The University of Sheffield’s Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre and global aviation supplier GKN Aerospace have entered into a long-term partnership to work together on developing advanced technologies for the aerospace industry.

A memorandum of understanding (MoU) has been signed to progress a series of research themes they are developing together at the AMRC’s Factory 2050. GKN Aerospace has been a member of the AMRC for a number of years and says the MoU not only reflects the strategic nature of the relationship between the two organisations, but the benefits it brings to both sides.
For further information www.amrc.co.uk

A record number of visitors attended Bystronic UK’s latest open house, held at its Coventry showroom concurrently with the MACH 2018 exhibition at the NEC last month.

The theme of the open house was ‘Mach Speed’, which involved visitors being asked to estimate the time required to manufacture a component for an off-road vehicle. Managing director David Larcombe says: “We believe the theme was not only interesting to visitors but also an eye-opener in terms of the productivity benefits that can be achieved with modern machine tools. During the event we sold a number of machines, notably a 10 kW 4020 fibre laser and two Xpert press brakes.”
For further information www.bystronic.co.uk

A specialist in multi-axis machining is leveraging the benefits of Universal Robots supplied by RARUK Automation to load and unload its machine tools.

A mix of seven UR5 and UR10 robots have helped Rousant Sherwood maximise the productivity of its workforce by automating repetitive tasks and bidding for contracts which would have otherwise been unprofitable. One of the UR10 robots is currently serving a Nakamura-Tome Super NTJX multi-tasking turn-mill centre. The robot loads square billets of aluminium into the machine, where they are turned into aerospace components as part of a 40-minute cycle. The machine and robot are running 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
“Just to be clear, we have not invested in robots to save on headcount, we’ve done it to win contracts,” says general manager Robin Salter. “We would never have been able to tender for jobs like this without automation. Using a robot makes us profitable on work where we wouldn’t normally be able to compete.”
For further information www.rarukautomation.co.uk

A tier-one supplier of castings and machined components has tapped into specialist support to manage its energy costs.

Shield Group, which operates from six different manufacturing divisions across Coventry, Leicestershire, Northampton and Oldham, has just hit £80m for the first time in its 69-year history. However, faced with major increases in production, Shield needed to better manage energy consumption. The company turned to Control Energy Costs (CEC), which successfully reduced the amount of energy used by 15%. Furthermore, a recent exercise completed by CEC was to reduce Shield Group’s Green Tax liability, resulting in six-figure savings per annum.
For further information www.cec.uk.com