JLR invests £500m

JLR is investing £500m investment to transform its historic Halewood facility and support
the parallel production of electric vehicles (EVs) alongside existing combustion and hybrid
models. Originally built in 1963 to produce the Ford Anglia, Halewood is being transformed
for the electric era. The historic plant has been fitted with technology that includes new EV

build lines, 750 autonomous robots, ADAS calibration rigs, laser alignment technology for
perfect part fitment and the latest cloud-based digital plant management systems to create
the ‘factory of the future’.
More information www.jaguarlandrover.com

X-Pro joins Mapal Group

The Mapal Group has acquired X-Pro Srl, an Italian specialist in fixture design and manufacture. Mapal has been working successfully with X-Pro in the Italian market for several years. Claudio Gabos, chief sales officer at Mapal Group, says: “We are convinced that the acquisition of X-Pro will enable us to tap additional market potential – even in these challenging times – and generate momentum for further development.”X-Pro was founded in 2001 in Bologna and employs around 35 people. Stefano Vitali will continue in his role as managing director and remain in charge of the company.

More information www.mapal.com

Advanced Engineering names speakers

Advanced Engineering 2024, a leading annual exhibition for the engineering and manufacturing sectors, has announced this year’s keynote speakers. The six industry leaders — and 150 plus other speakers — will share their expertise and insights on critical industry issues during talks across several different forums. The two-day show takes place at the NEC in Birmingham on 30 and 31 October.

The keynote speakers include: Brian Holliday, head of Siemens Digital Industries for the UK and Ireland; Matthew Atkinson, lead research engineer at Jaguar Land Rover; Shaun Harris CBE, director of support and chief engineer at the Royal Air Force; Solange Baena, UK lead for the aviation environmental roadmap at Airbus; Leonie Moffat, laser radar sales account manager at Nikon; and Stefan Lawrenson,senior polymer chemist at Scott Bader.

More information www.advancedengineeringuk.com

Colchester to host open house

Colchester Machine Tool Solutions will host its next open house event on 6-7 November at the company’s European Technology Centre in Elland, West Yorkshire. Running between 07:30 and 15:00 on both days, this multi-axis machining event will showcase the company’s latest CNC machine offerings, including the all-new Tornado sub-spindle turning centre with Y-axis machining and Bridgeport five-axis VMCs.

The five-axis single-hit machining of the Tornado SL25 MSY allows manufacturers to complete complex components with high levels of efficiency. By automatically transferring the workpiece from the main spindle to the sub-spindle, the machine ensures seamless turning, milling and drilling on both sides of the component, reducing cycle times.

More information www.colchester.co.uk

Mitutoyo aids quality control at HB Bearings

Based in Huddersfield, HB Bearings specialises in the manufacture of metric and imperial bearings that are difficult to source. Bearing types manufactured include radial, deep groove ball, cylindrical roller, angular contact, duplexand others.In accordance with the company’s policy of regularly updating its facilities, HB Bearings took the recent decision to replace its existing bearing run-out test rig.

Darren Mawhinney, technical director at HB Bearings, says: “Having previously established an excellent relationship with staff at close-by Mitutoyo in Elland, I contacted them with my ideas for our proposed new bearing run-out test rig. They quickly understood our requirements, then, through close liaison and co-operation, a design soon evolved into the required system.”

He continues: “Now up and running, we’re delighted with the system’s speed, ease of use and accuracy. Simplicity is critical in the test application and we can operate the new rig with just one click. Compared with our previous rig, a major improvement is the inclusion of a coarse scale, enabling the fast and easy alignment of components. In addition to inspecting our HB bearing range, the new system is able to perform accurate quality control checks on our Gamet Bearings brand, super-precision bearings with a radial runout specification of 0.5 µm.

“Even though our previous jig was fit for purpose, our new bespoke Mitutoyo system has further improved confidence in the premium quality of our bearings.”

Simon Elliot, general manager at Mitutoyo Gauging Technology, adds: “We were delighted to work closely with the staff of HB Bearings to enable the delivery of a system that exactly matched the company’s requirements, at a cost effective price.”

More information www.mitutoyo.co.uk