Located in Schwabmünden, Germany, family-run subcontractor Heinz Knöpfle GmbH is taking maximum advantage of the productivity potential of automation. The company recently installed five robot load/unload systems from Halter, whose range of LoadAssistant robotic machine tending equipment is available in the UK from 1st Machine Tool Accessories.

About 16 years ago, the company acquired its first machine from Mazak, which was automated a year later with a bar feeder. Despite Heinz Knöpfle employing just five people, there are currently 22 Mazak machining centres and lathes on the shop floor.

The subcontractor’s entry into robotic automation began in 2018 when second-generation managing director Christian Knöpfle became aware of Halter during a discussion with a Mazak sales manager. A short time later, the first turn-mill centre, a Mazak Integrex i-200ST, was coupled with a Halter Universal Premium.

All Halter automation solutions are compact, versatile robot cells in a variety of designs for CNC lathes, machining centres or both, as in the case of the Universal Premium. They have been developed for automated loading and unloading of rotationally symmetrical and prismatic workpieces. A wide variety of grippers is available, as well as grid plates that act as buffer storage for components.

While the robot loads and unloads a machine, an operator at the rear of the automation cell can replenish the system with raw material and remove machined components, without having to interrupt production.

The benefits of the first robotic cell were so convincing that Heinz Knöpfle has since invested in four further automation solutions from Halter – two additional Universal Premiums for a CNC turn-mill centre and a three-axis machining centre, a Halter Big for a Mazak i-200S turn-mill centre, and a Halter Turnstacker Compact 12 for a Mazak QuickTurn Nexus 250-II MSY lathe.

For further information www.1mta.com

Mills CNC has reported that its attendance at MACH 2022 last month was an outstanding success with the company taking orders for 22 machines, its best ever tally for a MACH show, as well as hundreds of leads and enquiries for its Doosan machine tools, SYNERGi automated manufacturing cells and Doosan cobots. Those buying machines included MNB Precision, Takumi Precision and Cosworth Engines.

Says Mills CNC’s CEO Tony Dale: “We had a great MACH show; the best in the company’s history. It seemed as though we were busy as soon as the doors opened on Monday and things didn’t quiet down until late Friday afternoon. You know you’ve got the balance of showcased technologies spot on, and that you have created an innovative and welcoming stand, when the aisles are packed to the rafters and the volume of leads and enquiries generated are breaking all of our previous MACH show records.”

For further information
www.millscnc.co.uk

Reflecting on last month’s MACH 2022 exhibition, Nigel Atherton, managing director of XYZ Machine Tools, says: “From day one, our stand at MACH 2022 was busy, and the level of enquiries and new orders resulting from the week are very encouraging and indicate that April will be an even better month than March, which was our best-ever month with a sales order intake of £3.4m.”

By the end of the exhibition XYZ Machine Tools had recorded almost 500 leads, 100 of which were described as “hot”. Indeed, 32 visitors to the stand have already placed orders, with another 192 indicating they would be placing orders in the next 2-3 months, and a further 162 suggesting a six-month lag to placing an order. New orders that can be directly attributed to MACH 2022 currently stand at 37 machines from 32 customers, made up of a mix of three manual machines, 20 ProtoTRAK-controlled mills and lathes, and 14 Siemens-controlled machines (a mix of vertical machining centres, turning centres and five-axis machining centres). The value of these sales is in excess of £2.4m.

For further information
www.xyzmachinetools.com

The MACH 2022 exhibition earlier this month proved a resounding success for Dugard with the company winning several orders and taking an unprecedented number of enquiries at the show. With four new machine tools on its stand, Dugard showed the breadth and diversity of its technology.

Sales director Colin Thomson says: “We had representatives from Hanwha, Kitamura, Ibarmia and SMEC on the stand to support our team throughout the week. Both our UK sales team and our technical partners from overseas had some very constructive conversations that resulted in several machine sales. We fully expect to generate several additional sales in the months to come. No level of marketing activity can exceed the anticipation and buzz that MACH creates in the sector. It was great to be back and we are already planning a larger stand for the MACH 2024 exhibition.”

For further information
www.dugard.com

A specialist in stamping, plating and the assembly of high-precision parts is celebrating its 50th birthday in style after announcing a new £400,000 investment. Batten & Allen, which employs 120 people at its factory in Cirencester, signed a deal at MACH 2022 earlier this month to purchase a new Bruderer high-speed press that can produce six million components every day.

The company signalled its intentions to use the 28-tonne BSTA 280-75B2 to stamp precision parts for use in electrical applications across the automotive, aerospace and consumer goods sectors. Fitted with a high-precision mechanical feeder, the machine offers a 750 mm bed to accommodate complex press tools. Says Batten & Allen CEO Ian Mackinnon: “Bruderer presses are known throughout industry for their precise control and repeatable accuracy; two of the reasons why this machine will be our 30th from them.”

For further information
www.bruderer.co.uk