Machine Building

Using additive manufacturing to remove bug traps from filters

Croft Additive Manufacturing (CAM) has used additive manufacturing to create a filter that prevents the accumulation of bacteria, making it suitable for use within the pharmaceutical or food and drink industries.

30th October 2014

HBM provides high-precision measurement in Bloodhound project

The AMRC Advanced Structural Testing Centre (ASTC) has utilised HBM's MGCplus for a number of measurement tasks as part of its contribution towards the development of the Bloodhound SSC project. Phil Spiers, Head of the ASTC comments: "We use HBM's equipment extensively in our work as a structural testing centre tasked with proving the material properties of new manufacturing processes and completing finished components.

23rd October 2014

HepcoMotion technology has the X-factor in aerospace application

Electron-X Ltd, a specialist in the design and manufacture of X-ray inspection machinery, has exploited the benefits of using various products supplied by HepcoMotion on a recent showcase project. The company has built a pair of custom-designed X-ray inspection cabinets for an aerospace manufacturing company, each of which features HepcoMotion profile driven units and linear ball guides to facilitate important axial motion. ZIMM screw jacks (again supplied by HepcoMotion) are utilised for scissor lift table and vertical carriage applications.

23rd October 2014

Hepcomotion bearings and vee slides in semiconductor production

France-based Riber, provider of molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) equipment for depositing crystals in semiconductor manufacture, is using vacuum-grade bearings and slides from HepcoMotion in its systems. Replacing an in-house unit that was proving unreliable, the system from HepcoMotion allows Riber to set the system preload without any play in the mechanism. This ultimately provides much improved repeatability with a level of reliability not previously seen.

23rd October 2014

Automating and upgrading tablet-coating equipment

Optimal Industrial Automation is reporting increased interest from across the industry in automation and mid-life upgrades to tablet coating equipment. The company, which has automated around 50 such machines for clients all over the world, attributes this demand to three factors: the rising importance of advanced coatings as part of the delivery system in many pharmaceutical products, regulatory pressure to improve process control and reliability in all aspects of the drug production process, and the fact that coating can be a key bottleneck in the manufacturing value chain.

22nd October 2014

Robots for the agriculture of the future

At the international Field Robot Event 2014, the team from the University of Osnabrück won 3rd place in the overall ranking with its robot, "˜The Great Cornholio'. mayr power transmission supported the students and contributed backlash-free, elastic ROBA-ES shaft couplings. These compensate for shaft misalignment, are simple to install and are maintenance-free - prerequisites for application in the small, yet robust field robots.

21st October 2014

Eaton's easy800 series control relay simplifies control system

Eaton has helped Weiss+Appetito to automate the processes on its fleet of 38 suction and pressure blowing vehicles. Weiss+Appetito specialises in reconstructions, roof greening projects and pipe laying, as well as in the suction and pressure blowing of virtually any liquid or dry material. With their special vehicles, the firm can transport up to 40m3 of the heaviest materials per hour over distances up to 600m.

17th October 2014

Eaton technology helps Hine Renovables deliver for solar plants

Spanish hydraulics experts Hine Renovables has chosen valve and hose technology from Eaton to help complement the design of power packs being used at two large concentrated solar power (CSP) plants in South Africa.

17th October 2014

Renishaw prints works of art for Folkestone Triennial festival

Renishaw has started 3D printing luck in the form of four felicitous sculptures and the world's first recycling point for luck and wishes. The pieces were created in collaboration with Strange Cargo, a Folkestone-based visual and public arts company commissioned to produce a new piece for the renowned Folkestone Triennial arts festival.

17th October 2014

The AIP programme in machining

A car manufacturer was looking for a way to prolong the service life of spindle bearings in their machining centres. Following a thorough analysis of the situation via NSK's AIP programme, the problem was solved by using sealed high-precision bearings: the service life of the bearings has now more than tripled.

14th October 2014