SafanDarley presented a wide range of innovative solutions at the Lamiera 2022 exhibition in Italy earlier this year. Besides press brake innovations, such as the E-Brake C 200T with Tool Mate, SafanDarley also focused on the latest developments in offline bending software.

SafanDarley has added the E-Brake C 200T Ultra with Tool Mate to its press brake range. The Tool Mate is an external automatic tool changer and offers time savings when producing small batches. Notably, the servo-electric E-Brake C with 200 tonne pressing force and a bending length of 4300 mm features a C-frame, to enable automatic tool changing. The Tool Mate is very intuitive; the execution of the tool changes is via the SafanDarley E-Control. Correct tool settings can be loaded and used directly on the machine from AutoPOL offline software (or other independent offline bending simulation software).

The high-precision changer ensures the placing of tools in the correct position. Due to the intelligent software, only necessary changes are made and tools from the previous tool set-up are reused, achieving considerably shorter changeover times. The tool storage magazine has a capacity of 32, 52 or 60 m of tools.

SafanDarley also showcased a new Hybrid-series press brake, the H-Brake Hybrid+ 230T Ultra. The Hybrid+ range is an expansion of the company’s existing Hybrid series and offers higher tonnages with additional benefits. At its core, there is an advanced dual hybrid drive with high return speed, high productivity and low energy consumption. One of the most significant benefits of this system is the dramatic reduction in power consumption, says SafanDarley.

The H-Brake 230T+ was equipped with E-Bend L blue angle measurement system, which uses two blue laser sensors one each side of the table.
For further information www.safandarley.com

When specifying a press brake there are a number of features and options to consider that make the machine easier to use and more productive. According to Morgan Rushworth, these include: height-adjustable control panel arm; AKAS laser tooling guards; CNC sheet follower support arms; and hydraulic tool clamping.

All press brake operators are not born equal. For those tired of stooping down or standing on a pallet to use the press brake control, the ergonomic height-adjustable control arm from Morgan Rushworth could be the answer. This is available as an option on all press brakes although is also fitted as standard on several models.

The AKAS laser tooling guards offer a vastly improved user experience when compared with traditional light guards. As the AKAS system guards the top tool only, rather than the whole working area, the operator can hold the workpiece during the beam’s rapid descent stage rather than having to wait until reaching the mute position. This capability allows the easy positioning of smaller components against the back gauge, without compromising safety.

When working with light gauge material, larger parts will tend to fold down under their own weight, making handling more difficult. While it is possible to slow the bending and ram return speeds to make this operation easier, another option is to specify a CNC-powered sheet follower support arm. As the name implies the support arm will lift up and down during bending ensuring continual support for the part.

For workshops where a lot of tool changes are required, hydraulic tool clamping can greatly increase efficiency. Available for either top and bottom tools – or both – and with different clamp designs, hydraulic tool clamping will make frequent tool changes a quick and simple task.
For further information www.morganrushworth.com

Platinum Stairlifts of Keighley has taken delivery of a second all-electric 90 mm (maximum tube diameter) Unison Breeze tube bending machine. The purchase corresponds with Platinum’s move to a new multi-million-pound, purpose-built manufacturing facility in the town, and underpins the company’s faith in the quality, reliability and repeatability of Unison’s British-built tube manipulation technologies.

Stairlift company Platinum invested in its first all-electric Breeze tube bender from Unison in 2015, the same year as it launched its flagship ‘Ultimate’ stairlift.

“We fully appreciated that in order to create an industry-leading, single-tube stairlift we would need to invest in advanced, all-electric tube bending machinery,” says Matthew Turton, production engineer at Platinum Stairlift. “At that time, we were using a hydraulic tube bending machine which, although absolutely fine for forming the rails for our twin-tube stairlifts, lacked the capability to bend the highly complex angles required for a premium single-tube model.

“Having considered the tube bending machines and levels of support offered by a number of manufacturers, we went ahead and ordered our first Unison Breeze machine,” he continues. “A 90 mm multi-stack model, the all-electric Breeze quickly demonstrated its ability to bend tube accurately for even the most challenging of designs, such as complex spiral and multi-flight staircases. In fact, through a combination of twist and draw bending, using Unison-supplied precision tubing, I have yet to see a staircase angle that the Breeze machine has been unable to achieve.”

Installed earlier this month, Platinum’s second 90 mm all-electric Unison Breeze machine will further enhance the company’s ability to produce its Ultimate single tube stairlift in greater volumes.
For further information www.unisonltd.com

Gloucester-based Safran Landing Systems OE (Original Equipment), part of the global Safran group, has taken delivery of two new all-electric Breeze CNC tube bending machines from Unison Ltd. The Unison Breeze machines (16 and 30 mm maximum tube diameter models) will be used to bend thin-wall section titanium tube for the manufacture of 3/8-inch (9.53 mm) to 3/4-inch (19 mm) diameter hydraulic brake and actuator pipes for commercial aircraft undercarriage systems, including those used on Airbus A320, A330 and A340 models. They replace two hydraulically operated tube bending machines that have been in use at Safran for a number of years.

“Realising it was time to renew our tube bending capabilities, as part of our ongoing risk analysis activities – and necessitated by significantly increased manufacturing requirements – we approached a number of tube bending machinery manufacturers to discuss the various options available to us,” says Safran assembly flow line manager Jonathan Crewe.

To enable the Safran team to experience first-hand the capabilities of its all-electric range of Breeze tube bending machines, Unison arranged for the company to visit an existing customer’s facility in Farnborough and observe titanium tube being bent. On the strength of the visit and the testimony provided by that customer, trial parts were produced at Unison’s UK-based manufacturing centre. The order was subsequently placed, and master pipe samples were supplied to Unison in readiness for machine set-up and sign-off.

“We benefited from excellent support and advice at every stage of the process,” adds Jonathan Crewe. “We were particularly impressed by the effort Unison put into training, ensuring that our operators were fully familiar with the Unibend operating system and could confidently bend thin-wall titanium components, all with precisely controlled levels of spring-back to compensate for the material’s high yield strength.”

For further information
www.unisonltd.com