Investment by Ricardo in gear-manufacturing machines has improved productivity and extended capability, as the recent investment of £1.5m in a Klingelnberg spiral bevel grinder underlines.

The Klingelnberg equipment is now installed and commissioned at Ricardo’s Midlands Technical Centre in Leamington Spa, and is producing components of precision and quality for the current range of motorsport and sports car transmissions being made by the company, while simultaneously supporting the development of a new series of products destined for market release in the near future.
In addition, the company has acquired new design and quality assurance capabilities through software upgrades such as the KIMOS (Klingelnberg Integrated Manufacturing of Spiral Bevel Gears) software package from Oerlikon.
Dick Elsy CBE, CEO of the High Value Manufacturing Catapult, recently toured the Ricardo Midlands Technical Centre to see the new equipment in action, and said: “It’s great to see Ricardo at the forefront of digital manufacturing with investment in adaptive machining. Their new spiral bevel grinder is already delivering great results in terms of process capability and productivity improvement. I was very impressed”.
Ricardo Performance Products MD Martin Starkey, adds: “The investment in manufacturing technology and software, including the purchase of the Klingelnberg grinding machine, has enhanced Ricardo’s capability to design, analyse, manufacture and inspect bevel gears with a closed-loop system. This willingness to invest underlines our commitment to digital manufacturing development, and the new technology is a key enabler in supporting our customers with more advanced solutions, meaning they can look forward to even higher standards of product quality and shorter lead times.”
For further information https://ricardo.com/

Leader Chuck International provided demonstrations of Balance Systems’ range of solutions at the recent Advanced Engineering 2019 exhibition in Birmingham, UK.

In the spotlight was grinding-wheel balancing, in-line dynamic gauging, touch detection and spindle monitoring with the B-Safe machine tool monitoring system.
Mark Jones, managing director at Leader Chuck International, says: “Balance Systems’ knowledge and experience of grinding process systems helps to improve the quality of the workpiece. They offer the capability to reduce grinding-wheel wear and speed-up cycle-time, while extending machine lifetime and increasing operator safety.”
Spindle and grinding wheel balancing is an essential operation in order to achieve workpiece surface quality and ensure long life for the rotary components.
Says Jones: “We offer a range of systems based on balancing heads that can be installed externally or built into the spindle. Control units are equipped with cable and contactless solutions, and provide constant vibration monitoring. The newly designed ‘Absolute Balancer’ technology is characterised by high performance levels in terms of execution speed and balancing precision for single and two-plane applications.”
In-process measuring systems offered by Balance Systems allow manufacturers the opportunity to produce components that conform to specification even under the most severe environmental conditions, such as warm-up, thermal shifts, chemical coolant, local or induced vibrations, and so on, and to operate using high-speed cycles.
The close control of grinding wheel balancing and its dresser helps attain a near perfect profile, while also optimising the removal of the grinding wheel surface, as evidenced by longer tool life.Identification of the instant when the tool touches the workpiece is essential to minimise cycle time, reduce ‘air grinding’ and optimise axis infeed.
For further information www.leaderchuck.com