and complic ated proce s s . Is c ar ’s eng ineer s have targeted the honing cycle to enable these times to be minimised. They did so by first replacing a few time consuming roughhoning s tages with one ver y fas t boring operation. The tool is equipped with four to six Iscar PCBN inserts, which are individually adjusted to a precise diameter.

PCBN enables operations to run at very fast parameters. For example, for boring Ø100mm cylinder, it is done at Vc=400-700 m/min and f=1-1.2 mm/rev. In some cases, when the chip evacuation becomes an issue, the PCBN insert is designed with a dedicated chipformer on its top.

T here are t wo common me chanism s (depending on t he machine) : ac tuat ion by a linear draw bar, which has only two positions (“on” during the boring operation and “off ”during the feed out) and actuation by a fully numerically controlled rotation bar, which can change the tool diameter in real time. For example, for producing conical, barrel or other shaped holes for internal grooving or for bore diameter correction/ compensation (due to the insert’s wear).

A key fac tor in the succes s of these operations is the selection of the appropriate PCBN grade related to the material being machined. The correc t balance bet ween the hardness and toughness of the grade has to be considered. Although using PCBN with coolant is not recommended, some automotive manufacturers insist on a wet machining proce s s . In t he s e c a s e s , t he machining environment (emul sion or oil coolant, MQL, dr y machining, etc.) has to be considered. The cutting edge geometry derives from the machined material, cutting parameter s and a depth of cut (T-land, E-land, S-land, sharp or honed edge, etc.).

Valves The ga s exchange valves, par ticularly exhaust valves, are always under intensive thermal loads. As previously mentioned, the temperatures of the exhaust gases reach

Figure 2: When the boring operation is accomplished, the cutting edges move towards the cutter’s centre to prevent scratching the cylinder surface on exit.

more than 900 deg C, which constitutes a big challenge for valve materials and can lead to excessive wear and premature fatigue.

A few leading companies have developed new technologies to solve this problem. One of these solutions is to gundrill the valve stem up to its head and to fill this cavity with sodium. During the engine’s operation, the sodium absorbs the generated heat and melts.

The shaking effect forces this liquid to move up and down along the stem, which dissipates the heat from the valve head to the stem and cools it. As a result, the valve head remains cooler and hence lasts much longer and the risk of valve burning, preignition and detonation is reduced.

When undertaking these manufacturing operations, in order to enable the sodium to slide easily inside the valve stem, the surface finish of the internal cavity needs to be as fine as possible. For this particular application, it is recommended to work with gundrills with an integral tip and body made of solid carbide with either steel or a carbide driver. These drills are designed for conventional machines, machining centres, lathes and dedicated gundrill machines.

They are av ail able from Ø0.9mm, while providing superior rig idit y and opt imal coolant flow rates. As a result of being made of solid carbide, when compared to brazed ver sions , these gundrill s can work with

As a result of being made of solid carbide, when compared to brazed versions, these gundrills can work with up to 100 percent higher feeds and speed parameters.

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Figure 3: The solid carbide gundrills ensure proper surface finish, which is crucial for hollow valve applications. Diameter range: Ø0.9 – Ø16 mm (full solid carbide).

As OEMs need to remain flexible, to react immediately to the frequently changing market and when possible – to spend less money – they prefer to invest in special cutting tools rather than purchase new machine tools.

up to 100 percent higher feeds and speed parameters.

Iscar offer a very wide variety of gundrill geometrical shapes, which are designated for dif ferent drilling rates, hole accuracy and surface finish quality. The drill’s shape, together with its profile must be matched to the workpiece material. In fact, this is exac tly what our specialis t s did in this particular case.

However, selecting the correct gundrill geometry is only one important step towards a successful result. A suitable cutting edge treatment (rake face polishing and edge honing t o t he r ig h t si ze) impr ove s t he surface finish even more. It also improves the drill’s per formance and prolongs tool life. In addition, the gundrill body itself is being polished. It becomes very smooth and enables the chips to slide easily inside the gullet on their long evacuation. The best result s in gundrilling hollow valves have been achieved by using submicron carbide grades, IC08, that is protected by a AlTiN nano-layer PVD coating.

Camshaft A relatively new concept for making much lighter (up to 45 percent) and remarkably cheaper camshaf t s, in comparison to the t r a di t i o n al m e t h o d o f m a c hinin g f r o m ca s t or forged bar s tock , is a s sembling camshaf ts from modules. This system uses

thermal expansion as the process principle, some OEMs f ix pre-heated individual cams on to a pre-cooled precision steel tube.

Others f ix individual cams on to the steel tube then, by using hot air pressure, expand the tubes diameter in the places where it engages with the cams. In both cases, the lobes of each individual cam are precisely arranged in accordance with the geometr y of the camshaf t.

The individual cams are produced either from pressed and sintered powder metal or from hardened steels. A s there are millions of these cam produced each year, manufac turers are eager to reduce machining c ycle times to a minimum. A s OEMs need to remain f lex ible, to reac t immediately to the frequently changing market and when possible – to spend less money – they prefer to invest in special cut ting tool s rather than purcha se new machine tools.

In order to minimise cycle time in this area, a new concept has been developed – a single innovative inser t that is able to complete the entire cam machining process.

The remarkable inser t is able to complete face turning, internal rough turning, internal finish turning and chamfering. The extremely durable, tangentially clamped inser t faces all 4 operations, including cam lobe profile, at the highest possible cutting parameter with equal ease and completes the cam machining cycle within a few seconds.

For deep hole drilling in forged camshaf t s, a dif ferent approach can be adopted – a deep drill with an exchangeable carbide insert. This brings many advantages to OEMs. It makes the process much more cos t-ef fec t ive when compared to using conventional gundrills. The standard insert is always available in stock, it has three cutting edges and it negates the need for regrinding. The inser t has a positive pressed chipformer and serrated cutting edges that split chips into multiple small segment s, which reduces the machining torque (i.e. enables it to work with higher feeds) and improves chip evacuation. In addition, a small wiper at the end of the cutting edge provides ver y f ine hole sur face.

These ef f icient , cos t ef fec t ive tool s are highly recommended for deep drilling camshaft applications and can be used on both lathes and dedicated gundrill machines.

The GD-DH drills are available at 10, 15 and 25 drilling leng ths to diameter ratios. As tailored “specials”, TRI-DEEP drills up to 2,400 millimetres long can be produced.

METAL CUTTING Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

Pistons Much shor ter and thin walled (sometimes fric tion welded) steel pistons are lighter than the conventional examples and are able to withstand much higher loads than those made from aluminum. T-piston geometr y becomes more complicated and requires new and creative engineering ideas for machining difficult to access surfaces.

When machining s teel pis tons , the following are considered to be key performance indicators: -

To reduce the number of tools needed in order to shorten expensive cycle times.

This requires a high level of creativity due to the fac t that the machined area s are rel at i vely hard to acce s s .

Although the tool has to be thin enough to penetrate into the pis ton without collision, it has to be s trong enough to withstand high cut ting forces. The Grip line products provide the required rigidity and versatility. The user-friendly inser t clamping concept that does not have removable par t s, generates ver y high gripping forces that secure the inser t in t he tool pocket even when cutting directions are being changed, i.e. the tool is able to perform face grooving, right and left side turning and profiling operations (without vibrations) and to leave a smooth and shiny surface.

Also, to ef f iciently evacuate chips from the complicated cavities, a wide variety of chipbreaking geometries that split chips into small segments and allow quick removal are available.

- To prolong the life of the cutting edge. A short tool life means a high number of machine stops, i.e. – inefficient machining.

However Iscar has proven that the use of its Jet HP concept, which brings a high pressure coolant jet right to the cutting zone, has delivered much improved life per a cutting edge. In addition, the Jet HP coolant method contributes to an efficient chipbreaking process.

Automotive manufacturers’ timeframes for launching new platforms and models become shorter every year, therefore OEMs continuously pressurise tier two and three suppliers with demands for ever shor ter deliver y times. Although the majorit y of Iscar’s automotive projects are designed at its headquar ters, the company’s logistics coordination pays special attention to the

Figure 4: The TRI-DEEP drilling line (GD-DH…) holds IT10 tolerance field and covers a range of Ø 16-28 mm. A standard TOGT insert has three serrated edges that create thin and short chip segments for smoother cut.

Figure 5: A special tool for machining four piston ring grooves in one plunging operation.

The profiling tool with precise and easily replaceable GRIP type insert machines, hardly accessible and a complicated combustion bowl on the upper part of a piston.

reques ted lead times. The company has production facilities all over the world, and in many cases, for the manufac turing of special tools in the shortest possible time, a facility that is closest to the customer’s location is chosen. In addition to the time and logistics aspects, this concept brings many economic advantages (less tax, lower shipment costs, etc.).

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More and more travellers use modern train services because of their ease, cost effectiveness, comfort and safety. All these are only possible when the right tools are utilised at the manufacturing stage. Tomáš Hantek, the international application manager for railway at Dormer Pramet shares his thoughts on rail production.

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t is therefore a mat ter of course for manufacturers of rail and train components to ensure that quality products and services continue to be delivered to the industry every day. Increasing reliability through new tools, materials and machining techniques, as well as supporting productive and cost effective maintenance of existing infrastructure, is crucial.

In 2013, the global market for railway technology was approximately 150 billion euros.

This is expected to see an annual growth of 2.7 percent over the next few years, reaching an average annual value of 176 billion euros before 2019.

The railway segment has been a focus for Dormer Pramet for many years, with the company offering customers a wide range of cutting tools to help with both production and maintenance.

Railway wheels and rails are the most important components in any railway operation, as they represent the interface between vehicle

and track. Therefore, both rail and wheel surfaces must always be of the highest quality.

Any roughness or irregularity in surface quality can create undesirable forces, friction, vibrations and wear, developing unwanted effects on the vehicle and infrastructure. In the case of passenger vehicles, this can influence not only the comfort of the occupants, but also their safety.

As an established partner to the rail industry in many locations around the world, Dormer Pramet supports the manufacture and reprofiling of wheels, as well as machining of axles, chassis, rail profiles and renovation, switches, base plates, mounted axles, junctions and other rolling stock components.

With any contact between the vehicle wheels and rail surfaces, the materials must be strong enough to resist the normal (vertical) forces exerted by regular and heavy loads. The forces in the contact zone must be low enough to allow heavy loads to move at speed with little

METAL CUTTING Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

resistance and also large enough to generate acceleration, braking, and guidance of vehicles.

Rail Treatment The most common mechanical noise from a train is generated between the wheel and rail contact.

These “vibrations” are transmitted through the ground and can even be felt in nearby buildings.

Vibrations (in the range of 4 to 80Hz), or low frequency rumbling noises (between 30 and 250Hz), can also be transmitted into the vehicle itself affecting passenger comfort and vehicle life.

To combat against this constant force between track and vehicle, there is a need to make sure the rail remains in a good condition.

There are several reasons for rail treatment, but primarily it is an issue of operational safety.

With the mechanical stresses in wheel and rail contact, cracks can appear on the surface of the rail. These have to be removed quickly before they spread and destroy the track area.

A regular assessment of the rail profile is important for limiting damage to the track and rolling stock. Also, another objective is to enable modern high speed trains to use existing lines, while maintaining reliability and safety standards.

Rail treatment can be performed in several ways. The most time-consuming involves the use of track relaying machines, which replace old rails with new. It is also possible to subject the exis ting rail s to grinding operation, however, the disadvantage with this is that it offers a small depth of cut and can create sparks, presenting a potential fire hazard.

However, an alternative option is dynamic rail milling. The re-profiling of a railway line without removing the track s represent s significant time and financial savings. It is therefore no surprise that dynamic milling of rails has become one of the most popular methods. But this “on the-move” application requires specialised equipment to achieve optimum results.

Dynamic milling can be per formed by specially designed trains, operating at a constant speed of 700 metres per hour. Rails made of R350HT steel have good abrasion resistance, with a hardness of between 900 and 1,200 MPa. Sometimes the passage of trains results in the rail head being hardened up to 1,500 MPa. To re-profile the rails, two milling units are used. The first roughens the surface, the second one finishes it, and the two units act on both rails simultaneously.

The f inal rail prof ile and high quality surface finish are ensured by the grinding units, while metal chips produced during milling are

The Pramet dynamic rail milling cutter.

A variety of universal and removable cassettes are available for dynamic rail milling.

transferred to a nearby container, making sure no debris or swarf is left on the track.

“Another option is the use of a truck which can switch between road and rail by changing its wheel type. This uses only one milling unit on each side, so the cutters perform only a finishing operation.

Addressing Safety Issues It is standard practice that during the reprofiling of rails, insert indexing due to wear is done on board the train performing the milling.

To reduce down time, operators often change the whole milling cutter, and to do this, they must leave the train.

H o w e v e r, r e n o v a t io n o f r ail w ay infrastructure is usually done at night when there is less traffic. To improve safety, it is advisable to avoid changing the cutter during a shift, especially at night. The normal distance covered when milling during a standard shift is

Railway wheels and rails are the most important components in any railway operation, as they represent the interface between vehicle and track.

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METAL CUTTING Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

Pramet inserts specifically for use in railway applications.

A pitted rail which requires renovation.

A railway line after profiling treatment.

Dormer Pramet’s rail milling inserts and cutters have a durability of more than 3,700m, meaning staff can stay on the train for the whole shift.

between 3,000 and 3,500m. Dormer Pramet’s rail milling inserts and cutters have a durability of more than 3,700m, meaning staff can stay on the train for the whole shift.

The range provided by the company for the rail industry includes disk mills, cartridges and indexable inserts for dynamic rail milling.

The rail milling cutters, for example, have a diameter of 600mm, a cutting speed of between 220 and 280m/min, and each cutting tooth can deal with between 3.5 to 5mm of rail length, cutting to a depth of between 0.5 and 1.5mm.

A variet y of universal and removable ca s set tes are al so available, with each consisting of a casing which is identical for left and right hand rails, supporting both roughing and finishing applications.

These cassettes are also used for different rail profiles - the AHC (Anti-Head-Check, for

rails used by trains operating at speeds up to 160 km/h) and the UIC 60E2 profile for high speed lines. When the profile needs to be changed it is only necessary to replace two out of the eleven inserts in each cassette.

This delivery of cutting tools specifically for dynamic rail milling applications and our aim to continuously develop new products for the industry, has allowed us to develop strong partnerships with some of the world’s leading railway companies.

The company was recently appointed by Deutsche Bahn (DB) in Germany to supply the dynamic milling cutter equipped with removable cassettes and inserts. DB serves more than seven million passengers and a million tonnes of freight every day in Germany.

The company also has significant presence around the world, operating in 130 countries, generating revenues of around 38 billion euros.

Railway Wheels Development As well as re-profiling of rails, the company has experience in the machining of railway wheels, and is constantly looking to meet customers’ requirements for reliability and productivity.

Similar to rails, railway wheels have to be treated regularly. It helps to improve running behavior, noise level and safety. Machining of railway wheel s al so requires specif ic technology based on the principle of copy forming with a round cutting edge. One of the main challenges is to determine the optimum chip thickness and heat distribution.

By cooperating with manufacturers around the world with a combined annual production of more than 8 million wheels, the company looks to provide technical support and expertise in this area.

Future Development A continuous dialogue over many year s between Dormer, manufacturers and suppliers ensures that industry demands for quality and reliability will be met.

While we already have a large number of products in this segment, more are added to our assortment every year. However, before being released to the market, all our new tools must meet a strict list of key requirements.

This includes the ability to offer reliability in the cutting process, longevity and productivity for the customer, optimum chip fractionation, dimensional accuracy and stability and high surface quality. Only when these features are guaranteed, the company then looks to offer them to manufacturers, ensuring continuous development for the railway sector as a whole for years to come.

METAL CUTTING Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

O

nion-shaped profiles are generally used in the compressor sec tion upstream of modern gas turbines to fix the blades to the shaft. Depending on the design of the thermal shaft, a number of dif ferent machining processes may be used, such as broaching, a method that is both incredibly time-consuming and expensive. In response to these issues, the experts at Walter AG have developed a process that uses profile mills. When it was first presented publicly at the Starrag Technology Days exhibition in summer 2015, the new machining concept elicited a great deal of interest from those in the industry.

One of the keys to the success of the new process is its use of innovative technologies, which include a Tiger tec Silver coating for roughing the profiles and high-precision profile mills with indexable inserts that can be used to achieve a dimensional accuracy of up to 20 µm.

Looking At The Cost-Effective Alternative Walter AG accepted the challenge at the Starrag Technology Days 2015 exhibition and milled an onion-shaped flute. Four profile mills and three standard mills with indexable inserts were used in the demonstration. One advantage of the new process is that the use of indexable inserts means that there is no need for a subsequent grinding stage (as is necessary when using broaching tools) or any of the extra work that this grinding involves.

UPPING

THE PRECISION Producing components for modern gas turbines is a challenge that machining experts are familiar with; they are often faced with the task of machining difficult-to-cut materials such as titanium alloys and superalloys and creating shapes such as onion-shaped profiles and flutes. This difficulty is compounded by the fact that the turnaround time for machining the components must be as short as possible, while the process must be incredibly precise.

Lim Gan Shu, marketing manager, Walter AG shows how precision tools, developed machining concepts and optimised tools set new standards in the field.

When roughing a flute measuring 100 x 100 mm (W x D) from the material 42CrMo4, the tools achieved a machining volume of just under 500 cm³/min at a feed rate of 2500 mm/min. The standard tools included the new M4132 shoulder milling cutter and the M4002 high-feed milling cutter. Even where dry machining is concerned, the M4002 boasts effective chip evacuation

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METAL CUTTING Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

during plunge milling.

The three operations described in the following were conducted using Walter special bodies and standard indexable inserts. The finishing face mill achieved a dimensional tolerance of 0.03 mm for the net shape. With a cutting speed of 260 m/min and a feed per tooth of 0.18 mm, the indexable insert milling cutters still achieved a surface finish of Ra = 0.35 µm, significantly below the required value of Ra = 1.6 µm. If solid carbide milling cutters are used for the finishing operation, even smoother surface finishes can be achieved.

The concept was successful: A flute was fully machined in under 11 minutes – including all tool change times. This proves that, provided the right tools and technologies are used, milling is an ideal alternative to broaching when machining an onion-shaped flute. In addition to this, profile mills are able to perform the same task approximately twice as quickly as broaching tools, which translates to a productivity increase of around 100 percent.

Increasing Productivity In Milling Profile milling was also pitted against copy milling on the onion-shaped flute prof ile machining station featured at the Starrag Days exhibition in Rorschacherberg. The challenge was to produce an onion-shaped flute profile for a blade using just three profile mills and exactly three cuts. For the profile milling demonstration, three special tools manufactured by Walter were used to mill the onion-shaped profile – two for the roughing and one for the finishing. The two profile mills for roughing the onion shape were operated with Tiger tec Silver indexable inserts: Standard tangential indexable inserts with four usable cutting edges were used in the first milling cutter for the top of the onion shape.

Triangular indexable inserts with three cutting edges were used in the second roughing tool for the bottom of the profile. Both milling cutters operated at a machining volume of 500 cm3/min.

What was seen as the latest technologies were also applied for finishing the profile specifically, using insert seats with a positioning accuracy of 5 µm and high-precision special indexable inserts. The machining allowance for the last cut was a mere 0.3 mm. All of the tools used were operated with internal cooling – a decided advantage for high-performance machining at cutting speeds of up to 310 m/ min. The initial results were positive, with the finishing face mill easily achieving the required dimensional accuracy of 20 µm.

To enable comp ar is on b e t w e en t he two methods, the alternative strategy was demonstrated in a second step using the

Mobile, Faster & Smarter In the age of Industry 4.0, tools can also be virtual. Apps and software solutions are simplifying daily work at the machine and increasing produc tivit y. Tools can be selec ted at the click of a mouse and managed optimally – while on the move and at any time. Walter AG has a wide range of solutions which are tailored to the individual needs of its customers.

This means that they can always select the best tool and the most cost-efficient machining process. In addition, starting values and cutting data can be determined in a matter of seconds. The user benefits from process reliability and saves valuable time and money. These innovative solutions enhance Walter’s range of machining services and ensure a consistently smooth process – even from outside the production hall.

An overview of apps and software solutions: • Dramatically reduce wear – with the new wear optimisation app • Select customised tools – with Walter GPS • Determine starting values easily – with Feeds & Speeds app • Calculate cutting data accurately – with the machining calculator • Access all the tool catalogues – with the e-library • Select tools conveniently – with the Toolguide

Wear Optimisation App To Reduce Wear This latest solution helps users to get the best use out of their tools because it reduces wear rates and therefore reduces the associated costs. The app can identify all wear patterns on indexable inserts and solid carbide tools in turning, drilling, threading or milling applications.

Each wear pattern is shown with a zoom function, both graphically and in high-quality photos.

For ever y wear pat tern, the app provides the user with recommendations on how to reduce wear, – and therefore increasing the service life of their tool and save costs. The app works offline on all current mobile devices, such as smartphones, notebooks and tablets, with iOS or the Android operating system, as well as on a Windows PC that operates on Windows 7 or a more recent version.

The new wear-optimisation app from Walter helps users get the most from their tools.

This is because it reduces wear rates and therefore reduces the associated costs. The app can be used with all current mobile end devices and operating systems.

METAL CUTTING Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

You will always have the right tool for the job with Walter GPS.

Onion-shaped flute on a gas turbine compressor disc. Often machined using expensive broaching tools, but milling cutters are now an option.

Selecting The Right Tools One thing the device does is that it makes sure that one always has the right tool for turning, drilling, threading and milling. It takes just a few steps for you to find the best solution for the component to be machined: Whether online or offline – simply use the tool search or the application recommendation. The recommendations from Walter GPS are so precise that users can choose to search with or without a tolerance for the diameter, with or without a regrind length, or even according to complex pilot-drilling strategies.

This means that the user receives not just the best tool recommendation, but also the perfect machining strategy, including the cutting data. This can be printed out as a PDF document and then entered into the NC program on the processing machine. Thanks to an interface with the Walter ToolShop, recommended tools can be kept in a wish list and ordered at

Tool set comprising three standard and four special profile mills for onion-shaped flutes on a compressor disc for a gas turbine rotor.

the click of a button.

Determine Starting Values Easily The “Feeds & Speeds” app determines the starting values for milling, drilling and turning operations. Navigation is intuitive: From the application, workpiece material and tool type, to the cutting tool material, the feed and the cutting speed. The user always has the very latest data. This also saves considerable time since there is no need to search in the tool catalogue.

The Walter machining calculator can be used to calculate the cutting data for turning, drilling, threading and milling. This includes torque, drive output and machining volume, as well as operating time, main cutting force and chip thickness. The data can be exported, and it can now also be uploaded via CSV import. In addition, the calculated results can be shared via a smartphone.

With the app, one can view catalogues, find tools, set bookmarks, add tools to your basket – you can do it all with the e-library. This digital library contains full and supplementary catalogues as well as selected brochures.

You can look for tools in a matter of seconds using categories or a search function. These can be transferred to the “ToolShop” via an interface. The app works offline on all current mobile devices, such as smartphones, notebooks and tablets, with iOS or the Android operating system, as well as on a Windows PC that operates on Windows 7 or a more recent version.

The Walter Toolguide app provides mobile access to all the tools you require from the Walter range. The user is also shown 2D and 3D tool models as well as a detailed tool data sheet. Content is displayed using responsive web design (RWD), which means that the content is automatically adapted to the screen size of the end device being used. For users of smartphones or tablets in particular, this makes using the website significantly more convenient.

parallel-s troke technique. Close contour roughing using standard tools was required in order to enable the profile to be completed with a maximum machining allowance of 0.5 mm in the finishing stage that followed, using multiaxis machining. Standard round insert cutters with the latest coating technology and up to four usable cutting edges were used here. The profile was roughed in a large number of small, individual steps until it came close to its final shape. Conical ball-nose end mills are ideal for semi-finishing and finishing operations using parallel-stroke milling or flank milling. This technology was employed here. The bearing shoulder on an onion-shaped flute profile must meet strict requirements in terms of surface finish and dimensional accuracy in order to withstand the forces exerted by a turbine as it rotates. The bearing shoulder was produced with a single cut by the flank, and the rest of the profile was finished using parallel-stroke milling.

The findings of the applications engineers from Tübingen can be summarised as follows: Parallel-stroke milling with standard tools is an economical solution but requires a multi-axis milling machine. For large-scale manufacturing, profile mills offer significant benefits in terms of productivity – machining times are reduced by about 50 percent.

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METAL CUTTING Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

models that aid in understanding the functional significance of chip thickness. Chip thickness models have evolved from simple equations describing chips generated in steady-state turning operations to complex formulas that take into account numerous variables in the interrupted cutting environment of milling.

THE MILLING

EVOLUTION Multiple factors determine the results of metal cutting processes. Among the most important and the least understood factors is the “thickness of the chips” cut by the cutting tool. Patrick de Vos, corporate technical education manager, Seco Tools, explains.

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a sic ally, “chip t hick nes s” is t he measurement of the thickness of the non-deformed material at a right angle to the cutting edge. Chip thickness correlates, for example, closely with the forces that affect the tool and workpiece. Excessively large chip thickness result in chipping and breakage of the cutting edge, while insufficient chip thickness causes rapid edge wear.

Determining and controlling chip thickness enables a manufacturer to maximise metal cutting productivity and efficiency, tailor cutting processes to specific workpiece materials and control costs.

A lack of understanding of the importance of chip thickness leads many manufacturers to either overload or underutilise cutting tools, with negative effects on tool life and productivity.

With that said, there exists mathematical

Chip Thickness Models For Milling In a continuous turning operation, chip thickness does not change. In milling, however, chips continually vary in thickness as the cutting edge intermittently enters and leaves the workpiece.

To s i m p l i f y u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f c h i p thickness in milling, approximately 40 years ago metal cutting researchers developed the concept of average chip thickness. The for mul a t hey produced mat hemat ic ally creates a theoretical chip of a consistent average thickness. The average chip thickness model led to bet ter under s t anding and control of the milling process.

W hen de t er mining t he aver age chip thickness, one has to t ake into account the cut ter´s radial engagement with the work piece, along wit h t he cut t ing edge geometry, cutting edge angle and feed rate.

Adjusting the feed rate enables a machinist to manipulate chip thickness.

The degree of radial engagement of the cutter in the workpiece may range from a small percentage of the cutter diameter up to 100 percent of the diameter in a slotting operation.

Smaller radial engagement produces thinner chips. As the radial engagement grows, chip thickness reaches its maximum at 50 percent of cutter diameter. When radial engagement rises above 50 percent, chips begin to thin again.

The preparation of the cutting edge also affects chip thickness. As a general rule, chip thickness must be at least as large as the radius of the cutting edge. For example, a 60 µm edge radius requires feed be adjusted to produce chip thickness of at least 60 µm. At a feed rate that is too low, the edge will rub and fail to cut the workpiece material.

Milling tool cutting edges usually feature preparations that increase the edge radius to provide protection from chipping and breakage.

Such preparations include hones, chamfers and T-lands. These preparations permit more aggressive feed rates when milling difficult materials or rough surfaces.

The goal is to form the chip behind the cutting edge and thereby avoid concentrating pressure and impact where they will accelerate edge wear or breakage. Adjusting the feed rate moves the location of chip formation and controls chip thickness. Increasing feed rate

METAL CUTTING Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

METAL CUTTING TOOLS - CUTTING CONDITIONS

CHIP THICKNESS IN MILLING

Chip thickness is thickness of the undeformed chip perpendicular to the cutting edge and is constantly changing

Figure 1: Excessively large chip thickness result in chipping and breakage of the cutting edge, while insufficient chip thickness causes rapid edge wear.

Figure 2: In a continuous turning operation, chip thickness does not change.

creates a thicker chip and decreasing feed produces chips that are thinner.

The cutting edge angle has a direct effect on chip thickness. When the cutting edge angle is 90 degrees, as with a square shoulder cutter, chip thickness is 100 percent of the feed rate. But at a 45 degree cutting edge angle, chip thickness is 70 percent of the feed rate because the chip forms on a greater length of cutting edge. Reducing the cutting edge angle makes the chip thinner, and feed rate must be increased to maintain the desired chip thickness.

tool life equations provides estimates that are accurate within plus or minus 15 percent. That level of accuracy is sufficient for power and torque calculations and for many operations in routine workpiece materials. Further, the time and effort for the calculations needed to manually solve the average chip thickness equation are reasonable.

However, when applications require a higher degree of accuracy or when milling involves socalled difficult-to-machine materials, a model that includes additional factors is needed.

Application Of The Average Chip Thickness Equation The average chip thickness equation takes into account the tool´s cutting edge angle and the radial engagement of the cutter. Figure 3 graphs the equation´s application in side milling in blue and central milling in red. On the main graph, the radial engagement of the cutter is compared to the cutter´s diameter, expressed as the Ae/ Dc ratio. The smaller graph in the corner of the figure plots the effect of the cutting edge angle.

The figure illustrates a situation where the average chip thickness formula is not fully effective. When side milling with radial engagement that is very small compared to the diameter of the milling cutter, the formula does not function correctly (see dotted line). And in central milling, when 50 percent or more of the cutter is engaged in the cut, the red line shows continually increasing feed rate.

That is contradictory to practical experience, where greater cutter engagement usually dictates feed rate reduction. Accordingly, the average chip thickness model is most useful when radial engagement is greater than 20 to 25 percent of the cutter diameter and smaller than 50 to 75 percent of that amount.

The average chip thickness model is based on geometric factors and simplifies a complex situation. Decades of application have shown that use of the average chip thickness model in

Equivalent Chip Thickness Swedish researcher Sören Hägglund developed a more global model that provides a measurement called equivalent chip thickness, which can produce tool life predictions with accuracies of plus or minus two percent. In the model shown in figure 4, the yellow arc represents the varying thicknesses of the actual chip as produced by the milling cutter.

The orange bar, which illustrates the average chip thickness approach, is an unfurled version of the yellow chip. The blue bar represents equivalent chip thickness. A key difference is that the equivalent chip thickness model factors in the time the tool edge spends in the cut. That is significant because as the amount of AVERAGE CHIP THICKNESS

Figure 3: Figure 3 graphs the equation´s application in side milling in blue and central milling in red.

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EQUIVALENT CHIP THICKNESS he FOR MILLING

Figure 4: The yellow arc represents the varying thicknesses of the actual chip as produced by the milling cutter.

Determining and controlling chip thickness enables a manufacturer to maximise metal cutting productivity and efficiency, tailor cutting processes to specific workpiece materials and control costs.

EQUIVALENT CHIP THICKNESS – WOXEN MODEL

Figure 5: Woxén´s formula calculates theoretical chip thickness along the tool nose, essentially straightening out the nose radius and enabling the chip area to be described with a rectangle.

the cutter engaged in the workpiece varies, the cutting edge spends a different length of time in the cut and the thickness of the chip that is generated changes as well.

The equivalent chip thickness model also takes into account the influence of the tool´s nose radius on chip thickness. The model employs a concept originally developed for turning operations by Swedish engineer Ragnar Woxén in the early 1930s. Woxén´s formula calculates theoretical chip thickness along the tool nose, essentially straightening out the nose radius and enabling the chip area to be described with a rectangle.

Chip thickness calculations help manufacturers avoid problems that arise when chips are thinner than a certain minimum or are thicker than a specific maximum level. When the radial engagement increases in relation to the cutter diameter, feed rate must be lowered to maintain the same chip thickness. This ensures that maximum chip thickness does not become excessive, a condition that will reduce tool life and eventually break the cutter.

On the other hand, producing chips thicker than a certain minimum is especially important when machining strain-hardening materials such as superalloys and titanium. A cutting edge producing chips that are too thin creates a work-hardened zone that is cut by subsequent cutting edges. Cutting the resulting layer of strain-hardened material accelerates tool wear and can shorten tool life by as much as a factor of three.

Many shops machine strain-hardening materials the same way as hardened steels, employing lighter depths of cut and lower feed rates. As a result, milling cutters often run at parameters that produce insufficient chip thicknesses, with poor results. The choice of conventional or climb milling techniques (see sidebar) also affects chip thickness and the machining of strain-hardening materials.

Thickness Control The Key Control of chip thickness is a key factor in successful milling operations. Taking full advantage of chip thickness concepts involves first calculating equivalent chip thickness, then determining minimum and maximum chip thickness limits.

Because the complex equivalent chip thickness model includes a collec tion of variables, the calculations required to solve the equation consume a much greater amount of time and effort than the simplified model for average chip thickness. Manually making the calculations in a production environment is neither cost nor time efficient.

However, the availability of computer software programs for calculating machining parameters, such as those available from S e co, enable s u s er s to en t er da t a and solve the equations in seconds. The result is optimised milling processes that boost productivity and profitability.

Chip Thickness & Milling Technique A par tner to the equivalent chip thickness concept is consideration of the manner in which the chips are formed. Milling chip for mat ion occur s in t wo di f feren t w ay s , depending on the rotation of the cutter in relation to the movement of the workpiece.

The two methods are conventional (up) or climb (down) milling. In conventional milling, the cutter rotates against the direction of the workpiece feed. In climb milling , the cutter rotates in the same direction as the workpiece feed.

In co n v e n t i o n a l m il l in g , t h e c u t t in g edge enters the workpiece at zero depth of cut. The chip begins to form at minimum

METAL CUTTING Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

thickness and f inishes at maximum thickness. Conversely, the chip generated

“UP” MILLING VERSUS “DOWN” MILLING In conventional milling, the cutting edge enters the workpiece at zero depth of cut.

in climb milling begins at maximum thickness and tapers to its minimum.

W h e n m i l l in g w i t h t h e c o n v e n t i o n a l approach, the cut ting edge rubs the workpiece before it cut s, and the thin chip absorbs heat poorly. Both conditions contribute to s train hardening of the workpiece sur face and reduc tion of tool life. Chips fall in front of the cutter where

‘UP’ MILLING

‘DOWN’ MILLING

t h e y c an b e r e c u t an d d e g r ad e surface finish. In horizontal milling,

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upward cutting forces may lif t the wor k piece, nece s si t at ing us e of complex workholding f ixtures.

Climb milling is preferred for a number of reasons. It eliminates rubbing of the cutting edge as it enter s t he cu t , ma x imising tool life and reducing heat generation.

Less machine power is required, and chips fall behind the cut ter to minimise recutting and improve sur face f inish a s well a s t o o l l i f e . T h e c u t t in g ac t io n generates downward force, which helps s tabilise the workpiece and simplif y f ix turing. The initial thicknes s of the chip enables it to carr y away heat and minimise strain hardening of the workpiece sur face when machining materials such a s superalloys, s t ainless steels, and titaniums.

However, the downward forces created in climb milling can cause b ac k l a s h o f t h e mac hin e t ab le , milling equipment. Backlash hinders accuracy and increases the chipload on the cutter to the point that it may break. As a result, the conventional milling approach may be required in situations involving less stable machines and workpieces.

Conventional milling may also be preferable when milling castings, forgings and case-hardened material. That is because the conventional cut begins under the hardened or rough sur face of the material, while the entry of the tool

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into the part at full chip thickness in climb milling may cause chipping of the cutting edge as it encounters the material ´s hardened zone.

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ROLLING ON

FORWARD With more autonomy to the Southeast Asian operations, Schaeffler hopes to get a further foothold in the region with its offerings. Syed Shah speaks to Mark Gabel, VP industrial and aerospace, Schaeffler Southeast Asia, to get his inputs on the company’s plans and directions for the region in 2016 and beyond.

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Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News: Could you tell us more about Schaeffler’s key priorities for the Asia Pacific region and your role towards achieving those opportunities including organic/strategic growth?

Mark Gabel (MG): I am in char ge of t he Schaeffler industrial business in Southeast Asia and this year, we seek to expand our business in Indochina and Brunei. We plan to streng then our presence with existing and newer produc t ranges in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Brunei.

2015 w a s a challeng ing year for t he indus trial sec tor with global produc tion remaining more or less flat. When it comes to industrial production in Southeast Asia, 60 percent of the GDP here depends on t he t r ade wi t h China . T his dependenc y compounds the overall impact of a slowdown in industrial production as China has driven its growth pattern towards a more consumer driven economy than a trade driven one.

It is vit al for companie s to produce more in the region if they want to overcome the slowdown and achieve long-term

GREAT GEAR & SYSTEM Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

The company’s customers benefit from their online services for the remote monitoring of machines and equipment.

sus tainable grow th. Over the pas t three years, the company has also renewed it s focus on the Asia Pacific region, particularly Southeast Asia, and today our key priorities are to e x pand t he loc al manu f ac tur ing footprint and engineering competence in order to increase overall value-addedness for customers in the region, for the region.

The company has one of the largest product ranges and widest portfolio of solutions for industrial customers.

We see tremendous growth opportunities in Indonesia, which will remain a strategic focus mar ke t for t he company. What is interesting is that while China is changing from a manufacturing to a more ser viceoriented economic model, for Indonesia, it looks to be the opposite. The automotive s e c t or i s an e x ample w her e t her e i s a growing need for manufacturing machiner y and tool s . I t hink t hey are jus t get t ing star ted right now and their manufacturing sector has tremendous potential which will be realised over the next decade.

APMEN: Has the infrastructure of a country hindered your business expansion across the region?

MG: Like I mentioned earlier, we are always in t o u c h w a y b e f o r e f ul l y in v e s t in g in countries. Those whom we build contacts with at the star t to better provide us with infrastruc tural information would be the various chamber of commerce people. While part of the business we do ourselves, a large part of it is done through distributors within these countries.

Industry 4.0 is a major industry trend and will help in reducing costs and maintaining profits.

Once we identif y mid to long term infrastructure oppor tunities, whether it is a new port, railway line or anything else, we will evaluate and make a decision. Similarly, the quality of the distributor also matters in terms of their capabilities, reputation, and f inancial streng th since we are placing a large level of trust in them as a par tner to take our business in that region to the next level.

APMEN: The economy has not been stable recently with many heavy industries feeling the ripple effects of it (dipping oil prices etc). What is the company’s strategy around this?

MG : O n e o f our oil and g a s c u s t om er s in Singapore incurs signif icant cos t s f o r b e a r i n g r e p l a c e m e n t e v e r y y e a r.

Under current circums t ances, an option to re f ur bish b e ar ing s could amoun t to signif icant savings. The company recently es tablished a bearing refurbishment ce n t r e t o s up p o r t g lo b al an d r e g io nal a e r o s p a ce c u s t o m e r s . I t i s o n e o f t h e mos t advanced refurbishment facilit ies

In 2015, we had €13.2 billion revenue and roughly about €720 million was put into R&D.

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It is vital for companies to produce more in the region if they want to overcome the slowdown and acheive long-term sustainable growth.

in the region and it allows us to ex tend this ser vice to cus tomers from other sectors. As a result, our customers have an option to reuse cer tain components which can be refurbished to high standards of per formance and reliability. This helps our cus tomer s to reduce cos t s and enables the company to of fer an added value proposition – a facility to extend the life of their bearings.

The company aims to combine it s of ferings with the added value of bes tin-class ser vice, maintenance, and re f ur bishmen t . We aim to wor k clos ely wit h cus tomer s and suppor t t hem wit h customised solutions. This investment in time and ef for t will enable us to gain their trust and become their supplier of choice.

APMEN: What does Industry 4.0 mean to Schaeffler?

MG: Intelligent bear ing s olu t ions allow important operating conditions in machines, p l an t o r p r o du c t s t o b e a s s e s s e d an d control s to be put in place. A s a rolling b e a r i n g m a n u f a c t u r e r, t h e c o m p a n y ’s products therefore have a central role in the Industr y 4.0 initiative. As the bearings are

responsible for guidance and positioning as well as suppor ting forces and movement, t he many v ar ia t ion s in t he pro duc t ion process or in the products themselves can be detected immediately in the bearings.

In future, more things will be assessed w i t h s en s or s b e c aus e t here is a lo t o f dat a f loating around. So these mus t be somehow computed and algorithms need to be developed and made into a value added element for the customers according to their needs. In this case, the customer may be interested to say, reduce his fuel consumption and we will work with them in developing the algorithm to achieving that as a ser vice.

One of the devices that we have for condi t ion moni t or ing i s c alle d FAG SmartCheck. Our customers benefit from our online ser vices for the remote monitoring of machines and equipment. Maintenance inter vals can be determined based on the relevant loads.

FAG SmartCheck is suitable, for example, for early detec tion of rolling bearing damage, imbalances, misalignment s, looseness in electric and geared motors, vacuum and f luid pumps, ventilators and

GREAT GEAR & SYSTEM Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

The FAG SmartCheck has an intuitive user concept designed as a Web interface making it possible to access the system via the Internet using any standard Internet browser.

fans, gearboxes and compressors, spindles and machine tool s , and separator s and decanters. It has an intuitive user concept de sig ned a s a Web in ter f ace mak ing i t p o s s ib le t o acce s s t h e s y s t e m v ia t h e Internet using any s t andard Internet browser. The Web inter face can be used to configure the system and view current data.

In the long run, this ensures the extended lifespan of the bearings.

Most recently at the Hannover Messe 20 16 , t he comp any pre s en te d a s t andalone complete solution for monitoring the condition of machines and assemblies – FAG Smar tQB. The early warning system FAG Smar tQB comprises a FAG Smar tQB sensor unit (a variant of the existing FAG Smar tCheck), a cubic housing with a touch panel , and a c able for power and dat a transmis sion. The s y s tem wa s specially developed for detec ting irregularities in elec tric motor s , pumps , fans , and their rolling bearings, and is supplied with a ready-to-use conf iguration.

APMEN: How much investment is going into adopting Industry 4.0 within Schaeffler?

MG: The company focuses a lot on quality and technological innovations. About f ive percent of our s ale s is reinve s ted into R&D. In 2015, we had €13.2 billion (US$14.73 billion) revenue and roughly about € 7 20 million wa s put into R&D. Hence this is quite a subs t antial amount that we put into the whole concept and have now 16 development centres globally with the main centres being in Europe. We are looking to

expand on this number even though we have quite a good foothold globally.

APMEN: What have been some of the challenges in adopting Industry 4.0 and what have you learnt along the way?

MG: Typical challenges in adopting Industry 4.0 are similar to those associated with other IoT technologies. These challenges are largely related to securit y concerns.

I m p l e m e n t i n g h o l i s t i c I oT s o l u t i o n s of ten requires integration and access to customers’ IT infrastructures and here there are many potential issues, which have to be addressed individually.

Final thoughts about 2016 and beyond for Schaeffler F o r s e r v i c e a n d c o n s u l t a n c y, w e s t i l l feel t hat in t he emer g ing mar ke t s , t he willingness to pay for ser vices like that is limited. It is an impor tant dif ferentiator (to provide consultanc y ser vices) but to actually make money from it – that is ver y difficult. Having said that, we do have some customers in Southeast Asia and the Pacific that are willing to pay for that.

Overall the industry will not grow much and remain extremely competitive. We see that there is a huge grow th potential for us especially with the company’s strategic focus on the concept of “in the region, for the region”. We feel that this would also help us to get closer to our customers, help them better and with greater local value addedness. We are quite optimistic in that sense for us and our prospects in the region.

In future, more things will be assessed with sensors because there is a lot of data floating around. So these must be somehow computed and algorithms need to be developed and made into a value added element.

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IN DESIGN Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

DRIVING FOR A

BETTER TOMORROW

With time at a premium but quality crucial, Aviel First, director sales and marketing, white light and automation at Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence, explains how a global vehicle manufacturing group has used white light scanning to improve productivity.

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S

ince the introduc tion of the progressive assembly line in the early 20 th century, the motor industry has remained at the forefront of industrial development, speeding up processes and increasing output. Now, over a hundred years later, every minute still counts in the highly-competitive automotive world. The difference today is that safety and quality

control are no longer nice to have – they are essential. However, the time invested in the inspection process has cost implications for manufacturers and consumers alike. As a result, the automotive industry is increasingly turning to metrolog y and manufacturing solution suppliers to help them improve productivity.

For one leading automotive OEM, moving to automated white light scanning systems has cut inspection times by 75 percent while also improving the quality of the data gathered.

Implementation of the WLS400A solution from Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence has also brought inspection closer to the production line, enabling quicker reporting of quality issues and shortening the feedback loop. As a result, the impact of inspections on production output is minimised and the effectiveness of control measures maximised to ensure the best possible quality when the vehicles hit the road.

Moving On From Traditional Inspection Methods In the past, the manufacturer used stationary coordinate measuring machines to inspect stamping parts and closures. With each part

IN DESIGN Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

typically taking around two hours to measure, this was a huge burden for a group which produces nearly 10 million vehicles each year.

The point-based data generated could also be difficult to read and analyse, while response times were not always good enough to cope effectively during ramp up.

In effect, the company had three key needs to modernise its quality control departments and achieve the agility required for such a large business to react to customer demand without compromising its output:

Automated inspection reports called the “picture of the day” are generated and sent to different stakeholders within the plant, enabling easy interpretation and fast decisions.

• Improve the level and usability of quality data gathered • Shorten the quality assurance time of the manufacturing process • Reduce the costs of quality control within the line while enabling quicker responses While speed was clearly important there was also no question of reducing accuracy, so the project team was looking for a technology solution which delivered at least comparable measurement quality to the existing CMM setup. In addition, gaining more interpretable and ultimately actionable insights that could be easily shared by production and quality department staff were a priority.

Identifying And Implementing Process Changes The company took these three desired outcomes and identified the process improvements which would be required to achieve them.

To improve the quality levels across the board, it was es tablished that fac tories needed equipment that would enable them to measure more components and package the data meaningfully for users to easily interpret and base decisions on. Fas ter planning, measurement and analysis were the central means of shortening the quality assurance times, while quicker indication and feedback would ultimately bring cost savings.

From the process review, the project team moved on to sourcing equipment capable of facilitating such changes. Their conclusion was to transition from CMM measurement to a s c anning s y s tem to g ain t he da t a advantages required, introduce automation to provide time savings at all levels from planning through to analysis, and to take the equipment closer to the production line to minimise the cost implications of both production errors and the quality control process itself. The result was the installation of a s er ie s of near-t he -line au tomated

All critical features and points in an area are measured and shown on a colour map for quick reference.

inspection cells using the WLS400A white light scanning solution.

The Advantages Of White Light Scanning There are many technologies and methods that can be used to measure and inspect components in an industrial setting, each wit h t heir own adv ant age s . White lig ht systems are among the quickest and most flexible solutions available, making them a compelling option for in-line and near-line inspec tion of objec t s of almost any size and complexity.

The WL S400A solution uses rapidexposure digital stereo vision technolog y t o g a t h er hig hl y -acc ur a t e dim en s io nal data from 2D and 3D images. With three 4.0 megapixel cameras, the white light scanner has a 500 mm x 500 mm field of view, offering area coverage of 250,000 mm2 in a single shot . High-power blue LED illuminat ion minimises the impact of changes in ambient lig ht . For au tomot i ve applic at ions , t he scanner’s ability to measure full surfaces, geometric features and edges is ver y important due to the varied nature of vehicle bodywork, while the typical tolerances of +/- 0.5 mm for panels present no problems for a white light system.

Ho w e ver, on t he a s s embl y l ine , t he scanning technolog y itself is not the only

White light systems are among the quickest and most flexible solutions available, making them a compelling option for in-line and near-line inspection of objects of almost any size and complexity.

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White light scanning technology can also be used to measure directly within the production line.

Body side inner and outer left and right stampings mounted on two adjacent turntables are measured by a robot on a slider rail.

Closure inspection using turntables and a slider rail to access multiple parts.

f ac t or t ha t make s a di f f er en ce . W h er e inspection can be automated, manufacturers can make signif icant time savings. White light scanners lend themselves to robotic use in an industrial environment because of their working distance, and the WLS400A is optimised for integration with common robotic systems to ensure that shop-floor conditions have negligible ef fec t s on the result s . Dat a acquisition t akes jus t 20 milliseconds, signif icantly faster than the seconds required by other white light sensors, giving the WLS400A near immunity to vibrations and line conditions.

Application And Configuration The technology and process solution defined, the automotive manufac turer wanted to install inspection cells at several production

plants around the world. With each location set up dif ferently and the various makes and models all having diverse requirements, Hexagon used the flexibility of the white light technology to recommend a range of cell configurations for the WLS400A system.

For three European plants, there was a def ined set of per formance management targets to meet. The focus was on the quality of closures, ensuring assembly would be smooth, and that gap and flush inspections could be passed successfully. These facilities also needed a high-throughput design that could efficiently measure all the closures produced in ever y shif t. As a result, they deployed cells using two robots. The first holds the white light scanner, while the second has a f ix ture to hold the par t to be measured.

In contras t , a plant in China decided to deploy two automated cells – one for closures and one for body side stamping p ar t s . T h e c lo s ur e s ce l l u s e s a r o b o tm oun t e d s c ann er on a s l ider r ail w i t h four turntables around it to maximise the utilisation of the measuring system. Two turntables are used to inspect doors, one for bonnets and one for boot hatches. While one part is being measured, the other turntables can be loaded, with safety bars ensuring that operators cannot enter the area where the robot is working. The stamping par t s cell uses just two turntables, but each is equipped with a fixture to clamp the body side for inspection.

The cells were designed and simulated in 3D to find the best possible configurations and locations of robotic equipment and supply mechanisms . Af ter cons truc tion, all the layouts successfully passed a CMM correlation test and the plants were ready to measure with white light.

Turning Data Into Useful Information The WL S400A solution runs on CoreView, a kind of dimensional metrology software for white light scanning. Although initial routines have been pre-programmed, the manufac turer ’s own employees are now trained to program new parts by themselves.

The information output potential of CoreView is huge, so the repor ting s truc ture wa s again tailored to meet the manufacturer’s standards and needs.

Once the measurement process i s comp le t e , t h e s y s t em au t oma t ic all y generates visual repor t s such as colour maps , a s well a s the dimensional dat a .

This provides the ease of reference and

IN DESIGN Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

interpretation that operators need to quickly react to issues. Deviations from the model are highlighted by warm colours on the image, so red or orange areas draw attention to potential issues. In the event of a problem, these areas can be analysed using more detailed techniques such as cross-sectioning from the same dimensional data set.

For this customer, Hexagon designed a range of custom reports, including the “picture of the day” over view, which is generated and distributed to production and quality management teams on a daily basis and informs decisions in the closure process.

Once several pieces of the same item have been measured, they are compared to identify process stability and the results output as colour maps to show the standard deviation and average positioning at cer tain points on the object. Statistical information is also available, meeting the company’s demanding performance management requirements.

Productivity Gains All Across For such a l ar ge - s c ale implemen t at ion spanning factories on several continents,

provable results and return on investment were of the highest importance. The WLS400A system showed an immediate impact on the measurement times. For example, a door unit with 42 closed features, 427 surface points and 186 edge points defined (door digitising) can now be measured in less than 20 minutes, compared to two hours using the previous CMM system. A typical door measurement will take 10 minutes.

On average, the time the automotive manufacturer spends on quality inspection has dropped to just a quar ter of what it was using traditional methods. Because measurement is closer to the production line, the feedback loop is shorter and corrections can be made in less time. But perhaps the most startling impact is on the user side, with several plants reporting that the actionable information provided by CoreView makes ident if ying t he root c aus e of problems significantly faster for staf f. The result is an impressively fast return on investment since the implementation of their white light systems, and greater productivity throughout this essential quality control process.

Once the measurement process is complete, the system automatically generates visual reports such as colour maps, as well as the dimensional data.

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IN DESIGN Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

Eddy Lek, product marketing manager, Asia Pacific, Faro Technologies explains to us the importance of measurement accuracy within the metalworking industry.

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RIGHT ON THE MARK T he metalworking industry has always placed great emphasis on having tools that can increase measurement accuracy, help with quality control, support reliability, and that can support the objective of “making it right the first time”.

However, as manufacturers attempt to grow their trade in the global business environment, the need for measurement accurac y has become an even higher priority due to the time- and cost-savings that businesses can potentially achieve.

3 D m e a s ur e m e n t s o l u t i o n s f o r t h e metalworking industry have been available for some time now. Some common applications that make use of these advanced technologies include parts inspection, alignment, reverse engineering, and dimensional measurement.

All four categories are similar in the way that their need for measurement and documentation

accuracy is tightly woven into each of their core activities. To elaborate, measurement accuracy is widely agreed to be a most important aspect in mechanical par ts inspections. Machine misalignment on the other hand can delay an entire manufacturing line. Reverse engineering, essentially a measurement and documentation process, requires a high degree of accuracy, and of course, dimensional measurement goes handin-hand with measurement accuracy.

A s the demand for measurement and documentation accuracy grows, it is likely that traditional tools such as handheld calipers will eventually be phased out and replaced by advanced laser scanning and 3D measurement solutions. Here, we identify four factors driving this need for accuracy.

The Need For Greater Operational Precision Naturally, manufac turers need to ensure

IN DESIGN Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

INSPECTION Inspection is a process of checking the critical dimensions or attributes of the finished part against the specifications ALIGNMENT A process of placing all the needed critical parts or tools to within a specified dimensional tolerance REVERSE ENGINEERING Reverse Engineering is a process of extracting 3D CAD from the existing parts and the data is used to reproduction or as part of the design process MEASUREMENT Measurement is a process of extracting the dimensions of the existing parts or structures to assist in the assembly or installation process

that their measurement and documentation objectives are met. With the right 3D metrology equipment, manufacturers can be one step closer to gaining tighter size tolerances, achieving precisely calculated designs, and securing built-in form deviations to assure maximum measurement accuracy.

Application – Inspection And Reverse Engineering Manufacturers can employ several metrology m e t h o d s t o m e e t t h e s e m e a s ur e m e n t objectives. Faro’s Cobalt Array 3D Imager suppor t s metalworking manufac turers in this aspect. A metrology-grade, non-contact scanner, the device is capable of providing manufacturers with reliable and accurate 3D scan data within an automated or manual workflow. With no restrictions on the number of sensors in an array, the device enables the expansion of field of views to scan wider areas, improves the inspection time, and achieves greater productivity. The device’s high resolution, automatic exposure, and high dynamic range enables consistent and more accurate measurements, even when it comes to complex components with finer details. An ideal device for quality inspection and reverse engineering applications, the device is a unique fusion of technology that emphasizes accurate scanning results.

Separately, the FaroArm is another tried and proven tool by the metalworking industry that promises superior operational precision.

Flow Link Systems (FLS) is a casting and valve component supplier based in Coimbatore, India who places emphasises on quality and ensuring customer needs are met as best as

possible. Both of these attributes were push fac tors that steered FLS to purchase the machine, providing the manufacturer with an immediate increase in measurement accuracy levels. From formerly working with up to 30 microns’ tolerance using handheld tools and templates, the machine improved FLS’s measurement accuracy to a tolerance level of about 24 microns. With the machine, FLS is now able to obtain accurate measurements for concentricity and cylindricity tolerance in half the time that was previously spent.

The Cobalt Array and the FaroArm are just two examples of how advanced 3D metrology measurement and documentation solutions can aid manufacturers in achieving accurate measurements and scanning results. With a reliable yet portable coordinate measuring machine, manufacturers can easily verify product quality through performance assessments including 3D inspections, tool certifications, and computer-aided design (CAD) comparison.

Accurate Reporting The Key Today, it is common for industrial suppliers to require accurate reporting of dimensional information for statistical analysis, and to safeguard quality processes. These reports can present measurement data clearly and unambiguously, allowing manufacturers to add comparison data or reproduce data for possible correction of components and production parameters. With ever-increasing quality demands, companies are under pressure to invest in innovative solutions that can support instantaneous and accurate quality reporting on first-article and production inspection, as well as to ensure supplier quality management.

Common applications of 3D measurement solutions in the metalworking industry.

As the demand for measurement and documentation accuracy grows, it is likely that traditional tools will eventually be phased out and replaced by advanced laser scanning and 3D measurement solutions.

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Application – First-article, Production, A nd Quality Inspection Ya n m a r, i s a J a p a n e s e d i e s e l e n g i n e manufac turer. A s the nature of Yanmar’s research projects required 3D measurement, Yanmar introduced the FaroArm to provide technical support. Even when used by different operators, the machine achieved the same measurement accuracy, allowing Yanmar to secure the same level of quality control across departments.

The machine does not only provide highly precise measurements, but also conducts firstarticle, production, and quality inspections extremely well. The handy metrology device is also widely known for its effortless ability to generate reports. The machine is able to determine and record the location of a probe in An employee performs quality checks on a valve with the FaroArm at FLS.

An example of a scan part before the hot forging process.

3D space before reporting the results through software, allowing manufacturers to compile a database of scanned data measurements.

For hard to reach areas or narrow spaces, the Faro Scanner Freestyle is a handheld scanner that aids in free-form components inspection.

The scanner incorporates state-of-the-art scanning technology with enhanced scanning accuracy of one millimetre at a one-metre range, and features a traceable calibration accessory that can provide manufacturers with verifiable data accuracy. The device can be easily calibrated on-site to generate high quality data in PDF format for easy reporting of measurement information.

Efficiency And Lean Manufacturing Lean thinking or lean manufacturing is an efficient concept, pioneered by Toyota, to shorten the time spent between manufacturing stages. The process is largely centred on manufacturing products on demand through a technique called pull production. Manufacturers then develop products only when required, eliminating unnecessary wastage, ultimately achieving both time- and cost-savings. In order to manage pull production, measurements need to be made dimensionally correct from the start to avoid time delays for rework. Measurement accuracy is therefore of paramount importance in lean manufacturing.

Application – Hot Forging And Mobile Inspection Within the metalworking industry, hot forging processes are popular due to the advantages of increased ductility, strain hardening of metal part elimination, and reduced material strength.

However, retrieving accurate measurements from hot forging operations can be challenging as the high temperatures make it difficult for sensors to label characteristic points.

Manufacturers are therefore beginning to prefer non-contact measurement systems that offer a long range, in order to take measurements of hot work pieces at a distance.

There are several devices now available that can efficiently support manufacturers as they carry out hot forging processes. Faro’s Laser Scanner Focus is one such solution. An ideal instrument for 3D modeling and documentation, t he sc anner ’s non-cont ac t dimensional measurement ability, as well as its large and flexible measuring scope, makes the device particularly suitable for some manufacturers.

Additionally, the point cloud data obtained by the device can be quickly converted to 3D CAD data, enabling the direct creation of 3D design drawings, effectively shortening entire workflows for lean manufacturing.

IN DESIGN Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

When it comes to mobile inspection, analysis has shown that for dedicated inspections of large products or assemblies, a fixed multiple imager array of cobalt sensors will be faster, more easily integrated, more af fordable, more accurate, and easier to maintain when compared to robot-based imagers or laser line systems. In this sense, the Cobalt Array directly supports the concept of lean manufacturing, as more accurate dimensions can make a world of difference in time-pressed manufacturing environments. The FaroArm is yet another advanced metrology device that has won much favour amongst metalworking manufacturers.

User-friendly, accurate, and fast, the FaroArm helps to boost overall productivity, and can be utilised for immediate mobile inspection onsite, facilitating uninterrupted production during inspection.

An operator at Yanmar demonstrates how the FaroArm can accommodate objects of complex shapes.

Work Place Health And Safety Practices Working with machinery can be dangerous as operators are exposed to risks that may lead to bodily injuries. Safety and control measures therefore need to be integrated in order to create and maintain a secure working environment. As government bodies continue to regulate in favour of safe working practices to minimise or eliminate worker injuries, manufac turers are responding by taking greater precaution towards protecting their manpower resources.

Application – In-line Inspection When working with fixed coordinate measuring machines (CMMs), bulky and heavy parts need to be moved from the shop floor to measuring rooms. This is potentially hazardous if not managed properly, as the activity compromises on workers’ safety. The portability feature across the company’s range of 3D measurement and documentation solutions directly addresses this concern, as the devices can be brought to the parts for measurement instead. The ability to perform in-line inspections enables employees to conduct measurement assessments safely, and also provides manufacturers with better accuracy and time-savings.

The Solution That Keeps On Giving Why then should manufacturers consider 3D metrology tools? Comparatively, 2D tools are less capable of providing the type of precision support that is needed by the metalworking industry. Although the latter is able to define measures such as distance, diameter, and area, the results provide only a rough estimation at best. The difference in measurement quality between 3D and 2D tools is also especially

Simple solutions for even the most challenging measurement tasks.

evident when the spotlight is on measuring complex shapes, or for direct comparison to CAD files. Furthermore, when used by different employees, the limitations of 2D tools become more pronounced, as variations in measurement results are often recorded between operators, showing a lack in reliability.

The old adage, “you get what you pay for ”, holds true. Some degree of capital investment needs to be made for greater measurement accuracy. At the end of the day, top manufacturers place great importance on producing quality products in the most efficient manner. 3D measurement and scanning tools are proving to be some of the most optimum solutions for the metalworking industry. They are, therefore, worthwhile investments that pay for themselves when it comes to time- and cost-savings in the long run.

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GETTING THE COSTS DOWN Having an effective CMM machine makes a difference when it comes to large scale machining in order to keep material and production costs down.

Contributed by Renishaw.

T

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he quality of the products a company produces, and their assurance of that quality, can mean all the difference to successfully acquiring contracts.

Maintaining that quality also significantly increases the chances of repeat business.

H i g h -Te c h En g in e e r in g , a p r e c i s i o n engineering company based in Dunstable, Bedfordshire, UK, has always focused on the quality of the par ts it produces. Now with its latest addition, a Renishaw Equator gauging system, it is reaching 100 percent part inspection and zero scrap whilst halving the operator requirements and reducing part production costs by 27 percent.

Star ted in 1985 by managing direc tor, Steve Tickner, High-Tech Engineering built a reputation in the motorspor t indus tr y for delivering high quality machined parts.

The company ha s since moved into the aerospace sec tor and g ained some key indus tr y approval s , including becoming a preferred supplier to Roll s-Royce and BAE Systems.

Recently the company won a contract to produce precision milled titanium parts for a large aerospace customer. Due to the nature of the par ts, High-Tech was instructed to carry out 100 percent part inspection. Steve Tickner explains, “We knew from the start that we would need to find an inspection method which could not only meet the two par t s produced by High-Tech engineering Renishaw Equator gauging system at High-Tech engineering cycle time requirements for the

IN DESIGN Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

The Equator gauging system does this within 10 minutes and well within the production requirements, far less than the machining time.

part, but would be a cost effective solution for us as well. Relying on the CMM we already had wasn’t going to be an option. We couldn’t risk any bottlenecks. We knew that we would either need another CMM or something else which could give us the measuring capacity.

That’s what led us to the Renishaw Equator.”

Acquisition Of The Gauging System It was through a simple internet search that Steve came to learn of the gauging system.

After some research and following meetings with representatives from Renishaw, the company w a s impre s s ed wi t h what t he system could of fer, and was par ticularly pleased with the overall price of the system.

Commenting on why High-Tech bought the system, Steve says: “Space on our factory floor is at a premium. Within the space we set aside for this cell we had to include faster, more efficient technology. This meant that a co-ordinate measuring machine (CMM) with a temperature controlled environment was far too big to be practical. The Equator suited the space perfectly as it’s a compact machine. The added bonus is the fact it is thermally insensitive and doesn’t require any air supply, meaning we didn’t need to spend additional time, money and effort putting in another temperature controlled room or extra piping.”

High-Tech is currently using the Renishaw Equator gauging system to per form 100% inspection of a complex aerospace part. It works by comparing the manufactured parts against a matching master part, gauging all the features in a single operation with an immediate pass/fail decision, along with a report of the component dimensions.

Halving The Time Of The Existing CMM Option The Equator gauging system is used to gauge around 150 features including a number of

bores, thicknesses and form measurements on the part with typical tolerances of ±25 µm.

The Equator gauging system does this within 10 minutes and well within the production requirements, far less than the machining time. This is almost a 50 percent reduction in cycle time compared to running the program on High-Tech’s CMMs. Process Control Run By The Machine Tool Operator Produc t ion at Hig h-Te ch r uns 24 hour s per day, 5 days per week and is split into 2 overlapping shif ts. During this time the machine is used by a number of operators with var ying skill set s. Previously, HighTech Engineering would have relied on its CMMs, housed away from the machine tool in a temperature-controlled quality room.

Using the CMM for the latest job would have involved two separate operators, firstly the operator machining the part and secondly the operator with the specialist skills to operate the CMM. B y u sing an Equa t or in s t e ad , ne w l y trained staf f can use dimensions from a cer tif ied component, approved by the QC operators, to “zero” the Equator gauging system and set its accuracy for subsequent measurements. This has allowed the same operator who machined the part to measure the part, halving the operator time required.

Flexibility & Future Proofing The Equator gauging s ys tem is fully programmable and can be used on multiple p a r t s , m e a n in g Hi g h -Te c h En g in e e r in g can per form highly repeatable and rapid automated routines acros s numerous contracts resulting in significantly reduced labour costs.

Ease Of Use – Push-Button Simplicity Commenting on this, Mr Tickner states, “All

The Equator gauging system is fully programmable and can be used on multiple parts.

The Equator gauging system does this within 10 minutes and well within the production requirements, far less than the machining time.

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The Equator machine is a compact machine that saves a considerable amount of space.

This has had a real impact on the competitiveness of this sort of production, allowing the company to make the same precision quality parts, whilst also reportedly delivering better value to its customers.

of the operators can use Equator. It really is easy; just load the part and push the button.

It completely simplif ies the process and frees up manpower, which in turn helps to deliver ROI very rapidly for the cell.”

High-Tech has managed to reduce the cost of producing the aerospace par t by reportedly 27 percent with the system being a factor in that.

This ha s had a real impac t on the competitiveness of this sort of production, allowing the company to make the same precision qualit y par t s, whilst also repor tedly delivering bet ter value to it s customers. It is through implementing these types of solutions and continually striving to improve their processes that High-Tech h a s b e e n a w ar d e d 6 co n s e c u t i v e S C 2 1 silver awards.

Mr Tickner explains “Since we star ted using Equator we have not made a single bad part. The Equator is allowing the operators to operate complete process control. They all look at the Process Monitor screen, part of the Equator software, which lists all of the features being gauged. Next to the feature name there is a little bar which turns from

green to amber to red as the size or location for each feature begins to drift. The operators know which tool on the machine is responsible for each feature and so can take corrective measures to occasionally tweak the process, to come back well within tolerance. As we carry out 100 percent inspection, it would be very hard to make a part wrong.”

He continues, “We are also using the gauge data to trial different types of tool, to see which gives us the bes t level of efficiency – something which might save us more money in the future.”

The Outlook Following the success of this manufacturing cell, Mr Tickner plans to use the Equator gauging system as part of future cells he will be commissioning for jobs in the pipeline.

He concludes: “When you f ind something which helps you make a perfect part every time, reduces manpower commitment s, reduces overall costs and doesn’t cost a fortune itself, it’s a winning solution. All of the benefits are passed on to our customers who know they are getting the best quality at the best price”.

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The current state of technology adoption in regards to additive manufacturing will be presented, as well as the business value created, and challenges encountered as experienced by and discussed with a group of forty business and technology leaders during a Think Tank session held at the High Tech Campus in Eindhoven, The Netherlands in October 2015. By Saswitha de Kok, senior consultant, and Corwin van Heteren, senior manager, PricewaterhouseCoopers.

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dditive manufac turing , which is al so referred to a s 3D printing , is a collec tive name for several technologies through which an object is constructed layer by layer. The industrial materials that are currently printable range from polymers to metals, including for example ceramics. The range of available materials is

constantly and rapidly expanding. Whereas additive manufacturing was originally mostly used for prototyping, it is now more and more applied to end-products.

In some cases, additive manufacturing can be considered as a supplement to conventional production technologies. In other cases it is the only means through which complex products can be fabricated or a solution to cost-effective upscaling of production capacity at low risk in order to serve new verticals, new geographies, and offer new products that need testing.

The technique offers several advantages that optimise and transform both products and processes, and may result in unpreceded and significant business value.

T he gener ic ad v an t age s of addi t i ve manufacturing are: • Complexity is free; additive manufacturing offers complete design freedom which allows to design for the exact function of a product without constraints associated with conventional manufacturing.

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Minimum batch size is one; the cost per part produced is equal and significantly less dependent on batch size.

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Manufacturing when and wherever needed; production at or near point of use is possible.

• Minimum material waste; as material is added, not subtracted, material is saved in production which allows for cost savings, especially in cases where material is a significant driver of component cost.

Although the general consensus is that these advantages of fer great (potential) b u s in e s s v alu e f o r b o t h p r o du c t s an d processes, there is a much divergence in visions of the type and depth of value that

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can be achieved. Therefore, we focussed on assessing how much of this value is currently being unlocked by our discussion group. And how much potential do they see in the near future when the technology matures (becomes faster, more reliable and cheaper) and additive manufacturing systems and services improve?

Creating Business Value Through Additive Manufacturing Assessing Business Value Potential Of Additive Manufacturing In order to determine possibilities to add business value through additive manufacturing, it is essential to be aware of three basic underlying principles. These relate to the complexity of the product, advantages of scale when it comes to manufacturing, and the size of the object.

T he te chnolo g y of fered by addi t i ve manufacturing makes it both possible and cost effective to produce complex shapes. This means the more complex the product or component, the more suitable additive manufacturing is, as opposed to conventional techniques.

The next underlying principle has to do with batch size. In general, the larger the series to be produced, the less suitable additive manufacturing is. Conventional manufacturing economics dictates that the larger the series, the lower the cost per unit. For additive manufacturing, each unit has the same cost.

Finally, additive manufac turing is in the current situation particularly suitable for producing smaller par t s or produc t s, which means businesses still have to turn to conventional technologies for larger parts.

Business Value Currently Achieved By Think Tank Participants The specific business values that are currently being achieved based on the principles mentioned above, are best categorised with respect to added value for processes as well as products. The more this added value applies to customer-end applications, the more we see the occurrence of competitive advantage, new business models and propositions.

Our consultation partners currently see the following pockets of value being created: Business value for processes: • The time-to-market for new par ts and products is reduced signif icantly. This boosts the speed of product innovation spectacularly.

• Asset maintenance or maintenance of machines in the field becomes easier: spare

parts and specialised tooling are always available on demand.

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Assembly time and tooling costs are reduced if a product or part can be printed in one go, without requiring sub-assembly.

The growth in the adoption of additive manufacturing has resulted in the emergence of many new service propositions related to the supply of the technology as well as solutions within the entire associated process.

Business value for products: • Rel a t e d t o t he l a s t p oin t , addi t i v e manufacturing makes it also possible to optimise the design by printing a product that previously consisted of sub-assemblies in one go. This significantly decreases error rates during the lifetime of a product, and increases the product lifecycle.

• As the minimum production quantity is one unit, it is possible to offer (mass)customisation. As a result, new verticals and geographical markets with specific needs can be opened up at low risk and low cost.

• By means of rapid prototyping and rapid testing, design can efficiently be optimised and the ‘voice of the customer’ can be included in new product development.

Current Business Models Additive manufacturing opens up new business models and propositions. Our discussion partners indicated that they currently see the following business models emerging: 1. Co-Creation Platforms Enabled By Additive Manufacturing Additive manufac turing opens up the possibility to co-create with customers.

In the industry, lifecycle management is one of the most prominent current applications of additive manufacturing.

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Additive manufacturing has gained a significant following in the maker community.

Co-creation can be introduced in virtually all stages of the lifecycle of a product.

During the concept phase of a new product, the voice of the customer can easily be incorporated by testing small batches. It can also be applied to offer customisation of an existing design, or to prolong the lifetime value of a product by offering customised add-ons to the product. In situations where customisation is of value to customers, premium pricing is justified.

Additive manufacturing — like other new ‘greenfield’ business models and processes — calls for new or modernised legislative frameworks and a redesign of IP laws to provide legal certainty to businesses.

2. Extreme Customisation Combined with tools like measuring guides and scanning tools, companies are now able to mass produce custom-fit items in a cost-effective manner. As the performance of fitted products is generally much higher, customer value will greatly increase as well. From prostheses to glasses to in-ear headphones, there is a surge of business models created around this ultimate form of customisation.

Although more and more home scanning tools are becoming available, it is important to note that for medical applications, such as prostheses and hearing aids, sophisticated professional devices are needed to achieve the high level of accuracy needed.

3. Lifecycle Management In the industr y, lifecycle management is one of the most prominent current applications of additive manufacturing.

Prolonging the lifecycle starts with the design phase of the product or part. Using the design possibilities offered by additive manufacturing, assembly might not be needed, which prolongs the lifecycle of a product and reduces errors. On the aftersales side, the life of machines in the field or the assets employed can be prolonged by using custom-made tooling and difficult to source, expensive to stock, customised spare parts.

4. Additive Manufacturing Service Propositions The growth in the adoption of additive manufacturing has resulted in the emergence of many new service propositions related to the supply of the technology as well as solutions within the entire associated process. Additive manufacturing requires many new capabilities that businesses have just started to build up, so there is a lot of space for service providers in this area.

Understanding the design possibilities and possible product benefits, the specifications of designing for additive manufacturing, material and printing techniques, printer operations and post-processing, as well as the ability to adopt quality measures all require skilled and experienced employees.

Businesses of all sorts are increasingly assessing the role they can play in supplying these additive manufacturing services.

Future Business Models A s the general maturit y of additive manufacturing increases, the applicability of both a technological as an economical perspective increases as well. Our consultation partners indicated that they see potential; particularly as a result of the repeatability and accuracy of the technology, its increasing speed, the number of materials that can be used, multi-material print capabilities and the size of the printable surface. As soon as the speed of the hardware increases, the depreciation of the machine per printed part will be reduced and costs per product are lowered. This means that a larger portion of the product or part portfolio will be printable from an economic perspective.

In addition, the size of the printable surface has a positive influence on the business case.

When you can print larger parts, you can also produce larger series in a single print job Challenges Encountered In the current phase of adoption, during which most companies are searching for applications,

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are experimenting and implementing on a small scale, our consultation partners have indicated that their main challenges are in the following areas: 1. How To Develop The Business Case?

When it comes to introducing this technology, developing a proper business case and correctly estimating the return on investment is a big challenge to decision-makers.

Business case exercises will mostly fail if the scope is too narrow: successful business cases include the lifetime of a product as well as the value chain that supplies it. This, as opposed to just considering the direct production costs which in most cases will be lower through conventional manufacturing.

In other cases, it is more difficult to make the case. This is especially challenging for applications on the customer side. Masscustomisation is an example of this: are customers willing to pay a premium? Another example is innovation: how do you quantify the added value of rapid prototyping in product innovation or the reduction in the time-to-market?

2. How To Start: Isolation Or Collaboration?

Due to the lack of both a widespread understanding of the possibilities as well as necessary skills and high investments associated with additive manufacturing, many of the businesses we spoke to start their additive manufacturing operations in collaboration or in partnership with other parties. Some businesses elect to set up manufacturing facilities or experimental pilots with competitors, which demands an approach to facilitate joint learning and eliminate competitive risk. Other companies teamed up with universities, technology experts and service providers to get on the learning curve as soon as possible.

3. Intellectual Property (IP) Considerations Additive manufac turing trig ger s new challenges from a legal perspective. First of all, companies working with additive manufacturing technology, or companies calling upon the ser vices of additive manufacturing service providers, are facing new IP questions. When existing objects or designs are redesigned for manufacturing through additive manufacturing, this may constitute a breach of third party IP rights on the original objects or designs. This is the case for example in a scenario in which a company maintains its existing assets by means of 3D printed tooling and spare

parts. Here, the issue arises of whether this violates the IP of the original manufacturer.

Some of our discussion partners indicate that they respond to this issue by avoiding it through strictly working with objects which are self-designed or free from third party IP rights. However, this approach forces these companies to manoeuvre their way around innovation, and will thus not support a sustainable long-term innovation strategy.

Additive manufacturing — like other new ‘greenfield’ business models and processes — calls for new or modernised legislative frameworks and a redesign of IP laws to provide legal certainty to businesses.

4. What Are The Risks?

We see a similar line of thought in terms of product liability. When manufacturing a previously existing part through additive manufacturing, specif ic processes and controls need to be put in place to ensure the quality and integrity of parts. In addition, controls need to be in place throughout the entire digital processes through which the file is shared and used.

Meanwhile, service providers and their customers are currently tr ying to f ind solutions for these matters. One possibility is to give purchasers the oppor tunity to inspect and qualify specific additive manufacturing systems at service providers.

Following certification by the customer, the supplier simply prints out the part requested on the approved 3D printer. An additional service could involve making the entire production process traceable and digitally secure. This means it is always possible to determine when a certain 3D element has been made and how the production process was carried out.

5. How To Make The Internal Organisation Aware Of The Opportunities?

The oppor tunities of fered by additive manufac turing require changes to the composition and culture of the organisation.

In addition to acquiring and accumulating the right skills, employees have to be made aware of the possibilities offered by additive manufacturing and encouraged to look beyond current applications. Applications such as customisation and co-creation with customers offer unprecedented possibilities, providing that traditional ideas about design, business models and proposition are abandoned. Innovative ideas are required to get ahead in the new world resulting from the fourth industrial revolution.

The technology of fered by additive manufacturing makes it both possible and cost effective to produce complex shapes.

This means the more complex the product or component, the more suitable additive manufacturing is, as opposed to conventional techniques.

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SMART MACHINES NEED

SMART ENGINEERING It’s clear that we’re entering a new industrial revolution. In the industrial machinery market, the impact of new technology will see manufacturing computerised – with production lines featuring smarter, more connected and more complex machines. Mirko Bäcker, marketing director EMEA, manufacturing engineering, Siemens PLM Software, explains how this, and other trends, means that the industry needs new ways to work that are more collaborative, versatile and flexible.

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Customers Demand More T h o s e o f u s w h o f ondl y r em emb er t he Terminator movie franchise will recall the scene from Terminator 2 when a designer f r o m Cy b e r d y n e Sy s t e m s r e al i s e s t h a t machines have become self-aware.

W hile w e ’r e no t a t t he p oin t o f “singularity” yet, machines are becoming more in telligen t w i t h t he abili t y to do

more things automatically. Take a perfume produc tion line. Machines are available now that can work autonomously and cont inuously, chang ing t he content s of bottles, and their labels, based on digital work instructions.

In the future, machines will also become par t of an integrated produc tion line – using sensors, connected over the internet

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– to provide real-time data on production progress and the status of the machines themselves . For example, machines will be able to monitor their status, including variables such as temperature, hydraulic performance and pressure levels.

They will auto-f lag anomalies to engineers who can remedy the problem before it becomes a major, and expensive, malfunction. Data collected from machines will be part of a wider data ecosystem with technolog y such a s ac tuator s , sensor s , wireless video cameras and RFID readers in plants providing continuous information from the production line.

This data, analysed and processed in t he cloud , w ill g i ve b e t ter op er at ional intelligence on which people – and machines – can take better decisions. While these developments are to be welcomed, f o r m a c h in e - b u i l d in g c o m p a n i e s , t h e y massively increase complexity. In particular, advanced sof tware – with millions of lines of code – is required to control machines, with the amount of sof t ware content in machine s hav ing g row n “by 45 p ercen t between 1970 and 2010”.

Complexity is increased, too, by demands from manufacturers. In key markets – from cars to consumer goods – people want ever more customised products. And customised products require customised machines to make them, with cus tomers increasingly specifying machines that demand bespoke de sig n . Inde e d , t he day s o f de sig ning , building and supplying a standard model of machine, with a long life cycle, are dwindling.

On top of these issues, the environmental a g e n d a , co up le d w i t h c h a n g in g s a f e t y s t andar d s , me an s t ha t le g i s l a t ion i s a moving target . To comply with demands, machine configurations need to be changed more often. In addition, the rise of machine makers in lower-cost economies means that globalisation is increasing margin pressure.

With these issues in mind, as an industry, we need to find ways to do things differently.

We need to cope with the ever growing rise in machine complexity, find efficiencies to cut costs, and be more flexible – designing, developing and engineering machines in more agile and accelerated ways. In short, we need to move to more advanced machine engineering.

Machine-Making The Smarter Way The cornerstone of advanced engineering is a digital platform that hosts all project work, enables collaboration between teams,

Virtual models are now capable of commissioning mechatronics so physical testing of the machines can be minimised.

and stores and catalogues all work, ensuring that IP can be easily reused. Moving to a unif ied system, designed for the projec t lifecycle of machine design, enables machine builders to take three key steps that enhance production processes: 1. Adopt mechatronic design: Using systems engineering principles , a cus tomer ’s r e quir emen t s c an b e t r ace d all t he way through from initial discussions to finished design. Importantly, software is enabling the creation of more advanced functional models. The model provides a common framework for mechanical, electrical and automation disciplines to work together in parallel. For example, mechanical designers can use concept models for detailed design; elec trical designers can use model data to select the best sensors and actuators for each machine; and automation designers can apply cams and operational sequence data from the models to develop software.

Touching machines To date, machine controls and interfaces have been somewhat “clunky”. But as technology advances, customers are interested in interfaces that are much more intuitive, such as touchscreen systems that require minimal

2. Engineering to order: Digitising project management also suppor t s a move to modular design – using software to break customer specif ications into discrete parts that can be worked on separately.

These modules are likely to be reusable and therefore reduce the number of design cycles required to build a new machine. This approach also mitigates the cost and time issues that arise when customers specify a bespoke machine.

training and allow greater control over the machine.

This requires the development of more advanced software – another factor that’s adding to the complexity of machine design.

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Operator running a CNC program on Siemens controller.

3. V ir tual commis sioning: P er hap s t h e most interesting area in the evolution of machine design is the creation of “virtual machines”. Complete, and detailed, 3D digital virtual clones of machines can now be built to design, test and commission ne w pro duc t s . D e sig n concep t s c an be built quickly and the sof tware has the capability to simulate the effect of variables such as gravity, friction and the performance of electrical systems, fluids and pneumatics.

As machines become more connected and autonomous, the designing and building of them will only increase in complexity.

The model can al so be connec ted to controllers in the physical world to bring hardware into the loop of the design process.

Our sof tware connects with a wide range of controllers from different vendors and suppor t s the simulation of a shop f loor Programmable Logic Controller (PLC). The use of virtual commissioning helps to make the development cycle more ef f icient by allowing testing to start before a machine has been built. It helps identify issues earlier in the process, so preventing unidentified problems causing expensive delays further down the line.

Engineering Time Savings Customers we speak to that are using Project Lifecycle Management (PLM) tools with the

capabilities described above estimate that development time is cut by between 20 and 30 percent . The savings especially come from the reuse of IP and the use of virtual models that make it easier to design, test and commission machines. For ins tance, the team designing the PLC software can be given a conceptual design to kick-start their programming and they can start to simulate their software’s performance much earlier (in the conceptual phase) to avoid errors and greatly ease the software design process.

PLM tool s al so provide the real-time dig i t al co l l ab o r a t io n f r am e w o r k t ha t ’s needed to coordinate global teams across different disciplines. It seamlessly integrates the work of dif ferent groups and creates aler t s when a change to a design in one area may have implic at ions el s ewhere.

This improved integration can al so save considerable time.

A s machines become more connec ted and autonomous, the designing and building of them will only increase in complexity.

To c r e a t e t h e s e a d v a n c e d m a c h i n e s , advanced sof t ware is needed: sof t ware that’s dedicated to the task in the hand and which, through intuitive collaboration tools and interfaces, makes it easier, more costefficient and faster to build the customised machines of today and tomorrow.

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SMART SENSORS

Are Bringing About A Paradigm Shift In Production The smart factory employs smart sensors to intelligently detect and process data to improve productivity. By Michael Kaspar, product manager for photoelectric sensors & fibres, Sick

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ensors that monitor themselves; workstations in which sensors and ac t ua tor s co ordina te t heir ow n sequences and functions; production structures with autonomous units that manage and optimise themselves – the emergence of the smart factory means a paradigm shift in the implementation of production and intralogistics processes.

The Hanover Fair 2016 made it clear: Industry 4.0 and the smart factory of the future are already with us. The development is being driven by the best possible flexibility, transparency, and availability in production and logistics, with human-machine collaboration and the optimisation of the deployment of resources also playing a part. With Smart Sensor Solutions, we are offering a network-enabled portfolio of sensors that is future-ready and supports both these requirements and the remote execution of automation functions (Smart Tasks).

Whether Initial Commissioning Or Replacement: It Is All Systems Go The intelligence and communication capabilities offered by Smart Sensor Solutions mine rich seams of potential for enhancing machine productivity. A variety of parameter settings can be visualised, tested, and optimised even as early as the integration and initial commis sioning pha s e s . Var ious s en s or parameter sets (“configurations”) can also be stored in the automation system for specific jobs, formats, or configurations, ready to be loaded to the sensor during live operation without any loss of time.

Machines and systems that are affected by frequent changes in products (e.g. different package sizes or batches) in particular benefit from this function, which facilitates rapid and reliable conversion. The f lexible and simultaneous use of any number of sensors directly from the control system thanks to

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In this way, the condition monitoring of the sensor has a direct effect on overall machine availability. In addition, our Smart Sensors support the option of visualising operating data and settings for machine operators. With just one look at the HMI terminal, an operator is able to see how the sensor is working currently, which switching thresholds have been configured, and how close the sensor may be to critical tolerance values.

When a Smart Sensor indicates the presence or imminent threat of a malfunction to the automation system, a replacement can be made quickly.

the ability to download parameters such as sensing distance, hysteresis, or switching threshold saves time, prevents errors, and can be documented at any point.

When a Smart Sensor indicates the presence or imminent threat of a malfunction to the automation system, a replacement can be made quickly. Once the replacement sensor has been connected, it is tested and confirmed by the automation system. After this, the last valid application-specific data from the predecessor sensor is automatically transmitted directly to the new sensor. As no other manual settings are necessary, the machine can be restarted after only minimum downtime.

Smart tasks benefit from the option of direct communication between sensors and actuator engineering – without the need to make a detour via an automation system.

Optimising Availability: Self-diagnostics For Predictive Maintenance Automation engineering component s in a production setting or in intralogistics systems are permanently exposed to environmental inf luences such as dust, cardboard dust, moisture, or vibrations. A s well as being specif ied for the harshest of application conditions in terms of their mechanical, electrical, and optical components, with their self-monitoring functions, our sensors improve the performance and availability of machines even when operating at high capacity and throughput. To detect faults in good time, the diagnostics data can be used in analysis tools either close to the machine or based on the Cloud, and faults can also be avoided altogether with predictive maintenance. Service intervals can be optimised pro-cyclically; a scheduled machine standstill can be used to clean or maintain a sensor, for example.

Autonomous Working (Almost) Without An Automation System In the implementation of Industry 4.0, CyberPhysical Produc tion Systems (CPPS), e.g. as intelligent equipment, support remote, responsive, and adaptable production and logistics control. This requires the increased use of sensor information that is available remotely, in order to set up local control circuits for specific situations, for example.

The Smart Sensor Solutions concept is thus an enabling technology for the self-organising factory. Functions can be executed autonomously in interplay with other communication-enabled and intelligent sensors or actuators. When a smart photoelectric proximity sensor detects the presence, direction of movement, and speed of a device, for example, it can send this information directly to an intelligent gripper, which will pick up the part dynamically and reposition it for the next stage of the process.

Once this is complete, the automation system simply receives an I/O signal so that the next process step can be started.

However, the automation system is no longer charged with being in direct control of the autonomous detection/gripper function. The example shows how intelligent sensors can work together in an automation network to relieve the load at control level by taking over specific tasks.

Smart Tasks – The Specific Added Value Of Intelligent Sensors The distribution of intelligent functions – in other words, the shifting of them from automation system to field devices – is a futureready approach to improve the efficiency and performance of automation networks. Our Smart Sensors offer specific added value that sets them apart from other technologies on the market. Smart Tasks benefit from the option of direct communication between sensors and actuator engineering – without the need to make a detour via an automation system, something that has a significant impact on time in many cases. High-speed counting is a typical function.

Inductive and opto-electronic sensors can be used to detect and check speeds, to

FEATURES Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

The intelligence and communication capabilities offered by Smart Sensor Solutions mine rich streams of data for enhancing machine productivity.

detect directions of rotation, or to detect and count objects. Signal evaluation takes place in the sensors; central counter modules are not required. Rather than pulses, speed, velocity, or counter values that can undergo further processing directly are output to the controller.

The measurement of time and length is another example of a function that can be executed remotely. Smart Sensors detect and directly report the dimensions of a product, e.g. the length, the size of the gaps between single objects, or the speed of a conveyor. All of this happens without any intervention from the central automation system and relieves the load on that central automation system accordingly; in some cases, Smart Sensors can even replace complex automation components. Hardware and programming costs are cut as a result.

The remote debouncing function supported

by Smart Sensors proves useful in applications for the detection and counting of objects that involve large numbers of interference signals for reasons related to processes or the environment. They allow signals to be analysed with a configurable time delay and signals that are pending for just a few milliseconds to be identified as interference and suppressed. This analysis is carried out locally in the sensor – neither the control nor the network is loaded with a large number of time-critical signals whose analysis could be critical to the process.

Traceability through a time-stamp function implemented in the sensor enables the functions of sensor/actuator units to be synchronised without being subject to a delay time. Jitter effects can occur during signal transmission to

the PLC and in the context of program execution on the PLC are avoided through real-time synchronisation based on the time stamp. This enables machine speeds to be increased as well as facilitating the high-precision control of actuators.

Smart Sensors Are Opening Up Disruptive Perspectives On the one hand, the potential benefits of Smart Sensors are of an incremental nature – based on a gradual increase in the efficiency of existing tasks, e.g. parameter download for rapid retooling and easy device replacement, recipe management, and condition monitoring.

On the other hand, the degree of innovation that is inherent in Smart Sensor Solutions is of a more radical nature. Their remote intelligence enables them to complete Smart Tasks and in so doing to generate new, better quality detection information.

In conjunction with another sensor, this information can perhaps be made available to superordinate systems (PLC, ERP, Cloud). This incremental and radical potential for innovation is opening up disruptive perspectives in parallel with Industry 4.0. Smart Sensors combine a large number of integration and autonomy functions along with options for both the Internet of Things and the Internet of Services. Machines, systems, and factories are being networked intelligently, work autonomously to a large extent, and in so doing achieve maximum flexibility at every level.

The paradigm shift in production, triggered by intelligent and communication-ready sensors, is in full swing.

Inductive and optoelectronic sensors can be used to detect directions of rotation, or to detect and count objects.

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Many advances have been made with regards to machining titanium but has the full potential of the material been really exploited? By Syed Shah.

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OVERCOMING DIFFICULTIES WITH A REWARDING MATERIAL M any are prepared to bite the bullet and machine titanium the best way they know how with the attractive strength to weight ratio ever so enticing to engineers and designers alike.

However, it is by no means an easy process.

It doesn’t have to be a difficult process.

Many machine shops try to avoid the material altogether but because the use of the material in the aerospace and medical industries is pretty rampant by now, not many shops have the financial clout to turn away from titanium.

With some alteration to existing machines, tools and mindset, machining titanium need not be fronted with difficulties.

Many factors are important in determining the manufacturing of titanium and what metal removal rates can be achieved. These include the tooling, spindle speed, depth of cut, feed rate, total cut time, the investment in the machine itself, and tool life. All of these factors contribute

to cost of manufacturing and, in turn, the ability to profitably and efficiently machine titanium.

Machining techniques need to be ascertained and considered before embarking on machining titanium. For a long time, two types of cutting methods for titanium were employed - heavy and high-speed cutting.

Heavy cutting means that large volumes of metal will be removed at a time and this usually requires very high horsepower and torque which results in high metal removal rates . This method is of ten applied for roughing operations. While the metal removal rate is high, heavy cutting sacrifices speed in finishing operations and tool life when using a high horsepower geared spindle.

Another approach would be high speed machining. This is generally used in moderate roughing conditions and finishing, particularly to achieve final part accuracy and a good surface finish. Typically, the goal in high-speed

FEATURES Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

machining is not achieving a high metal removal rate; it is achieving an acceptable accuracy and a fast finishing speed. The most influential component to determine the metal removal rate in high-speed machining is the geometry and configuration of the part being machined.

The Trials & Tribulations Of Machining Pure titanium has tensile strength of about 63,000 psi and certain titanium alloys achieve tensile strengths of over 200,000 psi and this is dubbed the ‘miracle metal’ or ‘space-age metal’. These numbers make it roughly as strong as steel but weighing about half of steel but twice as strong as the light-weight aluminium, titanium certainly live up to the billing of ‘miracle metal’.

Of course, there is no such thing as a perfect material, the down side of titanium is the difficulties in machining. Supra Alloys, a titanium supplier to the aerospace and medical industries headquartered in Camarillo, USA, documents the difficulties from the physical, chemical and mechanical point of view.

According to the supplier, cutting occurs in high temperature where chemical reactivity is arguably at its peak. Coupling that with the strong alloying tendency of titanium, problems like galling, welding and smearing present machinist a real challenge.

The Issues With Mechanical Properties Though a serious concern, the main challenges in machining are posed by the mechanical and material properties of the metal. They are classified under heat conductivity, modulus of elasticity, fatigue and work hardening characteristics.

As a metal of poor heat conductivity, heat generated by the cutting action, does not dissipate quickly. Therefore, most of the heat is concentrated on the cutting edge and the tool face. In addition to the problems posed by heat, the relatively low modulus of elasticity the material possesses, gives it more ‘springiness’ than steel. Holding workpiece becomes a problem. In addition, slender parts tend to be damaged under pressure. Other problems include loss of accuracy and tool rubbing.

Another notewor thy point to consider in the machining of titanium is it s workhardening characteristics. They are as such that the met al demons trate a complete absence of ‘built-up edge’ during machining.

The impressive strength to weight ratio of titanium has made it an interesting prospect in the aviation industry.

Some “Hard” Facts Medical devices such as hip joints, bone screws, knee joints, bone plates, dental implants, surgical devices, pacemaker cases and centrifuges are constructed using titanium as a standard material due to its total resistance to attack by body fluids, high strength and low modulus.

The body readily accepts titanium since it is more biocompatible than stainless steel or cobalt chrome. It also has a higher fatigue strength than many other metals. The unique qualities of titanium makes it MRI (Magnetic Re s onance Imag ing ) and C T (Compu ted Tomography ) compatible.

Titanium has found applications in the medical field thanks to its compatibility with the human body.

The goal in high-speed machining is not achieving a high metal removal rate; it is achieving an acceptable accuracy and a fast finishing speed.

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Many machine shops try to avoid the material altogether but because the use of the material in the aerospace and medical industries is pretty rampant by now, not many shops have the financial clout to turn away from titanium.

Other tips to achieve good machining per formance are the utilisation of lower cutting speed, maintaining high feed rates and regularly removing turning form machines.

Though a serious concern, the main challenges in machining are posed by the mechanical and material properties of the metal.

The lack of material ahead of the cutting tool causes a high shearing angle to form. This causes a thin chip to contact a relatively small area on the cutting tool face and results in high bearing loads per unit area.

The high bearing force, in addition to the friction developed by the chip as it rushes over the bearing area, results in localised heating of the cutting tool. Coupling that with cratering ac tion near to the cutting edge, results in rapid tool breakdown.

Good Machining Means Observing Guidelines A cco r din g t o R T I In t er na t io nal M e t al s , producers of titanium, good tool life and succes s ful machining of tit anium alloys can be assured if the some guidelines are obser ved. The poor heat conduc tivit y of titanium can be countered on two fronts.

One way is to reduce heat buildup and the other is to remove heat. Heat can be removed by introducing high quantity of cutting fluids. Sharp tools should be used to reduce heat buildup and galling.

Milling & Grinding In milling of titanium, the cutter mills only part of each revolution, there is a chance that the chips will adhere to the teeth during that portion of the revolution that each tooth does not cut. Subsequently, the tooth may be damaged when the chip is removed on the next contact.

Chipping is usually the chief cause when the cutting edge fails. As a result, though with the increased cutting speed of 20 to 30 percent, it is not enough to compensate for the additional tool grinding costs making carbide tools less satisfactory compared to high speed steel.

Con s e quen t ly, i t is ad v is able to t r y both high speed steel and carbide tools to determine the better of the two for each milling job. The use of a water-base coolant is recommended.

When it comes to grinding, three factors determine the succes s or failure of the process. A combination of abrasive wheel, wheel speed and grinding f luid of ten set machinist on the right track.

In terms of speed, it should be in the lower range compared to the speed used in the conventional grinding of steels. With the grinding f luids, water-sodium nitrite cool an t mi x ture should be paired wi t h aluminium oxide wheels. A silicon carbide wheel operate best with sulfo-chlorinated oils but is important to flood the work when using these oil-base coolants as they can present a fire hazard.

EVENTS & EXHIBITIONS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

SOLIDWORKS WORLD 2016 T he Internet of Things (IoT) is gaining momentum today. Gartner finds that IoT adoption will reach 43 percent by the end of this year, with users concentrating mainly in the heavy industries.

Cisco’s Trend Report estimates there will be 50 billion devices connected to the Internet by 2020, while consulting company McKinsey Global suggests the market for IoT components could exceed 30 percent a year through 2025.

These sorts of figures are encouraging to a company like Dassault Systemes, who invest heavily in 3D design, 3D digital mockup, and Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) solutions.

The 2016 edition of Solidworks World revolved around major t rends , such a s IoT and t he C loud . One o f t he produc t ann o un ce m e n t s mad e s ur r o un d e d P C B design. Solidworks is no longer focusing on mechanical design; rather, it is looking at PCB design, which aims to streamline the whole design process. This is a much more holistic approach, which is now becoming

more common in the design and engineering community. Solidworks PCB Design is the product of a partnership between Solidworks and Electronic CAD (ECAD) developer Altium.

The product comes as a standalone package, but with an interface that is familiar to all Solidwork s user s . The rationale here is to make Solidwork s a one-stop shop for your entire design needs, whether it be for mechanical or PCB design.

In keeping with the aims of Solidworks’ p a r e n t co m p a n y D a s s au l t Sy s t è m e s , a co mm o n t hr e ad r an t hr o u g h m an y t h e keynotes: experience. It is not so much about individual design, but about building experiences. As Monica Menghini, executive VP and chie f s t r ateg y of f icer, Da s s ault Systèmes, emphasised, perfect products are no longer enough. Consumers want products that create lasting experiences they want to have over and over. Designers should shift their approach from product design to customer journey design, she stressed.

G i a n P a o l o B a s s i , C EO, S o l i d w o r k s ,

SolidWorks World 2016 took place from January 31 to February 3, 2016, at the Kay Baily Hutchinson Convention Center in Dallas, Texas.

Mark Johnston reports on some of the announcements made during the event.

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EVENTS & EXHIBITIONS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

3D printing integration with Sindoh was also announced, enabling one-click printing directly from Solidworks with the capability to check progress from a desk top or mobile device.

3D printing was a popular talking point at this year’s Solidworks World, with many exhibitors showing off their inventions.

Gian Paolo Bassi delving into the benefits of Solidworks 2016.

Dassault Systèmes, emphasised three pillars for the Solidwork s innovation plat form: people, applications, and infrastruc ture.

He observed that people are central to the direction of the Solidworks platform with a community of f ive million users strong, who are taught in nearly 30,000 schools and included 175,000 certified users.

Applications Some of the new applications announced at the event included Solidworks Visualise, which is a suite of rendering tools, designed to help organisations, including nontechnical u s er s , le v er ag e 3D C A D da t a t o c r e a t e photorealistic marketing content for either pr in t or online us age . S olid wor k s P CB , which is a partnership between Solidworks and Altium, aims to allow users to design produc t s in t he IoT er a , in w hich bo t h mechanical design and electrical design are merged, resulting in a more holistic design approach.

Keeping With The Times In line with indus tr y trends, Solidwork s announced several new products it is developing, such as X Drive and X Design. Cloud is an increasingly important component in the life of a customer. The convenience of backing data up in the cloud or the ability to work across platforms is something that is hard to go without. Many companies know this, and so they have begun to integrate cloud into their products. Solidworks is no different in this regard, and so features in the X Drive will be most welcome. The X Drive is basically a cloud-hosted system with a social collaboration component.

The other X-branded service, X Design, is intended primarily as a cloud based design package. This type of product is most suitable for students or entrepreneurs. Although not the complete package, it does offer useful features in regards to topology optimisation.

The implication here is that not everyone that requires a CAD based product should be an expert. This opens up a new market for Solidworks, as historically it is a package of products that have been used by engineers with knowledge of CAD based design. X Design will allow those that perhaps are not experts in CAD show off their design and ideas to others, perhaps investors, who have an interest in that type of solution.

The Cloud has become a major component in the industry, with many companies now making use of its inherent benefits and to pass those benef its on to the customers.

Whilst security was initially a concern, many organisations and individuals are warming to the concept of the Cloud as a product, and are increasingly reassured that whilst no system is totally secure, the security measures being adopted are adequate and robust enough to reassure them. As the industry matures, this trend is only likely to continue.

Solidworks is planning to make more use of the Cloud going forward, with ongoing trials and possible uses being explored.

T he even t al s o s aw t he l aunch of a “Manufac turing Ser vices” concept, where designers would be connected with local manufacturing shops. This is also par t of a trend that we are seeing, and is aimed at solving the problem of supply and demand.

This much needed feature will be integrated with the application itself.

EVENTS & EXHIBITIONS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

Enabling IoT Solidworks is in many respect synonymous with mechanical design. Now with the launch of products like Solidworks PCB, the company is realising that times are changing and the industry is moving towards design as a much more holistic process; not focused on any one single domain, but encompassing the complete user experience. This presents new opportunities that companies like Solidworks can capitalise on.

The Solidworks PCB package is the outcome of merging Altium’s EC AD sof t ware with Solidworks. By bringing these two technologies together designers can work with the native files of Solidworks for mechanical design and Altium for electrical design. The design of IoT based products will require this new holistic approach to design because of their compact form factors and unique capabilities. The PCB in this respect is no longer what it used to be, and will find uses within a host of assets that they never have before.

One interesting Solidworks partner that attended this year was Nano Dimension. They are the manufacturer of the DragonFly 2020 3D printer. This is no ordinary 3D printer however, as it is capable of printing rapid prototypes of professional multilayer printed circuit boards in-house, at a quicker pace and lesser costs than outsourcing. Nano Dimension’s 3D printer uses a highly conductive ink that can reliably extract 10100+ nano-meter sized particles of pure silver. The company operates out of Israel, with Flextronics tasked with manufacturing this printer as part of an agreement between both companies.

Another partner of Solidworks is Xively

by LogMeIn. This partnership aims to expand

the company’s IoT credentials, with LogMeIn’s enterprise IoT platform. The collaboration also seeks to provide product companies with a complete solution for designing, building, running, and supporting a truly connected business.

“The reality for most traditional product companies is that connecting a product to the Internet adds an entirely new layer of complexity to the design process. While these companies excel in produc t design and engineering, creating IoT-enabled produc t s includes a technology component with web and application integration – concepts that are all but foreign to many produc t companies. Par tnering with a proven industry leader like LogMeIn, helps our customers to take the guesswork and complexity out of developing products specifically for the IoT,” remarked Suchit Jain, VP, strategy, community & business development, Solidworks, Dassault Systèmes.

As more companies start producing IoT enabled products, this partnership will become a vital component to the strategy of Solidworks to attract and lead the drive in holistic IoT design and enablement.

“As product companies continually look to design products specifically for the IoT, a proven, scalable and secure platform like Xively helps bring products to market faster, providing a significant competitive advantage. Working together with Solidworks, users can now develop products that are designed for connectivity out of the gate - eliminating the learning curve and helping to put new, innovative products to the market quicker than ever before,” said Mario Finocchiaro, senior director, business development, Xively by LogMeIn.

Some demonstrations were interactive, such as this one, offering visitors a chance to get more engaged in the exhibits.

Solidworks World 2016 Kay Baily Hutchinson Convention Center, USA Jan 13- Feb 3, 2016

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IoT ASIA 2016

IoT Asia 2016 returned with its third and largest edition held from March 30 to 31, 2016 at the Singapore Expo Convention and Exhibition Centre. APMEN was at the show to report on the latest IoT trends in Asia.

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T

he Internet of Things (IoT) is growing exponentially. According to Gartner, by 2020 t here will be near ly 26 billion devices connec ted to IoT. According to ABI Research, this number is even higher, reaching 30 billion devices wirelessly connected to IoT by 2020. Another survey concluded that by 2025, the majority (83 percent) of those surveyed believed that IoT, embedded, and wearable computing will be widespread and in use.

It is numbers like these that spur on events such as IoT Asia, which returned in

2016 for its third and largest edition. Over two packed days, from March 30 to 31, 2016, many of the leading organisations in this field took the stage or exhibited at the 4,000-square metre exhibition space over these two days.

A wide range of IoT solutions were on show and live product demonstrations from over 90 sponsors and exhibitors including platform solutions, cloud services, application development, data analytics, and data science, addressed the latest industry needs.

The theme of this year’s show was “Closing t he Gap: From V ision to Realit y ”. In my opinion, this per fec tly sums up the 2016 edit ion of t his event . This year ’s event saw many new applications and produc t announcements, whilst a few years ago what was discussed was a mostly a vision on what IoT could become. In 2016, we are starting to see this vision become a reality.

The show was jointly organised by the Singapore Industrial Automation Association (SIAA) and SingEx Exhibitions (SingEx), and officially opened by Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Singapore’s Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister-in-Charge of the countr y’s Smar t Nation Initiative.

EVENTS & EXHIBITIONS Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

How It Was Organised In addition to companies and associations demonstrating their products and services in t h e e x h ib i t i o n h a l l , t h e c o n f e r e n c e had seperate tracks in which discussions took place around a common theme. Over 100 international speakers and indus tr y experts from 16 countries took the stage at these tracks over two days. The five tracks covered topics such as smart cities, IoT data analy tics, design applications, wearables, and industrial applications.

Following the opening of the event by Dr Balakrishnan, several keynote speakers took the stage, such as Charles Reed Anderson, VP, head of mobilit y and IoT, IDC A sia/ Pacif ic, who was tasked to answer where IoT was going next in the Asia Pacific region.

Other keynotes included “Bridging the gap between strategy and execution - breaking new ground and delivering value”, which focused on the outlook on how IoT in Asia Pacif ic has progressed in delivering real outcomes, lessons learnt and the need for more demonstrated successes and outcomes to challenge scepticism about IoT, and the role of collaboration and partnerships to overcome roadblocks and enable further outcomes.

Building Smarter Communities In regards to the Smar t Nation initiative being developed by Singapore, there has been much discus sion by minis ter s and the public about the role of technology in society. There was a consensus that the role of technology can be used to bring people and communities together.

Although not every nation can be a Smart Nation, there are lessons from Singapore’s Smart Nation initiative, particulary for Asia.

The urban population in A sia is growing at an aver age of 4 4 million ever y year.

As a result, there is growing pressure on the infra s truc ture of A sia’s cities , from t r an sp or t a t ion to communic at ion s and healthcare. At the same time, consumer expec tions are rising as people become increa singly connec ted. Downtime is no longer an option for any service provider. The good news is innovative IoT technologies and solutions exist today to help governments and organisations address these challenges, creating a new generation of intelligent and connected cities.

A new element in the exhibition was a dedicated dialogue arena called TechSpace which of fer s at tendees the oppor tunit y to learn f ir s t-hand about the lates t IoT trends and innovations in Asia from various

Many exhibitors had demonstrations on display to entice attendees.

The show concluded with a talk on IoT applications.

industry insiders and exhibitors.

Another key conference highlight is the Smart City Forum which took place on the second day of the conference. Moderated

by Rob van Kranenburg , founder of The Internet of Things Council, The Netherlands, the session highlighted various Smart City initiatives from different countries and their respective key takeaways.

Concluding The Conference IoT Asia 2016 considers itself to be the region’s leading event for the advancement of the IoT industr y. Conversations and new insight s generated will enable the industry as a whole to accelerate forward and deliver the true value of IoT.

IoT Asia 2016 Singapore Expo, Singapore March 30-31, 2016

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PRODUCT FINDER Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

Faro: Factory Robo-Imager Mobile

Bystronic: BySprint Fibre Laser Cutting System

Bystronic has released a new generation of its BySprint Fibre laser cutting system. The revamped machine features a new design, now distinguished by vibrant lines and a larger operator panel, as well as three added functions.

The new detection eye function uses a camera system on the cutting bridge to recognise the precise position of the loaded metal sheet in just a few seconds.

The new version is also able to cut sheet metal thicknesses of up to 30 mm, thanks to the power cut fibre function. It increases the range of thickness that can be processed with applications in non-ferrous metals, aluminium and mild steel.

It also has a new observer function, a camera-supported remote monitoring system, which enables users to access information on production processes through smart devices.

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Epson: NS8000II IC Test Handler

Epson has announced the launch of the new generation NS8000II series of IC test handlers in Southeast Asia for chip manufacturers and testers in the manufacturing and semiconductor industry.

The IC handlers are capable of transferring, testing, and sorting up to 13,500 chips per hour. They deliver standard contact pressure sufficient for high-speed testing of highpin-count chips. The machines are able to test chips at temperatures as high as 155 deg C. The IC handlers are used widely in testing of chips for wireless communication such as tablet PCs and smartphones, applications for Internet of Things such as wearables, as well as other applications within the manufacturing and automotive industries.

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5602

T he Faro Fac tor y Robo-Imager Mobile combines optical 3D measurement with robot technology. It pairs a metrologygrade 3D sensor with a humancollaborative robot integrated on a mobile cart that can be moved to wherever measurement tasks are required.

This turnkey mobile station provides an adaptable, safe and automated near-line inspection solution.

The system utilises the Faro Factory Array Imager, a metrology-grade 3D sensor with blue light technology that is capable of capturing high-resolution measurement data for dimensional inspection on parts, assemblies and tools.

This helps to reduce cycle times for inspection and eliminate scrap and costly rework. The system’s mobility enables the inspection processes to be moved out of the quality lab and onto the shop floor so parts can be automatically checked without delay.

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F. Zimmermann GmbH: FZH400 5-axis Horizontal Machining Centre

F. Zimmermann GmbH’s first horizontal machining centre, the FZH400, is particularly useful for efficient machining of standard components for the aircraft industry. The modular and compact machine has two newly developed features – the pallet handling and the water-cooled travelling column.

Unlike conventional designs where the deviation increases as the slide extends, the FZH400’s guide carriage distance widens, which increases the rigidity, with further penetration into the material. The stepped drive guide ensures a constant geometry along the Z axis.

The FZH400 also features an integral pallet handling system with pallet changing during machine time. The handling system enables reliable transport of pallets without sagging, making it suitable for long pallets.

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PRODUCT FINDER Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

Fronius: Robacta Drive TPS/I Robot Welding Torch

Fronius has launched the Robacta Drive TPS/I, a compact, push-pull robot welding torch that features a consistent, modular structure that eases the workload of servicing engineers while simplif ying the storage of spare and replacement par t s. It s drive unit dynamic has al so been increased to 33 m/s2, which is 10 times that of its predecessor generation.

It is available as a gas-cooled or water-cooled version, and can be fitted to robots capable of supporting just three kilograms thanks to its extra-small interface profile and reduced weight.

It comprises a three-phase stepper motor, a maintenancefree unit for smooth wire travel at a speed of up to 25m/min.

Speed is kept constant by an integrated rotary position encoder, while two driven feed rollers transfer the speed to the wire electrode.

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5605

Lincoln Electric: Flex Feed 84 Feeder

Lincoln Electric’s Flex Feed 84 features a design to deliver consistent feeding over long conduit runs with largediameter wires up to 2.4 mm or cored wires up to 3.2 mm.

This new feeder offers a modular design, which includes single-bench, dual-bench and boom-mount configurations that can be converted as workspace requirements change.

It features digital meters with pre-set voltage and wirefeed speed, displaying actual voltage and current during welding while offering four memory spaces to save repeated procedures.

The MaxTrac wire drive has a cast-aluminium feed plate that protects the wire and ensures consistent wire feeding.

Tool-less drive rolls allow operators to easily change wire size or type, while tool-less, split wire guides ensure uninterrupted feeding.

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LVD: Cadman-SDI Smart Drawing Importer Module

LVD’s new Cadman-SDI module simplifies 2D and 3D CAD file import and calculation of cost drivers so users can quickly and accurately create job estimates.

A C AD drawing f ile is impor ted into the module via simple “drag and drop”. Once imported, the file is converted to OSM (Open Sheet Metal) format and stored in the central Cadman database.

Stored OSM files are immediately accessible for all other modules of the Cadman suite for efficient generation of laser, punching, bending programmes and jobs scheduling. All data is visible at a glance on the control screen.

It features the integrated BrisCAD, a robust 3D direct modelling CAD package. BrisCAD allows the 3D drawing to be reviewed in detail, modified or corrected as required.

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Pramet: HR2 Chip Breaker And T9226 Turning Grade

The HR2 chip breaker expands Pramet’s range of single-sided inserts for machining a wide range of materials including steel, cast iron and stainless steel.

Designed for rough forgings and castings, the HR2 features a stable geometry for improved tool life and performance. It offers reliable chip formation and evacuation at high feeds (0.7 mm/rev). This promotes a continuous production process with less machine downtime.

HR2 is available with a new turning grade, the T9226.

It provides high insert reliability and durability in adverse cutting conditions due to a new functional gradient substrate which contains a high amount of cobalt binding and finer grain structure. A special treatment added to the coating’s surface promotes reduced adhesion to the workpiece and resistance to the formation of heat-related cracks.

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PRODUCT FINDER Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

Renishaw: Primo System With Primo Radio Part Setter And Primo Radio 3D Tool Setter

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The Primo s ys tem by Renishaw consists of a radio par t setter and a radio 3D tool setter, enabling automated onmachine par t setting, p ar t in s p e c t ion an d tool set ting. There is therefore no need for of f line manual tool setting equipment.

It helps to eliminate manual setting errors, improves accuracy and part conformance, and reduces non-productive time and scrap. The system is easy to use, simple to install and represents a low initial financial outlay.

One of the highlights of the system is that there is no need for extensive G-code knowledge. The system is supplied with GoProbe, an “all-in-one” software package that simplifies part setting, tool setting and calibration.

Simple, single-line commands are used instead of multiple lines of code.

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Schaeffler’s FAG SmartQB is a ready-to-use monitoring solution for detecting irregularities in electric motors, pumps, and fans.

Easy to install, it does not require any specific knowledge about vibration diagnosis. It features an automatically generated plain text messages on the 7-inch display.

It comprises an FAG SmartQB sensor unit (a variant of the existing FAG SmartCheck), a cubic housing with a touch panel, and a cable for power and data transmission.

Five causes of faults can be identified and displayed using the condition monitoring system: bearing damage, imbalance, friction/cavitation (for centrifugal pumps), temperature increases, and general changes in vibration patterns. The fault assessment enables users to immediately initiate maintenance work and order replacement parts if required.

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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

5609

Schaeffler: FAG SmartQB Monitoring Solution

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ARNO – SE GROOVING SYSTEM The SE groove turn system with through tool coolant (ACS1= ARNO®-Cooling-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).

5610

Schuler: Performance S Notcher

The Performer S notcher is capable of producing laminations for electric motors and generators in a variety of sizes—it can notch blanks with diameters of 80 to 1,800 millimetres.

The large tooling area makes it easy to use a controlled die, while the notcher’s modular construction ensures short set-up times. The blankholder can be supplied as a retractable centring unit or blank ejector.

With up to 1,200 strokes per minute, the 200-kN notcher has a notch accuracy of one hundredth of a millimetre to ensure necessary precision, particularly for thin sheets with low blanking clearance.

The machine has virtually no hydraulics and is operated with oil-free air. The use of wear-free seals ensures low maintenance costs and a high level of availability.

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PRODUCT FINDER Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

Walter: Porcupine Milling Cutters

TaeguTec: TT8080 Grade

TaeguTec has unveiled the TT8080, a PVD coated grade adopted on turning applications. It is particularly suited for stainless steel and the machining of high temperature alloys under low cutting speeds and interrupted cutting conditions.

Characterised by durability and high anti-chipping capability, the T T8080 grade is a suitable choice for interrupted and rough machining.

The strong coating adhesion that envelopes the TT8080 is crack resistant and eliminates delamination, increasing the tool life of the grade.

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The new M4256, M4257 and M4258 porcupine milling cutters are versatile in terms of both the range of applications and the materials for which they can be used, which include steel, cast iron, stainless steel, and difficult-to-cut materials.

They are available with Weldon shank, modular ScrewFit interface and bore adaption. Their compact length and halfeffective design with low cutting pressure allow for a smooth operation, reducing the tendency to oscillate and vibrate to make them suitable even in unstable conditions.

The milling cutters can also be used for ramping, pocket milling, shoulder milling and circular interpolation.

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Weber Ultrasonics: Sonopower 3S System

Trumpf: TruLaser 3030 Fibre

The TruLaser 3030 fibre processes a wide range of material types and thicknesses including brass, copper, titanium, and even tube profiles with the RotoLas option.

It is fuelled by a 3-kW, 4-kW, or 6-kW TruDisk laser resonator, which not only enables the processing of nonferrous metals but also ensures that the system is energyand cost-efficient and also easy to operate.

The one-cutting-head strategy with collision protection and automatic nozzle changer result in minimised downtimes.

It features a 120 inch by 60 inch working area and is also available with a wide variety of automation solutions.

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Component manufacturing in small series tends to have different requirements in terms of component cleaning.

To resolve the issue, Weber Ultrasonics has developed a multi-frequency ultrasonic concept with vacuum-resistant submersible transducers for chamber cleaning units. With it, cleaning tasks that previously required two different cleaning systems can now be performed with just one.

Vacuum-resistant submersible transducers with switchable ultrasonic frequencies of 25 and 50 kHz ensure optimised cleaning efficiency for both coarse and fine cleaning. As a result, cleanliness specifications can be met efficiently, with a high level of process stability with a single unit, even with a changing or altered parts range.

The generator has a power output of up to 3,000 W, while its plug-and-play device is fully digital. It comes with an intelligent control system based on a 32-bit processor architecture, enabling it to perform numerous settings automatically.

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CALENDAR 2016 Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News • July - August 2016

AUGUST 3–6

NOVEMBER 23 – 26

Grand City Convention & Exhibition Centre

Bangkok International Trade & Exhibition Centre (BITEC)

Manufacturing Surabaya 2016

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

SEPTEMBER 22 – 24 Manufacturing Myanmar 2016

Myanmar Event Park

Shin Saw Pu Rd, Yangon, Myanmar Singapore Exhibition Services

OCTOBER 6–8

Metalex Vietnam 2016 Saigon Exhibition & Convention Center (SECC)

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

25 – 27

Indometal 2016

Jakarta International Expo (JIExpo)

Metalex Thailand 2016

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

23 - 27

Taiwan International Machine Tool Show (TMTS) Greater Taichung International Expo Center

No. 161, Gaotie 5th Rd., Wuri Dist., Taichung City 41456, Taiwan Taiwan Machine Tool & Accessory Builders’ Association (TMBA)

NOVEMBER 30 – DECEMBER 3

Manufacturing Indonesia 2016

Jakarta International Expo (JIExpo)

Gedung Pusat Niaga Lt. 1 Arena PRJ Kemayoran Jakarta 10620 Indonesia PT Pamerindo Indonesia

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

To be considered for inclusion in the Exhibition Programmes, 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 • July - August 2016

Page Number

Enquiry Number

ARNO WERKZEUGE S.E.A. PTE LTD

77

092

BENIGN ENTERPRISE CO LTD

15

093

DMG ASIA PACIFIC PTE LTD

11

097

EXXON MOBIL ASIA

05

089

HEIMATEC GMBH

39

027

HOFFMANN QUALITY TOOLS ASIA PACIFIC PTE LTD

13

098

ISCAR LTD

IFC

091

KENNAMETAL INC

BC

031

MACK BROOKS LTD

09

094

Advertiser

OKUMA CORPORATION

IBC

087

SCHAEFFLER (SINGAPORE) PTE LTD

03

009

TAIWAN MACHINE TOOL AND ACCESSORY BUILDERS’ ASSOCIATION / TMTS 2016

55

088

TUNGALOY SINGAPORE (PTE) LTD

01

095

WALTER AG SINGAPORE PTE LTD

07

094

ZWCAD SOFTWARE CO LTD (ZW SOFT)

47

096

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ASIA PACIFIC METALWORKING

No. 5 2016

The Engineering Journal For Manufacturing,Automation & Quality Control

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

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Forging Rolling Die Casting Welding Turning Coil Forming

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Broaching Plastic Moulding Pressworking Automated Assembly Beading Electroplating

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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

❑ 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)__________________________________

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

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❑ 022 Production Engineering ❑ 024 Quality Control/Assurance

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❑ 026 Design Engineering ❑ 029 Purchasing/Sourcing

ENQUIRY NO 087

GROOVING CUT-OFF, AND MULTI-DIRECTIONAL TURNING MADE...

Face Grooving

Grooving

Deep Grooving

Beyond Evolution is the new single-sided grooving and cut-off tool that also performs multi-directional turning.

Cut-Off

Side Turning

Beyond Evolution EASY kits are currently

50%* OFF CALL when you order using the promotion code:

B 0 1KG L1C 116 - P 3

+65 6572 4465 / 66 (SGP) 02 203 5800 (THA) 03 55699080 (MYS)

kennametal.com/BeyondEvolution

* Savings compared to sum of kit component list prices. Offer cannot be combined with other discounts/offers. Offer ends June 30, 2016.

Only available through participating distributors.

www.kennametal.com

ENQUIRY NO 031

Chamfering

Profiling

Facing