TCI completes winning move

Before investing in Radan CADCAM software, creating manual nests at Kansas-based Tindle Construction Inc (TCI) took the sheet-metal fabricator several hours, meaning shop-floor personnel moved on to other tasks while the nests were generated. But now a day’s worth of nests are produced in just a couple of minutes.

“This makes a huge difference to us,” states engineering manager Jesse McGinnis. “We have an employee who only programs for half the day, freeing him up to spend the rest of his time on engineering projects. Because of what we’re able to do with Radan, it’s not necessary to have anyone generating nests full time anymore.”

Operating across two divisions – Industrial Services and Fabrication – the company manufactures products for a variety of customers, while also offering design and planning services.

“We have several machines with a lot of different capabilities, and combining those is like playing chess,” says McGinnis. “It’s interesting to see what we can come up with to get the job done, and that’s definitely a challenge I enjoy.”

McGinnis was recruited by TCI specifically for the fabrication side of the business and was tasked with hand-programming the company’s latest laser. TCI eventually invested in a CNC programming solution for the laser, but over time found that the system was significantly limited in efficiency and flexibility. After investigating all options for implementing a new sheet-metal solution, TCI made the switch to Radan.

“I felt like Radan was a better fit for us,” says McGinnis, who also uses the software to program TCI’s waterjet. “We wouldn’t be as efficient as we are without Radan’s nesting and the system’s ability to do what we need.”

Unlike many other solutions for sheet metal, he says Radan also allows the company to edit automatically generated nests.

For further information
www.radan.com

Sandvik to buy CGTech

Sandvik has signed an agreement to acquire US-based CGTech, a specialist in software for CNC machining simulation, verification and optimisation. The company’s flagship product is Vericut. CGTech has about 180 employees and, in 2019, had revenues of about £41.5m. The transaction will likely close during the final quarter of 2020 and is subject to customary regulatory approvals.
“It’s exciting to say that we’re able to expand our capabilities with CGTech,” says Nadine Crauwels, president of Sandvik Machining Solutions. “This will not only strengthen our market position in all parts of the world, but enable us to take a big step forward in offering full machining solutions to our customers, which will significantly reduce waste in their broader value chains.”

For further information
www.cgtech.com

Subcon postponed until September

MA Exhibitions, which owns and runs Subcon, The Engineer Expo and The Manufacturing Management Show, has taken the decision to reschedule the event from 26-28 January to 14-16 September 2021, running in Hall 12 at the Birmingham NEC. The organiser says its ongoing priority remains the health, safety and wellbeing of exhibitors, visitors and staff, and that the new September 2021 dates will provide the best possible event experience for everyone involved. All existing exhibitor bookings automatically transfer to the new dates and a member of the team will be in touch over the coming days to discuss any questions.

In addition, MA Exhibitions is launching a brand new virtual event, taking place on 9-11 February, to help keep the sector stay connected and engaged in the absence of the live show. Full details will follow shortly.

For further information www.subconshow.co.uk

Automated machines help double turnover

Telford-based Wrekin Sheet Metal has invested £1.1m in Amada automated punch-press and laser-cutting technology. An EMZ-3612MII electric punch press with AS-III MP300/40 tower and PR-III UL part remover, alongside a VENTIS-3015AJ fibre laser cutter with AS LUL3015 tower, arrived in August-September 2020. By leveraging the speed and capacity of these new machines, this progressive company is aiming to double its turnover to £5.5m within the coming 12 months.

“We see ourselves as an extension of our customers’ manufacturing facilities, with Amada machines central to this offer,” states sales director Simon Orpe. “We’ve been using Amada machines since day one, as we see them as the Rolls-Royce of manufacturing equipment. And although we assessed a range of machines from different suppliers, we favoured returning to Amada as they had solutions that were compatible with our shift to Industry 4.0. The new machines ticked a lot of boxes regarding data communication using Amada V-factory software.”

Wrekin Sheet Metal first decided it would move towards Industry 4.0 as part of its strategy to help combat the effects of Brexit.
“One of our major selling points is customer communication, and Industry 4.0 is very much that,” explains Orpe. “We recently set about investing in the necessary network and IT infrastructure that would be able to gather information for our customers. We typically have up to 400 different live parts in progress on our shop floor at any one time, and we want to reach a position where customers can log in and see the status of their components.”

With the arrival of the automated Amada EMZ-3612MII electric punch press and Amada Ventis-3015AJ fibre laser cutting machine – as well as the company’s investment in a powder-coating plant and new personnel – Wrekin Sheet Metal has spent circa £1.5m since the first COVID-19 lockdown in March 2020.

For further information
www.amada.eu

15 kW fibre laser from Bystronic

Within the framework of regional competence days and the ‘Euroblech Digital Innovation Summit’ online event, Bystronic presented its latest products and solutions for the fields of laser cutting, bending, automation and software.

Among other things, the sheet-metal processing specialist demonstrated how manufacturing environments can be intelligently networked to achieve even higher efficiency.
Numerous highlights were outlined. For instance, in order to offer sheet-metal processing companies even better support in an increasingly competitive environment, Bystronic is now advancing into a new dimension of fibre-laser cutting: the 15 kW ByStar Fiber. According to the company, this high-end fibre laser offers high-precision Bystronic technology and a reliable cutting process (even with the high laser output) to meet a wide range of applications.

The technological leap from conventional 3-12 kW systems to the new 15 kW level is significant: on average, thanks to the 15 kW laser, the cutting speed of the ByStar Fiber increases by up to 50% compared with a 10 kW laser source. As a result, sheet-metal processing companies can benefit from higher productivity at lower unit cost. In short, its 15 kW output means the latest ByStar Fiber cuts steel, aluminium and stainless steel precisely and reliably in thicknesses between 1 and 30 mm, and brass and copper in thicknesses up to 20 mm.
Bystronic’s 15 kW laser output enables extended applications in steel and aluminium of up to 50 mm, and thus offers flexibility both for large series and urgent customer orders. Regardless of whether cutting aluminium, other non-ferrous metals or steel, the Bystronic cutting head is said to excel with maximum precision in both thin and thick sheet. The new power level is available for the ByStar Fiber 3015 and ByStar Fiber 4020.

For further information
www.bystronic.com