A strategic manufacturing outsourcing specialist celebrated a major milestone this month when it delivered the 30,000th control system to Mazak UK.

PP Control & Automation has been working with the machine-tool builder for more than 27 years, and the latest partnership has seen it play a key role in the design and production of the new CV5-500, a simultaneous five-axis machining centre.

PPC&A, which employs over 200 people at its facility in Cheslyn Hay, used its expertise to support the design and build of a new configurable control system and interconnectivity solution. The concept had to facilitate both efficient build at Cheslyn Hay, and simple and effective integration when assembling the machine tools at Mazak’s facility in Worcester. The challenge was even greater when considering the need to achieve a highly competitive price point.

“The relationship dates back to 1993 when Mazak’s senior management team in Japan saw something ‘different’ in our approach and company-wide focus on quality, resulting in placement of the very first order,” explains Tony Hague, CEO of PP Control & Automation. “As the years have gone by, the relationship has become more interlinked, with PP C&A increasingly invited to be involved in the design stage of new machine builds.”

Mazak UK engineering director Dave Fisher adds: “PP C&A is one of our critical partners, supporting our ever-changing needs in both engineering and production. The relationship works because we both bring our own areas of expertise to the table, challenging and developing ideas that deliver mutual benefits and unrivalled machining performance for our customers.”

For further information www.ppcanda.com

For many years, even when he was Prime Minister of Finland, Juha Sipilä has relaxed by designing and milling a variety of items.

Now he has taken his hobby to a higher level, with a new four-axis CNC machine tool and Surfcam CADCAM software from Hexagon’s global portfolio. He machines aluminium, brass, plastic and wood, and was looking to upgrade his milling machine and CNC router, along with the software to drive them.

Before entering politics, Sipilä was an industrialist, owning a number of manufacturing companies, which gave him his first taste of machining. And he quickly realised that physically making things with his hands helped him to relax and solve abstract business issues.

Surfcam has totally changed how Sipilä uses both CAD and CAM. Typically, he today creates a 3D model in Surfcam Designer and exports it into Surfcam Traditional for producing fast, accurate tool paths. He is particularly impressed with the ‘Waveform Roughing’ strategy for milling aluminium and brass. “My CNC machine has a spindle speed of 24,000 rpm, so Waveform means I can have light cutting with fast feed rates,” he says.

Sipilä has already undergone initial training on Surfcam Designer and basic two- and three-axis machining, and will complete training on four- and five-axis tool paths later in the year. As Prime Minister he was not able to pursue his love of producing lifestyle products as much as he would have liked, but now his duties as an MP mean he has more time – and with his new machine tools and software he is looking forward to creating many more.”

For further information www.surfcam.com

In 2017, Netherlands-based catering equipment specialist QBTEC purchased a SafanDarley R-Brake for the automated production of boilers and grease drawers used in its frying systems.

With the R-Brake, the press brake and robot are integrated into one system. The R-Brake has a fully automatic tool and gripper change connected to the machine. These systems and the product are programmed offline using RoboBend offline simulation software.
Since the installation of the R-Brake, an increasing number products have been programmed at QBTEC using the offline software. As the company gained more experience with the system, it developed a wish list of features it would like added to the software to further improve the bending process and work even more efficiently. These wishes have been met and SafanDarley recently updated the software at QBTEC to the latest version.

In the latest software, the 3D files are processed in AutoPOL, SafanDarley’s 3D system for programming press brakes offline. AutoPOL determines the best bending sequence before RoboBend ensures the correct calculation of the robot movements in order to easily automate a new product.

This update ensures that QBTEC can also process small series runs automatically to limit the storage of material. When the products are programmed using the offline software they are sent to the WLM (WorkLoadManager), where the amount of each product is entered. The different products are automatically bent and stacked in sequence, without operator intervention.

QBTEC recently purchased two new SafanDarley press brakes, including an H-Brake 230T (6 m capacity) for the production of long stainless-steel blades.
For further information www.safandarley.com

A specialist Telford manufacturing company has expanded and created six new jobs after receiving nearly £100,000 from a grant programme supported by the Marches Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP).

Midland Alloy has taken on new staff and built a warehouse extension at its Stafford Park base after receiving £97,285 from the Marches Building Investment Grant (MBIG). The company, which specialises in the manufacture of complex curved metal products and components, says the expansion is part of a £500,000 investment in its future.

According to director Paul Beirne, the new 4000 sq ft extension had created a 6 m high, dedicated pallet racking storage facility for long lengths of aluminium, other materials and tools, and extra space for manufacturing. “This investment will also increase manufacturing space within the existing main factory, with the potential to reduce operating costs and increase the capacity for sales growth and more jobs,” he states.

For further information www.marcheslep.org.uk