Newly introduced to the market is the Haas Mill APL (Automatic Parts Loader), a simple way to automate part production on the company’s small VF-series vertical machining centres.

The unit integrates seamlessly with the Haas control, and features a simple set-up interface that will have users fully automated in minutes, loading and unloading parts for unattended machining. According to Haas, running the APL for just four extra hours per day could generate enough output to pay for the investment in as few as six months.
Designed for use on Haas VF-1, VF-2, VF-2SS, VF-2YT, VF-2SSYT and VM-2 vertical machining centres, an easy-to-use interface in the Haas control guides users through a simple, step-by-step set-up process that ‘teaches’ the APL arm its positions. Parts measuring up to 152 by 152 mm in length and width can be handled by the APL grippers, while table load capacity is 454 kg. A light curtain is included for safe operation.
Workpiece management on the APL table is achieved by creating a grid pattern template of equally spaced rows and columns. Various part shapes, such as round, hexagonal and square, can be loaded, and grippers can be adjusted or modified to best-fit specific customer components.
Programming is achieved directly through the Haas control, and set up using the Haas APL interface, which guides the operator through the steps necessary for quick programming. Answering simple questions, the operator enters basic information by positioning the grippers and pushing a single button to record position, or by entering basic numeric values. All values are calculated automatically by the control, and the APL is ready to go.
For further information www.haas.co.uk

Troisdorf-based Mannstaedt, a specialist in the production of hot-rolled special profiles, recently sought a high-quality clamping device for its heavy-duty machining operations, duly finding the solution from gripping and clamping technology expert Röhm.

At Röhm, customer-specific developments comprise around 40% of business. In this case, the special HZS-798×180 high-pressure vice includes an integrated measuring system, while the active pull-down is controllable, reaching up to 60 kN per clamping jaw. These high-pressure clamps have been used in duplicate for around three years on a machine with a working space of around 1 m.
“We are now able to master vibrations safely and achieve the high dimensional accuracy that we want,” confirms Björn Wieschendorf, operations manager for processing.
Due to this experience, Röhm was again the first choice as a clamping device supplier when an older system was replaced in 2019 on a Matec milling machine. This has 3 m of work space, is suitable for automated processes and is equipped with a total of four HZS-798×180 vices. For heavy workpieces, the machine can be loaded from above using a crane, while lateral feed is also possible for automated processes, for example.
The main advantages of this clamping technology compared with the previous product include better repeat accuracy, greater clamping forces and higher rigidity within the clamp. Discussions are currently underway to replace a manual clamping technology solution with an automated system.
HZS-798×180 clamping devices work centrically and achieve an accuracy of 0.03 mm. Active lowering of workpieces can be controlled up to 150 bar hydraulic actuation pressure, while the 170 kg clamps for precision and blank clamping can be moved on the machine and are suitable for workpiece automation.
For further information www.roehm.biz

Fabrication and CNC machining subcontractor Inishowen Engineering has increased the size of its production facility in County Donegal. The move follows an €11m investment in a new 160,000 sq ft factory that opened on a 7-acre site in Drumfries, in early 2019. As part of the expansion programme, which started in April 2017, an extra €19m has been spent on machine tools.

As well as a number of Bystronic laser cutters, also on site from the same source are seven press brakes, including two Bystronic Xpert 6 m, 650 tonne capacity machines that arrived in 2019.
The increasing size of components going through the factory necessitated a press braking cell to bend up to 12 m lengths, hence the installation of two Bystronic Xperts. These machines are positioned side by side so that they can be used individually or in tandem, mirroring the earlier purchase of a pair of 400 tonne, 4 m press brakes.
Half of all profiled sheet that is folded in the factory is less than 1 m in length. This factor proved to be the reason for the purchase in 2015 of an Xpert 40 (1 m, 40 tonne capacity) press brake that owner and managing director Michael McKinney says is at least one-third faster at bending smaller components than larger machines.
The extra speed translates into higher productivity and, in addition, the machine does not draw as much power, just 7.5 kW instead of typically 30 kW for a large press brake, so electricity bills are lower. Inishowen’s acquisition was so successful in raising the profitability of smaller component production that, two years later, the folding department added the next larger model in the Xpert range with 1.5 m/80 tonne capacity.
For further information www.bystronic.co.uk

Taiwanese machine tool builder Leadwell CNC Machines has introduced the BC-600 at the smaller capacity end of its of BC series of five-axis machining centres. On all four models, the rotary axes are provided by a ±110° B-axis spindle and an integrated C-axis rotary table, both of which may be interpolated with X, Y and Z to allow full five-axis production.

The competitively priced machines, which are fitted with scales in the linear and rotary axes as standard, are available in the UK and Ireland through recently appointed sole sales and service agent WH-Lead, which moved into its new Towcester facility last month. The first batch of Leadwell machines for stock and demonstration will start arriving from this week.
A notable feature of the 12-tonne BC-600 is its generous working envelope for the nominal 4.7 x 3.8 m footprint. Travels in X and Y are 1100 and 610 mm respectively, while in the Z axis, components 610 mm tall can be machined with the spindle in the vertical orientation, rising to 790 mm with the spindle horizontal. Cutting feed rate is up to 10 m/min, while rapids are 36 m/min in X and Y, and 30 m/min in Z.
The flush, 600 mm diameter rotary table accepts workpieces weighing up to 400 kg, but the full 1280 x 610 mm fixed table is able to accommodate 1400 kg components for three- or four-axis machining. The C axis uses a direct-drive motor to provide high torque and rigidity, and to avoid the backlash normally associated with worm-gear drives. Maximum standard rotational speed of the C-axis table is 120 rpm, but there is an optional 800 rpm version to provide turning capability.
For further information www.wh-lead.co.uk

A specialist in industrial automation products and solutions, Comau, and Exechon, which offers patented technologies to develop parallel kinematic machine solutions, have joined forces to design and produce a Comau machining centre able to handle lightweight framing and structural components for sectors such as electrification.

Harbouring the objective of spearheading a new machining paradigm for large, complex aluminium parts, the companies have started a strategic co-operation. The pair will thus leverage their respective competencies to develop a concrete solution for customers that can cost-effectively meet key drivers within the evolving machining market, which include: the expanded use of lightweight components that reduce fuel consumption and CO2 emissions; the growing importance of electrification for automotive manufacturers; and the increasing degree of production complexity within the aerospace sector.
Exechon will develop the core of the new machine, while Comau will leverage its 45 years of industrial automation and integration experience to guarantee the best fit for each project.
Luca Ferrero COO of Comau Machining, says: “The importance of this project extends through to Comau’s ability to offer a 360° service connected to electrification, with new lightweight machining centres as a central link. Coupling a lightweight approach in machining with our body assembly competencies and battery assembly know-how, we can now complete the value chain and deliver advanced solutions for battery case machining and more.”
For further information www.comau.com