The Laser Cutting Co (TLCC) has taken delivery of a new Trumpf TruLaser Tube 7000 at its Sheffield facility.

This customer-focused supplier of subcontract laser cutting services will use the machine, which is currently being commissioned, to achieve further growth as part of its progressive five-year plan. Moreover, with TLCC already producing flat sheet-metal ventilator parts as part of the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, the new TruLaser Tube is helping the company bid competitively for tube-based parts needed for the same purpose.
“We’re heavily focussed on processing innovative tube design, so our investment in the Trumpf TruLaser Tube 7000 will further enhance our capability and capacity in this area,” says director Charlie Day. “Although we’re a subcontractor, our customer slogan is ‘your partner in production’, where we can add considerable value at the design stage. The Trumpf machine will support our efforts in this area, particularly with six-axis 3D cutting and the flow drill and tapping attachment.”
Smart Design Production is the value-added aspect of TLCC’s business, an initiative that has seen the company deliver production cost savings for customers of up to 50% in some instances. Although laser tube cutting can replace conventional machining processes such as drilling, sawing and milling, it is also now possible to perform threading operations in-cycle, replacing weak and time-consuming fixings such as nuts or rivets.
In the first machining step, the flow drill produces an extrusion that is followed by the cutting of a heavy-duty thread. Sensors monitor the process and alert the operator if a tool breaks, for example.
Advantages such as the flow drill will provide a competitive edge in many regards, not least when trying to win work required by the healthcare sector as it looks to boost capacity due to coronavirus.
For further information www.uk.trumpf.com

Birmingham-based Finish Architectural has used its investment in the latest automated punching and laser-cutting technology from Amada to double the size of its business over the past five years.

Finish Architectural, which generates turnover of circa £5.5m, manufactures products that include window cills and pods, copings, rain-screen systems, facade steel supports, steel bracketry, flashings, perforated sheet, punched art, louvre systems, and bespoke pressings – essentially any construction-related fabricated item.
“In 2015 we bought our first automated machine, and have doubled in size since then,” states operations director Terry Turner. “Automation removes manual input and provides a lot more control over our operational efficiency.”
The shift to automation began with the arrival of an Amada EM-ZR B servo-electric turret punch press that benefits from an ASLIII MP300/40 automated tower loading system and automatic part picker. Two years later, in 2017, an Amada LCG-AJ 4kW fibre laser-cutting machine was installed featuring an AS LUL automated load-unload system.
“These investments were purposely designed to upgrade our facility and bring automation online,” says Turner. “We knew that automation would unlock the potential growth we had in the business.”
As well as a host of aluminium parts, the laser cutter is also used to process mild steel sheet, sometimes up to 15 mm thick. The impact of the automated Amada machines on business at Finish Architectural cannot be overstated. In 2015, the company operated a single-shift pattern, but by 2018 had switched to 24-hour operations, with the machines running fully throughout the weekends.
“Amada have held our hand and been there every step of the way, to make sure that we develop and grow the business around the automated machines,” concludes Turner. “The Amada support has been fantastic from the start.”
For further information www.amada.eu