APMEN October09

DMG Open House:

ALL ARE WELCOME!

Wind Powered

OPPORTUNITIES

Witte Asia Metrology Seminar

Quality & Standards

October 2009

www.equipment-news.com M.I.C.A. (P) No. 233/06/2009

Automotive Industry:

Turning

On 20 Precision The

Disk Laser Technology:

Built

For

Max Performance

Motion Control Technology:

Always

On The

34

Move

Japan Focus:

Orchestrating

Big

The

62 Comeback

CAD/CAM Advances:

Fast & Furious

Increasing Increasing Increasing Your Your Increasing Increasing IncreasingYour Your Your Your

ProFITABILITy ProFITABILITy ProFITABILITy Grooving Grooving Grooving Turning Turning Turning Intelligently Intelligently Grooving Grooving Grooving& && && & Turning Turning TurningIntelligently Intelligently Intelligently Intelligently

Cutting Cutting Cutting Down Down Production Production Costs Costs Cutting Cutting CuttingDown Down Down DownProduction Production Production ProductionCosts Costs Costs Costs with with with Winning Winning Combinations Combinations with with withWinning Winning Winning WinningCombinations Combinations Combinations Combinations for for for Optimal Optimal Productivity Productivity for for forOptimal Optimal Optimal OptimalProductivity Productivity Productivity Productivity ENQUIRY NO 144 ISCAR ISCAR ISCAR VIETNAM VIETNAM VIETNAM ISCAR ISCAR ISCAR JAPAN JAPAN JAPAN CV MULTI CV MULTI CV TEKNIK MULTI TEKNIK TEKNIK SINO ISCAR ISCAR ISCAR THAILAND THAILAND THAILAND SINO TOOLING SINO TOOLING TOOLING SYSTEM SYSTEM SYSTEM ISCAR ISCAR ISCAR TAIWAN TAIWAN TAIWAN (Representative (Representative (Representative Office) Office) Office) 1-5-3 1-5-3 Shinsenri-Higashimachi 1-5-3 Shinsenri-Higashimachi Shinsenri-Higashimachi JL. JL. JL. Raya RayaRaya Blk 59, 57, 61, 59, 57, 63 61, 59, Soi 63 61, Soi 63 Soi Blk 502, Blk 502, Jurong 502, Jurong Jurong West West West 395,395, DaISCAR 395, Duen DaTAIWAN Duen DaSouth Duen South Rd. South Rd. Rd. 57, ISCAR ISCAR ISCAR VIETNAM VIETNAM VIETNAM ISCAR ISCAR ISCAR JAPAN JAPAN JAPAN CV Balikpapan MULTI CV Balikpapan MULTI CV Balikpapan TEKNIK MULTI TEKNIK TEKNIK ISCAR ISCAR ISCAR THAILAND THAILAND THAILAND SINO SINO TOOLING SINO TOOLING TOOLING SYSTEM SYSTEM SYSTEM ISCAR ISCAR TAIWAN TAIWAN Room Room DRoom 2.8, D 2.8, Etown D Office) 2.8, Etown Building, Etown Building, Building,No. Toyonaka-shi, Toyonaka-shi, Toyonaka-shi, Osaka Osaka 560-0082 Osaka 560-0082 560-0082 No. 28 Jakarta No. 28 Jakarta 28 Jakarta Pusat Pusat Pusat Samanchan-Babos Samanchan-Babos 1 #03-813 Ave 1Jurong #03-813 1Jurong #03-813 Taichung 408Duen 408 408 (Representative (Representative (Representative Office) Office) 1-5-3 1-5-3 Shinsenri-Higashimachi 1-5-3 Shinsenri-Higashimachi Shinsenri-Higashimachi JL. Balikpapan JL. Balikpapan JL. Balikpapan Raya Raya Raya Ave 57, 59, 57, 61, 59, 57, 63 61, 59,Soi 63 61,Soi 63 Soi Blk Ave Blk 502, Blk 502, 502, Jurong WestWestWest 395,Taichung 395, DaTaichung 395, Duen Da Da South Duen South Rd. South Rd. Rd. Samanchan-Babos 364 364 Cong 364 Cong Hoa, Cong Hoa, Tan Hoa, Tan Binh Tan Binh Dist., Binh Dist., Dist., Tel Tel + 81 Tel + 6 81 835 + 6 81 835 5471 6 835 5471 5471 10140 10140 Indonesia 10140 Indonesia Indonesia Sukhumvit Sukhumvit Sukhumvit Rd. Rd. Phra Rd. Phra Khanong, Phra Khanong, Khanong, Singapore Singapore Singapore 640502 640502 640502 Tel Tel +886 Tel +886 (0)4 +886 (0)4 247 (0)4 247 31573 247 31573 31573 Room Room DRoom 2.8, D 2.8, Etown D 2.8, Etown Building, Etown Building, Building,No. No. Toyonaka-shi, Toyonaka-shi, Toyonaka-shi, Osaka Osaka 560-0082 Osaka 560-0082 560-0082 28 Jakarta No. 28 Jakarta 28 Jakarta Pusat Pusat Pusat AveAve Samanchan-Babos Samanchan-Babos Samanchan-Babos 1 #03-813 Ave 1 #03-813 1 #03-813 Taichung Taichung Taichung 408 408 408 Ho Chi Minh Ho Chi Minh City, Minh City, City, Fax + Fax + + 5472 66 835 5472 Tel Tel +Indonesia Tel 62+Indonesia 21 62+6307303 21 626307303 21 6307303 Tel Khlong Khlong ToeyRd. Toey Bangkok Toey Bangkok Bangkok 10110 10110 10110 Ho Tel + Tel 65+ 6566 65+ 6566 65 7668 6566 76687668 Fax +886 Fax +886 (0)4 +886 (0)4 247(0)4 (0)4 247 31530 247 31530 31530 Khlong 364 Cong Hoa, Tan Binh Dist., 364Chi Cong 364 Hoa, Cong Tan Hoa, Binh Tan Dist., Binh Dist., Tel Fax Tel + 81 81 Tel + 6681 81835 835 + 6681 81835 835 5471 835 54715472 5471 10140 10140 10140 Indonesia Sukhumvit Sukhumvit Sukhumvit Rd. Phra Rd. Phra Khanong, Phra Khanong, Khanong, Singapore Singapore Singapore 640502 640502 640502 Tel Fax Tel +886 Tel +886 (0)4 +886 (0)4 247 247 31573 247 31573 31573 Tel Tel 84+ 8Chi 848123 +City, 8Minh 848123 519/20 8 8123 519/20 519/20 Fax iscar@iscar.co.jp iscar@iscar.co.jp 62 62 21 62 21 Tel + Tel 66+ (2) 66+Bangkok 7136633 (2) 66Bangkok 7136633 (2)Bangkok 7136633 65 65 65 7336 6567 7336 iscar.taiwan@msa.hinet.net iscar.taiwan@msa.hinet.net Ho Chi Ho+ Chi Minh Ho Minh City, City, Fax iscar@iscar.co.jp Fax + 81 Fax + 681835 + 681835 5472 6 835 54725472 Tel Fax Tel+ + Fax Tel 62+ + 21 21 62+ +6348062 6307303 21 626348062 6307303 21 6348062 6307303 Fax Khlong Khlong Khlong Toey Toey Toey 10110 10110 10110 Tel Tel Fax Tel+ + Fax Tel 65+ + 6567 6566 65+ + 6567 6566 65 7668 6566 76687336 7668 Fax iscar.taiwan@msa.hinet.net Fax +886 Fax +886 (0)4 +886 (0)4 247(0)4 247 31530 247 31530 31530 Tel Fax Fax + Fax 84 + 8 84 8123 + 8 84 8123 521 8 8123 521 521 multi@centrin.net.id multi@centrin.net.id multi@centrin.net.id Fax Fax + Fax 66 + (2) 66 + 7136632 (2) 66 7136632 (2) 7136632 sinotool@singnet.com.sg sinotool@singnet.com.sg sinotool@singnet.com.sg Tel Tel+ Tel 84+ 8848123 + 8848123 519/20 8 8123 519/20 519/20 Fax Fax iscar@iscar.co.jp iscar@iscar.co.jp iscar@iscar.co.jp + Fax 62+ 21 62+6348062 21 626348062 21 6348062 Fax Fax 66+ (2) 66+7136633 (2) 667136633 (2) 7136633 + Fax 65+ 6567 65+ 6567 65 7336 6567 73367336 iscar.taiwan@msa.hinet.net iscar.taiwan@msa.hinet.net iscar.taiwan@msa.hinet.netTel Tel+ Tel iscarvn@hcm.fpt.vn iscar@iscarthailand.com Fax iscarvn@hcm.fpt.vn Fax + iscarvn@hcm.fpt.vn Fax 84+ 8848123 + 8848123 521 8 8123 521 521 multi@centrin.net.id multi@centrin.net.id multi@centrin.net.id sinotool@singnet.com.sg Fax iscar@iscarthailand.com Fax + iscar@iscarthailand.com Fax 66+ (2) 66+7136632 (2) 667136632 (2) 7136632 sinotool@singnet.com.sg sinotool@singnet.com.sg iscarvn@hcm.fpt.vn iscarvn@hcm.fpt.vn iscarvn@hcm.fpt.vn iscar@iscarthailand.com iscar@iscarthailand.com iscar@iscarthailand.com

MESCO MESCO MESCO Reliance Reliance Reliance Corner Corner Corner MESCO MESCO MESCO Brixton Brixton Brixton St. Pasig St. Pasig St. City Pasig CityCity Reliance Reliance Reliance Corner Corner Corner Metro-Manila Metro-Manila Metro-Manila Philippines Philippines Philippines Brixton Brixton Brixton St. Pasig St. Pasig St.City Pasig City City Tel Tel + Tel 63+ 2631 63+Philippines 2631 63 1775 2631 1775 1775 Metro-Manila Metro-Manila Metro-Manila Philippines Philippines Fax + 63 63 63 0276 2635 0276 Tel + 2635 63+ 2631 17750276 Tel Fax + Fax Tel 63+ 2631 + 2635 63 1775 2631 1775 mesco@mesco.com.ph Fax mesco@mesco.com.ph Fax + mesco@mesco.com.ph Fax 63+ 2635 63+ 2635 63 0276 2635 02760276 mesco@mesco.com.ph mesco@mesco.com.ph mesco@mesco.com.ph

ENQUIRY NO 110

Contents October 2009

ASIA PACIFIC METALWORKING EQUIPMENT NEWS (M.E.N.) is published 8 issues per year by Eastern Trade Media Pte Ltd, 1100 Lower Delta Road, EPL Building #04-02 Singapore 169206 Tel: (65) 6379 2888 Fax: (65) 6379 2806.

20 FIRST CUT Turning On The Precision

Stability can easily make or break a threadturning performance. Contributed by Jeremy Lim, marketing communications, Sandvik Coromant SEA

26

Automotive Industry: Ramping Up Productivity

Productivity and tool selections are closely linked in turning operations, which are commonly used in auto parts manufacturing. Contributed by David Zola, chief technical officer and automotive industries project manager, Iscar

Thailand Office: Thai Trade & Industry Media Co Ltd. 16/F Italthai Tower, 2034/73 New Petchburi Road, Bangkapi, Huaykwang, Bangkok 10310, Thailand Tel: 66(0) 2716 1722 Fax: 66 (0) 2716 1723 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.

For more subscription information Fax: (65) 6379 2806 Singapore E-mail: irenetow@epl.com.sg IMPORTANT NOTICE THE CIRCULATION OF THIS MAGAZINE IS AUDITED BY BPA WORLDWIDE. THE ADVERTISERS' ASSOCIATION RECOMMEND THAT ADVERTISERS

28

SHOULD PLACE THEIR ADVERTISEMENTS ONLY IN AUDITED PUBLICATIONS

Turning Technology: More Than Meets The Eye

Every now and then, a new technique or technology comes along and makes a significant increase to the performance potential of a material. By Gisbert Roth, manager, marketing operations Asia-Pacific, Seco

32

INDUSTRY

Double-Teaming

Adopting the right manufacturing strategies and forming a perfect collaboration can reap considerable benefits. By Ralph Schiffler, for DMG.

34 TECHNOLOGY UPDATE Motion Control Technology: Always On The Move

Never standing still, in keeping with the very notion of its existence, the pursuit of technological brilliance in motion control systems is an on going process. By Augustine Quek

40

Siemens press picture

Choose The Right One!

Closed-loop electrohydraulic motion controllers allow production lines to be more precise and repeatable, as well as sophisticated and flexible. By Michael Liedhegener, application engineer, machine tool group, Bosch Rexroth

46 SOFTWARE & MEASUREMENT CAD/CAM Advances: Fast & Furious

Riding in the front of the technology train, CAD/CAM is staying one step ahead to better serve the metalworking community. By Joson Ng

49

A New Wave In Design

In a bid to conserve the environment, design approaches are changed to introduce the concept of sustainability. By Sharon Toh, GM, South Asia, DS SolidWorks.

2

metalworking equipment news October 2009

JOINT ADVERTISING DISCOUNT WMEM, 30,000 copies circulated quarterly in China combines with M.E.N, 10,000 copies circulated bi-monthly in ASEAN in joint advertising. Ask for more details now.

Endorsements

SPETA

Singapore Precision Engineering and Tooling Association (SPETA) Federation of Asian Die & Mould Associations (FADMA) Federation of Malaysian Foundry & Engineering Industry Associations Indian Machine Tool Manufacturing Association (IMTMA)

China Machine Tool & Tool Builders' Association (CMTBA)

Machine Tool Club (MTC)

Taiwan Association of Machinery Industry (TAMI)

dmg dmg dmg – –technologies –technologies technologies for for for tomorrow tomorrow tomorrow dmg – technologies for tomorrow

Aerospace Aerospace Aerospace _ _ __ __ __ __ __ __ _ As _ As As a amarket amarket market leader leader leader ininin the the the sector sector sector ofofof 5-axis 5-axis 5-axis manufacmanufacmanufac________

As a market leader in the sector of 5-axis manufac-

turing turing turing technology, technology, technology, DMG DMG DMG offers offers offers a aunique aunique unique product product product range range range ofofof highhighhighturing technology, DMG offers a unique product range of high-

tech tech tech metal metal metal cutting cutting cutting machine machine machine tools tools tools for for for workpiece workpiece workpiece manufacturing manufacturing manufacturing tech metal cutting machine tools for workpiece manufacturing

ininin the the the aerospace aerospace aerospace sector. sector. sector. in the aerospace sector.

| Structural wing component |

| Structural | Structural | Structural wing wing wing component component component |||

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DMG - Your partner in the aerospace

DMG DMG DMG--Your -Your Yourpartner partner partnerin in inthe the theaerospace aerospace aerospace industry for machine tools. industry industry industryfor for formachine machine machinetools. tools. tools. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ DMG is the world market leader

_in___CNC ________machine ___________DMG _DMG DMG isis is the the the world world world market market market leader leader leader tools but also a specialist in the in inin CNC CNC CNC machine machine machine tools tools tools but but but also also also aaspecialist agas specialist specialist ininin the the the area of aero engines and industrial turbines. area area area of of of aero aero aero engines engines engines and and and industrial industrial industrial gas gas gas turbines. turbines. turbines.

This knowledge has been gained over 138 years This This This knowledge knowledge knowledge has has has been been been gained gained gained over over over 138 138 138 years years years by working with our customers to develope highby by by working working working with with with our our our customers customers customers tototo develope develope develope highhighhightech metal cutting solutions for milling, turning and laser machines. tech tech tech metal metal metal cutting cutting cutting solutions solutions solutions for for for milling, milling, milling, turning turning turning For inquiries call us directly: +65-6660-6688 and and and laser laser laser machines. machines. machines.

For For For inquiries inquiries inquiries call call call us us us directly: directly: directly: +65-6660-6688 +65-6660-6688 +65-6660-6688

www.dmgasiapacific.com DMG Asia Pacific Pte Ltd.: No. 3 Tuas Link 1，Singapore 638584, www.dmgasiapacific.com www.dmgasiapacific.com www.dmgasiapacific.com Tel.: +65 66 60 66 88, Fax: +65 66 60 66 99, E-Mail: info@dmgasiapacific.com, Website: www.dmgasiapacific.com DMG DMG DMG Asia Asia Asia Pacific Pacific Pacific Pte Pte Pte Ltd.: Ltd.: Ltd.: No. No. No. 3 3Tuas 3Tuas Tuas Link Link Link 1，Singapore 1，Singapore 1，Singapore 638584, 638584, 638584, Tel.: Tel.: Tel.: +65 +65 +65 666666 606060 666666 88, 88, 88, Fax: Fax: Fax: +65 +65 +65 666666 606060 666666 99, 99, 99, E-Mail: E-Mail: E-Mail: info@dmgasiapacific.com, info@dmgasiapacific.com, info@dmgasiapacific.com,

ENQUIRY NO 127

By improving performance and cost efficiency, the third generation of disk laser technology may well be the golden generation. By Ryu Tan, product manager, solid state lasers, Trumpf

• 8 Business News • 82 Product Finder • 87 Exhibition Programmes • 88A Product Enquiry Card

Cover credit: Solidworks, Trumpf

Witte Asia Metrology Seminar

QUALITY & STANDARDS October 2009

www.equipment-news.com M.I.C.A. (P) No. 233/06/2009

Automotive Industry:

Disk Laser Technology:

Turning

On

Built

The

20 Precision

For

Max Performance

Motion Control Technology:

Always

On The

34

Move

Japan Focus:

Orchestrating

Big

The

62 Comeback M.I.C.A. (P) No. 233/06/2009 • PPS 840/10/2009(028102) • ISSN 0129 5519

Disk Laser Technology: New Generation Makes The Cut

Regulars

VOL. 23 NO. 7 OCTOBER 2009

50 FAB & FORM

Wind Powered

OPPORTUNITIES

ASIA PACIFIC METALWORKING EQUIPMENT NEWS

Contents

DMG Open House:

ALL ARE WELCOME!

CAD/CAM Advances:

Fast & Furious

66 FEATURES DMG Open House: All Are Welcome!

From the bigwigs in the aerospace industry to the decision makers in SMEs,they come together for four days of technical exchange.

By Joson Ng

52

Laser Cutting: Ready To Take Over

Like a young star bursting onto the scene, laser cutting looks set to upstage its more established counterparts and dominate sheet metal cutting for some time. By Joson Ng

54

68

Advance Steel & Climate Control: Proliferation = Conservation

Across a broad range of industries and applications, the development and use of high-performance steels help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. By World Steel Association

Sheet Metal Welding: Speed & Accuracy Combine

70

High-speed tandem gas metal arc welding sees an increase in speed and accuracy over traditional arc welding thanks to improving technologies and techniques. By Marc Purslow, project engineer, EWI

Wind Powered Opportunities

With the imminent demise of crude oil, the race to secure new alternative energy is heating up – opening doors to the metalworking fraternity.

By Joson Ng

56 INDUSTRY SPOTLIGHT In Top Gear

To match rising requirements in automotive manufacturing, advanced metal forming technologies are actively developed and applied to production. By Dr Danno Atsushi, forming technology group, SIMTech

60

72

Flying On Rails

High-speed trains are spouting throughout Asia putting the metalworking industry in high gear. By Joson Ng

62 COUNTRY FOCUS Japan Focus: Orchestrating The Big Comeback

The Malaysian economy is showing signs of recovery – thanks to intervention by the government. By Tim Chuah, consultant APAC, measurement & instrumentation, Frost & Sullivan

81 PARTING SHOT

With a keen eye for the future and decisive implementation of new initiatives, the Japan Machine Tool Builders’ Association looks to lead its members out of this current slump. By Joson Ng

73

Government Incentives To Boost Malaysia’s Manufacturing Sector

Gliding To New Heights

Computer aided design allows a flying-trike company to meet aviation standards. By Peter Dickin, marketing manager, Delcam

EVENTS & EXHIBITION Event Preview: JEC Asia 2009 Event Preview: Metalex 2009 Event Preview: Korea Metal Week 2009 Event Preview: JIMTOF 2010 Witte Asia Metrology Seminar: Quality & Standards Event Preview: Manufacturing Indonesia 2009

• Refer to Advertising Index...

Pg 88

for Advertisers' Enquiry numbers

ENQUIRY NO 090 add-resize.indd add-resize.indd 1 1 add-resize.indd add-resize.indd 1 1

12/06/2009 12/06/2009 08:59:0308:59:03 12/06/2009 12/06/2009 08:59:0308:59:03

editor’s note

Published by:

Eastern Trade Media Pte Ltd (a fully owned subsidiary of Eastern Holdings Ltd)

Reg No: 199908196C

managing director Kenneth Tan assistant editor Joson Ng

Corner The

josonng@epl.com.sg

advertising sales manager Derick Chia

derickchia@epl.com.sg

assistant sales manager Yessica

yessica@epl.com.sg

editorial assistant Sharifah Zainon sharifah@epl.com.sg senior art director / studio manager Lawrence Lee lawrencelee@epl.com.sg

In the world of metalworking, turning is one of the main techniques of metal processing. Though an established proce ss, plent y of time a nd R& D resources are put into fine-tuning this method. For instance, stability is of upmost importance during turning operations as any movements, no matter how minute, can be the difference between success and failure.

Elsewhere, special attention is also being paid to the coating of turning grades. Improving the hardness of a coating by around 10 to 15 percent can translate into an increase in abrasion resistance, tool life and finally cost savings. Work can also be done to the substrate material to complement the coating. Cobalt is introduced to boost toughness and as a result, making the tool more crack resistant.

Metal parts are however, not the only thing turning now. The economy is also turning the corner as most of the world are predicting hopefully. Whether the economy recovers remains the billiondollar question, but it is the optimism shown by many that is worth noting.

Open houses and technical seminars are still being organised and the turnout has also been very encouraging. In the recent open house at DMG’s facility in Singapore, some 280 professionals attended, transforming the place into a melting pot of ideas and opportunities.

The city-state also played host to Witte’s technical seminar that aimed to create awareness in metrology, and the role it plays in today’s industries.

Also in this issue of Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News, laser and welding process are featured, keeping you, our readers in the loop, particularly in the world of disk laser technology. Lastly, we see how motion control technologies, seemingly a topic for industrial automation, has its links to metalworking.

The finish line to the end of global e co n o m i c d ow n t u r n m ay n o t b e clearly in sight just as yet, but with the positivity displayed from most quarters of the industry, we could well have turned the corner.

Joson Ng Assistant Editor

6

metalworking equipment news October 2009

graphic designer Jef Pimentel jeffreypimentel@epl.com.sg circulation executive Irene Tow

irenetow@epl.com.sg

contributors Jeremy Lim, David Zola Gisbert Roth, Ralph Schiffler Augustine Quek, Michael Liedhegener Ryu Tan, Marc Purslow Dr Danno Atsushi, Tim Chuah Peter Dickin, Sharon Toh board of consultants Wäinö A Kaarto AB Sandvik Coromant Dr Moshe Goldberg ISCAR

All rights reserved. No portion of this publication covered by the copyright herein may be reproduced in any form or means – graphic, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, taping, etc – without the written consent of the publisher.

Opinions expressed by contributors and advertisers are not necessarily those of the publisher and editor.

Printed in Singapore by Fabulous Printers Pte Ltd MICA (P) No. 233/06/2009 PPS 840/10/2009 (028102) ISSN 0129/5519

Eastern HOLDINGS Ltd Executive Board

chairman Stephen Tay group executive director Kenneth Tan financial controller Robbin Lim

etm

Eastern

Trade Media Pte Ltd an Eastern Holdings Ltd company

Head Office & Mailing Address: 1100 Lower Delta Road, EPL Building #04-02, Singapore 169206 Tel: (65) 6379-2888 Fax: (65) 6379-2806 Thailand Office: Thai Trade and Industry Media Co., Ltd 16/F Italthai Tower, 2034/73 New Petchburi Road, Bangkapi, Huaykwang, Bangkok 10310, Thailand Tel: 66(0) 2716 1722 Fax: 66 (0) 2716 1723

www.kraas-lachmann.com

IT’S STRONGER. IT’S TOUGHER. IT GROOVES! The new generation of Walter Cut tools.

Because compromise is not an option when it comes to grooving.

Expect more.

Engineer what you envision.

Experience the new Walter.

Walter AG Singapore Pte Ltd TIC Tech Centre, Singapore +65-67736180 service.sg@walter-tools.com www.walter-tools.com

ENQUIRY NO 138

Businessnews

Wim van Ekeren, Netherlands

Subway For Qingdao

Qingdao, China: The Chinese city of Qingdao has approved a CNY29 billion (US$4.2 billion) plan to construct a 54.7 km subway line network across the city before 2016.

The network forms phase one and two of the city’s bigger plan to build a 231.5 km network of eight subway lines in its downtown and suburban districts in the future.

Overall, China is planning to spend CNY200 billion to build a 1,500 km network of subways and light track lines by 2010 under its 11th five-year plan (2006–2010). A further 1,700 km rail network for 65 lines is planned for between 2010 and 2015.

www.equipment-news.com

Maruti Suzuki To Build R&D Complex Rohtak, India: The Haryana government has allotted 700 acres of land to India’s largest car manufacturer Maruti Suzuki India Limited (MSIL) for the company’s proposed R&D complex in Rohtak.

The upcoming facility, which is the sole such facility

by Suzuki Motor Corp outside of Japan, will see MSIL putting in an investment in the range of Rs 1,000 crore to Rs 1,500 crore (US$224 million to US$336 million). Of the 700 acres land, a dedicated 100 acres will house the suppliers’ park. The company’s vendor partners will bring in further investment in their plants at the suppliers’ park within the R&D complex.

The complex will house an R&D centre for passenger cars including India’s first test track with a proving ground, wind tunnel, and crash facility.

While the development of the allotted land and construction of the test tracks will be completed during the first phase by 2012, the overall R&D facilities will be progressively completed by 2015.

The Rohtak R&D complex will augment the full vehicle design and development capability of Maruti Suzuki, thereby meeting the specific needs of the Indian customer. The company is on course to design a car on its own and launch a made-in-India car by 2012.

Smart, Safe & Sustainable Manufacturing Solutions Could Save US$6 Billion Milwaukee, USA: Rockwell Automation has developed a portfolio of smart, safe and sustainable manufacturing solutions that could help companies save up to US$6 billion a year, or about 10 percent of the total US industrial electrical energy costs, by capitalising on ‘Smart Grid’ initiatives with existing technologies.

The smart, safe and sustainable manufacturing portfolio includes a series of plant-wide energ y optimisation tools that create an integrated industrial energy management system based on the company’s industrial automation and information technology. It also will allow manufacturers to perform real-time loadbalancing of their industrial processes, bring renewable energy sources online and execute demand response strategies connected to the Smart Grid.

“Until now, manufacturers had to make decisions without knowing how energy directly affects their production costs and impacts the bottom line,” said

8

metalworking equipment news October 2009

Terry Gebert, VP and GM of Rockwell Automation Global Solutions.

“By combining OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness), a key performance indicator used by many manufacturers, with an energy model to create an energy blueprint – or ‘greenprint’ – for any production process, we can develop a long-term strategy for smarter energy use,” he added.

Mr Gebert emphasised “manufacturers can begin to capture actual energy use and add it to their bill of materials and other production records.”

With smart manufacturing solutions, an entire pla nt’s energ y consu mpt ion ca n b e opt im ise d.

Information on real-time energy usage flows from machine to machine and across production lines, and intelligent machines can monitor and manage their own energy use. Plant-floor energy use data can then be networked into enterprise business systems and connected to suppliers and utility companies.

JETSTREAM TOOLING

TM

DIRECTED COOLANT STRAIGHT TO THE EDGE.

WORKS BE

ST WITH

NOW FOR MILLING, DTURNING, R AND GROO ILLING VING Answering a call from the aerospace industry to improve the machining of difficult to machine alloys, Seco developed Jetstream Tooling – a revolutionary new solution to the age old problem of delivering coolant precisely to the cutting zone.

Jetstream Tooling works by delivering a concentrated high pressure jet of coolant at high velocity straight to the optimum position close to the cutting edge. This jet of coolant lifts the chip away from the rake face, improving chip control and tool life enabling increased cutting data to be applied – not just in aerospace materials. Jetstream Tooling has been proven to work in nearly all material groups and with a wide choice of coolant pressures..

The future is here, head straight to www.secotools.com Singapore Tel + 65 68412802 Malaysia Tel + 60 3 90591833 Thailand Tel + 66 2 7467 801 Vietnam Tel + 84 8 9144393 Indonesia Tel + 62 21 8088 8122

ENQUIRY NO 142

TURNING NEWS:

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TN5100 ENQUIRY NO 146

TN7100

businessnews

www.equipment-news.com

Kawasaki To Produce Gasoline Engines In China

China To Have Second Largest Rail Network In The World

Tokyo, Japan: Kawasaki Heavy Industries has reached an agreement with Kwang Yang Motor Co of Taiwan to establish a joint venture company, Changzhou Kawasaki and Kwang Yang Engine, for the production and sales of general-purpose gasoline engines. Both companies have 50 percent capital ratio. Capital of the joint venture stands at US$5 million.

The joint venture company will construct an engine factory in the Changzhou National Hi-tech District. Scheduled to go online in January 2010, the factory will have an initial production capacity of approximately 200,000 units per year. The two-stroke engines and four-stroke single cylinder engines the factory produces will be sold to original equipment manufacturers via Kawasaki’s sales networks in Japan, Europe, the US and elsewhere.

Beijing, China: China has settled its rail investment plan for the next three years at CNY700 billion (US$102 billion) invested annually.

The country’s investment into railway construction rose 88.6 percent to CNY337.5 billion in 2008, as part of the central government’s efforts to stimulate the stagnant economy. The investment is to support a massive countrywide project to build an 110,000 km network by 2012.

By the end of 2009, the country is expected to complete 86,000 km of the rail network, making the network the second largest in the world after the US.

Oyu Tolgoi, Mongolia: Rio Tinto has welcomed the Mongolian Parliament’s approval of amendments to four laws that clear the way for the finalisation of the investment agreement for the Oyu Tolgoi copper-gold complex in Mongolia’s South Gobi region. The company and Ivanhoe Mines, the development partners for the project, expect to formally sign the agreement with the Government of Mongolia in the near future.

Investment in the Oyu Tolgoi project through its shareholding in Ivanhoe Mines is consistent with the company’s strategy of focusing on large scale, long life, low cost assets. Production is expected to commence as early as 2013 with an approximate five-year ramp-up to full production. Average production capacity of the mine over its lifetime is expected to be 450,000 tonnes of copper per year and 330,000 ounces of gold.

Under the terms of the investment agreement, the Government of Mongolia will hold a shareholding of 34 percent in Ivanhoe Mines Mongolia. Key terms include a stable and operational tax environment in relation to the development and operation of the Oyu Tolgoi Project and certainty as to the term of the investment.

The company initially made a US$303 million investment in a 9.95 percent shareholding in Ivanhoe Mines in October 2006 under the terms of a placement agreement, and at that time agreed to invest US$388 million for a further 9.95 percent holding at the conclusion of a long term investment agreement with the Mongolian government. Payment of this second tranche is automatically triggered once the conditions precedent to the signed investment agreement has been satisfied.

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metalworking equipment news October 2009

Josephine Carino, United States

Rio Tinto Invests In Mongolia

ENQUIRY NO 131

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Mahle Filter Systems (India) Inaugurates Plant Parwanoo, India: The Parwanoo plant, second of Mahle Filter Systems (India), a joint venture between Mahle group of Germany and Anand Automotive Systems, has been inaugurated. It will cater to a product range utilising technology to service the requirement of MFSI’s existing and new customers like Tata Motors, M&M, GM and Bosch.

“With the capital Investment at about Rs 60 million (US$1.3 million) in building, plant and machinery, the proposed installed capacity of the plant is expected to be 22 million filters per annum,” said Deepak Chopra, CEO designate, Anand Automotive Systems.

The plant will go into production by February 2010 and will generate annual revenue of Rs 50 crores. It will manufacture the PU moulded filter elements, ecological plastic embedded filter elements and lube oil spin-on filters with new crimping design. The process in the plant will include Poly-urethane moulded elements, filter paper embedment into plastic and felt media, crimping process for sheet metal parts.

ABB Wins US$28 Million Power Order In India Bangalore, India: ABB has won a US$28 million order from Power Grid Corp of India Limited (PGCIL), for a 400-kV gas insulated switchgear substation to strengthen the power transmission network in the country’s western grid. The substation will be located in Navsari, in the western Indian state of Gujarat.

As part of the project scope, the company will be responsible for the system design and engineering, civil works, supply, installation and commissioning.

Major products included in the order are 400 kV and 220 kV gas insulated switchgear, transformers as well as control and relay panels. The project is scheduled for completion in 2011.

The standardised bay construction and compact design enhance the efficiency of the switchgear, simplify maintenance and speed up project execution. By reducing the number and weight of components, the dimension of the bay and carrying capacity of the building foundations can be substantially reduced.

PGCIL is India’s central power transmission utility, and is presently implementing a programme of grid expansion and modernisation aimed at integrating an additional 37,000 MW of power to facilitate inter-regional transmission of electricity across the country.

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Delcam Maintains Development Investment Birmingham, UK: CA DCAM developer Delcam has maintained its levels of R & D expenditure during the first half of 2009 despite feeling the effects of the global economic downturn.

The company invested Peter Miles, chairman, Delcam over £4.7 million (US$7.3 million) in R&D during the period, a small increase from the £4.5 million invested in the first half of 2008. This strategy is in marked contrast with some other suppliers in the CAM market, which have cut their investment in development as their sales have fallen.

The company also continued to invest in other areas of its business, including the opening of an Asian office based in Singapore for its professional services group and the addition of a large five-axis machine tool in its tooling services division.

Sales during the opening six months of £16.1 million were less than five percent down from the £16.9 million achieved in the equivalent period last year. This reflected the very challenging market conditions, which saw the company’s manufacturing customer base deferring its expenditure on software.

Within this total, recurring maintenance revenues, derived from software maintenance and support contracts, increased by 13 percent to £5.8 million compared with £5.1 million in the first half of 2008.

Despite the fall in sales and its continued R&D expenditure, the company remained profitable. Pre-tax tax profit for the first six months of 2009 was £0.3 million, against £1.4 million in the first half of 2008. Net cash at the end of the period was £5.8 million.

Commenting on the results, Delcam chairman Peter Miles, said: “Reflecting the global financial and economic crisis, the trading environment in 2009 has been challenging and the impact of the downturn in the manufacturing sector has been even harder than we initially anticipated at the end of last year. With many companies postponing their investments in capital equipment, it is to be expected that the associated software sales should also be delayed.”

“However, as we stated in our 2008 annual report, given Delcam’s strong financial position and high level of recurring income, we believe that the business is well placed to see out the near-term challenges. In particular, we are continuing to invest significantly in product development and marketing. This provides us with an increasing commercial advantage and will help to support our ambitions to build our market share during the downturn.”

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US Aluminium Can Recycling Reached 54.2 Percent In 2008

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ENQUIRY NO 137

Wa shington, USA: The Aluminum Association, Can Manufacturers Institute and the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries have announced t he 2 0 0 8 Used B e v e r a g e Container recycling rate, which showed the highest recycling rate of any beverage Alessandro Paiva, Brazil

container at 54.2 percent.

“The aluminium can is a sustainable beverage package,” said Kevin Anton, chairman of The Aluminum Association and president, Alcoa materials management.

“A can that is recycled can be back on the store shelf in as little as 60 days. Recycling conserves energy, saves resources and minimises consumer and production waste. We model the benefits of recycling and will continue to promote these benefits.”

“This shows recycling rates for cans is strong and can makers are committed to their continual increase,” said Robert Budway, president of the Can Manufacturers Institute. “Higher recycling rates deliver the endlessly recyclable benefits for cans, reducing carbon emissions, virgin material use and energy expenditure.”

“This information demonstrates that the aluminium can continues to be recognised as a valuable recyclable product,” said Robin Wiener, president of the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries. “Scrap recycling continues to play a vital role in the local and global economy, as well as global trade and sustainable development and we hope to see the recycling rate continue to increase.”

Cans are infinitely recyclable. A recycled can requires 95 percent less energy, generates 95 percent less emissions and creates 97 percent less water pollution than generating new metal. Therefore, purchasing beverages in aluminium cans, then recycling is a simple way to reduce one’s carbon footprint. Higher recycling rates ensure a steady supply of high value recycled aluminium delivering incredible value and benefits for all stakeholders.

The aluminium beverage can is 100 percent recyclable into new cans indefinitely. It is the only packaging material that more than covers the cost of collection and reprocessing for itself. It also helps subsidise the collection of other recyclable materials.

October 2009 metalworking equipment news

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L&T Wins US$217.45 Million Orders For Electrical Projects Mumbai, India: L&T has bagged four EPC orders from Qatar, UAE and Oman aggregating US$217.45 million for the construction of electrical substations. These projects will be executed by Electrical & Gulf Projects Operating Company (E&GP OC) – part of the company’s construction division.

The company has secured an US$153.45 million EPIC contract from oil and gas major – Qatar Petroleum at Ras Laffan for the construction of four substations, 132kV cabling, 33 kV and 11 kV power distribution including telecom network development, to be executed in 32 months.

This project is one of the key phases of the overall development of Ras Laffan Industrial City in Qatar and the order was secured by the company against stiff international competition. The company has also bagged an US$20 million order from Kahramaa, Qatar for construction of one 66/11 kV Gas Insulated Substation (GIS) at Doha. The company is already constructing five similar substations in Doha.

It has further secured an US$24 million order from Dubai Electricity and Water Authority in UAE for construction of one 132/11 kV GIS at Dubai.

The company’s joint venture company (L&T Oman) has secured US$20 million order from Oman Electricity and Transmission Company for construction of one 132/33 kV GIS Substation at Nakhal Area, Oman.

SHI To Construct 10 LNGFPSOs For Royal Dutch Shell Pa r i s , F r a nce: Roya l Dutch Shell has selected Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI), along with its French consortium p a r t n e r Te c h n i p , a s prime contractors for the construction and longterm supply of LNG-FPSOs. SHI will not only be the exclusive supplier to Royal Dutch Shell of large LNG-FPSOs for the next 15 years, but will also receive LNG-FPSO orders that together will be the largest orders in the history of the global shipbuilding industry.

According to the contract, the company will be the exclusive supplier of large LNG-FPSOs ordered by Royal Dutch Shell for a period of up to 15 years. The two parties will negotiate further in the future on some points of the agreement, such as the price and delivery date of the structures, according to the waters in which the LNG-FPSOs will be stationed. Industry experts predict that as many as 10 FPSOs priced at US$5 billion each will be ordered.

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APPOINTMENTS

Kia Motors Corp Appoints President

Hyoung-Keun Lee

Seoul, S Korea: Kia Motors Corp has appointed Hyoung-Keun (Hank) Lee as president to continue the leadership at the automaker. With more than 30 years experience within the HyundaiKia Automotive Group, he takes over the position from his previous role as senior executive VP and COO of the International business division at group headquarters in Seoul.

Development Of World’s First High Strength Automobile Steel

Seoul, S Korea: Posco has developed the world’s first 590 MPa class galvannealed steel sheets for automotive outer body panels. This steel sheet displays an increase in strength, but is lighter in weight and more elegant in appearance than existing steel sheets.

This product, which can withstand a load of up to 60kg per unit area (mm 2), is 70 percent stronger than the commonly used 340 MPa class steel sheets for automotive body panels, with thinner gauge and improved dent resistance.

The results obtained from stamping of the actual hood; one of the automotive outer body panels, showed that the formability and the surface quality were enhanced, while the thickness of the steel sheets were reduced from 0.7mm to 0.55mm, which effectively reduced the weight by approximately 20 percent.

The product, following a successful commercial production of the 490MPa class galvannealed steel sheets for automotive outer body panels in 2006, is expected to further reduce the weight of the automotive structures, increasing the fuel efficiency and reducing the CO2 emission, which will ultimately contribute towards the development of eco-friendly vehicles.

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Cairn Starts Oil Production In Rajasthan Gurgaon, India: Cairn India has started production from the Mangala Field in Rajasthan. It is the largest of 25 discoveries made by Cairn in the Barmer Basin in Block RJ-ON-90/1.

Cairn India, the operator of the Rajasthan block, holds a 70 percent participating interest with ONGC, its joint venture (JV) partner, holding the balance of 30 percent. The JV has already invested approximately US$2 billion in the Rajasthan project and has plans to invest a further US$ 1.8 billion by 2011, making it one of the largest onshore oil and gas projects in India.

Highlights of the Rajasthan project include: 1. The Mangala, Bhagyam and Aishwariya (MBA) fields have recoverable oil of nearly 1 billion barrels which includes proven plus probable gross reserves and resources of 685 million barrels of oil equivalent (mmboe) with a further 300 mmboe, or more, of Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) potential 2. Initial volumes of crude will be produced through the first processing train which has a capacity of 30,000 barrels and production ramp up will continue until all four processing trains, with a total capacity of 205,000 bopd, are built and installed by 2011 3. The MBA fields, once on peak plateau production of 175,000 bopd, will contribute more than 20 percent of India’s domestic crude production 4. The total acreage under long term contract is 3,111 km2 spread across the districts of Barmer and Jalore 5. The world’s longest heated and insulated crude oil pipeline is being built by the company from the Mangala Processing Terminal (MPT) to the Gujarat coast – length of 670 km - giving access to more than 75 percent of India’s refining capacity – the first phase is targeted for completion by the end of 2009 6. Crude production from the Rajasthan fields will generate revenues of approx Rs 36,000 crore (US$7.6 billion) in the form of royalties to the state government of Rajasthan over the life of the project, while the government of India will earn approximately. Rs 46,000 crore (US$9.5 billion) as profit petroleum, assuming crude oil prices of US$50 a barrel 7. Use of latest drilling and completion technology to create high rate production wells with capacity of up to 10,000 barrels of oil per day

businessnews

Alcoa Partners CIMC In China

New York, USA: Alcoa and CIMC Vehicles, a specialty truck manufacturer in China, have formed a strategic partnership, to design and develop an energy-efficient, aluminium fuel tanker trailer for the Asian market. Alcoa will apply its design, engineering and manufacturing expertise with CIMC Shandong’s fabrication knowledge to produce the lightweight, environmentally-friendly tanker trailer.

“The aluminium fuel tanker trailer will be 30 percent lighter than conventional stainless steel trailers, resulting in a significant increase in payload, greater fuel savings and lower emissions,” said Kevin Kramer, president, Alcoa Growth Initiatives.

The Alcoa Bohai plant in Qinhuangdao, China, will supply the aluminium sheet and Alcoa Fastening Systems (Suzhou), in Jiangsu, China. In addition, the aluminium intensive fuel tanker trailer will roll on forged aluminium wheels sourced from the company’s Köfém plant in Hungary, enabling a smoother ride with lower maintenance.

T he co mb i n a t io n o f l i g ht we i g ht a lu m i n iu m production and lower fuel costs of the tank trailer results in a total CO2 savings of 90 tonnes per trailer over the lifespan of each vehicle.

The first prototype is expected to be road tested in Jinan City and Beijing in October 2009.

GE & Fanuc To Dissolve Joint Venture Virginia, USA: GE and Fanuc have agreed to dissolve the GE Fanuc Automation Corp joint venture. This agreement would allow each company to refocus its investments to grow its existing businesses and pursue its respective core industry expertise. The transaction is expected to be completed by the end of this year, subject to satisfactory customary closing conditions.

Under the terms of the agreement, GE retains the software, services, embedded systems and control systems businesses globally. The company will be known as GE Intelligent Platforms. Fanuc retains the global CNC business.

October 2009 metalworking equipment news

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AEROSPACE

Rolls-Royce Increases Singapore Investment Singapore: Rolls-Royce plans to build a Wide Chord Fan Blade (WCFB) factory in Singapore. The factory will be located at the group’s Seletar campus alongside the previously announced ‘Facility of the Future’, which will test and assemble Trent aero engines.

Tota l inve st ment in t he Rolls - Royce S eleta r campus, including investment in the WCFB factory, will exceed S$700 million (US$485 million). It will create approximately 500 new jobs when fully operational, bringing the number of people employed by the group in Singapore to around 2,000. Construction of the facility of the future and all other elements of the campus, including a regional training centre, will begin in the first quarter of 2010.

The factory will be the first outside the UK to manufacture Rolls-Royce hollow titanium WCFBs, a technology which has played a key role in the success of the Trent engine family. It will provide additional capacity to the group’s Barnoldswick factory in the UK. The group’s growing global order book totalled £55.5 billion (US$90 biliion) at the end of 2008, of which 44 percent was generated by customers in the Asia Pacific

region. The group’s success in global markets generates the need for additional capacity to support long-term growth and an expanding customer base.

The decision to locate the facility in Singapore has been determined by four strategic considerations: the benefits of locating major facilities close to key customers; the business continuity benefits that will arise from locating critical component manufacturing in two locations; the competitive skills and productivity levels in Singapore, exemplified by the group’s joint venture partnerships with Singapore Airlines Engineering Company; and the support provided by the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) and Jurong Town Corporation (JTC).

Sir John Rose, Rolls-Royce chief executive, commented: “Singapore has become a vitally important centre for the group’s operations and this latest investment in wide chord fan blade capability reflects our continuing confidence in Singapore as a place to locate high valueadded manufacturing. I am particularly pleased that we are receiving the support of the Singapore EDB with whom we already have a very strong relationship.”

Copa Airlines Expands Contract With ST Aerospace Panama: Copa Airlines and ST Aerospace signed a three-year Maintenance Service Agreement (MSA).

Worth an estimated US$18.5m, the agreement covers the Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) of Copa Airlines’ existing fleet of 28 Boeing 737 next generation and 15 Embraer E-190 aircraft, as well as an additional 11 E-190 aircraft from Copa-owned Aero República.

This new agreement is a renewal and expansion of the scope of the existing MSA. The original MSA between

Pablo Barrios, United States

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metalworking equipment news October 2009

the Airline and the company was signed in August 2006, and covered the maintenance of 22 Boeing 737 aircraft then. This latest MSA also covers maintenance for Copa’s E-190 aircraft, in addition to its present fleet of 737 next generation aircraft. In April this year, ST Aerospace’s Panama facility received its E-190 certification.

This agreement also reaffirms the commitment of Copa Airlines and ST Aerospace towards the development and improvement of the aviation sector in Panama.

Economic miracle Experience your personal economic miracle with the new BySprint Pro, the unique high-speed laser cutting system for the highest operational and economic efficiency.

ENQUIRY NO 143

Bystronic – Your competent partner for cutting and bending www.bystronic.com

firstcut

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Turning

On

The Precision

Stability can easily make or break a thread-turning performance. Contributed by Jeremy Lim, marketing communications, Sandvik Coromant SEA

W

hen it comes to issues in thread - turning, micro-movements of the indexable insert has been a major cause of disruptions.

Prematurely shortened tool-lives, inconsistent per for ma nce a nd unsatisfactory results can often be traced back to the cutting edge having moved very slightly during machining.

A recent brea k through in indexable insert technology has led to new ways of maintaining the exact position of the insert in tool holder and milling cutter seats.

A change to the stability of the cutting edge has been achieved.

This has also opened the door for a harder, more durable insert grade to reliably shorten cycle times.

The Threat Of Instability Screw-threads are turned today as a matter of routine on most CNC-lathes and indexable -insert tools have continually elevated performance in line with that of other turning tools. A few factors make the threadturning operation in need of a little more attention than most other turning operations, but turning a thread should certainly not be seen as any more difficult.

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metalworking equipment news October 2009

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Following certain selection and application procedures ensures that components with screw-threads are machined correctly and competitively.

Unfortunately the configuration of a screw-thread does not make it ideal for metal cutting.

The thread-form needs to be shaped by a cutting edge with more or less the same angles, radii and flats, which means a pointed, somewhat vulnerable edge.

Furthermore, the screw-thread has a pitch which varies from fine to coarse with very large feed-rates for the tool.

Some screw- threads have close quality-limits, requiring high consistency in precision capability and some screw-threads have to be machined in demanding materials.

All told, it is not the ideal basis for achieving a reliable, high-speed operation with long tool-life.

But by addressing a few issues it is relatively easy to arrive at a well-run thread-turning operation t hat c a n b e opt im ise d to new productivity levels.

E ssent ia l to note, however, is that the finished re sult a nd machining economy of thread turning is directly dependant upon every link between machine, set-up, work piece, tool holder, indexable insert, method, programming and cutting data.

Instability, right down to the cutting edge, has been pointed out as the greatest threat to a satisfactory outcome.

Improvements In Thread-Turning Many of the issues that lead to poor performance resulting from threadturning are often due to oversight of common metal cutting fundamentals such as: minimising tool overhang, maximising tool stability, cutting edge at centre -height, applying suitable cutting data and selecting appropriate tool and method.

A d d i t i o n a l i s s u e s sp e c i f i c to t h r e a d - t u r n i n g v a r y f r o m establishing the depth-of-cut per

By addressing a few issues it is relatively easy to arrive at a well-run thread-turning operation that can be optimised to new productivity levels

pass of the tool and the method of radial feed, as well as the tilting of the insert in relation to pitch and diameter, according to the helix angle of the screw-thread, for achieving sufficient edge clearance.

The most characteristic feature of a screw-thread is its threadprofile. Variations here make up the large range of different threadt y p e s t hat o ccu r to day, some developed with specific purposes in mind.

Profile error is also the most common reason of quality failure in screw-thread machining and can be because of tolerance or surface finish deviations. When this happens, the tool-life of the cutting edge is at an end, often prematurely.

Up to now one of the ma in causes of incorrect thread profile has been lack of insert stability in the tool holder. Micro movements of the insert lead to several negative consequences, which reduce toollife. The main one is chipping of the cutting edge, especially at the nose-radius.

Holding It In Place Stability can to some extent be improved by selecting an alternative clamping screw for the application, where of ten t he qu ick- cha nge screw has had to be replaced by the U-screw. But total fixation of the insert in its seat has up to now always been hard to solve.

The start and finish of a pass in thread-turning means sudden va riations in magnitude a nd direction of cutting forces. These are the most sensitive moments during the operations and very vulnerable to the risk of insert movement.

The tip of the thread-profile on the insert forms a lever with t he screw, forcing t he cutt ing edge slightly out of position and deforming the support points in the tool holder seat.

In thread-turning, alternating a x ia l forces occur at the sta r t and end of the pass, with a more balanced level once into and during the cut. The forces act on the insert from different directions, tending to move the insert back and forth.

The variation in screw-thread October 2009 metalworking equipment news

21

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The quality of the location and locking of the threadturning insert is decisive to obtaining high productivity

types mea ns cha nges in the magnitude and even direction of cutting forces, but insert size may not necessarily follow the profile variation. This results in different levels of support in the seats.

Also, thread-pitches vary for the same insert size which means that inserts for some larger pitches do not have more support than inserts with smaller pitches. The insert and tool holder programs would become impossibly large if insert sizes followed the variation in profile and pitches.

The main consequences of cutting edge movement are the generation of out-of-tolerance threads and microchipping of the insert edge-line. If the unacceptable machined threadprofile does not put an end to toollife, the more rapid growth in tool wear will.

As the edge wears, the insert is subjected to even higher forces a nd f u r t her movement due to increased pressure, accelerating the breakdown process. In fact, thread-turning inserts are changed more due to the consequences of movement than actual tool wear.

Insert Location Close profile accuracy is more important for some screw-threads than others. The type, purpose and limits on the thread determine whether M-tolerance or E-tolerance indexable inserts are needed.

Precision threads a re ex tra sensitive, such as sealing threads for oil and gas applications, where 22

metalworking equipment news October 2009

very tight tolerances occur in some of the premium classes requiring ground indexable inserts. Exact location of the cutting edge is critical for the thread-quality consistency in the operation.

T he ot her a sp e c t of in ser t location is repeatability. Easy and exact positioning of the insert in the holder is important to avoid timeconsuming machine -setting and to minimise or eliminate scrapped components. G enera lly, inser t indexing is avoided as far as possible during passes because of the risk of step-formation on thread-flanks.

Should insert indexing need to take place during the pass, a precise location of the insert is critical to continuing and achieving acceptable results. Combined with this, quick and easy insert indexing between passes is also important because of the impact on machine down-time.

Making Passes Productivity in thread-turning is to a great extent related to the number of passes a thread-turning tool has to make to complete the full length of the screw-thread.

To o m a n y p a s s e s , w i t h insufficient depth of cut, lead to excessive tool wear and frictional heat, resulting in rapid flank wear and plastic deformation. Also the chip formation is often affected negatively by small depth, generating thin, poorly controlled chips.

Fewer passes need larger depths of cut, but with more load on the cutting edge. By optimising the number of passes, the time needed to generate the full thread is shorter and brings an improved cutting edge engagement.

A large depth of cut will create higher cutting forces, which add to the tendency of insert movement in seat – again emphasising the need for

secure location of the insert.

Another characteristic feature of a screw-thread is the pitch. And, it may in some cases, be the reason for component-error. Most pitcherrors originate from CNC control and when any machine, control unit, set-up and programming error has been eliminated, the stability of the indexable insert in the tool holder and possibly the method of tool in feed can be assessed as to any influence on the pitch.

The pitch of the thread is a component- design factor where tolerances are generally closer for fine pitches and as for machining, the fine pitch screw-thread takes longer to machine because of the lower number of threads per mm or inch (feed rate).

The coarser the pitch, however, the higher the feed rate and the rise in cutting forces – and also the need for very secure insert location.

Stability In Demand Consequently, for several reasons, the quality of the location and locking of the thread-turning insert in its tool holder seat is decisive to obtaining high productivity, a secure operation and consistent component quality levels.

Keeping the insert absolutely fixed in the insert seat has in many cases been virtually impossible w ith pa st inser t- lock ing a nd location solutions.

The method of retention, shim clamping and ease of indexing has meant compromises. Limitations in insert manufacturing methods have curbed possibilities in arriving at unconventional solutions.

In thread-turning, CoroThread 266 has a iLock solution that locates and keeps the indexable insert in position even when affected by varying cutting forces during machin ing or in inde x ing. For thread-turning this is important because of the v ulnerability of the thread-turning process to any minor instability.

The insert shim is crucial to the

ENQUIRY NO 149

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thread-turning operation and has therefore been re-designed to provide the secure base in the tool holder.

With two contact faces in the seat and a screw, which locks it into place from the side, the shim provides the necessary firm and precise location for the insert. It has the iLock interface in the form of a protruding rail on which the corresponding insert locates.

T he i n se r t c la mpi n g sc rew holds the insert on the rail and against one contact face for radial location, providing stability and exact location.

Cutting forces during machining are taken up along the rail on which the insert rests, with no risk of seat damage at any insert support points in the seat. The iLock rail is perpendicular to the feed direction.

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This makes the need for a minimal amount of toughness of the right kind to be part of the insert grade.

This requirement, of course becomes more pronounced for threads to be machined internally.

A boring operation is always fraught with v ibration and deflection tendencies of the tool a s we l l a s t he e f fe c t s of c h ip evacuation and this makes the right amount of toughness decisive to performance and security.

E l i m i n a t i n g h i n d r a n c e s to higher productivity – PVD (physical vapour deposition) coated grades provide cutting edges for threadturning. A new development here has provided the means to further optimise operations by higher cutting data and providing longer,

more predictable tool-life.

Recent developments in finegrain insert-substrate technology has provided substrates with high hot-hardness for resisting plastic deformation in areas requiring sharp cutting edges, such as threadturning, parting and grooving and solid carbide end mills.

PVD-coating consists of TiAlNm u l t i - l a y e r, w h i c h h a s b e e n developed to suit the edge rounding and geometry of the insert, providing high cutting edge line security.

While the outer tip of the insert is, as mentioned, more susceptible to plastic deformation, the part of the insert that performs the topping of the thread crest is sensitive to wear through flaking and smearing, forming a built up edge. MEN

Increasing Tool Life Due to the vulnerability of the threadturning cutting edge, inserts need to be as hard and wear resistant as possible without being brittle and at risk of edge fracture during machining.

Mo der n op erat ion s involve considerable heat being generated at the cutting edge, necessitating the need for tool-resistance to plastic edge-deformation which is followed by rapid flank wear and then fracture if the operation is carried on long enough with the same edge.

The tendency of the cutting edge to undergo plastic deformation is the biggest hindrance to raising efficiency through cutting speed in thread-turning. An inadequate insert grade leads to the edge rapidly being unable to generate an acceptable thread followed by breakdown.

A flaking tendency of sharp, coated inserts is also a risk due to high pressure, especially if only a very small part of the cutting edge is in cut. Generally, balanced flank wear during a predicted tool-life to suit the number of passes is the ideal to strive for in thread-turning.

But a certain degree of insert s t re n g t h i s a l w ay s ne ce s s a r y to cope with mechanical loads, especially at the tip of the profile.

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metalworking equipment news October 2009

Enquiry No. 7001

Top Tips For Thread-Turning 1.

1 Establish the best number of passes for the operation, utilise the capability of the tool to optimise productivity, follow recommendations and optimise with constant or reduced feed.

2.

2 Make sure that the cutting edge is set at the right centre height and tool accurately positioned

3 Be sure that the correct tool holder shim is used to achieve sufficient and 3. even insert-flank clearance by checking thread pitch, helix angle and work diameter. Follow recommendations for external and internal screw-threads 4.

4 Optimise machining performance by making use of cutting speed potential offered by insert grades 5.

5 Establish the best in feed method for the operation combined with the best insert geometry 6.

6 Make sure of the right combination of feed direction, RH/LH inserts and RH/LH threads. Consider the cutting force direction for support and the helix angle for clearance.

7.

7 Make sure of optimum stability throughout set-up – machine to cutting edge 8.

8 Check the work allowance on diameter for it not to be excessive (Add 0.1

to 0.15 mm on the diameter for crest formation)

10.

9 Check the CNC program to eliminate any unsuitability 11.

10 Read wear patterns on inserts and select/adjust accordingly 12.

11 Any indication of micro-movement of insert, use U-screw instead of QC screw for insert clamping

Enquiry No. 7002

ENQUIRY NO 152

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Automotive Industry:

Ramping Productivity Productivity and tool selections are closely linked in turning operations, which are commonly used in auto parts manufacturing. Contributed by David Zola, chief technical officer and automotive industries project manager, Iscar.

T

he world economic turmoil ha s c re ate d a new e ra whereby ma ny industr y se c tor s a re w it ne s si n g a negative trend. One of them is the automotive industry, which experienced a 50 percent reduction in new car sales.

Europe and the US suffered the most dominant decrease in this industr y, forcing prima r y auto manufacturers and their respective suppliers to cut dow n work ing hours and production levels in order to survive.

This situation ha s added impetus to the notion of minimising expenditures and increasing profit.

In recent years, we have seen that markets such as Japan, South Korea, USA and many European countries experiencing a slowdown in the production of vehicles and as a result, a decline in profitability for the companies.

Metalworking processes in the auto industry demand a substantial drop in cycle time in order to improve production processes. Decreasing cycle times by 20 to 40 percent demand advanced technological solut ion s, le av i n g b e h i nd old conventional methods.

Ma ny compa nies have set a goal for themselves to become more efficient a nd productive by reducing production cycle times, which directly influences production cost. This situation has forced manufacturers to become more efficient, not only in human resources, but mainly by improving e x ist ing te ch nolog ic a l processes.

Reducing Production Time One of the main parameters that influence the cost of part production is the technological process used for machining. Other parameters are the usage of ‘smart’ and stable machine and the usage of cutting tools that enable machining maximum parts in minimum time.

To d a y , m a n y c o m p a n i e s in the automotive industr y are shifting away from traditional low productivity tools, and are replacing them with high productivity tools like the fast metal removal tools.

Many forged automotive parts, which require turning/finishing operations such as gear shafts, main shafts and secondary shafts are undergoing improved innovative turning operations.

Turning solutions have downtimed production between 30 to 50 percent, even where large metal removal rates are required. The result achieved provides savings in turning operations and in down-time of production cycles by reducing the number of passes and increasing feed rates.

Groove-Turn Tools The tools have been designed to answer to the stringent tolerances and complicated applications for the production of main sha fts, camshafts, hydraulic parts and gear parts. They enable savings of 60 percent over the number of tools required when using conventional turning methods.

Their primary advantage is a 26

metalworking equipment news October 2009

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Figure 1: CBN inserts provide results when machining hardened steel

Figure 2: Ceramic inserts are suitable for machining parts at high metal removal rates

Figure 3: Complex tools carry complicated insert profiles and provide stability throughout the machining cycle

substantial decrease in machine setup time. These tools are able to machine between walls while performing grooving and turning operations in sequence with a single multi-functional tool.

These tools have achieved a decrease in the number of tools used in a given machining turning cycle. This led to a reduction in production time by 30 percent. For producing camshafts for trucks, Iscar has developed tools, which are optimally designed to produce a groove in one pass with very wide inserts of up to 28 mm.

These inserts have chipformers for producing short chips that are evacuated from the application zone, leaving behind a well-finished workpiece. The inserts ensure a continuous application with no interference, as the short chips evacuate easily. Rigid V-lock clamping is used for stable metal removal, ensuring a high quality finish.

in the market today. These inserts are economical, compared to CBN inserts and so they provide the right option to turn hardened parts at high metal removal rates.

• Pistons

Machining Hardened Steel Parts O ver the pa st few yea rs the automotive industry has created a demand for automotive parts made of hardened steel. Cubic Boron Nit r ide (CBN ) i n ser t s prov ide results when machining hardened steel (52 - 65 HRc). The inser t geometries can be ordered in a four or six multi-cornered option, in addition to those with a single CBN edge (Figure 1).

Ceramic inserts for machining hardened materials are available

• Cast Iron Brake discs are one of the most popular automotive parts made of ca st iron. Cera mic inser ts are suitable for machining these parts at high metal removal rates (Figure 2).

• Aluminium Wheels Tool and insert geometries are crucial for the manufacture of the aluminium wheel. In addition, to ol r ig idit y is imp or ta nt to ensure machining of aluminium wheels at extreme conditions and achieving surface quality all around.

Together with piston manufacturers, Iscar has developed processes for producing pistons with the use of Grip tools. These tools carry complicated insert profiles and provide stability throughout the machining cycle (Figure 3).

Automotive pa r ts with high production cost or operations somet ime cre ate a product ion bottleneck, pav ing the way for the development of ‘smart’ tools.

I n t he p a s t , m a ny co mp a n ie s have avoided tr ying new tools, incorrectly thinking that it is a waste of time. However, they now realise that implementing these advanced technologies will keep them competitive. MEN Enquiry No. 7003

Iscar:

Heavy Duty Groove-Turn Applications Iscar’s single-ended insert for heavy grooving and turning applications features tangentially oriented pocket that creates a rigid and secure clamping. In addition, the Sumo-Grip system has insert design that enables machining at feed rates of up to 1.0 mm/rev.

The tool is recommended for machining large diameter parts and heavy interrupted cuts. TAGB inserts are available in widths of 8, 10 and 12 mm and full radius and straight frontal edge with 0.8 mm corner radii. The TGBA inserts for machining aluminium will be available in widths of 8 mm with a full radius.

Enquiry No. 7004

October 2009 metalworking equipment news

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firstcut

Turning Technology:

Than More Meets TheEye Every now and then, a new technique or technology comes along and makes a significant increase to the performance potential of a material.

By Gisbert Roth, manager, marketing operations Asia-Pacific, Seco

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metalworking equipment news October 2009

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T

he metal cutting industry is cha racterised by rapid technological developme nt. T h is is a result of several factors such as globalisation, increased market competition, more powerful and stable machines that allow higher cutting speeds, use of materials that are more difficult to machine a nd growing awareness of environmental issues.

New laws and regulations will increase the cost of the use of cooling lubricants. This promotes dry machining. In turn, this will increa se the dema nd for more te mp e ra t u re re si s t a nt co a te d cemented carbides and generally forces the metal cutting industry to consider new alternative methods.

The following are the most important trends in the marketplace: 1. H i g h e r c u t t i n g sp e e d s f o r increased productivity

2. Dry machining and/or minimal quantity of lubrication, for reduced costs and environmental aspects.

3. Difficult-to-machine materials (ie: high strength materials, for lighter components and constructions).

A ll these trends put more de m a n d s o n we a r re si s t a nce , together w ith deformation resista nce a nd toughness. Due to its high chemical stability and favourable therma l proper ties, A l 2 O 3 (A l u m i n i u m o x i d e) i s a suitable coating material for highspeed metal cutting.

Fur thermore, it is wor th emphasising that CVD is still the only technique, which can economically produce high quality coatings of Al2O3. While many articles have been written on PVD Al2O3 coatings, CVD technology with regards to Al 2O3 has taken important steps in the past few years.

The Approach There are a number of ways to

Cobalt enriched substrate zone and coating structure provide additional toughness close to the surface below the coating and this results in increasing resistance to cracking

improv ing t he per for ma nce of coated cutting tool inserts. Fine adjustments to the chemistry in the coating furnaces, more careful structural control of the individual coating layers, top and bottom g r inding of the coated inser ts and even polishing the edges of inserts after coating, all provide incremental increases of quality and eventually lead to a better performance with the final product.

I n a d d it i o n to t h e s e m o r e traditional and commonly applied enhancements, for the past few years Seco has chosen to take a slightly more fundamental approach to the coating enhancement.

For example, one of the reasons the industry polishes the insert edges on some grades is to remove mode st defects in the coating itself. It is possible to improve the smoothness of the coating, the residual stress state, and to reduce chip drag tendencies by polishing.

But it would be better if the i mp e r fe c t io n s we re not t he re i n t he f i rst place . T h is le d to a conce nt rat ion on improv i n g t he st r uctura l integ r it y of t he individual coating layers. Starting

from the beginning, there are two different forms of Al 2 O 3 used for coatings – kappa and alpha phases.

The difference is found in their crystal structure.

For ex a mple, a cera mic bathroom sink and a set of rubies jewellery are both made out of aluminium oxides. The difference between the two materials is the way the atoms are arranged.

Don Graham, product manager for turning, explains: “When it comes to cutting tool materials, we prefer to use the alpha form of aluminium oxide. However, it’s technically easier to deposit the kappa version so therefore we deposit that kappa form first and then heat-treat the coating in the furnace to transform it to alpha phase.”

I n going t h rou g h w it h t h is process, there is a contraction in material volume – the direct consequence of this is cracking, which is unavoidable. Or it was, u n t i l t h e c o a t i n g sp e c i a l i s t s worked out how to directly deposit a lpha a luminium ox ide, which directly resulted in a crack free structure. That was the first partial breakthrough.

October 2009 metalworking equipment news

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The Diamond Connection “To use another analogy, we know that diamond, the hardest material known to man, can be split relatively easily in certain crystallographic directions,” he says. He also notes that in other directions, diamond is very resistant to any form of ‘breakage’ or wear.

By carefully modifying the coating cycle, the R&D team have learned how to control the crystal texture and directional growth of these coating layers. This process reflects the idea of controlling the coating structure, built from an atomic level, makes a coating more durable.

“By adjusting the crystallographic direction into the (metal) cutting direction, we obtained increased toughness and wear resistance at previously unknown levels,” says Roger Granström, group product manager.

He adds: “What the R&D team have achieved is to chemically alter the crystal structure of the aluminium- oxide layer to create a coating that offers longer life at increased cutting capability.

We b e l i e v e t h i s w i l l c h a n g e performance expectations of future g rade development s. Coat ings developed with this technology can be combined with any number of

Duratomic coatings demonstrated improved toughness, heat and wear resistance and reduction of edge build-up

different substrates to create new generations of high performance and/or general application grades”.

Enhanced Performance Conventiona l a luminium ox ide coatings have a hardness of about 27.5 GPa. Duratomic based coatings are around 30.5 GPa, which is about a 10 – 15 percent increase. This hardness increase is going to translate directly into an increase in abrasion resistance and, therefore, tool life.

Seco: Steel Turning Grade S e c o h a s d eve l o p e d t h e T P 3 5 0 0, i t s fifth Duratomic grade for steel turning.

Development has focused on achieving a grade with the toughness necessary for high productivity turning of steels in demanding applications.

The increased wear resistance of the coating has made it possible to widen the application window, utilising tougher substrates. This effect is predominant when the ‘time in cut’ is short to medium, or interrupted.

Other area of focus was achieving the versatility to handle a range of steel materials. The tool is designed for ISO P25-P40 and M25-M40 applications.

The capability to handle both wet and dry machining will make it a suitable choice for mixed production.

Enquiry No. 7005

The coating also runs cooler – on average from 915 deg C down to 880 deg C in a typical application, enough to substantially increase crater wear resistance. The grade itself is black in colour because of the coat, which binds the aluminium oxide to the titanium carbonitride layer underneath.

Ti(C , N ) i s ve r y ha rd a nd abrasion resistant. Below these coating levels are new substrates tailored to complement the coating.

Most of the substrates have cobaltenriched zones which means that the metallic cobalt has been taken from the core of this structure to the surface.

T h i s co b a l t- e n r i c h e d z o n e prov ide s additiona l toughne ss close to the surface below the coating and that in turn increases resistance to cracking and allowing for a certain insert ‘flex’.

S ay s M r G ra ha m: “O vera l l, Duratomic coatings demonstrated improved toughness, heat and wear resistance and reduction of edge build-up. Field tests have shown up to 100 percent improved productivity in combination with a 400 percent increase in tool life.” MEN Enquiry No. 7006

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metalworking equipment news October 2009

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W

hen a company like Speck- Pumpen Walter Speck of Roth, Germany, produces more than 200,000 pumps and pump systems for various industries and applications each year, it would only be fair to assume that the required components are ma nufactured in large production runs. Not so.

In fact, typical production runs average out at only around 50-100 parts, whereby single-digit lot sizes do represent more of an exception than the rule.

This naturally requires appropriately organised, flexible machining fabrication. The company has collaborated with DMG in order to achieve this.

T h e c o m p a n y ’s p r o d u c t s have sta nda rd applications in machine tool construction, laser technology, welding technology and the construction of agricultural machinery and rail vehicles.

Manufacturing Strategies Production a nd technica l specifications have a relationship, which requires close attention.

Wolfgang Krüger, GM, Speck-Pumpen Walter Speck, points out the close interaction between machine tool and cutting material.

He says: “Ultimately, the only means of increasing the productivity of our fabrication process is through the autonomous creation of new or

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Double Adopting the right manufacturing strategies and forming a perfect collaboration can reap considerable benefits. By Ralph Schiffler, for DMG. alternative manufacturing strategies and the advancing development activity that results from it in each of these three elements. If we merely procured our workpieces from outside, we would lose the knowhow we need to be able to improve existing products and processes and to develop and produce new pumps.”

And on top of that, the pumps are subjected to extremely high quality demands. “In order to maintain high efficiency, for example, Speck pumps need to hold clearances not infrequently in the region of less than

100th of a millimetre, which entails a corresponding level of precision in each of the individual components.

The trend towards smaller pumps with ever-higher efficiencies is also intensifying the high demand for quality,” he adds.

In the final analysis, however, Mr Krüger freely admits that the economic and qualitative aspects are not the only factors he takes into account.

Beside increased productivity a nd reduced production costs,

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The 4x pallet magazine represents an example of flexible automation

t h e r o l e o f n e w, e x p a n d e d requirements for ecologically and socially responsible production is gaining importance. As an example, he cites efficient dry machining options, or at least the possibility of minimising the quantities of coolant lubricants used.

Right For The Job The dema nds placed on the equipment used are high. Taking into account the company’s investment policy in the area of mechanical ma nufactur ing, a nd e specia lly relative to machine tools for turning and milling, these conditions have recently enabled DMG to become what essentially amounts to an ‘exclusive partner’.

As a result, the factory floors in Roth are fitted with universal turning machines from the CTX and CTX linear model series, a turningmilling centre and vertical turning machines from Gildemeister. There are also universal centres with and without pallet systems and millingturning centres, small universal m illing machine s a nd ver t ica l machining centres.

“When you can meet all of the machining operation’s requirements with just a single partner, it brings nothing but advantages – whether within the context of investments, service or the rapid supply of spare parts. In addition, the operators are familiar with both the control systems and the processes – which facilitates

The manufacturing operations are generally dominated by small production runs with lot sizes averaging 50 components

at the very least a smooth and efficient production workflow,” says Mr Krüger.

To give further examples he cites the possibilities of automation and of complete machining: “Given our small lot sizes combined with increasing quality requirements and short delivery times, it is absolutely crucial that we machine more and more of our workpieces using the fewest possible setups. Here, for example, we’ve already taken a step forward with the automated combination of a universal centre and 4x rotary pallet magazine and, above all, with the milling-turning technology from Deckel Maho. With a turning-milling centre from the GMX linear series, we’re achieving similar rationalisation effects with rotation-

DMG:

symmetric parts.”

Rejecting any suggestion that this focused partnership might cause the company to miss out on important innovations in certain areas, Mr Krüger says: “We take each new decision on a case-bycase basis, whether or not DMG leads the pack technologically.

If we find a better way to meet a given need with a manufacturing engineering solution from another supplier, we certainly won’t pass up that opportunity.”

Ending off with confidence, he concludes: “If you want to edge out the competition, you have to be clearly and quantifiably better.” MEN Enquiry No. 7007

Uncompromising Turning & Milling

T h e tu r nin g /m illi n g c e n tre s from DMG permit machining of parts up to 630 mm turning diameter and a maximum length of 2,000 mm.

Turning/milling centres of the CTX beta TC and CTX gamma TC series feature a degree of standardisation with operator friendliness.

The degree of innovation manifests itself with the turning/milling machines with turning lengths from 1,250 to 2,000 mm, turning diameters up to 630 mm and a bar capacity up to 76 mm diameter. The annex TC is short for the integrated disc magazine with a tool changer and space for 24 tools on the CTX beta TC, or 36 tools on the CTX gamma TC respectively.

Enquiry No. 7008

October 2009 metalworking equipment news

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technology

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update

Always On The Motion Control Technology:

Move

Sigurd Decroos, Oudenburg, Belgium

Never standing still, in keeping with the very notion of its existence, the pursuit of technological brilliance in motion control systems is an on going process. By Augustine Quek

34

metalworking equipment news October 2009

technologyUpdate

www.equipment-news.com

In Control Most motion controllers today are able to control 32 axes of motion, with interoperability among many standards of communication, mostly open source standards.

For example, Omron’s Sysmac CS/C J ser ie s a re multi - a x is,

high- speed motion controllers.

Using Mechatrolink- II ser vo communications, it can control up to 32 a xes and setting each axis individually. In addition, eight motion tasks can be used to execute motion programs simultaneously with both independent control and control involving multiple axes.

Mitsubishi Electric Automation has two motion controllers, the Q172D

and Q173D. The former is an eight-axis motion controller and the latter is a 32-axis motion controller expandable up to 96 axes. These controllers offer positioning, speed, synchronous phase and torque control.

The units provide on-the -fly mode switching and registration through electronic cam and gearing.

They are suitable for packaging applications like roll feeding, bag

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T

he history of motion control dates back to antiquity. Early motion control systems include mechanical float regulator mechanisms that could control the rate of flowing water.

These were used in devices such as water clocks as early as 300 BC. In 1769, James Watt invented the steam flyball engine governor, which is generally considered to be the first powered feedback system, but without an amplifier or gain.

T he first feedback position control device was the ship steering engine, used to position the rudder of large ships based on the position of ship’s wheel.

A m o re fo r m a l a n a l y si s o f the field began with a dynamics analysis of the centrifugal governor, conducted by the physicist James Clerk Ma x well. This de scribed and analysed the phenomenon of ‘hunting’, in which lags in the system can lead to overcompensation and unstable behaviour.

A motion control system usually comprises a controller, a drive or amplifier, an actuator and some feedback sensors. The controller generates set points for the desired output or motion profile in the form of signa l, which a re conver ted by the amplifier to high power currents or voltages.

The actuator can then respond to these electrical signals by actual mot ion, such a s cha ng ing t he pressure in a pump, increasing the speed on a motor or moving a linear actuator. Feedback sensors, such as optical encoders or resolvers, are able to measure the actual change and return this information to the motion controller, in order to close the control loop.

October 2009 metalworking equipment news

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technologyupdate

Servo & Motors Re qu irement s for sma ller a nd tighter precision movements have meant that pneumatic and hydraulic controls are no longer favoured.

Instead, electronic actuation has been the forefront of most advances, with electric brushless motors being the most common now.

Currently, the two most popular brushless motor technologies in the market are step and servo. Both can provide the accuracy and control needed for precise motion. However, higher peak power at higher speeds can be achieved with servomotors. In applications with power requirements exceeding ¾ horsepower and motor speeds exceeding 3,000 rpm for example, servomotors may be the better choice.

Step motors, a s a re su lt of the way they a re constr ucted, a re inherently lower cost tha n servomotors. Step motors do not require tuning, allow for a greater inertia mismatch and have high to rqu e d e n sit y. B e c a u s e s te p motors are synchronous motors with a high pole count, they are able to run smoothly at extremely slow speeds with no cogging. This 36

metalworking equipment news October 2009

technolog y is displayed in the AccuStep control system.

It is claimed to prevent the loss of synchronisation, or stall, due to transient or continued overload, extreme acceleration or deceleration, or excessive slew speed.

The control technolog y monitors the location of the rotor relative to the stator in terms of motor steps. When the location e qua ls or e xce e ds a set limit, t he system ca n either slow or accelerate the stator to a speed that equals the rotor, such that the rotor and stator lead or lag stays within bounds.

This change in stator commutation speed will continue until a change in either commanded motor speed or load requirements allow the motor to create sufficient torque at the commanded speed.

Other systems in the market feature real-time adaptive auto tuning, which continuously monitors the control parameters and adjust them automatically to match current conditions. This autotuning function delivers continuous automatic adjustment with optimum performance for a range of previously ‘difficult’ applications, including suspended loads and high friction applications.

Simulate To Stimulate Improvements A nother major advancement in motion control can be attributed to simulations that aid predictive performance and design processes.

E n g i ne e r s a re sho r te n i n g t he d e v e l op m e nt c yc l e o f m o t io n and motor control systems using software packages with a pre-built libra r y t hat simulate s motors, controllers, sensors, loads and voltage sources.

S of t wa re s l i ke t he V i s S i m / Embedded Controls Developer can create prototype and embedded controllers. System models can be built using a ny of t he five fidelity motor models, including AC induction, brushless DC, and stepper motor models.

A simulation can then be done that includes a physical process for real-time hardware-in-the-loop simulation and validation. It can calculate the optimal PID controller gains that give minimal time to setpoint, plus minimal overshoot by allowing the user to specify cost functions such as steady-state error, rise and settling times.

T he inter face to re a l - world hardware is through computer I/O cards, high-speed motion control inter face ca rds, or seria l por t connections to a PLC or DCS.

The worldwide market for general motion control may grow at a compounded annual growth rate of 6.1 percent and is forecasted to be nearly US$7 billion in 2010

Siemens press picture

making, press feed, flying cut-off, random in-feed, form-fill-seal, linear slide and linear motors.

Elsewhere, Siemens’ Simotion controllers are modular in design that can provide a common platform for all motion control tasks.

According to the company, the system comprises three components, the engineering system, runtime software and hardware platforms.

The runtime software has a modular structure and comprises a PLC, in compliance with IEC 61131-3, and optional functions such as positioning, synchronous operation, camming and interpolation.

The system has three different hardware platforms – the controller, the panel PC and the drive. For example, the PC-based Simotion P350-3 can control machines with over 40 axes in two milliseconds.

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VMX Series High Performance VMX Series

VTX Series 5-Axis VTX Series

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+65-6742 6177 R O L

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+65-6742 +65-67426177 6177 HTX Series Horizontal HTX Series

TM Series Lathes TM Series

Performance Lathes Address: 1 High Ubi View #01-17 5-Axis Focus One,Horizontal Singapore 408555 VMX Series VTX Series HTX Series TM Series Performance 5-Axiswww.hurco.com.sg Horizontal Lathes Tel: +65 6742 6177 • Fax: +65 High 6745 7664 • Website: • email: hseas@hurco.com.sg

VM Series General Purpose

technologyupdate

Keep It Small Motion control technologies have also been inducted into the trend towards miniaturisation. This was boosted in no small way by the semiconductor industry, which had continuously been placing a greater number of transistors on a single computer.

Continua l miniaturisation of semiconductor process ma nu fac tu r i n g w it h e ach new generation of chip technology has driven the need for better and more precise measurement or movement with sub-nanometric accuracy.

Most nano motion devices use either the piezoelectric effect or magnetism. Piezoelectric materials deform slightly when an electric current is passed through, or the converse, a re able to produce ele c t r ic it y whe n subje c te d to mechanical stress. Devising work ba sed on this principle a llows the production of a small force or movement over a very short distance, making it ideal for nano motion machines.

However, achieving subnanometer precision requires more than just a piezo stage, its internal metrology system must also be capable of measuring motion on the nanometre scale. Three types of sensors are typically used in piezo nanopositioning applications, capacitive, strain and Linear Variable Differential Transformer (LVDT).

Capacitive sensors measure the gap between two parallel plates using the principle of electrical capacita nce. They ca n ma ke noncontact, direct measurements of moving platforms with virtually no effect on size and mass when built into nanopositioning devices.

Capacitive sensors usually are the highest resolution, stability, linearity and bandwidth.

Strain gauge sensors are resistive film bonded to a piezo stack or a flexure stage. It infers the position of the platform from a contact, indirect measurement at the lever, flexure or stack. LVDT sensors measure magnetic flux 38

metalworking equipment news October 2009

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Siemens press picture

Most motion controllers today have interoperability among many standards of communication

Boosted in no small way by the semiconductor industry, motion control technologies have embraced the trend towards miniaturisation

in a coil. One way LVDT can be used is to measure the change in the inducta nce of a mov ing platform with an attached magnet, which moves within a coil. LVDT me a su rement s a re noncontact direct measurements of position.

Physik Instrumente has a range of piezo electric nanopositioning stages that utilise what is known as flexure motion, based on the elastic deformation of a solid material. Its Picma piezo actuators are claimed to be the only actuators with co-fired ceramic encapsulation, and provides higher performance of actuatorapplied strain gauge sensors.

Their capacitive sensors use h i g h - f r e qu e n c y AC e xc it a t i o n signa l to enha nce the stability and bandwidth measurements. Its ILS linearisation system, together with its digital controllers and digital polynomial linearisation can supposedly achieve system linearity of 0.01 percent or better.

Other Piezo actuators developed by the Cedrat Group, have force and displacement performance ranges which are beyond that of direct or bimorph Piezo actuators.

Be side mecha nisms ba sed on piezo -actuators, Micromega Dynamics has developed positioning mechanisms based on the magnetic bearing technology.

As compared to existing positioning systems that use several positioning

Stockers9, UK

me c ha n i sm i n se r ie s (e g : one rough and one fine positioning system), those mechanisms fulfil the following requirements in only one stage.

Future Trends According to a report by the ARC Advisory Group, the worldwide market for general motion control may grow at a compounded annual grow th rate of 6.1 percent and is forecasted to be nearly US$7 billion in 2010. The report also says that the motion control market trends are primarily driven from a manufacturer’s goal to achieve lower lifecycle costs of plant equipment while fulfilling overall business objective s to quick ly produce product variants in small lots on the same manufacturing lines.

There is also a trend towards flexible, modular concepts solutions for se r v ice , ma i nte na nce a nd connection to supervisory control systems. Therefore, innovative technologies are in dema nd to continually increase and optimise p r o d u c t i v i t y. M o t i o n c o n t r o l technologies have played a major role in this respect, and will continue to do so in the future. MEN Enquiry No. 7101

With Added Functions & New Design For Easy Operation

Digimatic Height Gage

Series 192 Standard & Multi-function Type l High contrast LCD screen with 11mm character height. l Rigid construction ensures measurement repeatability. l Rear drive handle inclined by 10ยบ for easy handling &

improved manipulation.

Digimatic Indicator ID - C New Series 543 ABSOLUTE Digimatic Indicator ID-C

l Mitutoyo patented ABS

sensor eliminates origin point alignment when power-on. l Internal calculation functions using simple formula [f(x)=A(x)] l Easy-to-read 11mm character height display.

Mitutoyo Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd.

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24 Kallang Avenue, Mitutoyo Building, Singapore 339415 Tel: (65) 6294 2211 Fax: (65) 6299 6666 E-mail: mapsg@mitutoyo.com.sg Website: http://www.mitutoyo.com.sg Mitutoyo (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd.

Tel: (60)3-7845 9318 Fax: (60)3-7845 9346 E-mail: mmsb@mitutoyo.com.my M(M)S.B. - Penang Branch Tel: (60)4-641 1998 Fax: (60)4-641 2998 E-mail: mmsbpen@mitutoyo.com.my M(M)S.B. - Johor Branch Tel: (60)7-352 1626 Fax: (60)7-352 1628 E-mail: mmsbjhr@mitutoyo.com.my

Mitutoyo (Thailand) Co., Ltd.

Tel: (66)2-521 6130 Fax: (66)2-521 6136 E-mail: office@mitutoyo.co.th MTC - Cholburi Branch Tel: (66)3-834 5783 Fax: (66)3-834 5788 E-mail: office@mitutoyo.co.th MTC - Amata Nakorn Branch Tel: (66)3-846 8976 Fax: (66)3-846 8978 E-mail: office@mitutoyo.co.th

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technologyupdate

M

achine builders and factory operators may have misconceptions about hydraulicbased motion. Although valued for its ability to move, crush or lift heavy loads, it has not been thought of a s exceptiona lly precise, or able to support highly complex, synchronised multi-axis applications.

T he a d ve nt o f c lo se d - lo op electrohydraulic motion controllers has changed the equation, allowing p r o d u c t i o n l i n e s to b e m o r e precise and repeatable, as well as sophisticated and flexible.

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Choose The Right

One!

Closed-loop electrohydraulic motion controllers allow production lines to be more precise and repeatable, as well as sophisticated and flexible. By Michael Liedhegener, application engineer, machine tool group, Bosch Rexroth

technologyUpdate

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A ra nge of electrohydraulic controller platforms are available.

Choosing the right one is based o n a s se s si n g se ve ra l fac tor s, s t a r t i n g w it h t he a ppl ic a t io n requirements a nd including motion complexity, the number of axes to be controlled, and machine design and operational factors.

Closed-Loop Hydraulic Control Hydraulic motion control is the coordinated cont rol of t he acceleration, velocity and position as well as force or pressure of a machine axis or actuator such as a cylinder or hydraulic motor.

Previous generation machines typically used open-loop control, s e n d i n g a si mp l e si g n a l to a directional or proportional valve to control only one of these factors.

This re sults in the limiting of precision and sophistication of motion control. In addition, openloop control often required manual fine-tuning, adding time and costs to machine commissioning or updating.

Closed-loop hydraulic control adds feedback to the hydraulic circuit by adding position a nd pressure sensors to the system, providing real-time data on system states like position, its derivatives and forces. This enables rapid , pre c i se , repeatable, and A closed-loop control system

Force Command Valve Output Load Cell

Force Loop

Pressure Feedback Pressure Loop

(most impor ta nt ly) automated p o sit ion a nd force cont rol of hydraulic actuators.

A number of simple applications can be configured using open-loop control, but quality requirements and high-throughput demands make closed-loop motion control and electrohydraulic controllers the preferred approach.

Going with a digital controller of fe rs sig n i f ic a nt adv a nta ge s.

Fo r t he m ac h i ne b u i l de r, t he complexity and time of machine sta r t up w il l b e re duce d. For series machines, once a digital control project template is created it can be applied to multiple machines with little extra effort or expense.

For the end-user, process monitoring and machine diagnosis is built into the controller at no extra cost.

Points Of Decision To choose the best controller for an application, start with four key decision points to assess and define during machine development. The key decision criteria include: • Accuracy of the hydraulic axis stroke and positioning • Need for single, combination or multi-axis control • Preference for configuration or programming of motion sequences • Bus architecture and I/O support

Accuracy Of Stroke & Positioning Most closed-loop hydraulic cont rol ler pro duc t line s of fer

Active Damping

The ability to cascade control loops gives formidable processing power

low-cost analogue controllers to support basic motion requirements such as simple position or flow cont rol. However, since t he se controllers do not incorporate digital feedback and processing, they generally do not provide accurate positioning at the endpoint.

If you need stroke accuracy greater than 0.1 percent of the total stroke – for example, no more than a tenth of an inch deviation over a ten - inch st roke, you need the precise accuracy and stability provided by digital feedback and control.

Eve n i f t he mot ion is ver y simple a nd t he pat h of t ravel does not require high accuracy, if fine positioning at the endpoint is required, such as micron-levels of accuracy for the machine tool or plastic industry, then analogue controllers would be eliminated from the decision-making process.

Define Number Of Axes M o st d i g it a l e le c t rohyd rau l ic controller manufacturers offer a range of systems, with options based on application complexity. The next decision point is driven by how many axes you need the controller to support: • Single axis • Combination (2 to 4) axis • Multi-axis (from 2 to 32) S i n g le - a x i s co nt rol le r s a re commonly used to replace analogue controllers and are suited to a October 2009 metalworking equipment news

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technologyupdate

Single-axis controllers often use menu-driven ‘ladder-logic’ that is very easy to learn and use, and supports fast implementation of most standard single-axis motion sequences

wide range of applications such as clamping, presses, materials h a n d l i n g, te s t i n g te c h nolo g y, steelworks and machine tools.

A common misconception is that single-axis controllers are ‘simple’ devices, supporting less than the full range of motion control. Most singleaxis controllers support position, pressure, velocity and force control, as well as position or flow control with bumpless transfer to pressure control, and active damping for improved dynamics.

Si n g le - a x is cont rol lers c a n perform complex operations. For example: a honing tool conducting a complex oscillating single-axis motion, working a cylinder cavity in an engine block.

The axis of motion has an precise endpoint and control during the honing. If increasing friction or some other material factor is affecting the operation, the electrohydraulic controller adjusts velocity or force (or both) in real time to keep the actuator within microns of the target.

If an application has multiple axes with machine footprint space limitations, or requirements for more cost-effective control architecture, then you should consider using ‘combination axis’ controllers.

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Combination axis controllers – controlling up to four axes of motion – provide a cost-effective option and provide the full range of position, pressure, velocity and force as well as ‘master-slave’ architecture.

This avoids redundancies such as multiple bus interfaces, I/Os or space-consuming enclosures. It can also enhance the communication between a xes for coordination, synchronisation or safety purposes.

A master controller card handles bus communications and power distribution, with four other cards controlled by the ma ster. This provides several efficiencies: • Only a single power supply and bus communications link to the master card is needed • Less equipment equals lower machine costs and better use of space • Axis changes or updates can be uploaded to the ma ster ca rd instead of connecting and updating each controller Multi-axis controllers are the top - of-the-line systems, capable o f h a n d l i n g up to 32 i nte rpolatable axes.

If you have an application that calls for bumpless transfer from velocity control to pressure control during a motion loop – in a plastics injection molding machine, for example – that kind of sequence is typically configurable, and can be easily and precisely implemented using pre-stored commands.

Motion sequence complexity at this level is limited to what the controller supplier provides in the configuration system. If more complex sequences are required, such a s NC level functiona lity where the precision of either position or force through the motion loop requires real-time processing of algorithms in response to feedback, then you may need to choose a more powerful controller (either single or combination axis) that supports ‘G-code’ programming.

Unlike the configuration platform, this will require handson experience using a BASIC-type programming language. G - code commands are an industr y standard machine language t hat le t s u sers de f i ne mot ion s e qu e n c e s o f t h e a xe s u si n g freely programmable NC programs.

Controller ‘Programming’ Once you determine whether you need a single-axis, combination-axis or multi-axis electrohydraulic controller, you need to evaluate the controller’s ‘programming’ tools according to the best fit for your application and operational requirements.

Most product lines offer three controller ‘programming’ options, with ascending levels of programming complexity. Choosing the most suitable will often be based on the sophistication, skills and experience of the programming and machine operator resources.

Single -a xis controllers often use a menu-driven ‘ladder-logic’ configuration system that is very easy to learn and use, and supports fast implementation of most standard single-axis motion sequences.

For analogue and digital I/O, make sure the controller you select is equipped with enough I/O to support your application

ENQUIRY NO 089

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Bus Architecture A s yo u ide nt i f y t he opt i mu m cont roller plat for m, you mu st ensure the communications and power interfaces you need are fully supported.

There a re a number of bus architectures that electrohydraulic platforms support, including • CanOpen Field Bus • DeviceNet • Profibus • Interbus-S • SERCOS Drive bus • Ethernet

To help evaluate different controller platforms, look at factors such as accuracy requirements for stroke and positioning, the need for single, combination or multi-axis control, your preference for configuration or programming of motion sequences, and requirements for bus architecture and I/O support

Most electrohydraulic controller product lines support several of these buses on each product, so the choice is often dependent on the communications backbone of the machine you are building or upgrading.

For analogue and digital I/O, make sure the controller you select is equipped with enough I/O to support your application.

Finding The Right Support Besides standard commands, the best electrohydraulic controller platforms in this category support special NC commands tailored to the particular features of hydraulic a xe s, such a s fields of closed loop force/pressure control and limitation, transitions from closedloop position to pressure control, and adaptive controller functions.

If your application ca lls for multi-a xis sy nchronisation and ver y complex control loops, the most effective a nd flex ible controller is one that supports C-level programming.

Applications requiring active sy nchronism w ith force limitation, or dynamically adding or w ithdraw ing a xe s from a synchronised group during operation, ca ll for adva nced algorithms that need to be written in higher-level languages.

This programming approach a lso facilitate s controller- level 44

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proce ssing of comple x motion sequence s for more efficient machine control. For example, in a CNC machine, if a cam profile is being machined, the controller acce sse s a lo ok- up table w it h ex tremely fine variations in co m m a nd v a lue s, g u id i n g t he ac tuator t hroug h a comple x series of motions to complete the machining of the cam.

When an application such as this demands millisecond sampling and processing of feedback devices in the control loop, it is more efficient and more reliable to process motion control sequences at the controller l e v e l , r a t he r t h a n co n s t a nt l y communicating back and forth to a machine-level PLC. Therefore, choose a controller engineered to support both C-level programming of sequences, and powerful enough to handle onemillisecond sa mpling a nd loop sequence processing.

Electrohydraulic controllers provide more options, a nd much more flexibility for implementing the precise, repeatable automation control architectures demanded by today’s global manufacturing infrastructure.

I t m a ke s se n se to lo ok for a supplier that ha s in - depth experience engineering a wide range of motion control platforms ac ro s s mu lt iple te c h nolo g ie s, combined with ex tensive experience in open and closed-loop hydraulics systems.

Suppliers that have overa ll system understa nding a nd the capability to perform computer simulation of the static a nd dynamic behavior of the machine axes will be able to help you select the right electrohydraulic platform to me et a ll you r p er for ma nce requirements. MEN Enquiry No. 7102

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cutting edges and more......

more corner for your money

detail chip breaker

economy

chip control

angled center screw

optional wiper insert

precise and strong clamping

flat contact surface with holder

ENQUIRY NO 082

best surface finish

chip forming geometry

impact stability

light cutting action

bigger insert screw

thick insert

low maintenance

security modern coating

high productivity

LMT - THE PERFORMANCE TEAM Leitz Metalworking Technology Asia Pte. Ltd. 1 Clementi Loop #04-01, Clementi West Distripark Singapore 129808 er

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(65) 6462 4214 (65) 6462 4215 sales@lmta.com.sg www.lmt-tools.com

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software&

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measurement

C

omputer-A ided Desig n (CA D) i s t he u se of co mpu te r te c h nolo g y for the design of objects.

Popular and extensively used in the automotive and aerospace industry, it has gained not just economic importance, but has also opened the door for more computerised solutions into the manufacturing industries.

A program is used to present important information like dimensions and tolerances found in engineering or technical drawings.

Able to display in 2D and more recently 3D format, the technology is moving forward to reflect the advancements of today.

In the manufacturing spectrum, efficiency and productivity are of utmost importance. This gives rise to the need for a computer based tool that helps engineers and machinists alike to manufacture parts.

Computer-Aided Manufacturing (CAM) frequently incorporates CAD into the manufacturing process in order to create a faster, more precise and consistent production process.

Benefits like waste minimisation and energy conservation are often synonymous with the usage of CAM. Col le c t ively, CA D/CA M c a n be classified as computer-aided technologies. Often used in the context of a software tool covering a number of engineering functions, they can further evolve into many different aspects of product lifecycle management, including design and analysis using finite element analysis.

CAD/CAM & Metalworking The recent advances in metalworking

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Fast& CAD/CAM Advances:

Furious

Riding in the front of the technology train, CAD/CAM is staying one step ahead to better serve the metalworking community.

By Joson Ng

are aplenty. From CNC systems in machine tools to orbital drilling in composites, many innovations have been applied to satisfy the stringent requirements. In order to sustain these initiatives, much attention must surely be put on the design and manufacturing of these products.

Seen as an integrated operation the se days, the usa ge of CA D/ CA M enables ma nufacturing

processes to be considered at the product design stage. Analysis of design data is allowed. As such, the designer can assess a design t h ro u g h d i f fe r e n t a n g l e s a n d explore different possibilities to make better predictions.

For instance in sheet metalworking, 3 D C A D ha s b e e n appl ie d a s it is important to understand the parameters for the unfolding process.

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Advances in the field of CAD/CAM can directly affect the people on the ground in terms of productivity

Programs can help in producing a more accurate part as parameters like bend allowances and geometry are taken into consideration.

Apart from improving accuracy, transfer of information is also easy – they are received through network, and NC data are produced from that to supply to working machine.

Importing drawing files directly into software can both save time and reduce costs. In addition, data can be stored in digitalised form.

Innovate. Improve. Ingenuity The accuracy and complexity of modern parts have placed added s t r a i n o n m a nu fa c t u r e r s a n d designers alike. With such great expectations come the integration of C A D/C A M i nto m a i n st re a m manufacturing and design processes.

Not only that, improvements have to be made on this particular front so perhaps it is of no surprise that CAD/CAM solutions providers are all

operating in full swing, coming out with various programs to complement the existing range of products.

Cimatron, provider of integrated CA D/CA M solutions for mould, tool and die makers as well as manufacturers of discrete parts, released its version 9.0 of CimatronE. Its integrated solutions allow design and NC programming to take place in the same environment, el im i nat ing t he ne e d for data translation, preventing errors and saving time wasted transferring files from one application to another.

Elsewhere, Delcam has launched Fe a t u r e C A M , a fe a t u re - b a s e d machining software. It will include enhancements from 2D drilling and wire EDM, to five-axis milling and mill-turn operations.

Automation within the program gives faster programming. These development s a re suppor t for multi-threading when generating 3D toolpaths. They allow calculations

to be spread across multiple cores in dual- or quad-core computers.

Average time savings are around 25 percent on a dual-core PC. Improved algorithms have been introduced within the user interface to speed up the editing of features and to reduce the time needed to switch between machine-tool set-ups, while more efficient handling of stock models will reduce the memory required, so as to improve performance.

Further development yields a programming option that combines drilling and milling functionality that will allow more efficient hole creation on machines fitted with automatic tool changing. It generates roughing and finishing toolpaths to produce any holes for which the appropriate drill is not loaded, using the existing tooling within the machine’s crib.

It is evident that advances in this field can directly affect the people on the ground. Companies that do not have automatic tool changing on their machines will benefit from this improvement.

In some cases, it will be possible to use a combination of drilling and milling with a single cutter to generate all the holes in the part.

This could then allow the complete sequence to be run without the machine needing to be manned.

Other options in the machining software include a spiral finishing option that gives faster machining and improved surface finish with no dwell marks, and automatic rest roughing to minimise air cutting when applying a series of progressively-smaller roughing cutters.

In addition, a 3D chamfer can be added to a part, even when this is not

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Advances in CAD/CAM allow feature measurement/inspection and CAD-to-part comparison

PC-DMIS has a feature, which protects against all editing or changing of the program or reports

shown in the model, for de-burring and similar clean-up operations.

Faster machining and better surface finish are possible now.

The product has the same ability to redistribute the points within any toolpath to enable faster, smoother machining. Similarly, the program can undertake tool-axis smoothing to avoid sudden changes in orientation of the cutter during five-axis machining.

Machining simulation has also been made faster and more accurate, in particular for simultaneous five-axis machining. Furthermore, a dual-view option allows a part to be viewed from two-different angles simultaneously.

This is helpful when simulating the production of large or complex parts.

Inspection Software The advances in CAD/CAM is not contained in production, it is also present in inspection as well. CAM2 Measure X by Faro allows feature measurement/inspection and CADto-part comparison. Comparisons

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of measured parts to engineering design files are possible.

Advancements in technology a llow multi - pa r t inspection, including large files. The engine links multiple measurement files to a single CAD file, instead of each file containing the entire CAD part data.

The handling capability also enables the users to deal with entire CAD files, rather than slice them up into separate sections.

Staying on inspection, Wilcox Associates has released the PCDMIS 2009. The core product of the suite is PC-DMIS CMM, which is used primarily on automated coordinate measuring machines. A feature is ‘protected mode execution’, a ‘run- only’ mode with password protection against all editing or changing of the program or reports.

This mode is useful for companies that have a library of programs and wishes for operators to run them and interact with them without being allowed to alter them in any way.

This is of particular relevance for companies with medical certification requirements, such as FDA. Visual programming enhancements include visualisation of sp e cific move pat hs before a n d a f te r a s e l e c te d fe a t u r e , visualisation and animation of the machine’s working volume within the model view, and translucent cle a ra nce pla ne v isua lisat ion.

Additionally the grid view is expanded to allow points to be defined at any cross section automatically.

Advances also come in the form of measurement capabilities for noncontact 3D laser probes. They include the display of laser stripes, measured features, and measured points.

From design to manufacturing a nd f ina l ly to in sp e c t ion, t he advances in CAD/CAM are the sign of things to come and it is safe to say that the sign is pointing forward. MEN Enquiry No. 7201

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A

New WaveIn

Design

In a bid to conserve the environment, design approaches are changed to introduce the concept of sustainability. By Sharon Toh, GM, South Asia, DS SolidWorks.

S

u sta inable de sig n is a comprehensive, holistic a p p r o a c h to c r e a t i n g products and systems that are environmentally benign, socially equitable, and economically viable.

Design That Saves Implementing the practical aspects of sustainable design involves the following considerations: • Minimal material use • Improved material choices • Design for ease of disassembly • Product reuse or recycling at end of life • Minimal energy consumption • Manufacture without producing hazardous waste (eg: the successful elimination of leadbased solder) • Use of clean technologies as a fundamental mindset (eg: hybrid automotive engines)

Optimisation With Software Design engineers play an important role in the functionality and even to a certain extent, the cost of a project. This sentiment is echoed

by Sharon Toh, GM, South Asia, DS SolidWorks.

“We know that design engineers’ decision contributes to 80 percent of the product cost and sustainability.

We can help by providing integrated si m u l a t i o n , o p t i m i s a t i o n a n d a lternative materia l selections dashboard to assist design engineers in their decision making process,” she says.

With an ever-growing maze of cost and regulatory issues complicating the choice of materials and geometry, designers need tools that automate and simplify material decisions.

Analysis software such as SolidWorks Simulation and SolidWorks Flow Simulation help designers make qualified evaluations of the impacts of their design choices, and quickly run through multiple ‘what if’ scenarios to optimise various user-defined factors.

Software-enabled studies that can result in significant payoffs include: • Analysing complex weight-saving geometries, suggesting the use of tubes and I-beams instead of solid prisms • Compa ring the mecha nica l properties of a part when made f rom d i f fe re nt mate r ia l s, by simply clicking on an embedded material-properties library to

change parameters • Te s t i n g m u l t i p l e f u n c t i o n s for a part, using the configuration manager Such studies offer a low-cost alternative to physical prototyping of each design iteration, allowing designers to aggressively pursue options that would otherwise be too costly and time-consuming to build and test.

Conclusions & Benefits At hough t here may a lways be tradeoffs when evaluating the details of sustainable designs, the long-term benefits are undeniable.

Tradeoffs are best analysed with precise software products, whose results can be repeated, shared, and analysed by all departments in an organisation, from design and manufacturing to marketing and transportation.

Forward-planning companies are more profitable than reactive, defensive companies, and those that improve their competitive position may also keep jobs from going overseas. MEN Enquiry No. 7202

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Fab&

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Form

Disk Laser Technology:

New Generation

Makes The Cut By improving performance and cost efficiency, the third generation of disk laser technology may well be the golden generation. By Ryu Tan, product manager, solid state lasers, Trumpf

O

f ten cha racter ised by a heat sink and a laser output, a disk laser is a type of solid-state laser that is generated on opposite sides of a thin layer in a dynamic medium.

There have been significant R&D efforts in disk laser technology in recent years resulting in the third generation of industrial disk lasers.

Compared to its predecessors, reduction in both investment and running cost are achieved. They are improvements in cost efficiency and the reduction of up to 60 percent in a 4 kW laser footprint (the projection of the laser beam and buffer zone on the ground or target area).

Taking reference from TruDisk

by Trumpf, the variety of different disk laser applications reflects the versatility of this laser concept.

Applications in the micro area are served as well as in the thickness sheet macro area.

Due to the beam quality, cutting and welding applications in the sheet thickness range of 0.05 to 15 mm is possible. In addition, the latest development with multi-kW disk lasers is the melt pressure induced remote cutting, which can be used with sheet thickness of up to 4 mm.

To date, disk laser is used for remote welding in several manufacturing OEM companies and suppliers.

Disk Laser Concept The disk laser design benefits from five properties: 1. Virtually no thermal lensing due to axial heat flow enables high brightness of the disk laser.

2. Low brightness requirements o f t he pu mp d io de s e nable cost effective lasers with high electrical to optical conversion efficiency – especially in the high average power regime.

3. Area scaling of the beam cross section enables power scaling while keeping constant internal intensities.

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High power disk laser is suited for welding tasks on thick sheet metal

‘wear parts’. They now have the same status as any other non consumable components inside the laser.

Light Work

Optical arrangements in the disk laser resonator contributes to good laser beam

4. Deep gain saturation eliminates harmful back reflection problems which are commonly encountered in fibre laser systems 5. The modal cross sections are generally large compared with longitudinal extension of the gain medium. Therefore high peak power sources are possible without facing problems due to non-linearities.

The Cost Factor The cost of the disk la ser ha s continued to decrease since first introduced back in 1998. Moreover, the third generation disk laser has brought reductions in both capital investment and operating costs for several reasons.

First, the diode modules are more powerful than its predecessors.

Greater diode power means more laser power per disk. More laser power, and fewer disks mean a reduced number of pump units, pump module, laser cavities, resonator optics and a reduced cabinet size. All this adds up to reduced manufacturing costs and less floor space, which decreases operating cost.

Secondly, it is important to note that since the pump spot on the disk is relatively large, the diodes used to pump disk lasers can have a relatively poor beam quality (500 - 600 mm*mrad) compared to the diodes used for fibre lasers. Diodes for fibre lasers require good beam quality as

they are launched into very small diameter fibres and spliced to a small diameter fibre laser.

This means that the disk laser a rc h ite c t u re h a s a n i n he re nt advantage over the fibre laser when it comes to the quality and price of the pump source. This can be turned into an economic advantage to add value to the integrated laser package.

Finally, not only are the diode modules less expensive, enabling much reduced investment costs, the diodes experience an increased life expectancy leading to reduced running cost.

With the new generation laser, the diodes are passively cooled enabling them to shed the tag of

Trumpf:

The disk laser concept enables a multitude of different applications.

T he ra n ge b e g i n s w it h m ic ro processing and extends to (but does not end with) multi-KW applications in the thick plate range.

Like high speed cutting of thin sheets and fine welding of thin foils, hybrid laser welding with high power disk laser and laser remote scanner welding are just a small sampling of the broad base of disk laser applications.

They can process nearly any material and even highly reflective materials like copper or aluminium are processed without any back reflection problem. Moreover disk laser is produced for continuous reproducible processing results with the help of power feedback control inside the laser.

A s high power disk la ser is suited for welding tasks on thick sheet metal, its applications include welding/cutting tasks in industry l i ke automot ive , con st r uc t ion equipment and shipbuilding, making it undoubtedly a shining light in welding technology. MEN Enquiry No. 7301

Disk Laser Technology

More compact, lower price and higher output power. TruDisk 8002 by Trumpf can process nearly any material and even highly reflective materials like copper or aluminium according to the company.

The disk laser’s design offers the customer no back reflection problem.

Produced for continuous reproducible processing results with the help of power feedback control inside the laser, this disk laser is able to weld 10 mm deep in construction steel with a welding speed of one metre per minute.

Its processing speed offers several productivity advantages such as insensitivity to back reflection, field upgradable, shorter cycle times and higher throughput.

Enquiry No. 7302

October 2009 metalworking equipment news

51

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Laser Cutting:

Ready To

Take Over

Like a young star bursting onto the scene, laser cutting looks set to upstage its more established counterparts and dominate sheet metal cutting for some time.

By Joson Ng

L

i ke h i g h fa sh io n , l a s e r cutting is strutting its stuff in the biggest stage today.

However, its simplicity and other advantages put it in position to expand its reach. Roger Hagmann, MD, Bystronic tells Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News why he thinks this process is here to stay.

“The advantages of laser cutting lie on four levels. First, it is flexibility. Whatever shape the part has, it can be cut with a laser cutting system.You do not need one machine to cut the outer contours and another one for the holes or cut outs. Everything is done on the same machine,” he explains.

According to Mr Hagmann, it can eliminate additional steps in the sheet metal fabrication (eg: deburring and straightening) and with that increase flexibility and production. At the same time WIP may be reduced.

In addition to flexibility, simplicity can be found in modern laser cutting systems, which makes it easy to operate. That however, does not come at the cost of precision as Mr Hagmann says: “Modern laser cutting systems are extremely precise.”

Finally, the speed of laser cutting system is high and speed is not only limited to the cutting movement.

“It’s not only the cutting speed itself that makes the laser cutting system so fast. If you look at the whole process until the finished part is picked up from the machine, the production time per part is in most cases shorter than mechanical cutting. In general, the more complex

52

metalworking equipment news October 2009

the contour, the larger the series and subsequently the greater the advantages of laser cutting. No time-consuming retooling is required and no additional costs for special tooling will be incurred,” he says.

Flexing Its Muscles With the advantages mentioned, it is no surprise that Mr Hagmann is predicting big things for this process.

“With regards to separation processes, laser cutting is dominating today’s sheet metal industries.

The more advanced the market the higher the concentration of laser cutting systems. From this background, a laser cutting system can be recommended as an entry system,” he says.

Looking set to dominate the sheet metal industries, laser cutting can also benefit other sectors as sheet metal is widely used. Mr Hagmann explains: “Sheet metal is cut in a wide variety of industrial sectors. Each of these sectors can benefit from laser cutting.

Particularly job-shops can benefit since they find potential customers in each of these sectors.”

“Typical industries using laser cutting or obtaining parts from job -shops are manufacturers of a g r icu ltu ra l a nd con st r uc t ion machinery, transporting equipment, r a i l ro a d e qu ip m e n t s , k i tc h e n equipments, elevator industries and electrical industries,” he adds.

Like a new emerging star, the process of laser cutting is expected to capture the imagination of many.

When asked about the future of laser cutting, Mr Hagmann concludes: “Laser cutting is a reliable and wellestablished technology. The market share of laser cutting will further increase. Handling and automation will play a more prominent role in the future for unmanned operation.” MEN Enquiry No. 7303

ENQUIRY NO 132

MITSUBISHI MITSUBISHI MITSUBISHI MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, HEAVY HEAVY HEAVY INDUSTRIES, INDUSTRIES, INDUSTRIES, LTD. LTD. LTD. LTD.

MITSUBISHI MITSUBISHI MITSUBISHI MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, HEAVY HEAVY HEAVY INDUSTRIES, INDUSTRIES, INDUSTRIES, LTD. LTD. LTD. LTD.

Jakarta Liaison Jakarta Jakarta Jakarta Office Liaison Liaison Liaison : Office Office Office :: : Machine Machine Tool Machine Machine Division Tool Tool Tool Division : Division Division :: : th thth th Sentral Senayan Sentral Sentral Sentral Senayan IISenayan 12 Senayan IIII12 12 II Sales Department Sales Sales Sales Department Department :Department :: : Floor, JI.12 Asia Floor, Floor, Floor, Afrika, JI. JI.Asia JI. Asia Asia Afrika, Afrika, Afrika, 130, Rokujizo, 130, 130, 130, Rokujizo, Ritto, Rokujizo, Rokujizo, Shiga, Ritto, Ritto, Ritto, 520-3080, Shiga, Shiga, Shiga, 520-3080, 520-3080, Japan 520-3080, Japan Japan Japan No.8, Gelora No.8, No.8, No.8, Bung Gelora Gelora Gelora Karno-Senayan, Bung Bung Bung Karno-Senayan, Karno-Senayan, Karno-Senayan, Jakarta Pusat, Jakarta Jakarta Jakarta Pusat, Pusat, Pusat, Phone : 81-77-552-9768 Phone Phone Phone : :81-77-552-9768 81-77-552-9768 : 81-77-552-9768 Fax: 81-77-552-9774 Fax: Fax: Fax: 81-77-552-9774 81-77-552-9774 81-77-552-9774 Republic Republic ofRepublic Indonesia Republic ofofIndonesia of Indonesia 12170 Indonesia 12170 12170 12170 URL : http//www.mhi-machinetool.com/english/index.html URL URL URL : :http//www.mhi-machinetool.com/english/index.html http//www.mhi-machinetool.com/english/index.html : http//www.mhi-machinetool.com/english/index.htmlPhone : 62-21-5797-4432 Phone Phone Phone : :62-21-5797-4432 62-21-5797-4432 : 62-21-5797-4432 Fax : 62-21-5797-4435 Fax Fax Fax : :62-21-5797-4435 62-21-5797-4435 : 62-21-5797-4435

MITSUBISHI MITSUBISHI MITSUBISHI MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, HEAVY HEAVY HEAVY INDUSTRIES, INDUSTRIES, INDUSTRIES, LTD. LTD. LTD. LTD. Ho Chi Minh Ho HoHo Chi City Chi Chi Minh Minh Representative Minh City City City Representative Representative Representative Office : Office Office Office :: : th th Room 410, Room Room 4Room 410, 410, 410, 4 4ththFloor, 4Floor, Floor, Sun Wah Floor, Sun Tower, Sun Sun Wah Wah Wah Tower, Tower, Tower, 115 Nguyen 115 115 115 Hue Nguyen Nguyen Nguyen Street, Hue Hue District Hue Street, Street, Street, 1,District District District 1,1, 1, Ho Chi Minh Ho HoHo Chi City, Chi Chi Minh Vietnam Minh Minh City, City, City, Vietnam Vietnam Vietnam Phone : 84-8-3824-3279 Phone Phone Phone : :84-8-3824-3279 84-8-3824-3279 : 84-8-3824-3279 Fax : 84-8-3824-2874 Fax Fax Fax : :84-8-3824-2874 84-8-3824-2874 : 84-8-3824-2874

MITSUBISHI MITSUBISHI MITSUBISHI MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES HEAVY HEAVY HEAVY INDUSTRIES INDUSTRIES INDUSTRIES (THAILAND) (THAILAND) (THAILAND) (THAILAND) LTD. LTD. LTD. LTD. MITSUBISHI MITSUBISHI MITSUBISHI MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES HEAVY HEAVY HEAVY INDUSTRIES INDUSTRIES INDUSTRIES SINGAPORE, SINGAPORE, SINGAPORE, SINGAPORE, LTD. LTD. LTD. LTD. MITSUBISHI MITSUBISHI MITSUBISHI MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, HEAVY HEAVY HEAVY INDUSTRIES, INDUSTRIES, INDUSTRIES, LTD. LTD. LTD. LTD. Machine Machine Tool Machine Machine Division Tool Tool Tool Division : Division Division :: : th Floor, th Floor, Bangna Tower Bangna Bangna Bangna A, Tower 8Tower Tower A,A,8A, 8ththFloor, 8Floor, 2/3 Moo 14, 2/3 2/32/3 Bangna-Trad Moo Moo Moo 14, 14,14, Bangna-Trad Bangna-Trad Bangna-Trad K.m.6.5, Bangkaew, K.m.6.5, K.m.6.5, K.m.6.5, Bangkaew, Bangkaew, Bangkaew, Bangplee,Bangplee, Bangplee, Samutprakarn Bangplee, Samutprakarn Samutprakarn Samutprakarn 10540 Thailand 10540 10540 10540 Thailand Thailand Thailand Phone : 66-2-751-9800 Phone Phone Phone : :66-2-751-9800 66-2-751-9800 : 66-2-751-9800 Fax : 66-2-751-9801-2 Fax Fax Fax : :66-2-751-9801-2 66-2-751-9801-2 : 66-2-751-9801-2

Hanoi Representative Hanoi Hanoi Hanoi Representative Representative Representative Office : Office Office Office :: : Machine Machine Tool Machine Machine Group Tool Tool Tool : Group Group Group :: : th th Unit Unit Unit 907-908, 9907-908, 907-908, 9ththFloor, 9Floor, 150 Beach 150 150 Road, 150 Beach Beach Beach #15-08, Road, Road, Road, Gateway #15-08, #15-08, #15-08, West, Gateway Gateway Gateway Singapore West, West, West, Singapore Singapore 189720 Singapore 189720 189720 189720Unit 907-908, Floor, 9 Pacific Floor, Place Pacific Pacific Pacific Place Place Place Phone : 66-5293-6552 Phone Phone Phone : :66-5293-6552 66-5293-6552 : 66-5293-6552 Fax : 66-5293-6553 Fax Fax Fax : :66-5293-6553 66-5293-6553 : 66-5293-6553 83B Ly Thuong 83B 83B 83B Ly Ly Kiet, Thuong Ly Thuong Thuong Hoan Kiet, Kiet, Kiem Kiet, Hoan Hoan Dist., Hoan Kiem Kiem Kiem Dist., Dist., Dist., Hanoi, Vietnam Hanoi, Hanoi, Hanoi, Vietnam Vietnam Vietnam Phone : 84-4-3933-3941 Phone Phone Phone : :84-4-3933-3941 84-4-3933-3941 : 84-4-3933-3941 Fax : 84-4-3933-3947 Fax Fax Fax : :84-4-3933-3947 84-4-3933-3947 : 84-4-3933-3947

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Alejandro MacĂŒas, Mexico

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CombinE

Sheet Metal Welding:

Speed&Accuracy

High-speed tandem gas metal arc welding sees an increase in speed and accuracy over traditional arc welding thanks to improving technologies and techniques. By Marc Purslow, project engineer, EWI

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metalworking equipment news October 2009

T

he pursuit of productivity improvements in the competitive manufacturing env ironments drive the development and optimisation of cutting-edge technologies. One such technology is Tandem Gas Metal Arc Welding (T-GMAW).

T- GM AW is a version of gas metal arc welding that uses two power supplies, two wire feeders, and a specialised torch to establish two electrically isolated welding arcs with a common weld pool.

While it has been available for decades, recent developments in pulse-synchronisation technology

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Photomacrograph of 4.5 m/min tandem gas metal arc welding tailor-welded blank

4.5 m/min tandem gas metal arc welding tailor-welded blank

cost and complexity, as well as a higher tolerance to part fit-up variation.

The Need For Speed

3.5 m/min tandem gas metal arc braze welding lap-joint weld with water cooling

have improved process stability by reducing the detrimental effects of arc interaction.

A mon g t he adv a nta ge s a re increases in deposition rate and travel speed, as well as a reduction in heat input. While it is commonly used in heavy fabrication, recent research has investigated a number of different high-speed welding applications.

T he te chnolog y a lso ha s additional benefits when compared to ot her high - spe e d joining processes such as high-speed laser and hybrid-laser systems. Among these are reductions in equipment

Previous work has demonstrated high-speed welding of steel sheet at travel speeds up to 4.5 m/min using conventional T-GMAW with solid steel wire, as well as Tandem Gas Metal Arc Braze Welding (T-GMABW) with silicon-bronze wire. The focus of this study was to identify and investigate specific applications of the two welding techniques.

To increase the value of this study to the industry, EWI consulted with stakeholders to identify applications of interest. The first application identified was low-cost fabrication of Tailor-Welded Blanks (TWBs). The equipment costs associated with laser welding blanks are very high, and expensive precision-shearing equipment is required as part fit-up is critical.

T-GMAW offers lower equipment costs and a higher tolerance for part fit-up variation. In this application, 1.0 mm thick 980 MPa uncoated steel sheet was welded to 1.4 mm thick 590 MPa uncoated steel sheet in a square-butt joint configuration.

I n t he se co nd a ppl ic at io n , T-GMABW was used for fillet welding of lap joints of 0.7 mm thick 270 MPa 45/45 galvanealed steel sheet and 0.75 mm thick 270 MPa 45/45 galvanealed steel sheet. While this joint configuration was selected due to its use in ‘gutter’ welds common to auto-body construction, it is also

widely used in industry for sheet metal fabrication.

Silicon-bronze filler was used as these joints are non-structural and the lower heat-input required for the T-GMABW process was expected to result in minimised degradation of the galvanealed coating.

Conclusions & Future Work Based on the results of welding trials, it was concluded that T-GMAW is a viable option for manufacturing TWBs. Full-penetration square-groove welds were made at travel speeds up to 4.5 m/min, with the most consistent results observed at 3.5 m/min.

Test welds were made using rough - shea red coupons w ith gaps up to 0.3 mm, demonstrating an increased tolerance to fit-up variation when compared to laser we l d i n g, w he re t he m a x i mu m recommended fit-up variation for the material thicknesses used is approximately 0.1 mm.

Trials on T-GMABW successfully demonstrated the use of siliconbronze wire to join galvanealed steel sheet in a lap-joint configuration at t ravel sp e e ds up to 3. 5 m/ min. Parameters were developed that resulted in minimal spatter a nd minima l back side coating degradation.

Future work will include further development of starting and stopping parameters to provide a consistent bead shape for TWB welds as well as the development of pulse waveforms specifically for T- GM A BW with silicon-bronze wire. MEN Enquiry No. 7304 October 2009 metalworking equipment news

55

industry spotlight

W

Mike Babcock

hen Henr y Ford expa nded the idea of a production l i n e i n a u to m o t i v e ma nufacturing, it hera lded a new era. Since then, automotive manufacturing has gone through several recessions and seen its fair share of ups and downs.

With new technology and changing economic situation, the manufacturing process evolves in order to stay relevant to the changing times. As such, requirements have changed – from the biggest part in a car right down to the smallest components.

Today, the important requirements for m a nu fac t u r i n g automot i ve component s a re in f luenced by environmental technology, as low fuel consumption is in vogue. In order to make more environmental friendly cars, efficient power and drive train are been developed along with weight reduction and downsizing of vehicle.

In addition, more attention is now on CO 2 re duc t ion, add i n g impetus to the development of advanced engine combustion in order to achieve low em ission of harmful gas. Apart from that, exhaust catalyst technolog y for zero emission, particulate matters reduction from diesel engine and 56

metalworking equipment news October 2009

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Top Automotive:

In

Gear

To match rising requirements in automotive manufacturing, advanced metal forming technologies are actively developed and applied to production. By Dr Danno Atsushi, forming technology group, SIMTech

In the engine, improvements in thermal efficiency help save fuel consumption

clean emission power train (Fuel cell) are also researched upon.

Increasing Efficiency There are four main areas in a car, when worked on, can achieve fuel efficiency. They are the engine, drive train, chassis and body. For instance, new power train with clean emission and higher efficiency is the obvious way to increase fuel economy.

In other areas like the engine, improvements in thermal efficiency help save fuel consumption. Weight reduction can be applied across the four areas, as it is a pertinent factor in fuel economy. Like improved thermal efficiency, friction reduction is one

Lexie, USA

option specific to the engine.

Frictional loss is the main factor, which constitute to the majority of energy consumption generated in an engine. Diamond-like carbon coating are applied on piston skirt, piston ring, bearing, valve train and gears to reduce friction and subsequently energy consumption.

Frictional losses can also be countered with advanced engine system. These systems however, come with a price. For instance, in an advanced diesel engine system, there are needs for many kinds of special metal components.

In terms of body structure and components, weight reduction in combination with high strength is the way forward in the automotive

ENQUIRY NO 135

industryspotlight

industry. High rigidity and lightweight enable structural optimisation, which give rise to common usage of high strength steel sheet (590 - 780/980 MPa class), laser welded tailored blank and application of light materials like aluminium and magnesium.

In summary the new requirements in automotive manufacturing aim to lower manufacturing cost for all components. This in turn leads to the usage of new components for hybrid and fuel cell vehicle. On the other hand, waste reduction in material is also a main focus as it saves energy during manufacturing. This principle gave birth to net shape forming as it reduces wastage.

Metal Forming Technology T he nat u re o f t he automot ive manufacturing industry mandates the usage of various materials, each with

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parts. The reason is due to its low heat resistance, poor formability and low corrosion resistance.

Usage of magnesium requires i mp rov e me nt s to b e m a de o n formability, invariantly resulting in higher material cost. However, it is a different story when it comes to magnesium alloy, which are heat resistant, and they are used to make transmission cases.

High strength is required in all car body particularly in pillar and roof reinforcement and so, high strength steel sheet are often used in production of automobiles.

When it comes to sheet metal, a different forming technique is used.

Hot stamping and die quenching technology allows higher strength and reduced spring back of formed component.

Apart from the obvious mechanical

the thickness direction. Advantage of this process includes near net-shape forming of complex shape with thin and non-uniform thickness.

R&D Work Research institute like SIMTech is embarking on studies on metal forming to support the industry. In advanced cold rotary forming, high precision forming of axisymmetrical components with high strength and high aspect ratio come together to produce products with higher flexibility.

With simple tooling and easy lubrication, this process combines form rolling and flow forming for wider industrial applications.

The institute is also currently carrying out researches in liquid forging te c h n o l o g y.

Molten metal

In cold rotary forming, high precision forming of axisymmetrical components comes together to produce products with higher flexibility

Copyright 2009 SIMTech

their special mechanical properties.

In metal forming alone, there are different ways a nd techniques.

For instance in forming of light material components like aluminium, advanced die-casting is used to form them into frame components. After which, welding and joining are used to fuse parts together.

Different techniques however, are used to make different parts of a car. For example, the front end of a suspension is formed by casting (knuckle arm) and forging (upper and lower arm). As for the rear suspension, forging is used to manufacture the upper A-arm and the lower I-arm.

Material properties play a big role and a good example is magnesium where it has being marginalised when it comes to fabricating automotive 58

metalworking equipment news October 2009

concern, cost also plays in the mind when picking the right forming method.

When there is a need to form a bulk of steel components to a certain level of precision where higher dimensional accuracy is required, precision bulk forming is favourable.

It yields complex and integrated shape at lower cost. Cold forged helical gear and transmission spur gear are formed in this way.

W hen traditiona l forming technologies are unable to satisfy modern requirements, a method of forming which combines forging and stamping is used.

Hybrid forming involves cold forming from sheet blank. As the name suggests, it combines forming modes in stamping and cold forging resulting in partial compressive deformation in

are poured into a die cavity and squeezed under direct pressure during solidification to form pore free metal components in a single operation. The advantage of the process is the ability to produce sound components with complex shapes and thin sections (up to 200 Îźm thickness). In addition, it provides good dimensional accuracy and is applicable to cast and wrought aluminium alloys.

T h e n e w a g e c a r s w it h a n emphasis on fuel economy come with new requirements and manufacturing techniques that differ greatly from established methods. Incorporating new directions in metal forming to the mix will surely result in a new dawn in the automotive industry. MEN Enquiry No. 7401

ENQUIRY NO 129

industryspotlight

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Adam Page, WA, United States

On Rails

High-speed trains are spouting throughout Asia putting the metalworking industry in high gear. By Joson Ng

M

an’s fascination with rails reportedly began in Greece where there is evidence of a railway system 6 km long. The Diolkos wagonway existed in the 6th century BC. The carriages, which ran in grooves, were propelled by manpower.

Fast forward to present day Asia, Japan is widely believed to be the birthplace of regular, high-speed railways. A country with a myriad of rail systems from the modern bullet train to the quaint Enoden of yester year, they run throughout the island nation, driving the country. Major railways add up to some 12,400 miles (19,956 km), according to Japan Rail, which operates most of it.

Developments West Of Japan Other parts of Asia are also following suit by developing high-speed rail systems. A report from Xinhua News says that the Chinese government has started construction of the BeijingShanghai high-speed railway, with a designed speed of 350 km/h.

The 1,318 km long railway line, upon its completion in five years, 60

metalworking equipment news October 2009

will cut the journey time between China’s capital of Beijing and its eastern financial hub of Shanghai in half, to five hours. It will also lift the one-way transport capacity to 80 million passengers and more than 100 million tonnes of cargo annually, said the Ministry of Railways.

With an investment of RMB220.9 billion (US$31.6 billion), the railway is the most expensive construction project in one lump sum China had since 1949.

In addition, the country’s first domestically produced train, able to reach 350 km/h, rolled off the production line. The eight-carriage train, with a streamlined body made of light aluminium alloy, can carry 557 passengers.

Elsewhere in countries like South Korea, Taiwan and Singapore, there are extensive train and subway systems, which are expanding as well. For instance in South Korea, the authorities are currently building an extension to the 40.3 km highspeed rail connecting Gimpo Airport and Incheon International Airport.

According to Gale International, a real

estate development and investment firm headquartered in New York City, the second railway line will connect Gimpo Airport to Seoul Station and is scheduled to open in 2010.

Nearly Won3 trillion ( US$2.3 billion) from the private sector and Won1.1 trillion of taxpayer money are being invested in the railway projects, with the Incheon-Gimpo railway alone having taken Won1.8 trillion.

In Singapore, the development and construction of the Circle and Downtown lines are well underway, with an approximate S$1.1 billion (US$745 million) invested for the downtown line alone.

These major investments will no doubt trigger other supporting industries like metalworking and steel production as tracks lengthen and more trains are needed.

Giving The Right Signal Signalling is of utmost importance especially today where trains travel in high speed and carry heavy load.

Companies like GE Transportation can benefit from major projects in China or throughout Asia. They have products to give freight, passenger and urban transport operators a set of control, supervision and communication capabilitie s to optimise their networks and assets.

These systems increase capacity and velocity without requiring new investments in infrastructure.

A big part of signalling is also lighting. The company’s LED retrofit kits provide more light at all viewing distances and have longer service life and mean time between repairs.

The polycarbonate lenses have a life expectancy of 100,000-plus hours.

Grounding The Plane Trains are getting faster to a point they are real competitors to airplanes plying the same route. As advancements in aviation are well documented with the A380 aircraft taking most of the plaudits, high-speed trains are slowly inching faster in their quest to usurp the coveted throne to become the new darling of transportation.

industryspotlight

Pe ople belong ing to t he metalworking family can take heart that both industries generally use a luminium a lloy to build their machines and competition between the two will indeed be good news.

Aluminium-alloy trains were developed to realise production of the rolling stock with corrosion-free materials. It has one-third specific gravity and equal strength of steel.

They are considered ideal for the materials of rolling stock as they have

benefits like long-life, lightweight, and maintenance-free traits.

Away from the relentless pursuit of speed, other developments also include noise reduction. Especially with the series 700 Shinkansen train (bullet train), large-scale extrusion with double-skin structures are built to achieve that.

Floating Trains?

The quest for high speed is possible by eliminating friction and vibration.

In order to accomplish that, magnetic levitation (Maglev) technology, on which magnetic power is used to levitate the vehicles, before being propelled by linear motors has been developed.

According to Shanghai Maglev Transportation, the electromagnetic principle adopted for the Maglev train was put forward in 1922 and was subsequently awarded a patent in 1934. But thereafter this technology remained in a state of ‘something existing only on paper’. The designed speed per hour reaches as high as 500 km, while the actual running tempo is 400-odd km.

A s r a i l s y s te m s e x p a n d i n Asia in terms of size and speed, there are potentials galore for the metalworking industry to tap into this niche market and go on its very own high speed run. MEN Enquiry No. 7402

ENQUIRY NO 151

Engineers continue to push the envelope in terms of speed.

Ossian Engmark, Copenhagen, Denmark

www.equipment-news.com

October 2009 metalworking equipment news

61

Country

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Focus

Japan Focus:

Orchestrating

Big The

Comeback

With a keen eye for the future and decisive implementation of new initiatives, the Japan Machine Tool Builders’ Association looks to lead its members out of this current slump. By Joson Ng

B

oasting one of the largest economies in the world, Japan registered impressive economic growth in the 70s and 80s. Exporting goods like cars, electronic devices and computers to countries like USA, China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, South Korea and Singapore, it is no surprise that manufacturing is one of the country’s major industries today.

To have a better understanding of the manufacturing

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metalworking equipment news October 2009

climate in the land of the rising sun, Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News speaks to Toshiomi Shono, president, Japa n Machine Tool Builders’ Association (JMTBA).

“Since 1982 Japan has been the world’s leading producer of metal cutting machine tools and many Japanese producers have become prominent globally in this field,” says Mr Shono. This statement is backed by

countryfocus

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the order amount as he adds: “In 2007 the total amount of orders by members of the JMTBA reached a record of 1.59 trillion yen (US$16 billion) due to the active equipment investment in recent years by domestic and overseas manufacturing industries.”

Mr Shono also says that the aggressive equipment investment continued into the first half of 2008, but the sudden deceleration of the global economy since the back end of 2008 has resulted in a big reduction in the number of orders and many existing orders have also been cancelled.

Towering above the rest: Japan has one of the largest economies in the world

Silver Lining Sighted Although order numbers were significantly hit, it is not exactly doom and gloom.

Mr Shono says: “Orders are between 15 and 20 percent of the levels seen in 2008. However, there has been month on month gains in orders for the past four months.” The gains are encouraging signs, fuelling hopes for a recovery in 2010. Staying positive, Mr Shono is also thinking along the same line.

“The order cancellations appear to have run its course and there are expectations for a true recovery from 2010 due to the economic stimulus measures taken by various countries,” he says. The current economic crisis caused a sudden slowdown in global equipment investment, which in turn resulted in a big drop in machine tool orders. With positive signs emerging, many are preparing for the next step – recovery.

“Firms are now preparing for the coming economic recovery and the main themes are: to prepare more efficient management and production foundations, R&D of future technologies, bolstering various policies with an eye towards cultivating new markets in the near future, and holding onto and developing technicians and craftsmen,” he notes.

The Economic Tonic JMTBA has adopted a series of initiatives to stimulate the machine tool manufacturing industry and boost competitiveness. The association looks at two major areas – economy and labour.

“In recent years the association has pointed out new tax systems encouraging domestic users to replace old equipment, as well as various pertinent legal issues.

Our association has been working hard to heighten the international competitiveness of machine tool manufacturers by reviewing depreciation systems and international tax systems, as well as pushing for tax revisions such as expanding tax breaks that stimulate equipment investment,” he says.

On the labour front, the association is looking very closely at students who are undoubtedly the future of the industry.

“We have programmes to encourage engineering students to join the machine tool industry, in addition to

E K, Singapore

joint efforts on promoting technology involving industry, the public sector and academia. We have provided feedback on these results to association members. Furthermore, we also plan to work on employment maintenance and other support measures in consideration of the current economic conditions,” he adds.

Meeting Competition Head On With the economy in the doldrums, competition for the market share is heating up. According to Mr Shono, Japanese machine tool manufacturers mainly competed against rivals from Germany, Switzerland and the US in the past. In recent years, challenges from prominent companies in East Asia have been growing. He believes that these East Asian firms will continue to develop into October 2009 metalworking equipment news

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countryfocus

Gerry Lauzon, Montreal, Canada

One of the ‘hot spots’ identified is the aviation industry

‘solution business’ today,” he adds.

Mr Shono remarks that users’ needs are becoming much more diverse . For e x a mple , work pie ce s continue to get larger for the energy industry and other fields, while at the same time there have been demands for more detailed and precise machining by the information and communications and medical equipment industries.

He notes that there will also likely be demands for new machining technologies from the automobile industry as environmental technologies continue to develop.

Reaching Out

serious rivals in the future. He however still feels the country has an edge over their competitors.

“NC technology is Japan’s leading edge over foreign machine tools. This helped Japanese machine tool industries to be one of the most competitive product producers in the world. The keys to successfully competing aga inst Europea n a nd US compa nies possessing traditional technical skills and customer brand awareness have been keen foresight into future market developments and shrewd decision making,” says Mr Shono.

Apart from decision-making and foresight, Mr Shono also feels the industry in the country as whole must keep improving to keep pace with the rest of the world.

“Japan’s manufacturing industry has high standards for quality, added value, cost competitiveness and flexible customer support, all on a global scale. In order to achieve this, Japan machine tool manufacturers have worked hard to polish their own skills and raise their own level of competiveness. The fact that many globally prominent manufacturing industries are located in Japan is a major vote of confidence for Japanese machine tool manufacturers,” he adds.

Technological Trends As the country prides itself as one of the leaders in the technology world, it is interesting to see what they have in store for the rest of the metalworking world.

“Five-axis machining centres and multi-tasking machines have been well accepted among many users.

The next step is user on site technology, which is developing day by day and much user demand in machine function and capability is requested to machine tool manufacturers,” he says. “ I n o r d e r t o m e e t s u c h d e m a n d s , s y s te m developme nt con sist i n g of mach i ne to ol s w it h peripheral technologies, such as control, automation and tool, tool holder and CAM technologies is becoming 64

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In order to have an edge over their foreign competitors, Mr Shono informs us that JMTBA uses its international committee (oversees international issues) and technical committee (in charge of technology-related matters) to provide members with information on the latest technologies and regulations in various countries.

Sparing no expenses, the association is also looking on improving in the ‘soft’ areas, ie: Public Relations (PR).

“Even though Japanese machine tool manufacturers have earned a great deal of respect in various countries, there are still barriers to trade and distribution and so in some cases it is hard to adequately supply overseas users who demand sophisticated equipment. Therefore, our association is trying to bolster its overseas PR and the handling of relevant institutions,” he notes.

Hot Spots Gazing Putting Mr Shono on the spot, we ask him about the future of the Japanese machine tool industry and also to make some predictions as to where the new ‘hot spots’ will be. “ T he competition on a globa l sca le, g re ater sophistication of user needs and higher hurdles in terms of cost reduction and compliance with environmental standards are having much effects on various industries including the machine tool manufacturing sector,” he says.

Staying confident is important as Mr Shono adds: “There is also no denying that the economic recession that started last year has presented some very difficult challenges and predicting what the future holds is very difficult. However, Japanese firms have been able to deal with difficult situations in the past and turn these situations into opportunities for further development.”

Identifying ‘hot spots’ gives a sense of direction and according to Mr Shono, they are the energy-related fields, infrastructure investment in newly-emerging regions, next-generation automobiles, aviation and medical fields.

With confidence and direction, Mr Shono is certainly leading the way forward as he concludes: “We have much confidence in breaking through the situation.” MEN Enquiry No. 7501

ENQUIRY NO 134

FEATURES features

H

eld f rom Au g u st 2 5 – 28, 2009, DMG recently organised an open house at their facility in Tuas, Singapore. With the total turnout of 280 professionals from some 150 different companies, the open house showcased the latest technologies in various technical seminars.

Shuttling between high te c h nolog y for t he ae ro sp ace industry, solutions for Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and training, the aim of the four-day event was to prov ide v isitors with useful information they could take away.

Information First “This is not purely a promotional event, we are not interested in a pure marketing open house as we believe in the philosophy of providing content,” says Thomas Bone, MD, DMG Asia Pacific. “We want to bring the latest technologies to the visitors so they can actually benefit from attending this open house. I have

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also personally made it a point to the presenters that all presentations must be from the neutral standpoint – ie: non promotional. In fact for aerospace, the presentation will focus on composite, titanium and how to cut them,” he adds.

True to his words, on the first day of the event that focussed mainly on the aerospace industry, he invited specialists from the biggest players in the industry. Says Mr Bone: “The reason for inviting them is to help the local aerospace fraternity get in touch directly with the biggest players in the aerospace industries so they can have open and meaningful discussions.”

The first day of the open house devoted itself to aerospace, as this industry is very much on Mr Bone’s sight. “As this field involves a lot of process know-how, we would like to provide content for our customers so they go away knowing the latest ideas,” he explains.

On the second day, the open house shifted its focus from the big boys of the aerospace industries

All Are Welcome!

From the bigwigs in the aerospace industry to the decision makers in SMEs, they come together for four days of technical exchange. By Joson Ng

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to the vibrant SMEs. Mr Bone says: “We want to make the participants understanding the DMG Ecoline. It is a line of product, which works on the basis of an universal machine, but it comes competitively priced, making them suitable for SMEs.” Once again, the focus was on application and not marketing. “By explaining the Ecoline philosophy to our audience, they will understand that the machine requires by the usage of superior controls, proven German design, interesting tooling packages and much shorter setup and cycle times. Therefore they can make considerable savings based on that, although the initial investment is low for machines of that performance,” he adds.

Training Sessions “The best machine in the world is useless if you do not know how to operate it,” he says. With this in mind, it is no wonder that the company takes training seriously.

To justify that particular statement, DMG is a certified training provider of the SPUR programme.

SPUR or Skills Programme for Upgrading and Resilience, is an enhanced funding support scheme developed by the Singapore

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Simplicity is the key as far as the DMG Ecoline goes

The focus of the DMG open house is on application

Workforce Development Agency in consultation with the tripartite partners including the National Trades Union Congress and the Singapore Nat iona l E mployers Federation.

“We frequently receive feedback from people in the industries that their equipment are not fully utilised.

As a result, our training programmes focus a lot on practical machine operation. As such, the class size is small. It ranges from four to six people. Our curriculum is roughly 60 percent practical (including prog ra mming ) a nd 4 0 percent theory,” he explains.

The Next Generation The inclusion of students in the list of pa r t icipa nt s shows t he approach taken by the company in terms of youth development. Not afraid to give students a chance to prove themselves in the industry, he says: “We often have fi nal year students come in and work with us in our European plants for a few weeks. To make the experience as realistic as possible, they were given diffi cult parts that require five-axis machining.”

By the looks of it, he is bringing that idea to Singapore. They are currently discussions with institutions like ITE and Nanyang Technological University of Singapore.

As far as Mr Bone is concerned, this potential collaboration is worthwhile.

“I feel that engineering students in Singapore have good potential and with more industrial experience, ie: more time with the machines, they can be more accomplished.”

To sum up, he sees the company as the bridge between educational institutes and the industries because he firmly believes in providing a learning environment that is as close to the industry as possible.

Doing Things Differently Oozing positivity even when the economical situation is still not ideal, he feels that businesses can still improve in challenging times.

Quoting Dee Hock, the business visionary and creator of Visa, he says: “The challenge is never to get new innovative ideas in, but to get old ideas out.”

This idea manifests itself as the Ecoline as according to Mr Bone, it is not just German technology at affordable prices, there are also accessory packages software and application packages put together to help saving money from the first minute.

Simplicity is the key as far as the Ecoline goes as he explains: “What we try to do with this line is to adopt the ‘plug and play’ concept from the IT industry into a ‘plug and cut’ for our business.

Although the idea is still in its infancy, it is perhaps unwise to bet against him. With the willingness to do something different in difficult times and the foresight to invest in youth with innovative ideas, the company might just be able to break traditions and will for sure surprise the industry with further unexpected innovations. MEN Enquiry No. 7601 October 2009 metalworking equipment news Nov-Dec

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Advance Steel & Climate Control:

S

teel is an efficient modern construction material. It offers the highest strengthto - weight rat io of a ny commonly used material and is also durable. Over 20 billion tonnes of steel remains in use today in a variety of products.

It can be infinitely recycled, a l l ow i n g t h e c r e a t i o n o f n e w pro du c t s out o f old pro du c t s w it hout a ny lo s s o f st re n g t h , formability, or any other important me a sure of per for ma nce. T his is why it rema ins the materia l of choice for construction a nd manufacturing around the world.

N e w fo r mu l a t io n s o f h i g h per forma nce steels enable carmakers to produce stronger and lighter vehicles that are more energy efficient. In the construction of w i nd t u rbi ne towe r s, ste e l offers considerable advantages due to its strength and durability.

Environmental impacts are minimised, as it can be recycled.

The streng th of the metal also

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Peter Suneson, Norrkˆping, Sweden

Proliferation= Conservation

Across a broad range of industries and applications, the development and use of high-performance steels help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. By World Steel Association enables building designers to use less material without compromising structural performance.

Steel can be designed for the purpose of the end-use application, specific strength, durability and end-of-life recycling requirements.

New manufacturing processes have also introduced environmentally responsible production methods.

Applications In Transportation Rail transport requires steel in the trains and for the rails and infrastructure. For short- or mediumhaul journeys, rail reduces travel t i m e s a nd CO 2 e m i s sio n s p e r passenger kilometre compared to nearly all other forms of transport.

Automotive manufacturers now use a range of high-strength steels to make much thinner structures for car bodies. Reduced weight

me a ns vehicle s a re more fuel efficient and emit less CO2 , without sacrificing safety and at little or no additional cost.

Advanced High-Strength Steels (AHSS) are now used for nearly every new vehicle design. Steel makes up more than 50 percent of today’s vehicles. Using AHSS makes it possible to produce lighter vehicle that optimises designs.

AHSS enhances safety, improves fuel economy and reduces lifetime greenhouse gas emissions.

W it h 71 m i l l i o n p a s s e n g e r vehicles produced annually, this transformation from conventional steels to AHSS has a huge impact.

About 2.2 tonnes less greenhouse gas is produced over the total life cycle of a typical five-passenger vehicle when it is transformed to new AHSS grades and optimised

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Steel is a well-used material in modern structures with applications in hydroelectric power stations

design techniques.

This saving in emissions is more than the total amount of CO2 emitted during the production of all the steel in the vehicle. If the body structure of all the cars produced in 2008 were made from AHSS, 156 million tonnes of CO2 equivalents would have been avoided.

Robert Linder, Springfield, United States Crude steel Production Raw Material Extraction

Applications In Energy Sector Steel is necessary for both the production and supply of energy. It is used in electricity pylons and to make offshore oil platforms as well as reinforcing concrete structures in hydroelectric power stations.

The metal is such a well-used material in modern structures. A prime example is the tubular steel towers used for the wind turbines now being installed around the world. Genera lly, ta ller towers offer greater energ y generating e f f ic ie nc y, si nce w i nd sp e e d s increase at higher altitudes.

The new steels used in the construction of such towers offer higher strength-per-unit weight ratios than other materials, so taller towers can be erected with much less stress on the structure. Lower weight also enables these towers to be manufactured in sections of up to 30 m, before assembling and installing on site.

Ongoing research continues to produce new steels that are even stronger than their predecessors.

That will reduce the mass of future towers. As a result, tower weights (per installed power in kW) have declined by about 50 percent during the past 10 years.

A typical modern tower in the Horns Rev wind farm in Denmark is 70 m high and weighs only 140 tonnes. This represents a 50 percent reduction in weight and a saving of more than 200 tonnes of CO2 for each tower compared to its predecessors of just 10 years ago.

Production of iron and steel products

Post-consumer scrap

Pre-consumer scrap

End of Life phase

Life cycle of a steel item in a multi-material product

The Importance Of Life Cycle Assessment W hen considering g reenhouse ga s emissions, a key factor in understanding the real environmental impact of a material is its life cycle assessment. This approach considers the total greenhouse gas emissions generated by the production, use and end-of-life (recycling or disposal) phases of a product.

Use Phase of End Products Sector x

At first glance, materials that weigh less tha n steel, such a s aluminium, magnesium and plastics, may app e a r to b e i nte re st i n g alternatives. However, when the total life cycle of a material is taken into account, steel has no competition, owing to its strength, durability, recyclability and versatility. MEN Enquiry No. 7602

Some Facts About Steel‌ 1. Steel is 100 percent recyclable at the end of its life. Alternatively it can be reused prior to being recycled.

2. Some 2.2 tonnes less greenhouse gas is produced over the total life cycle of a typical five-passenger car when the vehicle’s body is manufactured using advanced high strength steel.

3. The CO 2 savings made by recycling steel packaging in Europe in 2006 were equivalent to the CO 2 produced by 1.6 million cars in the same year, based upon a compact car with a CO 2 emissions rating of 137 g/km that travels 20,000 km in one year.

4. An estimated 459 million tonnes of steel scrap were recycled in 2006, avoiding 827 million tonnes of CO 2 emissions.

5. The steel can is the most recycled food or beverage container in the world, with an overall recycling rate of 67 percent.

6. Where collection and handling systems are in place, recycling rates are very high. Some 97 percent of all automotive vehicles are moved out of the waste stream and into the recycling stream and the engine that drives this recycling is steel.

Enquiry No. 7603

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Wind Powered

Opportunities

Jesper Baerentzen, Roskilde, Denmark

With the imminent demise of crude oil, the race to secure new alternative energy is heating up – opening doors to the metalworking fraternity.

By Joson Ng

W

ind power relies on turbines to convert w ind energ y into electricity. Compared to traditional energy source like fossil fuels, it does not emit harmful greenhouse gases, making it a very environmental friendly proposition.

In addition, it is readily available.

The winds of change is clearly evident as the US government has announced its intention to increase the por tion of w ind - generated power from its current level of 1

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percent to over 20 percent of the power used in the US by 2030, according to press release from Samsung Heavy Industries.

This form of power generation does not require investments other than the initial installation costs.

As its power generation costs are just 20 percent those of solar power generation and are lower than those of natural gas and oil, it is expected that wind power will fulfil 12 percent of the global energy demand in 2020, and that its power generator market

will grow to US$74 billion.

With growth expected in this i n du s t r y, B o s c h R e x ro t h h a s expanded the capacity of its windpower operations. Investments in the gearbox plant will total â‚Ź180 million (US$251 million) come 2013.

In roll- out year 2009, the plant will manufacture some 300 large gearboxes for the latest generation of multi-megawatt turbines.

Generating Power A power tra in tra nsfers the

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rotational force of the rotor to the generator. Gearboxes are required to increase the rpm in generators that produce electrical energy.

They act as a ‘step up’ mechanism a s the propeller moves slowly while the generator moves a lot faster. Without this effect, the tip of a rotor will have to move at a great speed.

Gearboxes in this case work in an opposite manner compared to a typical gearbox in a car. In wind power generation, they convert slow rotating, high torque power, which you get from the turbine rotor and high-speed, low torque power, which you use for the generator.

According to t he Da nish W i nd I ndu st r y A sso ciat ion, a single ge a r rat io dictate s t he conversion of p ower between the rotation of the rotor and the g e n e r a t o r.

For a

about 50 microns. This is where a CMM can be used to check the part.

Winds Of Change In Asia, wind turbines are spouting up. Vestas has sold 58 V52-850 kW wind turbines for the Zhaqi phase one wind farm, located in Tongliao, Inner Mongolian autonomous region.

Across the border in India, the wind energy sector has an installed capacity of 10,242.3 MW. In terms of wind power installed capacity, the country is ranked fifth in the World.

In an estimate by the Indian Wind Energy Association, based on the current level of technology, the ‘onshore’ potential for utilisation of wind

energy for electricity generation is in the order of 65,000 MW. In North America, the US became the country to install the highest number of new wind-power output in 2008, and has now surpassed Germany as the leading country for wind-power utilisation. Encouraged by comprehensive incentive schemes, the US market will continue to grow rapidly. Back in Asia, both China and India are making great efforts to expand wind power, and are catching up rapidly. The Global Wind Energy Council forecasts that installed power output will triple by 2013. MEN Enquiry No. 7604

Wind Farms: Not Your Average Kind Of Farm A cluster of wind turbines in an area makes up a wind farm. These farms harness wind energy and convert them to electrical power. Size of a farm varies from a few dozen to about 100 individual wind turbines. They generally cover a large area spanning up to hundreds of square kilometres. These wind farms may also exist offshore where strong winds blow.

There are wind farms located all over Asia Pacific and with more in the pipeline, there are opportunities for the metalworking industry especially in gearbox manufacturing.

In Japan, the Nunobiki Plateau wind farm is located at an altitude of 1,080 m. Generating enough power for approximately 35,000 houses, it is said to be the largest wind generating station in Japan. Lake Bonney wind farm, in South Australia, consists a total of 99 turbines with a rated capacity ranging between 1.75 to 3 MW. With combined capacity of 239.5 MW, it was the biggest wind farm in Australia at the time of completion.

Enquiry No. 7605

600 or 750 kW machine, the gear ratio is typically 1 to 50.

The gears are generally made from aluminium alloys, stainless steel and cast iron. Metalworking process like grinding is used to produce spur, helical gears and also to cut or grind the teeth on a customer supplied blank. As far as wind energy goes, metrology equipment makers can get in on the act as well. The axle bores on transmission case used in wind turbine has a tolerance range of

Techno Update The WindBoost control system upgrade by GE Energy enables the turbine blades to spin faster and increase the turbine output by 100 kW, from 1.5 to 1.6 MW. By generating more power from the same unit, turbine operators can increase their profitability.

The control system is designed for both new and existing 60 hz GE 1.5 sle wind turbines with plans to apply the technology to additional 1.5 MW models. It is capable of delivering up to four percent increment in annual energy output. It is also possible to turn the control system on and off remotely at the turbine level.

Enquiry No. 7606

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Government Incentives

economy is likely to improve in the next six to nine months, as local demand is likely to go up with stimulus packages to boost consumer spending, coupled with slow improvement in the external demand.

Malaysia’s Manufacturing Sector

Hot Spots & Future Trends

Benjamin Earwicker, Idaho, United States

The Malaysian economy is showing signs of recovery – thanks to intervention by the government.

By Tim Chuah, consultant APAC, measurement & instrumentation, Frost & Sullivan

T

he Malaysian manufacturing sector saw a continuous decline in the first three months of 2009. In January 2009, the sales value of the manufacturing sector decreased 22.7 percent year-on-year to reach RM36.7 billion (US$10.4 billion).

In February 2009, the sector’s sales decreased 26.1 percent year-onyear to reach RM34.4 billion. While in March, the sector’s sales decreased 25.5 percent year-on-year to record RM36.6 billion.

This decline in sa les of the manufacturing sector can be largely attributed to the significant decrease in the sales value of industries such as refined petroleum products, computer and computer peripherals, basic iron and steel products.

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Making A Comeback G oi n g i nto t he se cond ha l f of 2009, the manufacturing sector is showing signs of recovery; some manufacturers are registering a pick up in orders.

The dema nd is ma inly from the Chinese market. Major economies like the US and Europe a re st i l l re e l i n g u nde r se ve re macroeconomic pressures. The manufacturing sectors are likely to register positive growth by the last quarter of 2009.

T h e g ov e r n m e n t h a s b e e n accelerating development under fiscal stimulus measures totalling to RM67 billion. They have also further eased guideline and incentives for foreign investors to boost investments. Malaysia’s

In terms of industry specifics, the Malaysian Industrial Development Authority has identified solar energy as one of the growth areas.

The government is promoting this sector to attract investments putting the country in a competitive position to host the solar industry, a s t here is a w ide ava ilabilit y of qua l it y i n f ra st r uc t u re , raw materials, and resources to set up world-class operations.

I n a re ce nt st ate me nt , t he government has announced accelerated developmental plans for the services industry. They have acknowledged that the economy should not be solely dependent on the manufacturing sector.

In April 2009, the government announced that foreigners can hold up to 100 percent ownership of a few service companies, specifically in areas such as health, tourism, transport, business services, social, and computer-related businesses.

The manufacturing productivity growth is forecasted to be between 0. 5 to 1.1 p erce nt for 2 0 0 9 a s i n v e s t m e n t s a r e e x p e c te d to increase marginally in the second half of 2009.

In the month of March 2009, expor t of ma nufactured goods recorded a 10 percent growth as compared to February 2009. Exports have improved due to China and ASEAN economies. Recovery for economies world over is expected to come in the last quarter. The manufacturing sector is expected to contract to about 7.5 – 8.5 percent in 2009, compared to its previous year’s growth of 1.3 percent. MEN Enquiry No. 7607

EVENTs&

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exhibitions

Event Preview:

JEC Asia 2009

T

he second a nnua l J EC Asia Show will be held in Singapore at the Suntec Centre from October 14 – 16, 2009. This show reflects the growth potential of the composite industry in the Middle East and Asia Pacific. It brings new solutions and ideas in the composite field to emerge from the current economic crisis.

This year’s theme will highlight the automation of manufacturing processes: how to produce more and optimise prices, quality, safety and environment impact? Where to buy new materials? To whom? How to adopt new technologies? Who are the best suppliers for machines and equipment?

How to find the best partners?

Asian Growth Says J EC pre sident a nd CEO Frédérique Mutel: “In 2000, Asia represented 25 percent of the global composites consumption. Now it represents 42 percent with a value of €18 billion ( US$25 billion). It could reach 50 percent in 2013. With major growth markets in China and India, along with interesting growth in Middle-East, Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia, without forgetting the stable consumption in Australia, Japan and South Korea, the outlook for the composites industry in the Asia Pacific is quite bright.”

Already seven national pavilions have been confirmed for the 2009 session, including Austra lia, Taiwan, India, Japan, China, South Korea and France.

Connecting Science, Technology & Business T here w ill be three e x hibition halls (an increase of one compared to 2008) for industrial players to

showca se comp osite solut ions and services, business meetings to facilitate business connections between exhibitors and visitors, end-user forums devoted to main composite markets of aeronautics, automotive/mass transportation, wind energy, construction/building/ civil engineering.

There will also be an innovation p r o g r a m m e to aw a r d c u r r e n t innovations which use composites in the different application fields,

technical lectures on the latest advances in materials and processes a n d a n i n n ov a t i o n sh owc a s e , displaying composites products and solutions chosen for their technical and economical performances.

Suntec Singapore October 14 – 16, 2009 Enquiry No. 7701 October 2009 metalworking equipment news

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Event Preview:

Metalex 2009

R

eturning to BITEC, Bangkok, Thailand this year is Metalex 2009. To be held from November 19 – 22, 2009, the metalworking exhibition and conference promises to showcase comprehensive and innovation technologies.

To u t e d ‘A S E A N ’ s l a r g e s t international machine tools and metalworking technologies trade exhibition and conference’ by the organisers, the show has enjoyed success for over two decades.

Bright Spot Earlier hindered by global economic sensitivities, the heavy manufacturing market demand has been heading upwards since the second quarter of this year, and will continue to grow further, as expected by world’s specialists.

In response to this opportunity, the show is dedicated to serve as the region’s platform of technologies for the metalworking industry where about 2,700 exhibitors gather to present more than 4,000 efficient innovations from 50 countries across the world to over 55,000 decision makers and power groups in manufacturing industries throughout this region.

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The show is dedicated to serve as the region’s platform of technologies for the metalworking industry

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industries are EDM machines, mould and die, foundry, factory automation, pump and valve, material handling, accessories, machine tools and metalworking technology, sheet metalworking, welding technology and machine tools.

Brain Storming

More than 500 conference topics will be staged alongside the exhibition

Also, more than 500 conference topics will be staged alongside the exhibition to equip professional manufacturers in Southeast Asia with more productivity and higher competitiveness to win the world’s market.

H ig h lig ht include s Meta le x Congress, Thailand’s platforms for industrialists across the region to update and exchange information with many economists and businesspeople.

Elsewhere, in Metalex Master Cla sse s, hot topic s on re ce nt industrial movements and new manufacturing techniques from government institutes and top private corporations will be discussed.

There will also be a Thailand Welding Competition, an annual event to seek for the best welder in Thailand and to promote the national welding sophistication to the world.

Business Opportunities Events like Build Marketplace and Business Matchmaking aim to create business opportunities during the show and hopefully the relationships forged can last well beyond the show. Build Marketplace is the stage for industrialists, automakers and quality buyers to meet and make business deals, held by Board of Investment (BoI).

Business Matchmaking aims to deliver new contacts and to network with new partnerships in metalworking, automotive and electronics industries regionally.

BITEC Bangkok, Thailand November 19 – 22, 2009 Build Marketplace is the stage for industrialists, automakers and quality buyers to meet and make business deals

Enquiry No. 7702 October 2009 metalworking equipment news

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Event Preview:

Korea Metal Week 2009

T

he Korea Metal Week will be held from October 27 - 31, 2009. It is the international trade fare specialised in metal and machinery industry, such as material/components part, processing equipments part and finished products part. Visited by more than 34,000 people in the last fair in 2007, the expected number of visitors this year is from 35,000 to 40,000.

Korea Meta l Week ha s been held with KOMAF and Tool Tech simultaneously since 2005. It exhibits the latest technologies from around the world. In addition, it serves as a platform for an export outlet. Smaller firms can also use the event to expand their domestic market.

With three -major exhibitions simultaneously held at the same place, visitors can expect to see various items or contents making the fair a hub of multinational trade.

Furthermore, with the total floor area of 53,541 sq m, this is the biggest metal industry and machinery fair in South Korea.

The event is held in KINTEX, Seoul and is jointly organised by Korea Trade Fairs and Korea Federation of Fasteners Industry Cooperatives.

Fina lly a s the specia lised international trade fair in South Korea, the show comprises of five fairs, in addition to the three abovementioned exhibitions, integrating all metal technologies such as Fasteners and Wire Korea 2009, Foundry Forging and Furnace Korea 2009, Cable Tube and Pipe Korea 2009, Die Casting Korea 2009 and Machine Parts and Mold Manufacturing.

KINTEX Seoul, South Korea October 27 – 31, 2009 Enquiry No. 7703 76

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Event Preview:

JIMTOF 2010

J

IMTOF 2010, the 25th Japan International Machine Tool Fair, will be held at Tokyo Big Sight in Tokyo, Japan for a six-day period from October 28 – November 2, 2010.

T he prev iou s show in 2 0 0 8 showcased integrated machine tools, software and peripherals. With some 80,000 sq m of exhibition space, it housed a total of 851 exhibitors who occupied 5,233 booths and 142,408 registered visitors.

Says Toshiomi Shono, president of Japan Machine Tool Builders A s so c iat io n : “ We pre d ic t t h at although current economic situation is very tough but come JIMTOF 2010, many machine tool makers will get back on a recovery track. We are very confident that for the exhibition, we will receive applications from European machine tool makers as well as the makers from East Asia including China.” Mr Shono continues: “We are also expecting about 142,400 visitors as a whole and about 10,000 overseas visitors without multientries count.”

Indoor exhibition space is expected to be 82,660 sq m at the event next year.

Exhibits include machine tools (metal cutting, metal forming), machine tool accessories, high speed steel tools, cemented carbide tools, precision measuring machines and controller and related software.

Organised by the Japan Machine To ol Bu ilders A sso ciat ion a nd Tokyo Big Sight, the purpose of the event is to contribute to the development of the industry and promote trade through increased inter nat iona l t ra nsact ions a nd technical exchanges of machine tools and their related equipment.

Many organisations have pledged

their support for this cause. Some of them include Japan Machine Tool Importers Association, Japan Forming Machinery Association, Japan Bench Machine Tool Builders Association and the Japan Small Tool Makers Association. Opening hours are from 0900 to 1700.

Tokyo Big Sight Tokyo, Japan October 28 – November 2, 2010 Enquiry No. 7704 October 2009 metalworking equipment news

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&

Witte Asia Metrology Seminar:

Quality Standards Quality control is undoubtedly playing a more critical role in today’s manufacturing industries and one company is taking an active role in bringing in the right ideas and approach.

By Joson Ng

W

itte held a metrology seminar from August 26 – 28, 2009 to showca se the latest technologies in the field of metrology, and also to increase awareness of metrology in various industries. Some 70 professionals from 35 different compa nie s attended the semina r over the three-day period.

Participants were split into four small groups to ensure all queries were attended to. The companies that conducted the seminars were Witte Singapore, Faro, Metris and Creaform.

There was also a metrolog y p r e s e n t a t i o n b y V i c t o r Ta n , head of temperature metrolog y department, A*Star. Mr Tan gave a n in - dept h de scr iption about the importance of quality control standards and certifications.

The lecture also touched on the importance of metrology in everyday life and in industries like food, aerospace and health care.

A Question Of Awareness The aim of this seminar according to Stefan Roeding, MD, Witte Far East, is to create more awareness for metrology techniques.

S ay s M r Ro e d i n g : “Q u a l it y control still plays in many fields, a subordinate role. But it is one of the key factors for high quality in different industries. The world’s largest exhibition for metrology and quality control takes place ever y year in Germany. People from all over the world are visiting this special event, where almost all new developments and trends are shown. As there is no such show in Singapore, we try to give at least a small glimpse about news and trends in metrology to a selected audience.”

In order to avoid an overflow of information and to make the seminar as efficient as possible, the organiser limited the number of exhibitors and participants. The previous events proved that this is the best way that all participants can benefit.

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EVENTs&exhibitions

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In the past, they also held subject related seminars such as ‘large scale measurement for aerospace indu st r ie s’, where sp e cia lise d equipment like laser radar and indoor GPS were shown.

In addition, Mr Roeding indicates that they are not only focusing on industrial partners, they are also trying to keep close contact with educational institutes in Singapore.

Information Exchange Some of the open houses focus on sales activities but this is not the approach taken by Witte as Mr Roeding explains: “Our seminars serve as a track for people who are working in the same field like we do – metrology. We relate ourselves as a partner for quality control.”

With this philosophy and a wealth of experience in metrology, he makes it a point to inform every year about some new developments. The recent seminar showed the latest innovative technologies. (eg: a digital laser scanner and a handyprobe) In his long association with metrology, Mr Roeding noticed that the acceptance for quality control in many companies is not as high as necessary. In order to make the seminar more practical-orientated a nd beneficia l, he encoura ge s ‘hands-on’ experience.

“We invited the participants to bring along their own workpieces to get measured. It is highly interesting to measure their own part on the machine s. D ue to confidentia l reasons, it was not always possible but we tr y to demonstrate the exhibits on real workpieces like machined aerospace housing and IP panels,” he says.

“Pa r t icipa nt s com mente d that this particular seminar is an eye - opener and the information delivered was up to date and very informative. It should be encouraged and conducted yearly,” he adds.

Outlook For 2010 “ D u e to t he fac t t h at qu a l it y control plays a significant role

With his wealth of experience, Mr Roeding can build a small Alufix fixture on the spot

The Witte way: Dividing the participants into small groups ensures efficient exchange of information

in ma nufacturing a nd product development in industrie s, we believe that the need for measuring solutions will also increase in the near future,” says Mr Roeding.

One area highlighted is the aerospace industry as Mr Roeding concludes: “The progress in aerospace industries and the expanding use

of composite materials for example, will surely lead to higher demands in quality control. In general, we expect an increasing request on metrology solutions in almost all industrial fields.

We see quality control as the base for high quality products.” MEN Enquiry No. 7705 October 2009 metalworking equipment news

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EVENTs&exhibitions

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Event Preview:

Manufacturing Indonesia 2009

C

oupling signs of an upturn in the world economy with Indonesia’s robust domestic market, demand for space at Indonesia’s largest Machinery Trade Exhibition, Manufacturing Indonesia 2009 is high.

The Manufacturing Indonesia series of trade ex hibitions, i n c o r p o r a t i n g M a c h i n e To o l Indonesia, Industrial Automation I ndone sia a nd Vehicle Manufacturing Indonesia will be held for the 20th time, December 2 – 5, 2009, at the Jakarta Exhibition Centre, Indonesia.

As with previous years, Machine Tool Indonesia will be the biggest component of the show, encompassing over 9,000 sq m of exhibition space in Hall A. National groups from China, Germany, South Korea, Singapore and Taiwan will be present.

International Affair This year for the first time, over one hundred companies from India under the auspices of the Engineering Export Promotion Council of India will be participating. The Indian government will be organising INDEE, the Indian Engineering Exhibition alongside Manufacturing Indonesia.

In addition, Plastics and Rubber and ProPak Indonesia will once again be held in conjunction with Manufacturing Indonesia.

M o r e o v e r, t h e Ta i w a n Machinery Builders Association will be bringing a number of their me mb e r s a lo n g side TA M I , t he Taiwan Association of Machinery Industry. Over 200 companies from Taiwan are expected to showcase the latest machinery equipment.

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Hall D will feature products for Industrial Automation, Vehicle Manufacturing as well as mainstream ma nufacturing. A high level conference and a large number of individual exhibitor seminars will be held in conjunction with the exhibition.

Jakarta Exhibition Centre Jakarta, Indonesia December 2 – 5, 2009 Enquiry No. 7706

PARTING

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shot

Gliding To New Heights

Computer aided design allows a flying-trike company to meet aviation standards.

By Peter Dickin, marketing manager, Delcam

A

dopting computer-aided design with Delcam’s PowerShape software has allowed Luiz Delfino Favero, owner of a flying-trike company in Sao Paolo, Brazil, called Trike Ícaros, to reduce his design times for each model by up to 80 percent. The software has also helped to give increased consistency in production, making it possible for the company to meet stricter standards imposed by Brazil’s National Agency of Civil Aviation following a number of accidents with amateur-built models.

The initial reason for looking into computer-aided design was mainly the pressure imposed by the new standards, in particular a requirement to submit formal designs for approval.

“Two years ago, all our Trike models were designed by hand, using paper and ink. That had been my way of working for more than 18 years,” said Mr Favero.

By using computer software, the designs reached a new level of precision

Enter The Computer After visiting Delcam’s representative in Brazil at an exhibition, he could see many other improvements and benefits that he could add to his business. Not least of these was the reverse engineering service based on CopyCAD Pro software. This would enable the designs of existing parts to be captured for future use in refurbishment or in creating new models.

When asked why he had chosen the software, he said: “I needed software for complex shapes and the only one that could produce exactly what I wanted was PowerShape.”

The support given was another important factor. “We get quick answers to any questions, whenever we need them,” he commented.

With the use of the software, the designs reached a new level of precision. In addition Mr Favero felt that the time saved has brought gains to all areas of the company.

One extra benefit has been in the creation of operation, maintenance and parts manuals, which are also required by the new standards. The company can now prepare its documentation with greater speed, precision and quality, including operation manuals, with pictures rendered in the software, and maintenance and parts manuals with exploded diagrams. The quality of the illustrations now in the manuals means that anyone, whether an expert or a beginner, is able to understand all the instructions for assembly and use with relative ease. MEN Enquiry No. 7801 October 2009 metalworking equipment news

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product finder

Mori Seiki: 5-Axis Vertical Machining Centre

Studer: Upgraded Cylindrical Grinding Machine

Mori Seiki has developed the NMV3000 DCG, a five-axis control vertical machining centre. The machine combines speed, precision machining and operability.

It also boasts a maximum workpiece size of φ 350 mm x 30 0 mm and a maximum loading capacity of 100 kg (150 kg as option). In regards to operability, the distance from the front of the machine to the table has been shortened to offer better accessibility and visibility than the existing models.

The S33 is Studer’s universal cylindrical grinding machine. The further development of the tested S33 brings important advantages for customers in toolmaking, job shops and the supply industry.

In the upgraded version, more workpiece geometries can be ground in a single clamping. This is made possible by a grinding head with two motor spindles for external grinding and an internal grinding unit.

Three grinding wheels ensure that the workpiece can be machined even more individually and quickly.

Enquiry No. 7901

Enquiry No. 7903

Unison: All-Electric Tube Bending Machine Spartanics: Laser Die Cutting Machine

82

Spartanics finecut combination web and sheet-fed laser die cutting machine is designed to overcome the limitations of traditional die cutting operations.

They are sheet-fed or coil-fed jobs that can be quickly interchanged. With jobs loaded and setup completed in minutes, all types of printing processes can be finished by the same laser die cutting machine from flexo, screen and digital printing lines – and cut in intricate detail in limitless shapes and geometries.

Unison has developed an all-electric tube bending machine that has the power to bend tubing with outside diameters up to 170 mm. The Breeze 170 can generate a bending torque as high as 135,000 Nm – nearly 50 percent more than the company’s previous most powerful 150 mm machine.

It brings process flexibility and business advantages of software-controlled set-up and bending to a new class of heavy-duty applications.

The machine’s ability to accommodate large diameter tubing, combined with its power and bending capabilities, make it suitable for handling lightweight high-strength ducting manufactured from materials such as commercially pure titanium, titanium alloys and stainless steel.

Enquiry No. 7902

Enquiry No. 7904

metalworking equipment news October 2009

productfinder

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Kennametal: For Machining Stainless & Super Alloys

Walter: Inserts With Positive Geometry

Wa l te r ’s P V D Tiger ra nge ha s being ex pa nded.

The grade WSM 20 is now available in inserts with a positive geometry.

PVD-Al2O3 is the formula enabling materials with difficult cutting properties to be cost effectively machined.

Besides toughness, the tool has multilayer coating features resulting in increased wear and temperature resistance. Wear protection makes the cutting tool material suitable for machining materials with difficult cutting properties, as well as stainless materials (ISO S and ISO M). The tool is applicable in the aerospace, medical, food technology and energy sector.

Enquiry No. 7905

Enquiry No. 7906

ENQUIRY NO 133

SGE inserts for K e n n a m e t a l’s M i l l 1-14/18 platform are engineered to provide improved performance and strong customer value for companies machining stainless steels, super alloys, and high-strength steels. They are suitable for applications as face milling, shoulder milling, pocketing, contour milling, and full slotting.

Micro-geometry features contribute to the inserts’ enhanced performance, including a 20-degree rake angle, negative T-land, and small hone. Results include up to 25 percent higher feed capability, lower cutting forces, contributing up to 35 percent longer tool life. Test results in producing 90-degree walls are good as well.

October 2009 metalworking equipment news

83

productfinder

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Walter Prototyp: Flexible & Tough

Delcam: CAM System

In aerospace, energy technology, the car industry, general mechanical engineering and also in tool and mould making, components with complex, sometimes intricate contours are often manufactured.

For these types of applications, the precision tool manufacturer Walter has a modular milling cutter system ConeFit. It offers high stability at the same time.

The milling head for the tool is manufactured from solid carbide, the toolholder from steel. The heart of the system is a self-centring precision mounting thread, of mixture of buttress and trapezoidal threads. A ground cone ensures exact concentricity, an axial support face guarantees high rigidity and as a result process reliability.

PowerMill CAM system offers the fastest-ever toolpath generation on multi-processor computers, giving increased user productivity according to the maker, Delcam.

Other enhancements to further increase productivity include reduced memory usage when programming the largest and most complex parts, and improved ordering to give faster cycle times on the machine tool.

The main benefit of PowerMill 10 is that users can prepare data in the foreground while calculating toolpaths in the background. This eliminates the need for the user to wait for each calculation to be completed before he can start preparing the next operation.

Enquiry No. 7907

Enquiry No. 7908

Visit us at Thai Metalex Booth G27

TORNOS Sigma 20 II • Accessibility • Simplicity • Strenth • Performance

ALMAC CU 1007 Mini Machining Centre • Large Autonomy • Multiple Configurations • Modularity

NO MATTER WHICH FIELD YOU ARE IN, STRIVING TOWARDS EXCELLENCE THERE IS A TORNOS SOLUTION FOR YOUR NEEDS TORNOS Deco 10a • Reliability • Rapidity • Productivity • Versatility

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metalworking equipment news October 2009

TORNOS S.A. THAILAND REPRESENTATIVE OFFICE Tel. +66 2 662 3908 / Fax +66 2 662 3910 thailand.contact@tornos.com

TORNOS TECHNOLOGIES ASIA LTD MALAYSIA REPRESENTATIVE OFFICE Tel. +6 (04) 642 6562 & 6563 / Fax +6 (04) 642 6561 malaysia.contact@tornos.com

AND MUCH MORE at

www.tornos.com

ENQUIRY NO 141

TORNOS TECHNOLOGIES ASIA LTD Unit 4, G/F, Transport City Building 1-7 Shing Wan Road, Tai Wai Shatin, N.T., HONG KONG Tel. +852 2691 2633 / Fax +852 2691 2133 asiapacific.contact@tornos.ch

TORNOS Delta Line • Simplicity • Ergonomics • Price/Performance

product

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Showcase

High Performance Viewing & Measuring Systems

Linear Stages with Positioning Feedback • Resolution of choice: 1µm or 5 µm • Customizable travel length • Manual and motorized versions available • Low profile design

Offering a wide variety of other products: Viewing Systems • Manual and Motorized Positioning Stages • Laser and Optical Products Uhing Traversal Units for wire winding • Zaytran Grippers • Spooling Machines for Optical Fiber

ISA Technology Pte Ltd Tel: 65 6747 8946 • Fax: 65 6744 6687 Email: info@isatech.com.sg • Website: www.isatech.com.sg

The difference between a good machining center and a GREAT machining center.

The way a machining center is built affects the way it performs. We use premium quality components throughout to assure long term reliability and peak performance.

And we don’t take manufacturing short cuts. Our castings are hand scraped and pains takingly fit to deliver consistent”out-of- the- box” accuracies upto 0.002mm/full stroke. Our machining centers with two step geared spindle and twin ballscrew on all axes is long term investment.See what true quality can do for you.

Call us today.

ENQUIRY NO 101

ENQUIRY NO 148

ENQUIRY NO 122

2D Video Measurement System • Low investment high value • High resolution video images • Equipped with Digital Micrometer • XY travel range 50 x 50mm

Bi/Trinocular Stereo Zoom Microscope • Economical and high performance • Versatile setup for different applications • Long working distance

SMG Technologies Pte Ltd No. 7 Toh Guan Road East #08-01/17, Alpha Industrial Building Singapore 608599 Ph: (65)-65622093 www.smgtech.com.sg

Precision Measurement Equipment Since 1959 Micro-Vu Corporation designs and manufactures a broad line of measuring machines including Automated Vision Systems, Manual Video Systems, and Optical Comparators.These non-contact and contact measurement system use video and touch probe inputs to perform high precision 2D and 3D measurements.

Excel Spectra

Matrix Vertex

Come visit us at

Thai Metalex 2009

Henko Machine Tools Pte Ltd No.23 Kaki Bukit Industrial Terrace, Singapore 416103 Tel: +65 6846 4666 • Fax: +65 6846 4555

MACHINERY Co Ltd

1870-Toide, Takaoka-City Toyama Pref Japan 9391192 Ph: (81)766-63-1100 www.kitamura-machinery.co.jp

BME Industries (M) Sdn Bhd D-G-2 & D-1-2 Persiaran Relau Sungai Ara, 11900 Bayan Lepas Penang Tel: +604 640 8686 Mobile: +6016 440 0618

Henko Machine Tools (Thailand) Co Ltd 26/357 Moo 18, Tumbol Klongnuang 9/25/09 12:18 AM Amper Klongnuang Pathumthani Province Thailand 12120 Tel: +66 2908 1131 Mobile: +66 860 423 383

恒科商贸（上海）有限公司 上海市徐汇区沪闵路8075 号红梅商务大厦613 室邮编200233 电话: +86 21 5418 4811 手机：+86 1360 164 1618

For enquiries, please email: info@henko.com • Website: www.henko.com

ENQUIRY NO 153

The Mantis Optical System • Superior ergonomics, improved productivity • Long working distance, easy manipulation • Superb hand-eye co-ordination

October 2009 metalworking equipment news

85

productfinder

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ISA Technology: Motorised Positioning Stages

From Velme x I nc U SA , BiSlide motorised assemblies are suitable for modula r a nd complex configurations required in mediumduty applications. It is a reliable, precise and easy to configure positioning system which allows customisable travel lengths.

Complete this setup with the VXM programmable stepping motor controller. The VXM is integratable for plug and run with Velmex motor driven products. It can be used interactively with a computer, PLC or standalone.

The company also offers Unislide, XSlide and rotary tables to cater to different application requirements.

Enquiry No. 7909

Mitutoyo: Digimatic Indicator The Mitutoyo ABS digimatic indicator standard type ID-C comes with a large LCD with 11 mm character height to improve reading visibility. The design uses three large, easy-to-press buttons for operation and to access the various built-in measurement functions. These measurement functions include the ability to perform scaling calculations, judge tolerance, hold data , a nd p er for m genera l compa rison measurements.

The product also comes with sensor to eliminate the need for origin point alignment every time when power-on.

All this features packed into one compact size indicator makes it an instrument for those who demand accuracy and efficiency.

Enquiry No. 7911

National Instruments: Graphical System Design Software

Master Chemical: Semisynthetic Metalworking Fluid

86

Ma ster Chemica l Cor p ha s developed Trim MicroSol 695, a nonhalogenated semisynthetic metalworking fluid, which has doubled the sump life of previous generation semisynthetics. The fluid has improved lubricity, which translates into better parts finish and longer tool life.

Addit iona l ly, it ha s t he machine-friendly characteristics a nd is versatile, ma k ing it compatible with a wide range of materials including aluminium, magnesium and copper alloys, cast iron, and many plastics and composites.

Cleanliness is very important to the work environment and the fluid keeps machines clean while leaving a soft fluid film, which reduces maintenance and simplifies machine cleaning.

National Instruments has developed LabView 2009, a version of the graphical system design software platform for control, test and embedded system development.

It simplifies the development challenges of parallel hardware architectures by helping engineers and scientists implement virtualisation technology that takes advantage of multicore systems as well as by offering compiler improvements and IP that enhance field-programmable gate array design.

This version makes it possible to deploy code to wireless sensor networks to help engineers and scientists build smarter industrial measurement and monitoring systems and features solutions for testing multiple wireless standards such as WLAN, WiMAX, GPS and MIMO systems on a single hardware platform.

Enquiry No. 7910

Enquiry No. 7912

metalworking equipment news October 2009

Exhibition Programmes

2009

October 8 - 10 Metalex Vietnam HCMC 2009 Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center (SECC) Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam Reed Tradex metalexvietnam@reedtradex.co.th www.metalexvietnam.com

13 – 15 Wire South-East Asia BITEC Bangkok, Thailand Messe Düsseldorf Asia wire@mda.com.sg www.wire-southeastasia.com

13 – 15 Tube South-East Asia BITEC Bangkok, Thailand Messe Düsseldorf Asia tube@mda.com.sg www.tube-southeastasia.com

14 – 16 China Steel Tube Expo 2009 Tianjin Binhai International Convention & Exhibition Centre Tianjin, China Shanghai Shenshi Exhibition Service tubeexpo@gmail.com tj.gangguan-expo.com

15 – 17 EPM Linkage Vietnam

Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center (SECC) Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam Chan Chao International machine@chanchao.com.tw www.epmlinkage.com

December 20 – 24 Vietnam International Industrial Fair

1–4 Blechexpo

27 - 31 Korea Metal Week 2009

2-5 Manufacturing Indonesia 2009

Vietnam Exhibition Fair Centre Hanoi, Vietnam VEFAC vefac@netnam.vn www.vietnamindustrialfair.com

Korea International Exhibition Center Seoul, S Korea Korea Trade Fairs master1@ktfairs.com korea-metal.com

Stuttgart Exhibition Centre Stuttgart, Germany PE Schall frank@schall-messen.de www.blechexpo-messe.de/de/blechexpo

Jakarta International Expo Kemayoran Jakarta, Indonesia PT Pamerindo Buana Abadi info@pamerindo.com www.pamerindo.com

November 3–7 Metalworking & CNC Machine Tool Show 2009 Shanghai New Int’l Expo Centre Shanghai, China Hannover Fairs Shanghai mwcs@hfchina.com www.metalworkingchina.com

19 – 22 Metalex 2009

BITEC Bangkok, Thailand Reed Tradex metalex@reedtradex.co.th www.metalex.co.th

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BYSTRONIC PTE LTD

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EVERISING MACHINE CO

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EXXON MOBIL ASIA PACIFIC

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HENKO MACHINE TOOLS PTE LTD

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HURCO (S.E.ASIA) PTE LTD

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IDEMITSU LUBE (SINGAPORE) PTE LTD

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ISA TECHNOLOGY PTE LTD

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LEITZ METALWORKING TECHNOLOGY Asia PTE LTD 45 082 LICO MACHINERY CO LTD

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MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES (THAILAND) CO LTD 53 132 MITUTOYO ASIA PACIFIC PTE LTD

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MORI SEIKI (S) PTE LTD

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SECO TOOLS (s.E.A) PTE LTD

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TECHTOWN PTE LTD

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TORNOS TECHNOLOGIES ASIA LTD

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WALTER AG SINGAPORE PTE LTD

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❑ 313 Forging ❑ 316 Rolling ❑ 319 Die Casting ❑ 322 Welding ❑ 302 Turning ❑ 305 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 ❑ 160 ❑ 180 ❑ 200 ❑ 224 ❑ 078

Shipbuilding Design & Consultancy Services Govt bodies, Trade Assns, Exhibitions Cos. Agent/Distributor/Trader of Machine Tools & Accessories Mechanical, Fabrication and all other metal engineering works Others (Please specify)_____________________________________

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

❑ 028 Testing & Inspection ❑ 030 Sales & Marketing ❑ 027 Others (Please specify)

❑ 022 Production Engineering ❑ 024 Quality Control/Assurance

Send this Fast SUBSCRIPTION FORM to Circulation Department, Eastern Trade Media Pte Ltd 1100 Lower Delta Road, EPL Building #04-02, Singapore 169206 or Fax: 65-6379 2806 Note: This form must be duly completed and signed.

❑ 026 Design Engineering ❑ 029 Purchasing/Sourcing

ENQUIRY NO 136

®® ®

BY BYKENNAMETAL BY KENNAMETAL KENNAMETAL

Where Whereyou youturn turn

isisas asimportant importantas aswhat whatyou youturn. turn.

PERFORMANCE PERFORMANCE PERFORMANCE Beyond delivers superior productivity Beyond Beyond delivers delivers superior superior productivity productivity and profitability — up more andand profitability profitability —— upto up to30% to 30% 30% more more than any competitive offering. than than anyany competitive competitive offering. offering.

VERSATILITY VERSATILITY VERSATILITY Exceptional atatany speed ororinor Exceptional Exceptional at anyany speed speed in in any application, Beyond turns anyany application, application, Beyond Beyond turns turns on onadaptability. on adaptability. adaptability.

RELIABILITY RELIABILITY RELIABILITY With Beyond, experience new With With Beyond, Beyond, experience experience new new levels ofofpredictable and dependable levels levels of predictable predictable andand dependable dependable tool life. tooltool life.life.

Kennametal, the innovator ininmetalcutting technology, introduces aanew era inintooling.

Kennametal, Kennametal, thetrusted the trusted trusted innovator innovator metalcutting in metalcutting technology, technology, introduces introduces new a new eraera tooling. in tooling.

Harnessing advanced science and exceptional experience, we’ve gone totogreater heights Harnessing Harnessing advanced advanced science science andand exceptional exceptional experience, experience, we’ve we’ve gone gone greater to greater heights heights totocreate Beyond, our next generation, ultra-performance tooling platform.

Engineered toto to create to create Beyond, Beyond, ourour next next generation, generation, ultra-performance ultra-performance tooling tooling platform. platform.

Engineered Engineered exceed expectations and surpass excellence every time, Beyond isismore than aacut above, exceed exceed expectations expectations andand surpass surpass excellence excellence every every time, time, Beyond Beyond more is more than than cut a cut above, above, and then some. andand then then some. some.

For increased productivity, efficiency, dependability, and profitability, turn totoKennametal atat at ForFor increased increased productivity, productivity, efficiency, efficiency, dependability, dependability, andand profitability, profitability, turnturn Kennametal to Kennametal www.kennametal.com ororcall (65) 6265.9222. www.kennametal.com www.kennametal.com call or call (65) (65) 6265.9222.

6265.9222.

• •

• India 9180.2219.8341 • Japan 813.3820.2855 • Malaysia 603.5569.9080 • Singapore 65.6265.9222 Australia 613.9755.5302 • Australia • India • India • Japan • Japan • Malaysia • Malaysia • Singapore • Singapore Australia 613.9755.5302 613.9755.5302 9180.2219.8341 9180.2219.8341 813.3820.2855 813.3820.2855 603.5569.9080 603.5569.9080 65.6265.9222 65.6265.9222 • Indonesia 6281.1148.8217 • Korea 822.2109.6100 • Taiwan 8862.2523.3660 • Thailand 662.642.3455 China 8621.3860.8288 • China • Indonesia • Indonesia • Korea • Korea • Taiwan • Taiwan • Thailand • Thailand China 8621.3860.8288 8621.3860.8288 6281.1148.8217 6281.1148.8217 822.2109.6100 822.2109.6100 8862.2523.3660 8862.2523.3660 662.642.3455 662.642.3455

• •

ENQUIRY NO 145

Turning l l Threading l l Grooving l l Cut-Off l l Holemaking l l Indexable Milling l l Solid-Carbide End Milling l l Tooling Systems l l Services Turning Turning Threading l Threading Grooving l Grooving Cut-Off l Cut-Off Holemaking l Holemaking Indexable l Indexable Milling Milling Solid-Carbide l Solid-Carbide EndEnd Milling Milling lTooling Tooling Systems Systems lServices Services ©2009 Kennametal Inc. l All rights reserved. l A-08-01729 ©2009 ©2009 Kennametal Kennametal Inc. lInc. All rights l All rights reserved. reserved. l A-08-01729 l A-08-01729