TPT March 2021

T E CHNOLOG Y

Four th generation CFS flexible square and rectangular tube production line

IN ADDITION to its well-known finishing lines for standard applications, in recent years Bültmann has also focused on the further development of system solutions designed for high quality stainless steel and steel tubes in small dimension ranges. This has resulted in custom-made equipment for the tube manufacturing industry. These complex finishing lines are designed for the processing of tubes – for example out of stainless steel and nickel-based alloys, diameter range 5 to 50mm, wall thickness between 0.5 to 4mm and a maximum tube length of 3 to 30m. The equipment mainly comprises the following process steps: multi-roll straightening, spectrotesting, recog- nition of defects marked behind the CFS is a square and rectangular tube flexible forming technology that has been around for more than 20 years. In 2000, the first CFS production line was put into operation and has shown many advantages. Anumber of manufacturers have adopted CFS structure. The biggest difference between this structure and other flexible forming machines is that the horizontal axis of the CFS still maintains a double support structure, while the horizontal axis of the other flexible forming machines is equipped with cantilever axes. A CFS 300x300x12mm production line, which was the first generation CFS, was ordered by Shanghai Haixiang company in 2003; a CFS

ultrasonic testing, Eddy current testing with marking of defects, automatic defect saw for a maximum output, combined abrasive cutting and cold sawing unit for processing the tube ends and cutting the tubes to fixed lengths, unit for internal and outside chamfering at both tube ends, internal cleaning of tubes by blowing out and plug shooting, measuring of effective tube length, automatic capping of both tube ends, marking of tubes with indication of effective lengths and forming of hexagon tube bundles. Due to the extremely quick changeover times the finishing lines are very flexible in their application and thus especially suitable for small batch sizes. Sufficient buffer space on the 500x500x20mm line, which was the second generation CFS, was ordered by Shanghai Baosteel in 2005. Another CFS 180X180X10mm line, which was the third generation CFS, was ordered by the Shanghai Haixiang company in 2012. In 2017, two fourth generation CFS lines were ordered by an Indian company and a CNC-CFS 100X100X4mm line was ordered by Asia Metal Thailand in 2019. These customers are not the whole CFS family, but represent the era of CFS. At present, a CNC 200X200X12mm production line is under construction, for Tagil, a Russian company. Although it is the fourth-generation product, there has

been a significant improvement on the original design. The new machine is stronger, which will improve the product accuracy, and the roller changing time during maintenance has been greatly reduced and it is easier to disassemble and install the roller. The new CFS is capable of producing 10×10mm to 700×700mm thickness and 0.4mm to 25mm square and rectangular tube and the future looks bright as there are many enterprises in Europe, the USA, Asia, Africa, and other regions negotiating these new CFS lines. FD Machinery www.fdmachinery.com

Bültmann finishing lines for high-precision steel and stainless tubes of small diameters

entry and exit side areas ensures a continuous production. Bültmann www.bueltmann.com

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MARCH 2021