TPT January 2013

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Industry News
January 2013 15
Further investment
at laser cutting plants
BARRETT Steel is offering customers
new standards of tube manipulation
and processing potential by making
further investments at its Lasertube
facilities. A LT14 (mini Jumbo) tube
laser, the first in the UK, has been
installed at the Scunthorpe plant,
while a BLM Elect 150 tube bending
machine, which offers variable and
fixed radii bending in one machine, was
due for delivery and commissioning at
the West Midlands depot late in 2012.
Together they represent an investment
of £1.6mn.
Recent tube laser investments at
Lasertube, which include two LT8
tube lasers and an LT20 (Jumbo)
tube laser, bring total investment at
the plant to £3mn over the past four
years. David Cleaver, sales manager
of Lasertube Cutting, part of Barrett
Steel’s tubes division, commented,
“These investments open up a wealth
of opportunities for our customers,
not just in the extra operations and
capacity they provide, but also in
the speed of response we can offer.
They also increase our capabilities for
newer and growing requirements in
the offshore wind turbine industry and
other renewable energy markets where
high volumes are required, often to
tight deadlines.
“Crucially, these computer controlled
operations allow us to guarantee
repeatability in terms of accuracy,
tolerances and finish. These enhanced
strengths also mean that customers can
now order stock and tube bending or
cutting from one source.”
The BLM Elect is typically used by
manufacturers of construction machines,
agricultural machinery, industrial
vehicles, ships, railway equipment, and
automotive and motorcycle products
because of its ability to deliver precise,
high quality bending of medium to large
tubes into complex multi-shaped tubular
components. It is particularly suited
to applications with little or no straight
between bends or where tight radius
bends are required.
The LT14 can be used to cut round,
square or rectangular tubes, open
profiles, H-beams or IPE, and special
profiles. Typical areas of use for the
LT14 include agricultural equipment,
heavy construction equipment, the
ship building, oil, mining and conveying
industries, crane lifts and for bracings
in buildings.
Stainless steel products that
benefit from laser tube cutting include
architectural handrailing, racking systems
for shop fitting, architectural feature work,
security and architectural fencing, lighting
columns and office furniture. Key benefits
for the customer lie in the LT14’s ability to
carry out complex cutting procedures; for
example, angles and V-shapes in both
closed and open section tubes can be
carried out in a single pass.
Barrett Steel – UK
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