TDT Machine Tools partners with CMZ

TDT Machine Tools has struck a new partnership deal with CMZ, a Spanish manufacturer of lathes and turning centres.

With immediate effect, TDT Machine Tools is able to offer CMZ machines across the central belt of the UK. This area extends coast-to-coast from Lincolnshire in the East, to Wales in the West, taking in the East and West Midlands, including Hereford and Worcester, and extending as far north as Sheffield and Doncaster.
“As many within the machine tool industry are aware, CMZ is a hallmark for quality,” states Phil Terry, sales director at TDT Machine Tools. “These machines are built to last for decades, without any compromise in precision or reliability. Importantly, we can supply standard CMZ lathes from factory stock in one week, which compares favourably to the five weeks typically required for machines from the Far East. Even CMZ lathes built to customer specifications are available on short lead times.”
For further information www.tdt-machinetools.co.uk

GF installs five-axis laser cell

As part of its planned process of continuous investment in the latest manufacturing technologies, Dudley-based 2D and 3D laser-cutting specialist GF Laser has installed a Trumpf TruLaser Cell 5030 5-axis CNC laser-profiling machine, the first such model in the UK.

“With this machine we are investing in the latest fibre technology,” states Simon Tregillus, director of GF Laser. “The TruLaser Cell 5030 has replaced our original Trumpf TLC CUT 5 machine and is running alongside our existing TruLaser Cell 7040, which has been retained.”
GF Laser’s TLC CUT 5 was purchased in 2006 and, although still performing well, the introduction of the latest TruLaser Cell 5030 is moving the company into another league regarding speed and energy efficiency.
The machine has been set to work on the five-axis profiling and trimming of pressings, extrusions and spinnings – any component containing a form – for sectors such as automotive, yellow goods, construction, architecture and art. Materials processed on the TRUMPF TruLaser Cell 5030 include mild steel, stainless steel and aluminium. The machine also allows GF Laser to process reflective materials such as copper and brass in five axes, a task not previously possible using the company’s CO2-based TruLaser Cell 7040.
GF Laser, which is ISO 9001:2015 accredited, has grown its turnover from £2m to £3.5m in the past three years, and today employs 25 people.
“With the incredible cutting speeds of modern laser cutters, growing numbers of customers are turning to this technology instead of investing in a press tool, which creates more business for GF Laser,” says Tregillus. “The arrival of the TruLaser 5030 Cell allows us to accelerate the processing of existing work, thus creating more capacity.”
For further information www.uk.trumpf.com

Show of strength at EMO exhibition

This year, Taiwan was ranked second in terms of the numbers of exhibitors participating at EMO and third in regards to exhibition space; impressive for a country about the size of the Switzerland. Among the principal exhibitors from Taiwan was the Fair Friend Group, which is now the third largest machine-tool group in the world. FFG owns 37 machine-tool brands and 50 production bases worldwide.

Photo TAITRA/Tim Schaarschmidt

At EMO 2019, FFG’s exhibit filled the whole of hall 14, showcasing over 35 machines from 20 brands, and offering smart manufacturing solutions integrated with future 5G networking applications for industries that include automotive, aerospace, rail and mouldmaking.
For further information www.taitra.org.tw

12 kW fibre laser exceeds expectations

The most powerful flat-bed laser-profiling centre ever to be installed in the UK for processing sheet metal has started operation at subcontractor ESP Laser Cutting, a specialist in producing components from 3 x 1.5 m sheet in an array of materials to a thickness of 30 mm. ESP’s investment follows the development of a 12 kW fibre laser source by Bystronic, which has delivered a machine of that power, a ByStar Fiber 3015 to the contract machinist’s factory in Rotherham.

Delivering one-fifth more energy to the metal sheet than the previous most powerful fibre laser (10 kW), the new source was expected to be 20% faster at cutting. What ESP’s joint owners Steve McMillan and Paul Short actually experience is a typical productivity increase of 33%.
For processing one particular job, chain links from 10 mm mild steel sheet, a three-fold productivity improvement was gained on the 12 kW machine. When formerly profiling the parts on the ByStar Fiber 10 kW machine that is still in use at the Rotherham facility, 200 components per hour was the maximum output, as there was not sufficient laser power to employ nitrogen as the assist gas. Instead, oxygen had to be used, requiring the cutting speed to be reduced so that acceptable edge quality could be achieved.
By contrast, the 12 kW machine produces 600 parts per hour, as the higher power allows the use of nitrogen and hence full profiling speed. There is the added advantage that cut edges are better, especially on the underside of the sheet, than when formerly using ‘active’ oxygen, as ‘inert’ nitrogen does not react with the sheet material. ESP employs a profiling speed of 6900 mm/min when producing the chain links, although the machine is capable of 150 m/min on thin gauges.
For further information www.bystronic.co.uk

Metrology event at the MTC

Experts in metrology and inspection at the Coventry-based Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) are hosting a free event that intends to help manufacturers improve their processes and product quality through the latest metrology innovations.

The ‘Focus on Metrology’ event on 27 November will highlight the latest research and thinking in metrology developed by the MTC, its academic partners and leading industrialists. Notably, the event will centre on the important collaborations driving metrology forward, as well as measurement and inspection technologies which can benefit UK manufacturers.
Speakers from a range of sectors will provide an industry perspective on how metrology and inspection techniques are helping to improve competitiveness, processes, and component quality.
“Inspection techniques are vital to high-value manufacturing and, when implemented properly, can mean that products are safer, stronger, and perform better than the competition,” says MTC technology director Ken Young.
For further information https://is.gd/qinoni