TPT July 2011

C utting , S awing & S aw B lades

Robots and plasma cutting in modern manufacturing DIVERSIFICATION is becoming an increasingly important factor. Dairytube Engineering, Ireland, produces stainless steel tubing products for the dairy industry, including dairy bends up to 100mm, manifolds and special fittings to order. In contrast to these products however, Dairytube also supplies bull-bars and stainless steel trims for the motor vehicle industry. involves cutting preformed sections of tubes into highly complex shapes, and so a robotic solution was called for in order to properly handle the required cuts. For example, the dairy industry requires dross-free cuts and weld-ready cut surfaces to prevent contamination, whereas motor vehicle components need to look aesthetically pleasing and be consistently accurate, especially when it comes to lettering. cutting systems and is claimed to deliver outstanding cut quality on non-ferrous metals at speeds of up to three times faster than the traditional argon-hydrogen method. It has enabled Dairytube to achieve results at reduced costs by using nitrogen as the plasma gas and ordinary tap water as the secondary gas.

A reducing atmosphere is produced in the cut by the release of hydrogen from the secondary water. This reducing atmosphere significantly reduces oxidisation on the cut surface and washes dross away from the back of the cut. As the majority of the water used during the process is converted into gas, there is no need for disposal. Mr Shekleton commented, “I was very impressed with the quality of cut I was able to achieve from this system using water mist and nitrogen on thin gauge material, which achieved results very comparable to laser cutting.” Thermadyne Industries Limited – UK Fax: +44 1257 224 800 Website: www.thermadyne.com

Norman Shekleton, managing director of Dairytube, must achieve specific results for each industry he supplies. This often

The solution was to use a Thermal Dynamics Ultra-Cut 100 high precision plasma cutting system fitted with the new XTR high precision robotic torch, mounted on an ABB 4400 6-axis robot. As Dairytube cuts primarily thin materials, it is not possible to achieve the desired cut quality using the traditional, expensive mix of argon-hydrogen as the plasma gas, and nitrogen as the shield gas. However, Thermal Dynamics high precision systems can use an alternative process known as ‘water mist secondary’ (WMS). The WMS process used by Dairytube is exclusive to Thermal Dynamics plasma

Effect of N 2

/H 2

O plasma on non-ferrous

Circular blades in 2,000 specifications

TANGSHAN Metallurgical Saw Blade Co, established in 1963, produces five kinds of circular saw blades with more than 2,000 specifications, including metal hot- cutting circular saw blade, metal cold-cutting circular saw blade, TCT circular saw blade, and HSS segmental circular saw blade.

Aluminium TCT saw blade

The company applies the latest technology and equipment to develop its product range, and claims to be the first saw blade manufacturer in China to pass the ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 Quality Certificate system. Tangsaw has imported advanced manufacturing machinery and technology for producing saw blades, such as a CNC TCT grinding machine, automatic brazing machine and laser cutting machine from Germany, as well as an automatic heat treatment line from Japan. Tangsaw cooperates with universities and institutes for technology research and product innovation. The company drafted and enacted the industry standard for Metal Hot-cutting Circular Saw Blade (YB/T5223-2005), Metal Cold-cutting Circular Saw Blade (YB/T4208-2009) and TCT Circular Saw Blade (YB/ T4207-2009). Tangshan Metallurgical Saw Blade Co Ltd – China Fax: +86 315 205 3342

Email: i-sales@tangsaw.com.cn Website: www.tangsaw.com.cn

118

J uly 2011

www.read-tpt.com

›