Following success with previous-generation machines, a leading manufacturer of press brakes is once again specifying high-quality NSK ball screws for its latest electric model. The company is using the NSK HTF-SRC high-speed, high-load ball screw featuring A1 seal for its new machine, which with 80 tonnes of press force, is the most powerful in the range.

As with previous electric press brake models, the force will be carried by two HTF-SRC ball screws in tandem configuration, with independent electronic control of each axis. Thanks to the design of HTF series ball screws and NSK’s technical knowledge, the solution can withstand large forces while retaining a compact shaft diameter – smaller than ball screws from other manufacturers – to help OEMs minimise machine size.
Such is the customer’s confidence regarding the performance of NSK ball screws that its first order was for a full production batch, rather than prototype quantities.

NSK’s HTF-SRC ball screws offer numerous benefits to OEMs and end users, including high dynamic load, high speed, low noise and extended operating life thanks to proper load distribution. The press brake manufacturer has been using NSK HTF series ball screws since 2017, when it produced its first electric machine.

Compared with hydraulic press brakes, electric machines offer low maintenance thanks to automatic lubrication, low power consumption, low noise and shorter cycle times. The press brake manufacturer’s sales force also refers to the use of NSK ball screws as another key selling point.

For further information
www.nskeurope.com

Sharpe Products, a North American specialist in custom tube and pipe bending, has purchased its eighth UK-built Unison Breeze all-electric CNC tube bender. The machine, an 80 mm single-stack model, will be installed at the company’s Wisconsin, USA manufacturing facility, where it will be used to further expand production capability.

Sharpe’s president and CEO, Paul Krickeberg, bought into the concept of all-electric tube bending many years ago, when it was still a relatively new technology.

“Our new Unison Breeze tube bending machine will help further support our capacity to offer short lead times and consistent accuracy – attributes that are essential to our customers,” he says. “We’ve worked with Unison for nearly 20 years and appreciate the quality of their products, along with their service and support.”

All-electric tube bending technology, with all the advantages of automatic set-up, has equipped Sharpe Products with the ability to take on all manner of tube manipulation challenges, including projects involving traditionally difficult alloys.”

The 80 mm single-stack Unison Breeze machine was chosen by Sharpe Products for its ability to deliver the accuracy and reliability necessary to meet strict tolerances. It is equipped with Unison’s recently upgraded Unibend software, which offers cycle time improvements in the region of 25% compared with earlier versions, and incorporates new teach routine and simulation features.

Like all Unison Breeze tube bending machines, the 80 mm (maximum tube diameter) Breeze offers rapid set-up, fast tooling changes, high power, rigid mechanical design, and all-electric control for right-first-time components.

For further information
www.unisonltd.com

In the furniture and similar sectors, where the tubes to be bent are often very long and curved into sometimes particularly complex shapes, the bending head must take up as little space as possible to leave room for the shape that the bent tube will assume.

On tube bending machines with right and left-handed bending directions, this need is much less urgent because the possibility of using one or the other bending direction solves many problems of interference between the tube and the machine parts. However, this is not the case on tube bending machines with only one direction of bending. The only way to avoid the risk of interference in the latter case is to reduce the overall dimensions of the bending heads as much as possible.

Precisely to meet this requirement, BLM Group has developed a new compact bending head for its ELECT40 machine that is capable of executing shapes that were previously not possible with only one bending direction. It is clear that for some parts, using a right or left-handed in-process tube bending machine is the only way to produce the components in a single cycle.

The ELECT40 elongated bending head is 35% lower and 31% longer than the standard head.

Furthermore, the design of the head’s dedicated kinematic mechanisms has enabled an increase in the speed of both the bending arm (+20%) and of the clamp and pressure die (+25%). As a result, a reduction in cycle time of about 10% is possible on a typical part with four bends.

For further information
www.blmgroup.com

KMF Precision Sheet Metal, the sheet metal fabrication arm of the KMF group, says it is continuing to prove that it is at the forefront of robotic automatic bending systems by investing in and installing industry-leading machinery. As part of plans which began in 2015 to be UK leaders in the introduction of robotic automatic bending systems, KMF Precision Sheet Metal committed to a rolling programme of technology investment.

The latest addition to its ambitious plans is a Trumpf TruBend Cell 7000 complete with wireless ACB (automatically controlled bend) technology, which has already begun delivering products in earnest.

Terry Stanway, KMF purchasing and facilities director, says: “The combined offerings from our current technology will ensure that we can now investigate lights-out production opportunities for larger volume demand, particularly for smaller components, where additional capacity is required.”

He continues: “The installation of the automatic bending cell represents the first phase of investment in 2021, during which we also expect to invest in further technology advancements with an upgrade to our existing automated twin laser cell system. From initial investigations, it is expected that this project is likely to result in production cycle reductions of up to 60% across a range of material types and gauges.”

For further information
www.trumpf.com

Adira Metal Forming Solutions, with its more than 60 years of history as a manufacturer and global supplier of engineering solutions, is positioning its brand more ambitiously and competitively, reformulating the company’s marketing and communication organisation and strategy to shore up its position worldwide.

‘Shaping the future’ is the company’s new slogan, with a focus on new technology to mark the change in positioning, which is in line with its mission to satisfy customer needs and provide innovative solutions. To grow its leadership position on the Iberian Peninsula into a multi-continental presence – by leveraging a geographic proximity that channels the competitive advantages of each of its global partners – Adira is now more accessible, more effective and more ambitious. Opening a physical and virtual showroom and designing an augmented reality app are just some of the innovations introduced with the rebranding on the company’s website. Aidra has also decided to study its performance through customer reviews, case studies and white papers, and to provide increasingly more optimised and automated customer service.

As well as being a specialist in the production of hydraulic, electric and hybrid press brakes, along with shears and robotised cells, Adira conducts intensive research and development in large-scale additive manufacturing. The company was acquired by Sonae Capital in 2017 and has since increased its portfolio of services, automation and customised solutions, focusing on digital restructuring and transformation. Adira now embraces the challenges of the future more effectively and successfully.

For further information
www.adira.pt