Single set-up processing of circular saw blades

Vollmer says it is accelerating the processing of carbide-tipped circular saw blades with its new CC 355 production system. The CC 355 enables circular saws for cutting wood to be fully sharpened, including all tooth faces, tooth tops and side angles, in a single working cycle. Four grip arms automatically carry the saw blades from the loading system to the three machining stations. Working through up to 800 teeth per hour, the Vollmer system can process circular saws with a diameter of between 150 and 355 mm.

The CC 355 is equipped with two machining stations for tooth faces and tooth tops, plus one station for side angles. Users can position a stack of un-machined parts either on the left or right, thus providing a free choice of the machining sequence direction and the order that saw teeth are produced. A total of 17 CNC axes control the procedure.
Dr Stefan Brand, CEO of the Vollmer Group says: “The linchpin of our CC 355 is sharpening technology for carbide-tipped circular saws that has been over six decades in the making. Furthermore, the machine’s automated system makes the CC 355 perfect for saw manufacturers who want to produce large volumes of parts, and who also place exacting demands on the tools they use for woodworking.”
For further information
www.vollmer-group.com

Metal stockholder increases bandsawing capacity

At the Newcastle-under-Lyme facility of special metals stockholder, Langley Alloys, two German-built KastoTec AC4 bandsaws specified for cutting with tungsten carbide tipped (TCT) blades have replaced four out of six machines from a different supplier that are effective only when bi-metal blades are used.

07/06/17 Stock on Trent – Langley Alloys

As the down-feed on both KastoTec machines is three times faster, overall cutting capacity across the six machines has increased by one-third, while the floor area occupied has decreased by a similar amount. This is precisely what Langley Alloys needed, as orders have increased sharply since the start of 2017 but there was no room on-site for more bandsaws. As an added benefit, the extra space created has allowed the stockholder to increase the range of materials and sizes that it holds to well over 1000 line items.
Business development director Rodney Rice says: “Responsiveness to customer demand is crucial. The installation of the Kasto bandsaws means that we are able to stock a broader range of materials that closely match user requirements and cut them quickly for supply in short lead-times.”
Operations director Richard Bulmer adds: “Cutting with TCT blades was key to making this a reality. We tried using them on our older bandsaws but they were not rigid enough to cope. The band would squeal through the guides and excessive vibration wore the teeth out quickly. We were only able to cut 2 sq m of nickel alloy with a carbide blade, which was about the same as with a bimetal blade, but at three times the consumable cost.”
For further information
www.kasto.com

BTA drilling support

Deep-hole drilling specialist Mollart Engineering has extended its support operation for BTA drilling by creating a BTA Application Centre at its Chessington, Surrey headquarters backed-up by
two specialists based in the Midlands and north. The centre, which is part of Mollart’s strategic future development programme, is supported by tooling partner Botek. Based in Germany, Botek is a specialist in solid-carbide deep-hole drilling tooling and systems. Correct application support for BTA, otherwise known as the STS (single tube system) deep-hole drilling process, enables users to benefit from its distinct advantage of requiring just a single pass to achieve tolerance, with higher penetration rates than gun-drilling. In addition, the process can be applied across a wide range of materials.
For further information
www.mollart.com

Manufacturing Council

With growing opportunities for the UK’s manufacturers in industrial digitisation, innovation and emerging
markets, the CBI is establishing a new Manufacturing Council to help support the UK’s makers. The CEO-level council will bring together dozens of the UK’s top manufacturers – small, medium and large – from across the country and will be chaired by Tom Crotty, group director of Ineos. At the heart of the group’s work will be: shaping the skills agenda to build a UK workforce fit to adapt to AI and digitisation; building a new visionary industrial strategy that supports productivity; creating pathways to the delivery of the UK’s target of 3% of GDP invested in R&D by 2020; and delivering a Brexit that works for the UK’s manufacturing base.
For further information
www.cbi.org.uk

Pentaxia to relocate


Composites manufacturer Pentaxia has purchased a large manufacturing site on Alfreton Road in Derby. Completion of the sale will see the firm move in the New Year, from its home in Longbridge Lane to the six-acre site, which houses office space and 70,000 sq ft of manufacturing space. A six-month programme to refurbish and upgrade the site will start immediately. The £1m investment in the facility will include new manufacturing equipment, which will double the firm’s existing production capability. Constructed in the 1960s as the composite manufacturing plant for Rolls-Royce, the site was at the forefront of advanced manufacturing until 2002. This deal will see the facility return to its former glory as a centre of innovation and composites hub for the Midlands.
For further information www.pentaxia.com