EuroWire March 2018

wire 2018 show

16 th - 20 th April

Radyne lines heat treat a single wire at high speed, providing a consistent quality wire for cold coiling. These modern lines o er the e cient and clean technology of induction heating, together with safe and environment-friendly clean water quenching systems. Radyne induction harden and temper lines produce material to a consistent speci cation. The bene ts include: • Very little decarburisation due to the extremely short heating times • Minimal grain growth during heating • The ability to heat treat the more exotic alloy steels that require higher hardening temperatures • In some cases to produce material with higher tensile strength whilst maintaining ductility • High e ciency, environmentally friendly heat treatment process The PLC/PC control system utilises modern communication techniques to ensure ease of installation and reliable operation, minimising the number of interconnections necessary for running the line. A PC memory allows multiple wire setups to be stored for downloading to the PLC when required. The PC also operates a monitoring system that continuously takes and stores running data from the line, either for immediate viewing or historical review. Radyne lines are designed to produce between 1.5 and 3 tonnes of wire per hour, in diameters up to 17mm. Process materials include carbon steels, chrome silicon and chrome silicon vanadium, such as SAE9254, EN10270/2 (2001), 55CrSi and wire to A229 speci cations. More recently the lines have been developed to cater for alloys with nickel additions, and in smaller diameters up to 7mm. An important aspect of the Radyne line is its ability to run continuously, without slowing or stopping to change the feed coil at payo or remove a coil at take-up. The operator welds the end of the rst coil to the beginning of the second coil whilst the line is running.

Control and tension of the wire is achieved using pinch rolls that pull the wire o the payo and through the straighteners. The wire is pulled through the heat treatment part of the line by a third set of pinch rolls. At all times, the wire tension is tightly controlled to ensure that the diameter of the material is not taken out of speci cation by stretching. Over half of the Radyne spring wire lines have been supplied with an inline drawing block, allowing the customer to load the payo with rod or wire. Up to 30 per cent return on assets can be achieved with a single inline drawing block, and drawing inline, compared to o ine drawing, can reduce the risk of handling damage to the wire. The heat treatment stage involves rst heating the wire to around the Curie point (700°C) and then up to the desired hardening temperature (between 900°C and 1,100°C, depending on the material). The wire is quenched using water at a controlled rate so as to obtain the correct austenitic structure, and without cracking the wire surface. Once hardened, the material is tempered back to achieve the nal, fully tempered, martensitic material speci cation by heating to the correct temperature (400-600°C). The wire is cooled by water quench before being sent to the take-ups. After the nal set of pinch rolls a protective coating is applied to the wire, which then passes through a hydraulic shear that cuts out the weld. A divert system guides the wire to the correct take-up. Inductotherm – UK Website : www.inductotherm.co.uk Supported by its Dutch cooperation partner Inhol, Melos supplies cable manufacturers around the world, meeting their individual requirements. The portfolio includes a wide range of thermoplastic and cross-linkable compounds for cable insulation and sheathing. In addition, Melos is an expert in manufacturing internationally proven FM bedding compounds. After a four-year cooperation, the acquisition of Inhol has been successfully executed. From 1 st January 2018, Inhol is o cially part of the Melos group. With its special insulation and sheathing compounds in the Mecoline TP and Mecoline RDX product portfolio, Melos Inhol BV Stand: 12E03

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and Inhol now serve markets with high requirements in terms of low-temperature exibility. These demands are particularly prevalent in regions with extreme climatic conditions, such as northern Russia. Potential areas of application for these cables include ships, wind turbines, conduits and oil rigs. Their exibility means they are suitable for use in more demanding moving applications. The low brittleness temperature of certain Mecoline products for Arctic conditions ensures low material embrittlement, even when used in environments with intense temperatures. There are the optimum values with regard to thermal expansion, cold impact and the cold bend test, which make this Mecoline product range a choice for applications requiring exibility at low temperatures. bedding compound solutions. The introduction of the new CPR urges cable manufacturers to review their cable designs. Melos is committed to support the cable industry, based on 30 years of experience with halogen-free, ame-retardant com- pounds. In accordance with the new product regulations (CPR), priority is given to saving lives, containing the blaze, and reducing damage in the case of re in a building. Cables play an important part in this process. Results were obtained recently by cable factories in the USA and Europe with speci c bedding compounds containing an e ective combination of mineral ame retardants. Test results with cerami able tapes have not reached the performance and price level of competitively priced, highly ame-retardant bedding compounds. Melos believes that, in the coming decades, matters such as heat release, ame propagation, toxic gases, low smoke and halogen-free will be key issues in the design of new worldwide cable constructions. Melos and Inhol o er di erent solutions to improve the ame ▲ Melos and Inhol now serve markets with high requirements in terms of low-temperature exibility Furthermore Melos o ers

Spring wire from Inductotherm

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March 2018