Whether a company is looking to invest in its first press brake or hoping to increase bending capabilities through an upgrade, one formula is needed to ensure success, suggests Press & Shear, which offers the Adira press brake range across the UK: performance + size = investment in the solution.

It sounds simple but many look to increase or change their bending capabilities without first considering these elements. Adira values it so much that the diversification of its entire range of press brakes is driven by these three factors. But what do they mean?

Press brake machines are measured on a number of key performance indicators. Consider this: is it up to the levels of productivity and output required; is the machine versatile enough to meet the different bending jobs coming in; is the machine user friendly; and will the business be able to get the most from it?

Press brakes come in all different shapes and sizes. This can dramatically impact performance, but also floor space. Considering size alongside performance will ensure precious space is not wasted and efficiencies remain high.

After determining the required performance and size, it is possible to look at how the return on investment will play out over time. Investing in a solution that will always be too large or which is over-powered for business needs can make it impossible to justify. Investment in a brake press must balance out to meet short and long-term business goals.

For further information
www.pressandshear.com

SafanDarley has added the E-Brake C 200T Ultra with Tool Mate to its press-brake product range. With the addition of Tool Mate, SafanDarley has a diverse and complete range of press brakes from conventional and semi-automatic to fully automatic bending cells. Tool Mate is an external automatic tool changer and is said to offer great time savings when producing small batches.

The servo-electric E-Brake C with 200T pressing force and bending length of 4300 mm features a C-frame to enable automatic tool changing. SafanDarley’s Tool Mate is very intuitive and does not require extensive training, says the company. Execution of the tool changes is via the SafanDarley E-Control. The correct tool settings can be loaded and used directly on the machine from AutoPOL offline software (or other independent offline bending simulation software).

With the high-precision changer, tools are placed exactly in the correct position. Thanks to the intelligent software, only necessary changes are made and tools from the previous tool set-up are reused, resulting in considerably shorter changeover times.

The tool storage magazine has a capacity of 32, 52 or 60 m of tools, while the rotation station allows the upper tools to be rotated 180°, eliminating the need for a double tool set. According to SafanDarley, Tool Mate is unique in that it is suitable for the E-Brake C 200T and for the H-Brake series up to 320T, thus making it also suitable for the heavier machine segment.

For further information
www.safandarley.com

A major £400,000 investment in a new ERP system is set to help an engineering services and supplies specialist capitalise on growth across its business. James Lister & Sons, which is nearing its 150th birthday in 2024, has completed an 18-month project that has seen it embed the K8 Kerridge Commercial System in its fluid power, consumable supplies and tube manipulation divisions.

The new technology will allow it to bring together the wide variety of processes it undertakes across its headquarters in Smethwick and six branches in the West Midlands and South Wales, giving the company real-time information, transparency and improved order tracking, as well as enhanced merchant, trade counter and production planning operations.

Peter Davies, chief executive at Lister, says: “This has been a massive transformation project for our business, completed throughout the pandemic and in time for us to make the most of the bounce back we’re now seeing. The K8 Kerridge Commercial System will offer a host of operational and efficiency improvements due to improved planning capabilities and we now have a fully supported, disaster recovery safe system in place, giving our 5000-strong customer base complete peace of mind.”

The biggest growth area following the easing of lockdown has been Lister’s tube manipulation business, which is able to bend tube in sizes ranging from 4 up to 75 mm, in metals such as steel, copper and aluminium. The company has witnessed a 30% increase in orders over the past 12 months, delivering a 7.5% rise on pre-pandemic levels.

Investment in a Unison Breeze tube-bending machine has also paid dividends, providing the company with ‘left and right hand’ capacity to make components that cannot be produced via traditional bending.

For further information
www.lister.co.uk