100+ budding engineers

Renishaw recently hosted two work experience weeks, with 95 students taking part in the company’s ‘Engineering Work Experience’ programme and 14 students attending the ‘Software Work Experience’ programme.

As well as participating in projects, the students were given tours of Renishaw’s Innovation Centre and a careers talk to open their eyes to the opportunities available in engineering and software, and where a career in these sectors could take them. Renishaw offered week long placements at its Wotton-under-Edge headquarters to students aged 15 to 17 from over 40 local schools.
For further information www.renishaw.com/careers

Stark plant

The Roemheld Group has opened a new Stark manufacturing centre in Rankweil, Austria. The 6000 sq m building houses the latest manufacturing equipment and systems, including new turn-mill centres, CNC grinding machines and a 3D measuring machine for use with large parts. From this factory, Roemheld will continue to develop its Stark zero point mounting range.

Terry O’Neill, managing director of Roemheld, says: “As manufacturers ourselves, we use our own zero point elements within our production plants, so we are well placed to understand the changing demands of the marketplace.”
For further information www.roemheld.com

Bystronic open house well attended

Nearly 100 people attended Bystronic UK’s latest three-day open house held at its Coventry showroom during September 2017. Visitors were able to see many of the latest technological advances from the Swiss company and witness presentations and practical demonstrations.

The event also allowed engineers to catch up on advances announced at Bystronic’s ‘Competence Days’ held in June at group headquarters in Niederönz. These included manufacturing software, MES, which is being developed in collaboration with Spanish company, Lantek; ByCockpit, an Industry 4.0-compatible app that monitors sheet metal machining processes in real time; a new rotary axis for processing tube on a ByStar Fiber flat-bed laser cutting machine; and Xpert 80, a new press brake that can be moved around a factory by fork lift truck, yet offers a bending capacity of 80 tonnes over 1.5 m in a footprint of less than 3 sq m.
For further information www.bystronic.co.uk

Toyoda appoints new agent for UK

With immediate effect, Whitehouse Machine Tools has been appointed to sell and service in the UK and Irish markets the vertical- and horizontal-spindle machining centres supplied by Toyoda Machinery Europe GmbH, based in Krefeld, Germany. A spokesperson for the Toyoda says: “We decided to award the agency to Whitehouse Machine Tools partly due to the level of service they are able to provide customers.

The agent also has a strong applications engineering capability, which is important to us. The gear skiving process on Toyoda machining centres, for instance, is a good example of a technology that requires a high level of engineering support.”
For further information www.wmtcnc.com

XYZ names new distribution partners

XYZ Machine Tools’ attendance at the EMO exhibition in Hanover last month proved to be successful, and the company is already planning for its return in 2019. Although sales within mainland Europe have increased by 12% in the past 12 months, the stated aim of attending EMO was to increase the company’s distribution. With extensive dialogue taking place on the stand, additional partners look likely within mainland Europe and Africa. Indeed, export sales director Howard Bamforth comfirms the finalising of two distribution deals, one with PBS Machine Tools in South Africa and the second with CNC Island, based in Iceland.

“We’ve had limited sales to both South Africa and Iceland before, but with these two distributors coming on board it is exciting times for both territories. In fact, we are already seeing the positive effects, with two machines on their way to Iceland that will be supported in the coming weeks with a visit by one of our applications engineers.”
For further information www.xyzmachinetools.com