UK NEWS

Get set for Leader Chuck work-holding seminar

AUK provider of workholding, ancillary systems and business efficiency services, Leader Chuck International,will host its inaugural First Tuesday Webinar (FTW) this week (7 November). The first in a series, these scheduled monthly webinarswill provide answers to the most common work-holding questions.

“There’s no doubt about the thirst for fixturing knowledge within the manufacturing sector,” says managing director Mark Jones. “From simplistic vice set-ups and semi-automated jigs and fixtures, to complex fully automated clamping device changeover systems, workholding can dramatically improve productivity and efficiency.”

It is not just workshop performance that can see improvement with the right work-holding application. The consistency of the geometric tolerances achieved, along with the ability to produce components to the specification required time after time, goes hand-in-hand with improved surface finish and increased tool life.

The initial FTW on 7 November will ask the question ‘why workholding matters?’ Concentrating on prismatic clamping, the webinar will provide an overview of workholding, highlighting why it matters to the overall manufacturing process. The onlineevent will follow on with the key challenges faced by the work-holding system, with examples of how it is possible to address each of these.

Leader Chuck’s presentation will adhere to a pre-planned agenda to ensure that the company covers all relevant points in a timely fashion.The final part of the webinar will be a Q&A session, where attendees can ask for advice on existing or forthcoming work-holding problems.
For further information www.leaderchuck.com

Investment at Ficep UK

Ficep UK is investing in its offices and stockholding capacity as a direct response to growing
demand from clients who rely on the company’s machines. Newly added storage space
holds more stock by introducing 44 pallet spaces to its 17,000 sq ft warehouse in West
Yorkshire. The installation of an additional carousel system will double holding capacity,
ensuring that essential components and spare parts are readily available to meet customer
requirements. Ficep UK has also created new office space, located within the warehouse, to
serve as a hub for the company's tooling and consumables service team.
For further information www.ficep.co.uk

A new dawn at Norton Motorcycle Company

One of the great names in British motorcycling is rising again under new ownership and with new state-of-the-art machining technology. The Norton name is synonymous with the golden age of British motorcycling that ran from the end of the 19th century to the second decade of the 21st. It is a history that takes in Grand Prix wins in the 1930s to World Championships in the 50s.

Alas, the decline of British motorbike manufacturing led the company to the brink of bankruptcy and it was only the intervention of Indian motorbike manufacturing giant, TVS, which saved it in 2020. Following the new investment, a willingness to embrace new ways of working led Norton to examine its bike frame fabrication processes.

“Previously, we’d been hand bending and hand scalloping the bike frames because we didn’t know how to do anything different,” says Adam Green, senior manufacturing process engineer at Norton Motorcycles. “We looked at various options, but wanted to invest in the best-available machine. Mazak are the kind of people we want to be doing business with.”

Norton specified a VTC 800/30SLR, manufactured in nearby Worcester, which has a high-capacity working area and a wide door opening making it suitable for larger workpieces, such as motorbike frames.

“The size of the frame meant we needed a big machine, but also one that could work to very high tolerances,” says Green. “It’s all about repeatability. The machine takes away manual process. Now every single dimension will be within 0.2 mm of each other. We’ve tightened tolerances up by 80%, whereas previously there was 6 mm of difference at times from one frame to another.”
For further information www.mazakeu.co.uk

Tooling Intelligence moves to new facility

Tooling Intelligence, a specialist in industrial inventory and asset management, has moved to a new cutting-edge facility in Honiley, Warwickshire as part of strategic expansion plans. Previously operating from three different sites, the expansion almost doubles the floor area to 5000 sq ft with an additional 3000 sq ft of offsite warehousing.The relocation facilitates increased assembly capacity and improved workflow to streamline production, better serving the company’s growing customer base. Furthermore, the facility provides a demonstration area and customer meeting suite, supported by a service and support hub.
For further information www.toolingintelligence.co.uk

Investment at Ficep UK

Ficep UK is investing in its offices and stockholding capacity as a direct response to growing demand from clients who rely on the company’smachines. Newly added storage space holds more stock by introducing 44 pallet spaces to its 17,000 sq ft warehouse in West Yorkshire. The installation of an additional carousel system will double holding capacity, ensuring that essential components and spare parts are readily available to meet customer requirements. Ficep UK has also created new office space, located within the warehouse, to serve as a hub for the company’s tooling and consumables service team.
For further information www.ficep.co.uk