LVD used the recent Blechexpo towards the end of 2021 to introduce a new bending cell that requires no robot teaching. The new Ulti-Form robotic bending cell keeps bending productivity at its peak, handling short and long production runs efficiently, says the company. The innovation was nominated for the Blechexpo Award 2021.

According to LVD, Ulti-Form offers a fast ‘art to part’ process based upon the company’s programming software. CADMAN-B automatically calculates the optimal bend program and imports all bending data into the robot software CADMAN-SIM. Notably, no robot teaching is required. CADMAN-SIM automatically calculates gripper positions, generating the fastest collision-free path for the robot before feeding the information back to CADMAN-B, enabling the operator to work with just one program.

LVD’s auto-adapting gripper accommodates a number of part geometries, automatically adjusting to workpiece size. This smart design saves investment in different grippers and gripper changeover time.

Ulti-Form features a 135-tonne automated tool-changing press brake with built-in tooling warehouse integrated with an industrial robot. The cell handles parts from 50 x 100 mm, up to 1200 x 800 mm, and weighing up to 25 kg.

Equipped with LVD’s Easy-Form laser-adaptive bending system, LVD says that Ulti-Form guarantees angle accuracy, ensuring consistently accurate bending results.

LVD also took the opportunity at Blechexpo to demonstrate the Phoenix FL-3015 fibre laser cutting machine with new 20 kW power source, as well as the updated CADMAN v8.7, a software suite designed to empower the smart factory.

For further information
www.lvdgroup.com

Despite numerous external challenges, including the continuing impact of the pandemic, the end of the Brexit transition period and significant supply chain issues, Mills CNC has reported strong machine tool and automation sales results for 2021. When the order books closed just before the Christmas break, the company had taken orders for well over 400 new Doosan machines and experienced a 100% increase in sales of its SYNERGi automated manufacturing cells and Doosan cobots.

Says Tony Dale, Mills CNC’s CEO: “Despite the obvious challenges and turbulence experienced throughout the year, 2021 was incredibly positive for Mills CNC. Machine tool sales were up almost 40% on 2020, representing our best year ever for machine tool orders.

“Similarly ground-breaking results were achieved by our Automation Division, with sales of our SYNERGI automated manufacturing cells and Doosan cobots both doubling in the same 12-month period.”

For further information
www.millscnc.co.uk

As the UK gradually returns to post-pandemic levels, Dugard has appointed Alex Newman to support the unprecedented growth that the company is enjoying across all brands in its portfolio. Joining the company as area sales manager, Newman will support customers and expand sales in the southwest of the UK. With a degree and a Masters degree in mechanical engineering, he spent the past seven years with a leading work-holding and ancillary equipment supplier to the machine tool industry. This experience will be a real asset to Dugard.

For further information
www.dugard.com

Neoprec, the new 8000 sq m machining plant of Spain-based lathe-building specialist CMZ, is taking its first steps. After the completion a few months ago of construction works and assembly of the machinery necessary to start running, Neoprec has started to supply the production line for CMZ’s digital-control lathes. The aim now is to reach a cruising speed, so that in five years’ time the company will reach its target of delivering over 800 lathes a year.

The plant has an automated warehouse capable of handling 1752 pallets, while the metrology room has temperature control to within 0.1°C and features a trio of 3D measuring machines. Once the Neoprec plant is fully equipped it will be capable of running for 48 hours without human intervention.

Neoprec starting its operation is one more step in the strategic plan that aims to double CMZ’s current manufacturing capacity in the coming five years. The arrival of new machines is imminent: bit by bit the plant is receiving all of the machinery it needs to carry out its activity at full throttle.

Construction of the Neoprec facility entailed an investment of €17m. CMZ strives for continuous growth aimed at increasing the company’s production capacities. The first estimates already suggest that the target of 800 machines delivered annually will be reached within its desired timeframe.

Word about the new plant is spreading fast. Students taking a higher diploma in industrial mechatronics and mechanical manufacturing production programming visited Neoprec recently and had the opportunity to look around the recently opened facility.

For further information
www.cmz.com

Some years ago, ebbing oilfield business conditions spurred LeanWerks, based in Ogden, Utah, to pursue work in other industries (including aerospace and high-speed automation) to establish a more balanced customer base and steadier work flow.

Reid Leland, company president and co-founder, points to one example: an aluminium investment casting for a jet engine fuel filter housing. LeanWerks considered how it might take advantage of the milling capability of its Mazak Integrex i200S turn-mill to minimise the number of times the part is touched during machining. However, the part with its complex datum structure requires tight tolerances, including true-position tolerance of 0.25 mm on some widely separated features, and size tolerances of 0.01 mm and true position tolerances of 0.05 mm for other, less separated features.

To enable the effective machining of five faces of the investment casting in a single set-up, one of the measures adopted by LeanWerks was the integration of a touch-trigger probing system. As the turn-mill featured only one probing channel, LeanWerks retrofitted the machine with a Renishaw RMI-Q radio receiver and installed a PLC card in the main machine control panel to handle a second probe signal. The short probe uses a 25 mm long stylus, while the long probe uses a 50 mm long stylus mounted on a 200 mm extension. Both use a Renishaw RMP60 probe body.
The probing routines were programmed using Renishaw’s Inspection Plus software, and the resulting code was added to the machine program at the appropriate locations.

Alongside other measures, the process LeanWerks developed to machine this investment casting job on its turn-mill machine improved the production rate from 10 hours per part to less than two hours.

For further information
www.renishaw.com