Sawcraft reports a further increase in Cosen sales

Sawcraft UK has reported a record number of sales involving Cosen sawing machines. For instance, Wrekin Steels Ltd has taken delivery of its second Cosen G320 automatic bandsaw (pictured), which is cited by Sawcraft as the company’s top-selling model due to its output in relation to size and cost. Specifically designed for mass production cutting on material up to 320 mm diameter, bundle-cutting options are also available.

Elsewhere, Midlands-based Clarke Steels has ordered a second Cosen C-460NC to keep up with current production demands. The C-460NC is a fully automatic scissor-action bandsaw with a cutting capacity on round material of up to 460 mm diameter. A tilted saw bow is incorporated to reduce twist and maximise blade life. Smart NC 100 controls allow the machine to store up to 100 different cutting jobs, while automatic kerf loss compensation is a further feature.
Dyfed Steels Midlands Ltd is another company to invest in the Cosen C-520NC automatic bandsaw. The C-520NC also incorporates the latest Smart NC-100 technology. Operators can program up to 100 different jobs, including quantity and length of cut parameters.
At ContraCut, near Halifax, the UK’s first Cosen SVC-670DM vertical, semi-automatic, dual mitre-cutting Bandsaw has been installed. This saw was the obvious choice for ContraCut due to its large cutting capacity yet minimal floor space requirements.
For further information
www.sawcraft.co.uk

Precise sawing solution for Parker Precision

Parker Precision, a West Midlands-based engineering company, has invested in a new automatic shuttle-vice bandsaw from Addison Saws. The saw, an Everising S-250 HB-NC model, is bringing efficiencies of 60% to Parker’s sawing line and is being used to feed no fewer than 20 CNC milling machines.
“With a growing order book, we identified the need to further enhance our ability to precision-cut heat-treated lengths of aircraft-grade stainless steels and aerospace alloys,” says Parker Precision’s marketing director Marc Corns.

A trip to see an Everising S-250 HB-NC bandsaw at the site of a local Addison Saws’ customer was enough to convince Parker Precision that the machine would more than fulfil its cutting requirements.
“Having seen the S-250 saw in action, we were happy to forgo cutting trials as we were more than convinced it would meet our needs,” says Corns. “However, in view of the fact that we work with a wide range of exotic materials, Addison Saws recommended variable clamping pressure as an optional feature in order to protect the integrity of even the most delicate tubes.”
Duly installed, the Everising S-250 HB-NC automatic shuttle-vice bandsaw is already bringing considerable benefits to production strategies at Parker Precision’s Bilston site. Significantly quicker than the saw it replaced, the Everising machine has more than halved the time it takes the precision engineering company to cut steel and aluminium into typical bar sizes of 50 mm diameter and 180 mm length.
“The amount of scrap material we generate has also been minimised, while the saw’s precise cutting action has reduced the need for deburring,” concludes Corns.
For further information
www.addisonsaws.co.uk

MEBAe-cut bandsaws released in UK

ADS Precision, in partnership with German saw manufacturer MEBA Sawing Solutions, is releasing the MEBAe-cut CNC production bandsaw into the UK market. Powered entirely by electrical drives – making them cheaper to run that a small maintenance saw and devoid of leaking hydraulics – twin-column machines are available in three capacities of 400, 500 and 600 mm, prompting the model designations MEBAe-cut 400, MEBAe-cut 500 and MEBAe-cut 600. Said to be the quietest and cleanest machines on the market, the MEBAe-cut series is aimed at medical, test house, aerospace, automotive and high-precision workshops.

All the drives on MEBAe-cut models are powered by soft-start motors, eliminating voltage spikes. Electrical axles are moved with precision, resulting in efficient power consumption and increased blade life. Indeed, electric-drive systems have a significantly lower power demand when compared with a hydraulic-based system. For example, take material clamping: hydraulic clamping requires permanent pressure that consumes energy during a cutting cycle. In contrast, electric clamps only require energy for the vice movement (clamping and releasing), not during the cutting cycle.
MEBAe-cut machines are equipped with a newly developed electric material clamp. The material is clamped in the main and in-feed vice by a servo-controlled spindle drive. Here, the clamping pressure can be adjusted individually for each application and be preselected via the machine control. As a result, thin-walled tubes can be clamped safely.
The saw feed works via a servo-controlled lead ballscrew spindle with automatically controlled cutting pressure and feed control. A two-handed operating system for rapid vertical movement is included as part of the control.
Although standard models are semi-automatic, MEBAe-cut is also available as a 90° fully-automatic machine, designated by an ‘A’ suffix. Automatic machines feature an ergonomic panel based on Windows CE system software and a 50-program memory.
For further information
www.adsprecision.com

Nuclear AMRC installs twin-column bandsaw

Until recently, all requirements for sawing at the Nuclear Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (Nuclear AMRC) in Rotherham were undertaken by subcontractors, but this route was eventually considered to be too time consuming and expensive. It was therefore decided that the most effective solution to all the possible requirements for sawing would be to acquire an in-house sawing facility.

Although usage would be almost exclusively focussed towards research, testing, maintenance or producing samples, often in small batches, it was recognised that any new sawing facility would need to be capable of processing what are termed “exotic” materials to a high degree of accuracy.
After assessing a variety of different sawing systems from five independent suppliers, Prosaw was identified as the company most capable of delivering a cost effective and optimum system suitable for all possible applications. A WH-6056HA twin-column bandsaw was selected as the most advantageous solution and was duly installed by Prosaw engineers.
Says maintenance manager Craig Hamp: “Most of the usage of the saw is intermittent as it is normally for either cutting small batches or one-offs, so whereas volumetric throughput is not normally a prerequisite, accuracy undoubtedly is. This machine certainly fulfils that requirement, regardless of whether it is used for sawing components for maintenance purposes, testing, research or producing samples.”
For further information
www.prosaw.co.uk

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