Investing in technology and knowledge

Machine tool specialist Selmach says it does not just invest heavily in the machinery it sells, but in the people who sell them too. With that in mind, the company has recently undertaken a training programme with a difference.

Those in Selmach’s team who need in-depth knowledge to provide customers with the best advice already have it, so why not give them a chance to share that passion with everyone else in the team… and the company really does mean everyone.
Selmach reports that it is going to start with the Sterling SRA 440 DGSA semi-automatic double-mitring bandsaw. The company says this machine, which is from the Sterling SRA DGSA range of heavy-duty bandsaws, is very popular for medium-sized fabricators, and ideal for those who want to do bigger jobs. Investing in a Sterling SRA 440 DGSA also represents a genuine step up from the Bianco 440MS.
According to Selmach, the SRA-440 is built to process high tonnage, and it does just that, for some of the country’s largest and most successful companies. Capacity is 610 x 440 mm, and there is a 34 mm blade, carbide blade guides and double mitre with infeed/outfeed roller track.
After the cut, the blade keeps rotating as the bow returns to ensure it is not pinched, while also cleaning off any excess swarf to eliminate the risk of jamming. In addition, the optional spray mist attachment keeps everything cool by spreading the coolant more evenly, and the large-capacity coolant tray with gauze filter ensures any swarf does not find its way to undesirable places.
For further information www.selmach.com

Investment aids blade sharpening

The DCM Company from Hwaseong, South Korea manufactures high-precision circular saw blades, as well as special purpose cutters and circular knives.

Products are supplied worldwide to all industries, such as steel pipe production, automotive manufacture, shipbuilding and aerospace. The company uses a dozen Vollmer machines for manufacturing its carbide-tipped circular saw blades, with some of its most recent recent acquisitions including the CHD, CHF and CHP models for single set-up processing. In combination with an ND handling system and appropriate loading carriage for automatic tipping, the machines are ready to use around the clock.
“At the end of the 1970s, I was teaching at a vocational school and noticed that our circular saw blades were always blunt when sawing metal cylinders, and often broke,” states An Youngmoon, managing director and founder of DCM. “This was my motivation to develop high-quality circular saw blades that permanently withstand the tough conditions of metal cutting.”
The idea soon led to the development of the first high speed steel circular saw blades manufactured by DCM. By the beginning of the 1990s, the company had developed carbide-tipped circular saw blades. From the outset, the company relied on sharpening machines from Vollmer.
“South Korea has developed into a high-end market for sharpening machines in the metals and composites sector, and the demand for service and user support is growing,” states Dr Stefan Brand, CEO of the Vollmer Group. “With the subsidiary we set up in Seoul in 2016, we can look after customers such as DCM even more intensively and competently than before.”
For further information www.vollmer-group.com

MTC incubator

A 2500 sq ft product manufacturing incubator on the Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) campus in Coventry has been officially opened by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Rt Hon Philip Hammond, as he announced £780m of extra funding for innovation and technology.

The new Sopwith Building is set to provide a ground-breaking facility that will help start-ups and entrepreneurs bring innovative products to market. The three-storey building will provide incubation cells for start-ups to develop and manufacture prototypes of their products.
For further information www.the-mtc.org

Turbine days

Over 160 people attended the sixth edition of Starrag’s Turbine Technology Days, which showcased developments to further improve the efficiency of machining turbine blades, blisks and engine casings, including: a flexible manufacturing system featuring 11 Starrag NB 151 machines for automated blisk manufacture; a tool-changing angle head – a joint development with Benz – where a single head with HSK-B63 interface can replace the use of multiple angle heads; and the adaptive roughing of turbine blades, to eliminate ‘air cuts’, by using in-machine probing in conjunction with Starrag’s RCS programming routines.

For further information www.starrag.com

3D printing award winners named

Altair and the Center for Automotive Research (CAR) have announced the winners of the 6th annual Altair Enlighten Award at the 2018 CAR Management Briefing Seminars (MBS) in Traverse City, Michigan.

BMW Group claimed the Module category with the first 3D-printed metal component used in a production series vehicle, which captured a 44% component weight saving on the 2018 BMW i8 Roadster. Asahi Kasei’s lightweight pedal bracket for the Mazda MX-5 was among those taking top honours in the Enabling Technology category.
For further information www.altairenlighten.com/award