Industry Asia Pacific 20

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Industry

Asia Pacific THE INDUSTRY MAGAZINE FOR ASIA

THK A SENSING CHAIR THAT MEASURES RESPIRATORY RATES, HEART RATES, AND STRESS LEVELS

8 KOLLMORGEN SELF-DRIVING SYSTEMS FOR INTERNAL FLOWS OF MATERIALS

10 REGLASS YOUR EQUIPMENT AT DE DIETRICH PROCESS SYSTEMS WITH OUR DD3009 ENAMEL

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FLUKE PROCESS INSTRUMENTS DATAPAQ EASYTRACK3: MORE MEMORY, EASY HANDLING

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THE INDUSTRY MAGAZINE FOR ASIA

DE DIETRICH PROCESS SYSTEMS

DE DIETRICH PROCESS SYSTEMS

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NORD

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THK

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KOLLMORGEN

BALLUFF

SECO TOOLS

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FLUKE PROCESS INSTRUMENTS

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www.industry-asia-pacific.com

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Contact: Long WEI Editor in Chief: editor@industry-asia-pacific.com Send your press releases to: editor@industry-asia-pacific.com To receive Industry Asia Pacific magazine free of charge, please subscribe online at www.industry-asia-pacific.com Industry Asia Pacific is the English-language magazine for engineers, published by IPM (Industrial Portal Media) It contains the latest product and company news for industrial markets.

Industry Asia Pacific edits its articles with the greatest of care, however we cannot guarantee the accuracy of the information presented in them. Our teams disclaim all responsibility concerning the content of this media or how it might be used.

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REGLASS YOUR EQUIPMENT AT DE DIETRICH PROCESS SYSTEMS WITH OUR DD3009 ENAMEL

What is Reglassing ? Reglassing is the process by which older or damaged glass-lined steel equipment is refurbished to like-new condition. All glass-lined reactors, tanks, columns, and accessories such as covers, agitators and baffles, can be reglassed if the steel substrate is in good or repairable condition.

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How is Equipment Reglassed ?

The process starts once a vessel has been inspected and approved as a candidate for reglass. Next, the old glass lining is removed by shot-blasting. After any steel repairs and modifications are complete, De Dietrich Process Systems proceeds with the glassing process. Here we fuse corrosion resistant DD3009 enamel onto the prepared steel in our computer controlled electric furnaces. The end product is a high quality, glass-lined steel vessel or accessory.

A distinctive feature of De Dietrich’s enamel is that it is manufactured on-site, in France, allowing control over the quality of the Groups’ whole range of equipment.

What are the Benefits of Reglassing ?

Reglassing is ideal for situations when time and cost are a primary issue. The turnaround time is within weeks versus months to fabricate a new vessel and there is nearly a 35% cost savings compared to buying a new vessel. Many companies also find reglassing, which is considered a maintenance budget expenditure, preferable to new capital expenditure. Additionally, upgrades such as OptiMix® baffles (integrated baffles in vessel shell), extra nozzles and insulation rings can be added. All vessels reglassed by De Dietrich Process Systems come with the same standard warranty as new vessels, ensuring you are receiving a vessel “as good as new”.

De Dietrich Process Systems also offers reglassing on competitors' equipment. This is the opportunity to reglass equipment from another brand with our high quality DD3009 enamel and benefit also from our know-how thanks to highly skilled enamel sprayers.

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When is reglassing needed ?

Glass-lined steel equipment becomes a candidate for repair and reglassing in the following instances:

• New Drive unit to comply to new regulations (ATEX,…)

• New Support system • New Jacket • Optimized agitation including new stirrer with or without new drive unit • Geometry modification: by addding or blinding nozzles, by adding OptiMix® baffles • Insulation with foamglas or rockwool, fully cladded with stainless steel sheets De Dietrich Process Systems offers an affordable reglass and modernization service on own vessels as well as on competitors’ equipment. Even if you are unsure if our equipment qualifies for reglassing, it is an affordable solution worth looking into.

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• The addition of more plugs, patches or sleeves becomes uneconomical, or results in a repair of questionable integrity • Spalling of the glass due to nascent hydrogen attack • Galvanic corrosion caused by the use of dissimilar metals in the reactor, like dip pipes, valves and/or repair plugs • Substantial damage caused from the loss of a repair plug • Build up of extremely corrosive or erosive products from batch type operations and pilot operations • Contamination of jacket heating and cooling media, causing accelerated corrosion at the bottom closure ring • Lack of venting, which can allow corrosion-producing air pockets at the top jacket closure ring • Damage caused from a component being welded to the substrate during replacement • Accidental damage to the lining of the vessel • Mechanical damage, e.g. a workman drops a tool or other object he shouldn’t have in his pocket • Poor workmanship on a repair • Thermal shock or stress beyond the safe limits of the glass

What can be combined with reglassing ?

Reglassing service can be combined with a full modernization of the equipment with a real retrofitting of all devices or accessories such as:

For your reglassing, think De Dietrich. The whole cycle is under control ! www.dedietrich.com

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DE DIETRICH BOLSTERS ITS PLANT-BASED CHEMISTRY OPERATIONS

According to a study by McKinsey & Company, the biobased products market is expected to grow from $27.6 billion in 2010 to $51.1 billion in 2020. France's Association for Plant-Based Chemistry (ACDV) recently reiterated the French chemical industry's goal to double the volume of plant-based raw materials produced in France by 2020.

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imilar goals are being set in many other countries. De Dietrich Process Systems (DDPS) is a firm believer in the strong growth potential of plant-based chemistry, a linchpin of a sustainable and environmentally friendly economy. Although DDPS is already present among key players in the sector, creating a dedicated organisation within the group reflects its commitment to help its customers to go even further in developing efficient and innovative biobased products.

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Drawing on 333 years of technical and engineering expertise and a global presence, DDPS provides companies in the food, healthcare, cosmetics, and biomaterials industries with a complete range of customised turnkey solutions for extracting and purifying natural ingredients from biomass.

These solutions are particularly used in the production of natural flavors, pigments, flavour enhancers, refined essential oils, botanical extracts, and texturisers.

The technologies used in the processes implemented by DDPS include in particular solid-liquid and liquid-liquid extraction, vacuum evaporation and concentration, fractional distillation, filtration, drying, hydrodistillation, and molecular distillation. DDPS' simulation and testing tools facilitate the definition and optimisation of operating parameters during the pre-project phase. Its internal production and integration resources make it possible to bring industrial projects of any scale to successful completion.

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DDPS has opened a sales office in Grasse, France, and will draw on its engineering units in Europe (Barcelona, Spain, Zinswiller, France; Mainz, Germany), the USA (Charlotte, North Carolina), and Asia (Wuxi, China; Rabale, India; Singapore).

Its ambitious commitment is successfully illustrated by its recent partnership with SAS PIVERT (www.sas-pivert.com), a French company based in Compiègne for which DDPS has developed a pilot plant for processing oilseed biomass.

This pilot plant consists of a pressurised reaction unit, a continuous vacuum distillation tower, a condensationsettling-storage unit, and associated peripheral equipment (vacuum skid unit, thermal skid unit, transfer pumps, support structure, etc.). The entire plant is supplemented with a vacuum drying skid (pan dryer) with automatic transfer of solids. www.dedietrich.com

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A SENSING CHAIR THAT MEASURES RESPIRATORY RATES, HEART RATES, AND STRESS LEVELS

THK exhibited a product prototype (Smart Sensing Chair) at the world’s largest furniture fair, ICFF 2017, held May 21–24 at the Javits Center in New York City.

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t the ICFF, we at THK present our product prototype which is designed with a smart sensing system that can analyze a person’s health and the condition of the surrounding environment. The sensors built into the chair measure respiratory rates, heart rates, stress levels, and conditions of the surrounding air. This information is then displayed on a monitor.

Prototype details Slide rails are built into the seat of the chair that are used to pull the seat back to load or remove a microcomputer.

Design • Simple design of transparent acrylic with a blue seat.

• Seat equipped with sensors to measure body movement and take readings of the surrounding environment.

• THK's Model FBL56H+305LS slide rails are built into the seat, enabling sensor installation.

• Each of the three chairs exhibit different functions of this technology: one chair analyzes a person’s health, one conveys information, and one takes measurements of the surrounding environment.

Smart Sensing Chair System • A body motion sensor installed in the chair measures one’s heart rate, respiratory rate, and stress levels.

• Data can be saved and reviewed with a cloud environment.

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Various health statistics about the person sitting in the chair (respiratory rate, heart rate, and stress level) can be seen on a monitor.

www.thk.com

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SELF-DRIVING SYSTEMS FOR INTERNAL FLOWS OF MATERIALS

The Packman 200 finds its own way through the rows of shelves.

DC servomotors in KOLLMORGEN’s AKM series with 48 volt winding for autonomous vehicles.

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o name would have been more desirable. With the Packman 200, Opteq Robotics has developed a self-driving solution for material flows which makes its way quickly and directly through the aisles to reach its destination, just like the popular arcade game from the 1980s. While making the wrong turn soon means game over in the classic Japanese arcade game when the main yellow character becomes the victim of voracious ghosts, detours also signify a loss for the Dutch company’s new solution, i.e. through lost time in rapid material flows. The Packman 200 features KOLLMORGEN AKM synchronous servo motors as drives, based on a new version with specially tuned winding for 48 volts.

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The mobile robot systems are connected via WiFi with a fleet management system which in turn communicates with a higher-level ERP system and receives the travel jobs from there so that the Packman 200 does not lose its bearings. The network is so finely interconnected based on the Industry 4.0 concept that the ANT (Autonomous Navigation Tool) always passes the job onto the correct Packman. The correct one depends for instance on the distance to the job destination, the capacity of the relevant battery, as well as on the relevant model is capable in the 20 | Industry Asia Pacific | July 2017

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first place of transporting the freight weight required. “Our self-driving systems have a modular structure, because of which there will be different categories of weight”, says Henk Kiela, Managing Director at Probotics. The current model is able to transport loads of up to 150 kilograms with an own operating weight of 40 kilos, and with availability of more than six hours. The mobile assistant then needs to return to the charging station.

Flexibly linking production islands The Dutch firm from the small town of Haps, just south of Nijmegen, believes that the machines will be used much more in production companies as well as in clinics rather than in large logistics centers. The aim of the Packman 200 is to automate the transport routes here which were previously covered by employees in a time-consuming process. Henk Kiela mentions the different configuration options for linking production islands with no fixed routes as examples here. “The special feature with our solution is that we do not need magnetic sections for the routes. On the contrary, we are able to take flexible routes as a result of the level of freedom in the programming. This makes integration into modifiable production facilities so easy and so attractive based on cost aspects”, highlights the firm’s

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The AIVs weighing 40 kilograms can transport useful loads of up to 150 kilos.

Dynamic Drives uses an extremely compact control solution from Sigmatek to control the servomotors – and this is also with 48V of voltage.

Optec uses synchronous servomotors from the KOLLMORGEN AKM range in a 48 volt version as drives for both wheels.

owner, who also still works as Professor of Mechatronics and Robotics at the Fontys University of Applied Sciences, Eindhoven.

The fact that the mobile units are linked beyond the classic automation pyramid and thereby increase efficiency in material flows makes them a powerful representative for Industry 4.0. Another particularly attractive feature of autonomous intelligent vehicles (AIVs) is their simple structure with few components. A look at the interior essentially reveals a laser sensor for ascertaining distances, the battery pack, a powerful controller featuring Motion Control along with two low voltage DC servo motors from KOLLMORGEN’s AKM series in frame size 3 as wheel drives.

6A of continuous current at 48V DC. The breakaway torques required when starting up the mobile transport robots can be easily controlled since the module is able to provide a peak current of up to 15A at short notice. “This allows us to avoid constantly oversizing the drive technology, thereby saving space and helping us to extend coverage, since the batteries don’t need to supply as much electrical power”, explains Frank ten Velde further. Together with Dynamic Drives the company has already been working for more than 20 years as a certified partner in Belgium and the Netherlands to KOLLMORGEN.

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48 volt drives with reserves The AKM-31’s regular nominal power rating is 1.3 kW with its 400 V winding. With the adjustment to 48 volts the compact units provide 300 watt of power with planetary gears installed directly. As supplier of fully-integrated automation systems, SigmaControl has used the S-Dias range from Sigmatek together with the KOLLMORGEN motors. “This way we have matched the perfect couple, implementing the control movements with different speeds on the wheels and also taking responsibility for the process and motion control”, says Frank ten Velde, Account Manager for SigmaControl, exclusive distributor of SIGMATEK Netherlands. The DC 061 axis module provides virtually 300W of nominal power and is designed to control a synchronous servo motor with up to

The laser sensor detects any obstacles on the route programmed and the control unit calculates a diversionary route straight away.

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NEWS Frank ten Velde, Account Manager for SigmaControl, exclusive distributor of SIGMATEK Netherlands.

Kollmorgen AKM1 DC Servo Motor Low Voltage Size Comparison.

Pioneers in the area of self-driving systems for in-house material flows: Henk Kiela (left) and Peter Janssern from PROBOTICS.

Sandra Becker is responsible for European marketing communications at KOLLMORGEN in Ratingen.

The routes can be varied, making the solution from the Netherlands so flexible in practice.

A very generous design also provides more space for further versions of the Packman. “We are reducing the variety of versions available. Our customers benefit from this through lower purchase costs as well as with subsequent provisioning”, explains ten Velde. The power reserve provides purely benefits for the system integrator in this case. “There’s barely any difference in price whether we provide a controller for four or six amps. Yet the solution space becomes significantly larger.” This aspect makes it possible for instance to implement applications with the 48 volt AKM servomotors in combination with the SIGMATEKMotion-Control system which require highly dynamic positioning. These types of applications can regularly be found in packaging technology, e.g. for labeling.

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The drive and control technology can be adapted easily Aside from the pure functionality and power of the drive technology, spiritual father of the Packman 200 Henk Kiela also appreciates the ease related to configuration and programming of the drive and control solution from KOLLMORGEN and SIGMATEK. “This gives us the option, for instance, of easily adapting the Packman 200 to different ground conditions. If I have a rough surface for example, then I can optimize the drive technology in such a way that it suits pneumatic tires perfectly.”

Since the Dutch innovation center’s core knowledge and expertise can be found in system development and integration, the professor of mechatronics and his 20 | Industry Asia Pacific | July 2017

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development team rely on partners for implementation “who provide technology that also works in reality in the way that we imagine at the start of a project”. The success of the collaboration between KOLLMORGEN and SigmaControl is clearly illustrated in the brief implementation phase for the prototype for the Packman 200 of just three months. “I know how to put drives together myself, but it takes a lot of time. I can save that time by purchasing a fully-connected solution with ready-made standard functions, and then focusing instead on the object-based programming for our own robot system.”

More room for the really essential tasks The professor of mechatronics and robotics is convinced that the systems such as the Packman 200 enable much more efficient configurations for in-house flows of goods.

“We expect savings of at least 15 percent.” Given this potential he says that he expects the mobile robots to be implemented on a broad basis within the next ten years.

He claims that the aim of this is not to save headcount, but rather to provide relief to staff from unproductive in-house transportation tasks. For him this also includes tasks in clinics as well as any potential usage in the production industry. The central issue with this is why nurses should waste the little time they already have moving hospital waste, bed clothes and beverages? The efficiency savings thereby create more room for spending time with patients. www.kollmorgen.com

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SIMPLE TO RETROFIT: EASY TOOL-ID FROM BALLUFF ECONOMICAL ENTRY LEVEL SOLUTION FOR TOOL MANAGEMENT

Tool identification using Balluff Industrial RFID increases production efficiency, as it makes incorrect tool allocation or missing tools a thing of the past. This enables optimizing the service time utilization of the tools. In addition, scrap and rework due to excessive use of tools are virtually eliminated. With Easy Tool-ID Balluff now offers an economical entry into tool management. It is simple to retrofit and stands out with easy installation and configuration.

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ll this is required is a USB port (keyboard expander) on the machine tool and a presetter. The data are written via RFID technology from the presetter to the tool and then passed on through the Easy Tool-ID system to the machine tool. Manual entry is eliminated. Setup times and the risk of incorrect entries are significantly reduced. The system consists of a tool stand with integrated read/write head, a processor unit, a microcontroller and the power supply.

The solution's handling and functional principle could not be easier: At the tool presetter, each tool is measured and its data, such as diameter and radius, are written on the data carrier on the tool shank. The user simply brings the tool to the machine, places it in the tool holder and presses a key.

The system then emulates the key input and automatically reads the data with the Balluff Tool-ID through the keyboard interface to the machine controller. Manual, error-prone entry is thus eliminated. This means that even existing machines can be modernized and upgraded with a costeffective tool ID solution.

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www.balluff.co.uk

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PRACTICAL APPROACH TO CONTROL WASTE IN MANUFACTURING

Figure 1 – Total image of all elements and how they relate and interact, in a manufacturing plant (NEXT STEP model and concept).

Manufacturers continually seek ways to maximise productivity and efficiency. Today, those efforts frequently involve high-level programs that employ buzzwords that include cloud computing, datadriven manufacturing, cyber-physical systems and Industry4.0. These advanced initiatives are excellent concepts and can produce impressive results. However, manufacturing realities often interfere with the implementation of such ambitious plans, and a critical reality is the presence of uncontrolled waste in the manufacturing process.

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efore discussing digitisation and optimisation, it is necessary for a manufacturer to examine its operations, determine where waste occurs, and develop methods to reduce or eliminate it. Controlling waste is the first step in preparing a manufacturing company for the adoption of sophisticated smart manufacturing strategies.

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Basics of production economics Manufacturing consists of a series of transformation processes. A shop forms raw material into finished or semi-finished workpieces through a series of individual transformation operations such as forging, welding or machining. A number of individual elements comprise each operation. The basic elements of machining, for example, include the cutting tool, machine tool, fixtures and coolant supply. Together these elements form a machining system 20 | Industry Asia Pacific | July 2017

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that gets support from related equipment and components in a production system.

Planning, programming and economic management functions surround the production system to form a production environment. The key element of a production environment is people. Although manufacturing today widely utilises computers, robots and other advanced technology, people make the decisions that control the environment overall.

The machining process is based on technical application details regarding tool selection, cutting conditions, programming and workpiece material and fixturing. Other key details include production volume requirements and the specified quality of finished workpieces.

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Figure 2 – Total machinability model developed in STEP. Figure 3 – 3D illustration that shows the collection of all cutting condition combinations that can be used within the constraints coming from the cutting environment.

Linking technical application details with economic concerns is called production economics. The goal of the science of production economics is to balance all the factors involved. While technical elements produce desired results in terms of workpiece quality, quantity and timeliness, the operations must be carried out at a cost that enables a business to thrive.

Achieving the balance of output and cost in machining progresses through three phases. The first phase is establishing a reliable machining process. It is essential to minimise unexpected occurrences such as broken tools, uncontrolled chips and resulting destroyed workpieces. A workshop establishes operational reliability by choosing tools with load capacity that meets or exceeds the mechanical, thermal, chemical and tribological loads generated in the machining process.

For example, the capabilities and performance of a tool vary according to the amount of power possessed by the machine tool that is applying it; the machining characteristics of the

Figure 3 illustrates a large selection or volume of cutting speeds, depths of cut and feeds that has been carved into a smaller selection and reduced volume in recognition of various realities of a specific cutting application.

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Phase two in achieving balanced production economics involves choosing cutting conditions that reflect the constraints put on the machining process by real-world circumstances. The theoretical capabilities of a cutting tool are broad. But specific workshop realities constrain the range of effective application parameters.

workpiece material; or the configuration of a part that may be prone to vibration or distortion. Although there is a vast selection of cutting conditions that will work in theory, unfortunately constraints posed by reality will narrow the range of trouble-free choices.

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Figure 4 – relationship between cutting conditions, productivy and machining costs. This figure shows a simplified model, not taking into account waste factors.

lower productivity. Perhaps 90 percent of the problems experienced during machining result from a lack of respect for the constraints that workshop realities place on the cutting process.

When cutting conditions do not exceed the constraints imposed by workshop realities, the operation is safe from a technical perspective. However, not every technically safe combination of cutting conditions will produce the same economic result. Changing cutting conditions changes the cost of the machining process. Moving to more aggressive but still technically safe cutting conditions will increase the output of finished workpieces, but after a certain point however, productivity will decline because the aggressive cutting parameters also will result in shorter tool life. The output of parts over time then will decline as well, because more time will be spent changing worn tools.

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Somewhere there is a combination of cutting conditions that result in a balance of productive output and manufacturing cost. Figure 4 shows the relationship between cutting conditions, productivity and tool and machine costs. (The graph concentrates only on elements that vary as cutting conditions change – material, overhead and administration and engineering costs are not included.) More aggressive conditions are at the right of the axes and higher productivity at the top. The pale blue band at the middle of the graph indicates where cutting conditions produce a balanced 20 | Industry Asia Pacific | July 2017

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blend of productivity (highest output) and economy (lowest cost).

Accordingly, the third phase of achieving balanced production economics involves determining the optimal combination of cutting conditions for a given situation. It is essential to take into account all the factors in the machining operation to establish a working domain where cutting parameters provide the desired levels of productivity and economy.

The effect of waste on production economics Unfortunately, the elegant scientific methods of balanced production economics operate at the mercy of waste in the manufacturing system. Waste destroys the balance and occurs in many ways. For example, it is a waste of energy and power when a 60kW machine tool is used in an ongoing application that requires only 15kW. In another situation, when finished workpieces do not meet required levels of quality, the time, money and resources invested in the process are wasted in pursuit of an unacceptable result.

Similarly, manufacturing workpieces that needlessly exceed required levels of quality is wasteful, because achieving increased quality increases cost.

A less obvious and less understood occasion of waste is the underuse or misuse of intellectual resources. Certain personnel in a company may possess knowledge or skills that will help the company achieve its goals, but for reasons

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Figure 5 – Schematic picture of a machining workshop and all the elements related to it.

ranging from poor communication to intra-company politics, the knowledge and skills are not shared and therefore go to waste.

as well as unrealized knowledge and skills. As a result, employees perform their jobs better and build capabilities that maximise personnel productivity.

Waste reduction tools After waste is identified and categorized, a shop should create a plan to reduce or eliminate it. There exists a wide range of tools that enable a manufacturer to pinpoint, quantify, and minimise wasteful practices. For example, analysis of tool usage, manipulation and deterioration will point out trouble areas.

Management of value-adding, value-enabling, and unneeded activities At the start of the 20th century, American industrial engineer Fredrick Taylor studied workshop operations and proposed that productivity improvement be driven by eliminating any activities in a process that do not add value to the final product. Modern “lean” manufacturing guidelines follow this same line of thinking.

Such analyses have shown that in some cases as much as 20 percent to 30 percent of the tools that personnel defined as worn out were in fact still viable – the remaining tool life was wasted. Establishing clear tool wear criteria and communicating the standards to shop personnel will significantly reduce wasted tool life.

The use of interviews, surveys and training programs can uncover a lot of useful information when dealing with personnel issues that lead to waste of intellectual resources

A third group of activities in the machining system are those that are unneeded. These activities neither create value nor enable creation of value, but rather consume resources with no benefit. They are purely occasions of waste. Problem solving is an example of unneeded activity. If a process is properly designed and controlled in the first place, there will be no problems and no time wasted solving them.

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Similarly, machine downtime analyses quantify the time spent in activities such as setup, programming and tool changing. These analyses often indicate that as much as 50 percent to 60 percent of machine downtime is avoidable through a better understanding, execution and coordination of these necessary but time-consuming activities.

In machining operations, the only true value-adding activity occurs when the tool is actually cutting metal and making chips. Other actions such as part loading and fixturing, termed value-enabling activities, do not directly add value to the manufactured product but are required to allow the value-adding activity to occur.

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Figure 6 – Overview of value adding adding activities (orange), value enabling activities (blue) and waste activities (red). The people factor (grey) is the key factor to reach optimum achievement of manufacturing top performance.

Conclusion For much of the past, unneeded activities were accepted as part of the manufacturing process and not recognized as significant disruptors of the achievement of balanced production economics. Presently, attention is turning to the elimination or minimisation of unneeded activity. The focus of productivity or capacity planning is on eliminating unneeded activities, minimizing value enabling activities and optimising value adding activities. (See Figure 6)

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When waste is eliminated, theoretical production economics become practical production economics. At that point, progress in production economics can be applied directly to company success. However, in the effort to eliminate every occasion of waste, caution is necessary. It is important to quantify the return on investment of waste reduction activities. Totally eliminating a certain incidence of waste might involve an investment that is so large that from an economic perspective it may be better to accept the waste, or a portion of it, and live with it. Such decisions are made following appropriate quantitative analysis as well as intracompany discussions regarding how the decisions will affect company goals and philosophies. www.secotools.com

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NEWS Seco Consultancy Services As manufacturing products become more sophisticated, users need increasing amounts of application assistance to realise maximum benefits from the new technologies. In machining, the initial level of assistance is guidance in the selection of the right tool for a certain operation. After a tool is selected, further information facilitates choice of optimal cutting conditions, use of coolant and other considerations. Then, if a tool fails to function as expected in that operation, the tool supplier can provide troubleshooting help. These three modes of assistance make up traditional tooling services.

When tooling service expands from a single application to cover a process in which a workpiece is subject to multiple operations on one or more machines, end users require guidance in arranging the sequence of operations, workpiece manipulation and other factors to maximise efficiency and productivity. That level of assistance can be called engineering services.

More and more frequently, manufacturers are seeking direction in improving functions, output and cost control for an entire shop or organization. In these cases, some independent consulting companies perform what they describe as management or manufacturing consulting. However, to do a true evaluation of a manufacturing organization, it is essential to fully understand the business’s core operations.

Applying its long and extensive understanding of machining processes and tooling, Seco has been providing traditional tooling services, engineering services and to some extend bigger-picture consulting for decades. Those services were offered on a contingent or situation-specific basis, but in 2016, Seco formed its Consulting Services to provide its customers with a more streamlined and responsive array of manufacturing services.

Seco Consulting Services include a wide range of specific resources and delivery methods. Tool selection and application assistance is available online around the clock to meet immediate productivity needs on the shop floor.

Engineering services can begin with electronic communication and extend to on-site visits if necessary. Seco Consulting Services also can include comprehensive analysis and guidance involving the operation of every function in a workshop. Those services can include consultation on machine tool maintenance, workshop layout, logistics and organizational functions.

Advice on personnel skill and knowledge issues, and the relationship of the manufacturing techniques employed to the organization’s production strategies and cost considerations can be included as well.

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Each Seco Consultancy relationship is based on the NEXT STEP concept but also custom-tailored to the participating organization’s specific needs, and exists as a dialog between Seco and the customer aimed at achieving a common goal. www.secotools.com

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HOIST DRIVES RISE TO THE CHALLENGE

The Leadenhall Building, City of London – its 10 degree tapered façade creates a particular challenge for cleaning and maintenance.

AC vector drives enable maintenance access to high-rise buildings.

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igh-rise landmarks such as 122 Leadenhall Street, London, come with their own, custom-tailored maintenance access system. Material and window cleaning personnel are transported by means of hoists installed on the rooftop. Powerful, safe drives are an essential part of this reliable solution.

As tall building design increasingly becomes more architecturally innovative, solution providers for maintenance access are challenged to keep pace, with novel solutions required for every development. In one of its latest projects, Integral Cradles Ltd designed and installed two Building Maintenance Units or BMUs for the iconic 52-floor Leadenhall Building in the City of London.

Also known as “The Cheesegrater”, the 225 meter skyscraper features a distinctive tapered shape with one façade angled at 10 degrees. The custom-tailored BMUs consist of traversing cranes, cradles, and support equipment permanently mounted on the roof. Importantly, a telescopic jib provides them with a reach of over 20 meters – thereby they can get to all parts of the building’s exterior. The machinery lifts glass panels with a combined weight of up to 1,000 kg. It also assisted with the dismantling of the tower cranes by lifting parts up to 2,000 kg. With safety and reliability clearly major design considerations, the installation includes several helical bevel geared motors and NORDAC PRO series inverters supplied by NORD DRIVESYSTEMS to precisely position the cradles over and around the entire tower.

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Global project development requires global suppliers From the project outset, Integral Cradles worked with the architects and the construction company, developing the BMUs using a ‘virtual construction’ approach called Building Information Modeling (BIM). This allowed all parties to visualize the access solution concurrently as the building work progressed, taking into account even minute design changes that might influence the façade access system and maintenance regime. Integral Cradles developed the 20 | Industry Asia Pacific | July 2017

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NEWS A NORD SK 9072.1 geared motor drives the telescopic jib of the Leadenhall Buildings’ BMU.

NORD DRIVESYSTEMS NORDAC PRO series frequency inverters include sophisticated positioning functions and an on-board PLC.

Leadenhall Building BMU design in collaboration with its Spanish supply partner Góndolas in Design, S.L. (GinD), who manufactured and sourced major component parts for the project. A longstanding NORD DRIVESYSTEMS customer, Madrid-based GinD has supplied BMUs for several prestigious installations worldwide that also use NORD drives. Quality, service, and global support are key requirements of Integral Cradles’ and GinD’s design process.

Therefore, it was crucial that all of the critical specifications could be studied and each drive axis optimally sized by NORD engineers in Germany, with local sales support from NORD Gear Ltd – its UK subsidiary and one of 36 that operate across all major manufacturing countries worldwide.

All drive components manufactured in-house The geared motors driving the BMU axes were also all manufactured and assembled at NORD. The energyefficient IE3 motors are rated up to 5.5 kW, some featuring safety brakes with a manual brake release. All vertically mounted motors include a rain canopy on the top of the fan cowl to prevent debris and water entering the back end of the motor where the brake and fan are located. All of the motorized axes benefit from NORD’s Unicase highefficiency helical bevel gear units where rigid one-piece cast iron machined housings resist deflection under the heaviest load conditions. With all bearings and seal seats contained

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Hoist drive functions on board Each BMU comprises four inverter-driven axes: a traversing axis runs the counterbalanced crane on a rail system over each half-length of the roof; a slewing axis rotates the crane; a telescopic axis extends the jib; and a winch drive feeds cable to elevate the cradle over the building façade.

The luffing axis that positions the jib angle is powered with a hydraulic actuator. The application requires smooth acceleration and deceleration. These functions are controlled by NORDAC PRO series cabinet frequency inverters. The user-friendly NORD CON software allows for a quick and safe inverter parameterization. In addition to acceleration and deceleration ramps to maintain the soft starts and stops, a comprehensive list of parameters relevant to the applications includes a range of operating

speeds, brake control, and safety-relevant conditions. By means of NORD’s optional ParameterBox, the customer can simply adjust certain parameters on-site or copy an entire parameter set to another inverter. Featuring precise vector control and a high overload capacity, the drive electronics enables safe operation of geared motors in this application with high torque requirements. With each NORDAC PRO including a complement of I/Os, the customer’s PLC control takes care of synchronization across all axes. The inverters are mounted in a weatherproof control cabinet close to the BMU. The NORDAC PRO series offers a wide choice of configuration levels. The inverters can handle sophisticated control functions based on the standard integrated PLC functionality, POSICON positioning control, safe stop (STO), encoder feedback, fieldbus communications, and much more.

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The two BMUs on the Leadenhall Building with NORD DRIVESYSTEMS drives in action at 225 meters above street level.

within the single casting, splits or bolt-on carriers that can weaken the housing or allow oil leakage are eliminated.

The use of larger bearing journal and gear diameters results in larger torque capacity, improved life and reliability over competitive gear units.

The prospects are good Since commissioning, NORD DRIVESYSTEMS has conducted inverter product and maintenance training on location – at 225 meters high, with fantastic views of London. Looking forward into the future, the logistics solution providers and drive manufacturer expect repeat business. ‘The Cheesegrater’ is only one in a long list of highly impressive installations by Integral Cradles and GinD working with NORD. Architecture buffs are already poised for ‘The Scalpel’ at 52 Lime Street in London, currently under construction, which will be outfitted with two complex BMUs designed

by Integral Cradles.

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www.nord.com

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DATAPAQ EASYTRACK3: MORE MEMORY, EASY HANDLING

Measure IR and convection ovens with more detail and more data security and – with the pro version – up to three consecutive profiling runs.

The newest generation DATAPAQ EasyTrack3 system makes profiling oven cure of painted and powdercoated products as easy as never before. Fluke Process Instruments has equipped the data logger with a rugged and light polycarbonate casing that withstands harsh treatment and heat up to 100 °C without distortion and without harm to the electronics.

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ersions with four or six thermocouple channels are available. Data is stored in a non-volatile memory – the capacity has been tripled to up to 18,000 readings per channel.

The new pro version logger carries out up to three consecutive profiling runs before data download to a PC. It features a traffic light indicator that instantly shows whether process criteria have been met.

The loggers use replaceable 9 V batteries. An intelligent power management ensures a long battery life for 50 and more profiling runs. Calibration certificates stored aboard the logger can be printed anytime. When the logger is connected to a PC (via USB), the software now starts automatically.

The DATAPAQ EasyTrack Insight Professional software includes advanced analysis functions such as rise/fall, peak difference, area under curve calculation, marking of up to six oven zones in the temperature graph, a probe map for high repeatability, saved zooms for even more comfortable reviewing and sharing of data, and customized profile reports. www.flukeprocessinstruments.com

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Reviewing and analyzing the data, users can dynamically change the language. Logger diagnostics is much facilitated by a quick reference guide and animated tutorials. For remote diagnostics, status data can be emailed to the manufacturer’s tech support. Fluke Process Instruments supplies a versatile range of profiling systems with probes and thermal barriers to suit a variety of applications.

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PRECISION PIEZO STAGE FOR MICROSCOPE OBJECTIVE AND OPTICS POSITIONING

Aerotech’s QFOCUS® QF-50 piezo nanopositioning stage is designed for high-performance microscope objective and optics positioning. It offers 400 μm closed loop and 450 μm open loop travel, high speed, 0.01% linearity, sub-nanometer resolution, and 4 nm bidirectional repeatability.

• 400 μm closed-loop travel; 450 μm open-loop travel • Outstanding step-and-settle and scanning performance • Designed for use with larger, high numerical-aperture objectives • 29 mm diameter clear aperture

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erotech’s QFOCUS® QF-50 piezo nanopositioning stage is designed for high-performance microscope objective and optics positioning. It offers 400 μm closed loop and 450 μm open loop travel, high speed, 0.01% linearity, sub-nanometer resolution, and 4 nm bidirectional repeatability. The QF-50 accommodates optical instruments and next-generation laser micromachining applications.

Due to a high-stiffness mechanical design, the QF-50 can outperform competitive piezo scanner offerings with larger, higher numerical aperture (NA) objectives. The QF-50 is ideal for optical positioning applications requiring high precision and throughput coupled with long travels.

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Precision Design The QFOCUS QF-50 is guided by precision flexures optimized using finite element analysis for outstanding stiffness and resonant frequency to enable high process throughput and fast closed-loop response. Meticulous care was taken in the QF-50 flexure bearing design to ensure unrivaled geometric performance with straightness errors to 40 nm throughout the entire travel range.

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Direct Metrology Feedback Optional closed-loop feedback using a unique capacitive sensor design allows for sub-nanometer resolution and high linearity. Unlike foil strain gages or piezoresistive sensors, capacitive sensors provide a direct measurement of the positioning carriage for superior accuracy and repeatability

For further information, please contact Steve McLane at 412967-6854 (direct), or via e-mail at smclane@aerotech.com QFOCUS QF-50 data sheet is available at: https://www.aerotech.com/product-catalog/piezonanopositioners/qfocus-qf-50.aspx

Flexible and Precise Control When coupled with Aerotech’s Q-series controllers and drives, the QF-50 demonstrates sub-nanometer positioning resolution and in-position stability (jitter) while maintaining high positioning bandwidth. Advanced software options, such as Dynamic Controls Toolbox and Motion Designer, provide a variety of highly-effective, easy-to-use tools including Iterative Learning Control, Harmonic Cancellation, and Command Shaping, providing improved tracking errors and faster step-and-settle times. OEM drive options are also available.

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Mounting Flexibility The QF-50 is available with threaded adapters to fit most microscopes and objectives. The microscope turret mounting allows fast and simple positioning at any desired orientation. In addition, tapped holes on the stage body provide alternative mounting for custom interfaces in machines or other optical instruments. The QF-50 is available with a clear aperture of 29 mm as standard. Custom stage designs, travels, and threaded adapters are available.

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