Scanning the market for a quantum leap

To enable the efficient completion of a challenging project in a nuclear plant, UK engineering and steel service provider, Coatbridge-based Watson Towers, recently purchased a 3.5 m capacity version of Faro’s QuantumE ScanArm, fitted with a FaroBlu laser line probe SD and supported by the company’s CAM2 metrology software.

The tasks in question were to accurately reverse engineer large fabricated parts located inside the nuclear plant, then to produce new parts that were precise duplicates of the originals, and finally to fit the newly manufactured components.
Watson Towers’ general manager Iain Hussey says: “Having won a major contract from a client involved in the nuclear industry, we needed to invest in an advanced laser scanning system that would allow us to perform in-depth, non-contact scans of the large elements which needed to be reverse engineered. The captured point clouds could then be used to create the CAD models required for the duplicate fabrications.
“When compared with the alternatives, we concluded that the QuantumE ScanArm provided an accurate, reliable and comprehensive solution for our requirements,” he adds. “We were particularly impressed by the system’s high-speed point cloud capture and resolution.
We also realised that, not only would the QuantumE be perfect for the precise scanning of components at the nuclear power site, the device would also prove useful for many of our other on-site and off-site scanning and measuring tasks.
“For instance, by employing the QuantumE ScanArm on our new Ficep Gemini thermal-cutting machine (pictured), we are able to ensure its consistently high productivity and the quality of its work.”
For further information www.faro.com

Dugard enhances VMC range

The Dugard range of cost-effective vertical machining centres has evolved with the company working closely alongside its long-standing Taiwanese partners to instigate enhancements across the series. The Dugard 550, 760, 1000 and 1350 now have a smaller footprint (less than 2 x 2 m), larger work envelope (extended Y axis), faster rapid travels (up to 36 m/min) and a wider choice of CNC (Fanuc, Siemens, Mitsubishi) – all at a more cost-effective price point than the previous models.

Dugard has installed thousands of three-axis VMCs down the years and, by providing its machine-tool partners with in-depth customer feedback and analysis from UK and European customers, the toils of this extensive R&D exercise are now bearing fruit. The final specifications were agreed upon at the recent EMO show in Hanover. Dugard’s new 550, 760, 1000 and 1350 VMCs are now available in the UK from stock.
For further information www.dugard.com

£100,000 investment boost at ACE

Telford-based Advanced Chemical Etching (ACE) has invested another £100,000 into increasing its capacity to target new opportunities in precision engineering.

ACE, which employs 60 people at its base on Hortonwood, is taking delivery of an additional cleaning machine in the next few weeks that will give it the capability to deliver more than 2000 etched sheets every day – a major rise from the 350 it produced in 2018. “Our pre- and post-cleaning machines have made us so much quicker,” says Ian Whateley, managing director.
“This latest investment gives us the flexibility we need to scale volumes up quickly when required.”
For further information https://ace-uk.net/

Over 15,000 attend Advanced Engineering

Advanced Engineering 2019 wrapped up for another year on 31 October, after welcoming over 550 exhibitors and more than 15,000 attendees, a 5% rise from the previous year. The event showcased more technologies and product innovations than ever before, particularly with the introduction of its Medical Device Engineering Zone.

Mike Duffield, regional sales manager at one of the show’s exhibitors, Renishaw, found the new Medical Device Engineering Zone to be particularly profitable. “Renishaw has exhibited at Advanced Engineering for a number of years because it has always been a great opportunity to network and get high-quality business leads,” he says. “The addition of the Medical Device Engineering Zone has helped us to forge new business relationships and showcase the range of potential applications that our products can help to fulfil.”
For further information
www.easyfairs.com/advanced-engineering-2019

Compcut 200 exceeds expectations

The Materials Testing Team at the Bristol-based National Composites Centre (NCC) has recently completed a year-long trial of the Compcut 200 composite plate saw with positive results in terms of overall performance, usability, adaptability and technical precision.

Sharp & Tappin’s Compcut 200 is the latest and smallest model in the Compcut range of composite plate saws. The machine is proving popular with test centres and R&D teams, who recognise and value its compactness, technical performance and affordability.
The NCC was already making use of a large, bespoke Sharp & Tappin plate saw and had approached the company to explore options for a smaller, more flexible unit that could meet an increasing internal demand for speedy small sample cutting across a range of material types, while fulfilling a comprehensive set of technical and operational criteria.
Small batch sample cutting at NCC had previously involved manual cutting with inherent accuracy issues, and a time-consuming administration process to arrange the operation.
The results of installing the Compcut 200 have proved positive, with the machine meeting and exceeding the Testing Team’s expectations, citing success factors such as ease of use, a fully enclosed housing, speedy operational processing, and high precision and cut quality. NCC’s team is now able to react more swiftly to meet R&D and urgent testing requirements, and can increasingly offer quick turnaround sample cutting services to other teams within the organisation.
Ben Sharp, Sharp & Tappin managing director, says: “By the nature of their work, the team at the NCC had a very precise and specific set of criteria for establishing a more effective sample cutting operation, and the success of the Compcut 200 more than justifies our faith in this most effective compact composite plate saw.”
For further information www.sharpandtappin.com