New machine investment adds-up for Adnet

Located in Brockworth on the outskirts of Gloucester, Adnet Precision Engineering is a subcontract manufacturer that continually grows its business. Operating in the defence, pharmaceutical, aerospace, metrology, medical, telecommunications and semiconductor industries, the company has ramped up its investment in machine tools to support ongoing growth. The latest investments include an array of turning centres and sliding-head lathes from Dugard.

Caroline Day, director at Adnet Precision,says: “We already had one sliding-head machine, but we were running out of capacity, so we invested in the Hanwha XD20-IIV. This new machine is running parts more than 30% faster than our existing sliding head.”

With a maximum speed of 10,000rpm on the main spindle and 8000rpm on the sub-spindle, the machine has a spindle motor power of 2.2/3.7kW. A FANUC 32i-B CNC drives the Hanwha XD20IIV, which provides precise machining through its high tool adaptability, minimised thermal displacement and driven-tooling capabilities. The Hanwha XD20IIV is supplied material via a 3m bar feed.

Most recently, the company purchased a SMEC SL2000SY twin-spindle turn-mill centre from Dugard. This workhorse has an 11/18kW spindle motor that provides high torque for maximum material removal, while the heavily ribbed Meehanite cast and structural design provide high levels of surface finish, repeatability and precision. The 8-inch chuck machine has a sizeable capacity with a swing over bed and cross slide of 650 and 540mm respectively,alongside a maximum machining diameter of 395mm and a maximum machining length of 450mm.

“With the twin spindles we can achieve a lot more work; it’s probably 30% more efficient than the two machines it replaced,” says Day. “The machine also has far more capability.”
For further information www.dugard.com

MEETING CURRENT AND FUTURE COMPONENT CLEANING REQUIREMENTS THROUGH DIVERSIFICATION INTO HYDROGEN TECHNOLOGY

The economy is undergoing a transformation that poses challenges for many areas of industry. New products and various megatrends require adjustments to manufacturing technologies, as well as to the range of products and services available. Ecoclean GmbH is proactively addressing this change through greater diversification of its solution portfolio for industrial component cleaning and by introducing the new business area of hydrogen technology.

Energy transition, sustainability, demographic change, mobility, automation and digitalisation, and security: these megatrends are resulting in technological and social changes. And at an increasingly rapid pace. This development demands increasingly higher flexibility and agility from companies, particularly in the field of industrial parts cleaning. Whereas yesterday it felt like the automotive industry was setting the standards in terms of cleanliness requirements, today it is completely different industrial sectors, each with its own specific requirements.

Ecoclean, a global specialist in the supply of equipment and systems for industrial component cleaning, surface treatment and automation, is responding to these changes with a future- and market-oriented diversification strategy. The course for this approach was set several years ago with corresponding financial and personnel investments. As a result, new solutions for high-tech industries are now available, in addition toequipment and systems for tasks in the previous sectors, such as automotive and its associated supply chain, mechanical engineering, joining technology, the jewellery and watchmaking industry, and the aerospace arena.

Also included in this ensemble is the semiconductor industry and its suppliers.To be able to manufacture ever smaller and more powerful microchips by means of EUV lithography, means placing extremely high demands on the components required for the production equipment in terms of purity. In addition to ultra-fine particulate residual impurities in the nanometre range and extremely strict specifications regarding filmic contamination, outgassing rates for organic substances and residual moisture as well as ‘prohibited’ substances/elements play a quality-critical role. Likewise, it is necessary to meet stringent cleanliness requirements for vacuum technology components in the UHV, XHV and UCV range –such as those required in high-power laser systems, high-tech measuring instruments and analysis equipment, for example.

Precision optics, micro-optical parts and sensor systems, among others for semi-automated and autonomous driving as well as industrial digitalisation applications, also require avery high degree of cleanliness for lasting fault-free function. For these challenging tasks, Ecoclean offers industry and application-specific solutions from pre-cleaning to intermediate and final cleaning connected to or integrated in a cleanroom. For the design of process and plant technology, the company has its own High Purity Test Centre with a validated clean room and corresponding measurement technology.

High cleanliness requirements have always been commonplace in medical technology. With the introduction of the European Medical Device Regulation (MDR), the requirements for cleaning medical devices such as implants, instruments and equipment, as well as for qualification, documentation and traceability of the processes, have become even stricter. In the meantime, the US Food & Drug Administration (FDA) is planning to harmonise its quality system regulation with the MDR, so that uniform regulations will apply regardless of market access.

To solve the very different tasks in medical technology in a requirement-oriented, efficient and sustainable manner, Ecoclean offers a complete and globally available portfolio of qualified cleaning systems. Co-operation with renowned partners also enables the realisation of turnkey projects with corresponding packaging and cleanroom solutions.

Software specially developed for medical technology, RFID technology and audit trails ensure the complete fulfilment of all specifications regarding component identification, documentation and traceability. In addition, the company’s experts provide support with qualification (IQ, QQ and PQ) on request. Thanks to the Ecoclean’s comprehensive medical technology and regulatory know-how, combined with extensively equipped technology centres (including a cleanliness laboratory and validated cleanroom), it becomes possible to devise the technically and economically optimal solution for every cleaning task. The potential duplication of this solution for further production sites is straightforward, a process that subsequently accelerates qualification and commissioning.

By entering into the development, manufacture and sale of electrolysers for the production of green hydrogen and solutions for its use, the company is opening up a new business area. To this end, Ecoclean and the Zentrum für Sonnenenergie und Wassersoff-Forschung Baden-Württemberg (ZSW) are pooling their expertise in the joint ‘EcoLyzer BW’ project. Based on robust and well-tested system technology for alkaline pressure electrolysis developed by the ZSW and Ecoclean’s expertise and decades of qualification in process engineering and industrial production technology, electrolysers are designed as modular systems with compact standard modules.

With power classes initially ranging from 1-10 MW, they enable the simple and cost-efficient construction of electrolysers adaptable to a wide range of applications. Typical uses include those for industry, mobility, energy supply for neighbourhoods and storage of re-generatively produced surplus energy from wind power and photovoltaic plants.

A first solution in this area came to fruition in September 2023 with a test rig for alkaline pressure electrolysis. It will make it possible to test and validate electrolysis stacks with an output of up to 500 kW and a diameter of 1200 mm.Through this diversification strategy, Ecoclean is helping to meet the challenges associated with disruptive developments, as well as various megatrends.
For further information www.www.ecoclean-group.net

WorldSkills UK finalists use Doosan machines

The recently-held WorldSkills UK 2023 CNC turning and CNC milling competition finals, which took place at Tameside College, Manchester, saw students and apprentices put through their paces using machine tools supplied by Mills CNC.The finals took place at the college’s £10m advanced technologies centre in Ashton-Under-Lyne.

Both CNC machining finals utilised machine tools from Mills CNC, comprising a Doosan DNM 400 machining centre and a Doosan Lynx 220 lathe. These machines were installed at Tameside College’s engineering facility in 2016 as part of a six Doosan machine investment package.During the three-day competition, Gavin Dixon, a Mills CNC applications engineer, was not only onsite providing technical support and advice to the college and the finalists, he was also on the judging panel.
For further information www.millscnc.co.uk

Mills CNC supplies MCS with two more machines

Mills CNC has supplied precision subcontract specialist – Machined Component Systems (MCS) – with two newFANUC-controlled multi-tasking turning centres.The machines, a 10” chuck Puma 2600SY II lathe with sub-spindle and Y axis, and an 8” chuck TT 1800SY twin-spindle, twin-turret turning centre, both featureHydrafeed MSV80 bar feeders.

The latest arrivals have significantly strengthened the in-house machining capacity and capabilities at MCS, taking the total number of machine tools at the company’s disposal to 40, five of which are DN Solutions and Doosan machines supplied by Mills CNC.

Says MCS managing director Warren Gray:“The Puma 2600SY is fast, accurate, powerful and reliable. With its integrated Y axis and sub-spindle the machine is capable of processing high-precision, complex parts in one-hit and, in a relatively short period of time, has proved its worth.It was these capabilities, in addition to its immediate availability, which clinched the deal.”

The investment in the TT 1800SY turning centre arrived as a direct result, back in early 2023, of an existing customer dramatically uplifting its requirements for high-quality mill-turned machined parts. While obviously great news for MCS, the increase in demand, if not addressed quickly and decisively, would have swallowed up a significant proportion of the company’s existing turning capacity.

“The TT 1800SY allows simultaneous machining on both spindles and enables us to perform high-precision milling, drilling and tapping operations in a single set-up,” says Gray. “Byintegrating the machine with a bar feeder we have a ‘de facto’ flexible automated manufacturing cell at our disposal.”
For further information www.millscnc.co.uk

Over 31,000 at Manufacturing World Osaka

The 26th edition of Manufacturing World Osaka, held at INTEX Osaka in October,attracted 31,627 visitors and 1130 exhibitors. The exhibition also set the stage for 20 conference sessions featuring insights from 26 prominent speakers. According to the organiser, the wealth of knowledge and innovation shared during these sessions enriched the event, offering valuable takeaways for attendees. The event’s triumph was further magnified by its co-location with nine concurrent shows. Manufacturing World Osaka 2024 will take place on 2-4 October.
For further information www.bit.ly/3Z0MS0E