Steel stockholder Weser Stahl, based in Stuhr-Brinkum, Germany, has automated its operation to meet increasing competition from international suppliers. The key element of its in-house logistics is a recently installed storage, sawing and robotic handling system supplied by Kasto. Weser Stahl’s new system provides unattended material flow through the facility, from storage of the raw stock to provision of the sawn sections for shipment. The system has proved so successful that plans are in place to install another at Weser Stahl’s site in Plettenberg.

Weser Stahl relies on modern machinery and equipment, and has a number of bandsaws and circular saws supplied by kasto over many years.

The new KASTOcenter varioplus 4 measures almost 8 m in height, providing 1398 storage spaces for material up to 7 m in length. Each compartment has a usable loading height of 50 to 430 mm and can take a maximum material weight of 4 tonnes. A storage and retrieval machine (SRM) moving at speeds of up to 60 m/min handles the bar. Two KASTOvariospeed circular saws (150 mm diameter capacity) and one KASTOtec FC 4 bandsaw (430 mm capacity) are connected to the storage facility.

Weser Stahl relies on automation for material removal. The KASTOtec saw is equipped with a turning and stacking system, while the two KASTOvariospeed saws each have an industrial robot that automatically removes sawn sections and stacks them on to pallets, as required for each order.

“In this way, we have created a continuous material flow that can function fully unattended if necessary – and around the clock,” says sales manager Stieven Harder. “The result is an enormous increase in efficiency and performance, as well as more ergonomic working conditions for our employees.”

For further information
www.kasto.com

World Machinery, the UK representative for Bodor laser cutting machines, is reporting exceptional sales of the Bodor i7 fibre laser. During September and October, the company delivered and installed six Bodor i7 machines, a highly affordable model that offers large capacity (3000 x 1500 mm sheet, up to 20 mm thick mild steel) within a compact footprint (6000 x 2300 mm).

The six latest recipients of the machine are: Advent Ductwork Systems (Addlestone), BT Lerson (Stansted), D&A Engineering (Hemel Hempstead), J&M Engineering (Melton Mowbray), Profab (Coventry) and Langley Projects (Manchester). All machines feature an automatic focus cutting head, edge sheet detection and 21.5” touchscreen fitted with Bodor Pro 2.5 software that World Machinery says makes operation very easy, even to new users.

“Each installation is completed by our team of engineers, which is followed by operator training,” explains World Machinery’s managing director Wayne Hipkiss. “All Bodor lasers are supplied with a 3-year manufacturer warranty that is comprehensively supported by our in-house engineers and Bodor UK resident engineers. Unlimited spares and consumables are offered ex-stock to ensure 24/7 production for all Bodor users.”

The company is also reporting big demand for high-power Bodor fibre lasers (12 kW and beyond). Willenhall-based Fastline Steel Services, for example, has taken delivery of its second Bodor laser – a P4020-12 (4000 x 2000 mm, 12 kW) – to increase its capacity in the production of steel fencing.

Another P4020-12 is due for installation this month at SM Thompson in Middlesbrough, where it will replace a fibre laser by another manufacturer. Furthermore, a P3015-12 (3000 x 1500 mm, 12 kW) is going to Cube Metals Ltd in Uxbridge. This machine, which replaces a plasma cutter, will feature an iTrans automatic loading and unloading system.

For further information
www.worldmc.co.uk

Southern Manufacturing & Electronics will make a welcome return to Farnborough on 8-10 February 2022. The show’s organisers report a healthy uptake in stand bookings from firms eager to recommence face-to-face business. Many of the show’s regular participants have already confirmed for 2022, bringing with them a wide range of products and services, extending from machine tools and automation, through electronic components and production equipment, to additive manufacturing and subcontract services.

Nearly 9000 visitors attended the pre-pandemic event, making it one of the biggest annual engineering shows in the UK. Together with the exhibition and demonstration areas, the free seminar programme will also return for 2022 in a socially-distanced format. Subjects discussed include energy reduction, new technology, innovation, supply chains and business strategy, and an overview of current industrial law and post-Brexit regulations.

For further information www.industrysouth.co.uk

The 12th edition of Advanced Engineering will open this week (3-4 November), providing a platform for the reunion of the supply chain and a launch pad for the future of manufacturing and engineering. Advanced Engineering offers a great opportunity for the whole UK manufacturing supply chain to source innovation and technology spanning multiple sectors, including but not limited to, aerospace, automotive, rail, marine, space, medical and renewables. At the last show in 2019, over 10,000 professionals from the manufacturing sector attended.

Advanced Engineering is the go-to show for anyone wanting to meet the world’s leading engineering and manufacturing companies, plus the UK’s most innovative start-ups, thanks to the return of the show’s ‘Enabling Innovation’ zone, supported by Innovate UK. Here, 10 chosen start-ups will have the opportunity to showcase their ground-breaking product or technology, before presenting it to a panel of esteemed judges to be crowned the Advanced Engineering innovator of 2021.

For further information
www.advancedengineeringuk.com

Promoted by CECIMO and organised by UCIMU, the recent EMO Milano 2021 exhibition registered more than 60,000 visitors from 91 countries. Luigi Galdabini, general commissioner of EMO Milano 2021, states: “The exhibition data sets confirm the value of EMO, which is considered a reference point for the worldwide industry of machine tools, robots and automation systems. In such a complicated, historic moment, where the public health emergency is not yet completely over, EMO showed its importance.”

Alfredo Mariotti, director of the exhibition, adds: “A very large number of exhibitors have expressed their full satisfaction with the results achieved over the six exhibition days. ‘Qualified and very motivated visitors’, ‘a duly organised trade show in all its details and not least those related to safety’: these are the most common expressions of appreciation received both from habitual exhibitors at the show and from companies that have not participated previously.”

For further information www.emo-milano.com