TPT May 2007

Industry News

Commenting on the order, Unison’s managing director Alan Pickering said: “An aircraft carrier is just about the most complex product that mankind has ever made. The sheer scale and precision of the engineering operations at Northrop Grumman Newport News is breathtaking, and to have our machinery selected to help with such a task is a tremendous accolade.” Horn Machine Tools – USA Fax : +1 559 431 4431 Email : hmt@sierratel.com Website : www.hornmachinetools.com

Unison wins major US aircraft order for bending machinery

Unison, UK, has won an order worth over US$2.5mn, to supply tube-bending machinery to Northrop Grumman Newport News for aircraft carrier production. The largest ever order received by Unison, it was secured in conjunction with the company’s USA partner, Horn Machine Tools. The order comprises three of Unison’s Breeze machines, which will bend tubes of up to 6" diameter, together with tooling and spares. With delivery of the three benders currently underway, Unison is expanding the workforce at its Scarborough headquarters to assist with the order. Each aircraft carrier includes hundred of miles of tubing for the ship’s systems, and the machinery will provide the shipbuilder with the means to fabricate the shaped tube parts required. As each section of the aircraft carrier is built, the data for each part in that section will be downloaded automatically from the design database. Unison’s machines have been chosen because of their ‘all-electric’ nature,

employing electric servomotors to control the bending process. This provides very precise bending under software control, allowing each operation to be configured automatically from downloaded design data. This is ideal for the small batch production environment of shipbuilding, where many component parts are fabricated in very small quantities. The three machines will also be fitted with a special laser measurement system, to check final dimensions and ensure correct tolerance. This will automatically compensate for any minor variations in the tubing shape.

Unison – UK Fax : +44 1723 582379 Email : enquiries@unisonltd.com Website : www.unisonltd.com

Unique insight into the Japanese tube industry Taking place from 18-20 June 2007, Nagoya Tube 2007 will provide a unique opportunity for non-Japanese organisations to establish contacts in the Japanese market, traditionally a difficult market to penetrate. The event is a joint international symposium co-organised by the International Tube Association and the Roll Forming Research Committee of the Japan Society for Technology of Plasticity (JSTP). Taking place at the Nagoya University in the home city of the Toyota Motor Corporation, the ITA have confirmed twenty-four high quality technical presentations. Delegates will be able to take advantage of a rare chance to promote their company to Japan’s tube and pipe industry.

A range of promotional methods will be available including speaking at the symposium, tabletop exhibition and delegate attendance, with all the networking opportunities this entails.

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A highlight will be three unmissable keynote speeches from organisations Toyota Motor Corp, Obayashigumi Corp and Chiyoda Corp

A highlight of the symposium programme will be three unmissable keynote speeches from world-class organisations Toyota Motor Corp, Obayashigumi Corp and Chiyoda Corp. It has taken considerable persistence on the part of the ITA’s vice president (Japan), Mr Tsutomo Nakata, to secure speakers from these organisations. These three major consumers of tube and pipe – Toyota, Obayashigumi and Chiyoda – will present their views on future trends and requirements for tube and pipe products in their respective sectors: automobile, construction and machinery/plant construction. This information is certain to be priceless for the engineers charged with the responsibility of generating the solutions and developments to satisfy these corporations.

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International Tube Association – UK Fax : +44 1926 314755 Email : info@itatube.org • Website : www.itatube.org Japan Society for Technology of Plasticity (JSTP) – Japan Fax : +81 3 5733 3730 Email : jstp@jstp.or.jp • Website : www.jstp.jp

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M ay /J une 2007