Kasto, the German manufacturer of computer controlled, multi-level systems for automatically storing and retrieving material in stockholding operations and factories, has introduced a new service whereby it will produce parts of its Unicompact system at customer premises.

The only prerequisites are sufficient space, a crane and a 400 V, three-phase electricity supply. On-site production is available in the UK and Ireland through Kasto’s subsidiary in Milton Keynes. The option is economically viable for medium- to large-capacity storage systems.
For further information www.kasto.com

LVD has introduced automation offerings for its Phoenix FL 4020 and Phoenix FL 6020 large-format fibre laser cutting machines, including options for an automated load/unload system and a range of Compact Tower (CT-L) solutions.

The load/unload automation system available for Phoenix 4020 and 6020 fibre-laser models handles maximum sheet sizes of 4000 x 2000 mm (Phoenix FL 4020) and 6000 x 2000 mm (Phoenix FL 6020), and material thicknesses from 0.8 to 25 mm. Fast process cycle times are offered for complete loading and unloading: 65 seconds for Phoenix FL 4020 and 90 seconds for the Phoenix FL 6020.
LVD’s latest load/unload system is of robust construction to handle large pallets. Unprocessed material can be stacked to a height of 159 mm, while finished parts can be stacked as high as 240 mm. The system features a streamlined design that enables users to access the raw material and easily remove the unload pallet from above.
In addition, the Phoenix FL 4020 is available with six different versions of Compact Tower (CT-L) for loading, unloading and storage of raw material and finished parts. The CT-L enables automated production from stored raw material to stacked, cut parts in a compact, small footprint system.
CT-L versions for the Phoenix FL 4020 include a basic system with one tower in 5, 10 or 14-pallet configurations, as well as a two-tower CT-L system for high-volume applications. The second tower adds nine pallets to the CT-L 5, 14 pallets to the CT-L 10 and 18 pallets to the CT-L 14. Each input and output pallet has a capacity of up to 3000 kg and 240 mm of stacking height. Maximum sheet dimensions are 4095 x 2055 mm, 20 mm thickness.
For further information www.lvdgroup.com

To help Dungannon-based BSK Engineering serve a growing number of customers in the quarrying sector, the company has been busy investing in cutting technology.

Commenting upon the 2012 arrival of its first Kerf plasma cutting machine, a 3 x 1.5 m RUR2000P, managing director Barry Kerr says: “When buying our first machine, we looked at three suppliers. We also considered what other local companies were buying, and they were all investing in Kerf, and the feedback we had from them was extremely positive.”
From 2012 to 2016, BSK Engineering was repeatedly turning away larger scale quarry work, so the company opted to invest in its second Kerf machine in August 2017, an RUR3000P plasma cutting machine with a Lincoln Electric Spirit II 275 amp UltraSharp plasma-cutting system. The 8 x 2.5 m bed machine provided the much needed capacity for cutting quarry parts, such as 7 x 2 m screen slides.
BSK almost doubled its turnover from £600,000 in 2015 to £1.1m in 2017. With two machines running 24 hours a day and operating at weekends, the company needed a third machine – and Kerf duly obliged. In August 2018 the third Kerf machine arrived, another 8 x 2.5 m RUR3000P with a Lincoln Electric Spirit II 275 amp UltraSharp plasma-cutting system.
“We bought the third Kerf machine to alleviate the capacity issue and move from 24-hour production to single-shift manufacture,” says Kerr. “We have grown our staff from 3 to 15, and our turnover has almost quadrupled to £2m in just three years. It is the reliability and service of Kerf that has given us the confidence to grow, while ensuring we can still meet the short lead-times required by our customers.”
For further information www.kerfdevelopments.com

Italy-based Iemca has introduced a bar feeder designed to maximise productivity during the unattended turning and mill-turning of larger diameter components in single-spindle, fixed-head lathes.

Called Maestro 80, the long bar feeder is available in the UK and Ireland through sole agent 1st Machine Tool Accessories.
Among the innovative design features incorporated in the new magazine, three have been granted patents. One such patent protects ABACOS (Adaptive BAr COntrol System), a self-adjusting bar clamping arrangement. ABACOS is designed to perform different operations, namely guiding the material, damping vibrations and tightening on the pusher, all without changing the guide channel, over a material range of 10 to 80 mm diameter.
The ABACOS system can also handle non-round material – 10 to 65 mm hexagonal or 10 to 50 mm square – with a quick change of the bushes. Material length options are from 1000 mm to 3200, 3700 or 4,200 mm, subject to a maximum single bar weight of 180 kg. The widest spread of bar diameters that could previously be guided in one channel was 20 to 80 mm, an attribute of the Iemca Master 80 HF magazine. A limitation of that model is that when feeding smaller diameter bar, especially when it is not straight or of poor quality, it is necessary to reduce the rotational speed. Otherwise vibration can occur, compromising surface finish and/or dimensional accuracy of the component being produced.
On the Maestro 80, this is avoided by another patented feature, the Vibra-Damp Collet with interchangeable inserts. Vibra-Damp Collet damps bar vibration by reducing its oscillation amplitude, and lowers bending and torsional stresses on the bar.
A third patient has been granted to Iemca for its HandyLoq quick-change collet system, which allows manual exchange within three seconds without the need to use tools.
For further information www.1mta.com

At last month’s JEC World 2019 exhibition in Paris, AZL won the JEC Innovation Award 2019 in the ‘Industry & Equipment’ category with its ‘Ultra-Fast Consolidator Machine’.

The new machine is said to offer both high flexibility and mass production of tailored thermoplastic laminates with reduced scrap. Fully consolidated multi-layer laminates with different fibre directions can be produced in cycle times below 5 seconds. This capability is accomplished through a combination of laser-assisted tape placement with in-situ consolidation and a piece-flow principle, which has not been used previously in such a way within composite production.
For further information https://azl-aachen-gmbh.de/