UK NEWS

World’s most advanced laser welder

A leading battery technology manufacturer has completed the successful commissioning of what it describes as the world’s most advanced laser welding machine. The installation and operation of the IPG Photonics EV Flex welder is a significant milestone for the UK facility of Alexander Battery Technologies, which marks its 40th anniversary this year.

CEO Mark Rutherford says: “With the EV Flex laser now active, representing an investment of more than £500,000, our production has transformed. We can now produce our battery packs, crucial for high-end applications like e-mobility and robotic technology, with a level of precision and quality that sets a new industry standard.Our enhanced production capability has become a cornerstone of our robust growth strategy.”

For further information www.alexandertechnologies.com

Q1 growth for subcontract market

Qimtek’s latest Contract Manufacturing Index shows that the UK subcontract market continued to grow in the first quarter. The index was up 4.5% in the first three months of 2024, building on the strong upswing at the end of 2023.Projects and budgets that had been on hold continue to be unlocked as manufacturers place orders and suppliers are busy quoting for work. February was the strongest month since March 2023.

The baseline for the index is 100, which represents the average size of the subcontract manufacturing market between 2014 and 2018.The CMI for Q1 2024 was 82, compared with 78.5 for the previous quarter.Machining accounted for 48% of the market, up 35% on the previous quarter, while fabrication represented 49%, down 5% on the previous quarter.

For further information www.qimtek.co.uk

THOUSANDS FLOCK TO MACH 2024 IN SEARCH OF INNOVATIONS AND SOLUTIONS

MACH 2024, which took place last month at the NEC in Birmingham, attracted thousands of visitors and hundreds of exhibitors as industry came together at the UK’s biggest machine tool and manufacturing technologies exhibition.

Dugard (www.dugard.com) is a good example of the success that MACH delivered for its exhibitors. The company took several orders across brands, including six sales of Hanwha sliding-head lathes and a huge intake of enquiries from potential new customers.Sales director Colin Thompson says: “Once again, we presented a dynamic and diverse portfolio of machines at MACH and this proved a huge success. The Kitamura, SMEC and Hanwha brands stand for build quality, innovation, capability, productivity and overall performance. This was evident by the number of orders we received at MACH and the incredibly high number and quality of leads.”

DTS UK (www.dtsuk.co.uk), the UK agent for Nicolas Correa, strengthened its long-term relationship with WEC Group in a multi-million-pound deal at MACH 2024.The Darwen-based manufacturer is looking to become the largest subcontract machining shop in Europe, placing an order at the show for two Correa Axia travelling-column CNC milling machines and two Fox M gantry CNC milling machines.“MACH 2024 has been one of the best yet and this deal with WEC Group has been a real highlight,” says Andy Guy, operations/sales director for DTS. “Our relationship is based on the flexibility and performance of the machines, as well as the technical expertise, support and training we offer in the UK.”

Press manufacturer Bruderer (www.bruderer.com) also scored a big success. Alan Spargo Ltd, a specialist supplier to the Formula 1, automotive and aerospace sectors, is increasing its tool try-out capacity by purchasing its first Bruderer press at MACH 2024: a BSTA 40-tonne machine.Adrian Haller, managing director of Bruderer UK, says: “This is the natural next step in our professional relationship, as we’ve worked together on several projects to build bespoke tooling that can be used on a number of our presses situated in some of the best engineering houses in the UK.”

Machine tool manufacturer Starrag (www.starrag.com) is among many with highly positive comments about the exhibition. Starrag UK’s director of sales and applications Lee Scott says: “MACH was a very buoyant show with an extremely positive vibe and it was a great platform for us to introduce our new technologies. In the aftermath of MACH, we’ve already been asked to sign NDAs and quote on some pretty significant projects. It’s this level of interest that has immediately persuaded us to sign up for MACH 2026.”

Cutting tool manufacturers also had lots of good things to say, with Guhring UK (www.guhring.co.uk) a case in point. According to the company’s national sales manager Chris Bush: “MACH was once again a huge success. We received a record level of enquiries from manufacturers serious about improving their machining performance and strengthening their supply chain by working with Guhring.”

Of course, most visitors to MACH are expecting to see new innovations, and on the stand of Industrial Tooling Corporation (www.itc-ltd.co.uk) there were plenty, including the VariMill Chip Splitter range.Designed for dynamic milling, ramping, helical interpolating and side milling at high speeds and feed rates, the new VariMill Chip Splitter series delivers chip control that allows the tool to run with a longer axial depth of cut while productively diving into deep pockets in steel, stainless steel and high-temperature alloys.

From a machine tool perspective, Matsuura (www.matsuura.co.uk) shone the spotlight on a trio of debutants: the four-axis horizontal H.Plus-405 PC12 withtwelve500mm² pallets for high-mix, low-volume manufacturing; the MX-850 single-table five-axis machining centre, now the largest in the MX series; and the Muratec MWR120G CNC multi-tasking turn-mill centre with front-facing twin spindles equipped with live-tool Yaxis and milling function.

Continuing the turning theme, Star Micronics (www.stargb.com) demonstrated its new SP-23 sliding-head lathe for the first time at a UK exhibition. An entirely new model capable of 25 mmdiameter machining, the SP-23 features an eight-station front-turning platen and a seven-spindle cross-drilling inner tool post, on which users can mount a wide variety of tooling attachments with five cartridge positions available. The machine features five drilling stations on the front and a four-station back-working platen with power tool capability.

Regarding EDM technologies, the showstopper on the stand of Sodick Europe (www.sodick.eu) and its sole UK distributor Sodi-Tech EDM was the new VN600Q precision wire-cut EDM machine. With an automatic wire threading unit for continuous machining and Sodick’s Fixed Jet AWT system that has a pop-up search, wire annealing, a compact wire collection mechanism, precision wire threading guides and upper and lower guides with automated cleaning, the VN600Q is suitable for continuous production.

If tube-bending was top of the priority list then Unison (www.unisonltd.com) was the place to head. Operational on the company’s stand was an all-electric Unison Breeze Twinhead tube bending machine, a Unison Synergy hybrid dual-stack tube bender, and a European-built Nukon Rex 6kW fibre laser cutter from sister company Nukon Lasers UK. The latter combines 2D flat-sheet metal cutting with optional pipe/tube cutting and marking capabilities.

Axe & Status (www.axestatus.com) was also keen to show its laser cutting offer. The company was demonstrating an Accurl 3 x 1.5m 15kW laser with shuttle table. Also on the stand were Accurl press brakes ranging in size up to 3m x 175 tonne. All Accurl press brakes feature Delem controls and quick release clamping.

Another laser cutter of note could be seen on the stand of Kerf Developments (www.kerfdevelopments.com). Brand new for MACH was the LINC-CUT Fiber 1530A fibre laser machine. Available as a 3, 6 or 12 kW machine initially with a 3 x 1.5 m or 4 x 2m bed, the LINC-CUT Fiber 1530A features an auto-focus laser head that offers automatic gas and cutting height calibration. In addition, the CNC unit integrates with two surveillance cameras to control and monitor all machine operations.

Visitors keen on the latest inspection solutions found plenty of innovation on the stand of Carfulan Group (www.carfulan.com), which debuted over £1m of new technologies at the show. OGP UK, the Carfulan Group’s multi-sensor measurement system specialist, launched three new multi-sensor measurement systems: the Fusion 400, the Shapegrabber Ai620 and the E-Series E7, while Zoller UK added to its tool pre-setting range by taking the wraps off a new heat-shrink solution: the powerShrink.

The stand of Bowers Group was also busy with visitors seeking the latest metrology advancements. Managing director Martin Hawkins says: “With our bigger-than-ever stand, we were able to showcase our latest innovations and demonstrate our prowess in delivering efficient metrology solutions. It proved to be our busiest exhibition to date and we’re excited about the upcoming weeks as we reconnect with visitors and start putting plans into action for them.”

For further information www.machexhibition.com

WMG provides £450m boost

WMG at the University of Warwick says it has boosted the West Midlands economy by £450m: for every £1 invested into WMG’s SME programmes, around £22 returns to the local economy. In 20 years, WMG has delivered manufacturing expertise to 15,000 SMEs in the Midlands. It has also supported the creation of more than 13,000 jobs, 350 new businesses and 355 internships. Dr Mark Swift, director of SME Engagement at WMG, says: “Our work over the past 20 years has shown that targeted high-value support can help manufacturers accelerate growth, improve productivity and create jobs.”

For further information www.bit.ly/4d7HWOb

New titanium manufacturing process

A new hybrid manufacturing method that aims to boost capability in the UK and increase manufacturing efficiency for key aerospace components, could see future use at global manufacturers in the production of aircraft. Shropshire-based SME, SDE Technology, is leading the initiative to develop a new superplastic forming process, enabling it to expand into the aerospace market. The project forms part of the National Aerospace Technology Exploitation Programme (NATEP) and has support from the Advanced Forming Research Centre (AFRC) within the National Manufacturing Institute Scotland (NMIS).

For further information www.nmis.scot