Machine Building

Piston inspection system prevents engine failures

An automatic vision inspection system to read the alphanumeric product identifiers cast into pistons has been developed by Olmec-UK Ltd for an automotive engine manufacturer.

21st January 2013

Reekie Steeltec makes major re-investment in ESAB

To meet growing demand for its metal fabrication services, Reekie Steeltec of Arbroath in Angus has invested in eight new ESAB Origo Mig 4004i multi-process inverter-based welding packages designed for high-productivity applications. The company has also purchased Origo Feed 3004 MA24 wire feed units and interconnecting cables. This is part of a half million pound investment that also includes an automated shotblaster and heat treatment oven.

21st January 2013

Precision ball screws used in electronic microscope

Abssac has supplied precision cold-rolled ball screws with precision ground ball nuts to a customer building electronic microscope that locate a precision guillotine against test pharmaceutical materials.

20th January 2013

iglidur plastic bearings used for underwater applications

Quality Boat Lifts is using iglidur plastic plain bearings from igus on lifts used by residential and commercial marinas, and private owners, to remove boats from the water. The leading boat lift company offers seven different maintenance-free boatlift devices such as the ALUM-A-VATOR, which meets 40-year industry standards, and its rugged, industrial grade Superlift. Quality Boat Lifts where looking for a reliable bearing that they could use in the direct-cable winding drive shaft, which raises and lowers boats in and out of the water.

15th January 2013

Wealdpark benefits from all round benefits of Datatrack

Wealdpark Limited, a manufacturer of high-precision turned parts for a wide range of customers, is committed to supplying defect-free products manufactured to the most exacting standards. To help achieve these goals, the company has invested in DataTrack production management, contributing to an all-round improvement in production procedures, product quality and traceability.

15th January 2013

Pneumatic cylinder for keg cleaning and filling saves energy

In the food and beverage sector, hygiene is a key pre-requisite for safe, legal production. Not only must production areas and surfaces be subjected to a rigid and carefully managed cleaning regime, but the containers used to store and dispense products must be effectively cleaned to ensure the contents retain their quality and taste and are not harbouring dangerous bacteria.

11th January 2013

Thermal imaging to prevent failure and fire

Thermal imaging has become the industry standard method of spotting electrical faults in fully energised systems. It provides premonition of failure so costly downtime is avoided, a huge benefit in the management of critical systems. The early-warning the technology provides also helps prevent fire, a factor substantiated by the European electrical contractor, EGI.

9th January 2013

Siemens S7 plcs improve reliability for paper convertor

Siemens technology has been specified on an upgrade for a large paper-converting machine on a retrofit project that has addressed issues of control system obsolescence and faltering performance. It now offers substantially increased levels of production reliability, as well as a future-proofed development platform and guaranteed support capabilities.

9th January 2013

Synchronised motion of 14 axes presents a challenge

A manufacturer wanted to produce a custom machine design for automated dying of book edges, and the challenges for Yaskawa were many-fold. The principle features were ease of start-up, which was required for a very demanding schedule, auto feed insertion for correct book placement and accurate edge detection accommodating random in-feed. It further needed precise placement for rotational clearance. All this meant synchronised motion of 14 axes.

9th January 2013

Migration to digital prototyping leads to productivity gains

Symetri, an Autodesk Platinum Partner, is expanding its client base in the UK's oil and gas industry with an agreement to become the sole supplier of Autodesk Inventor, AutoCAD and digital design training to TWMA's Aberdeen office.

8th January 2013