TPT May 2016

T E CHNOLOG Y

Kusakabe introduces new test piece milling cutting saw for pipe producers

Kusakabe has also announced that two more orders have been received for the test piece cutting saw from the largest steel manufacturer in Japan for its API seamless tube plant. These machines are scheduled for delivery to the customer’s factory in 2017. Despite the recent slump in the API OCTG market, the customer has considered the test piece cutting saws a worthy investment. Kusakabe also presented recent developments in rotary sizing tech- nology with actual tube samples on show at Tube Düsseldorf 2016. RSMs have been in operation in API tubing and casing lines for several years, achieving improvements in OD ovality right up to the end of the pipe. Due to the improvement of ovality, the rotary sizing technology is being used for the manufacture of conveyor roller tubing. the RsM provides a cost-effective method of achieving the OD ovality required using a method known as ultra-precision sizing. The increased improvement in ovality provides the opportunity for conveyor rollers to run at higher speeds with less noise and bearing wear. Rotary sizing technology offers many opportunities for tube and pipe manufacturers to supply precision tubular products at a similar cost to the standard tubular products. Total engineering of the tube and pipe manufacturing process is a Kusakabe speciality. The knowledge and experience that has been developed over the past 55 years provides innovative pipe manufacturing equipment and technologies from the strip entry to the packing machine and everything in- between. the company provides a com- prehensive range of tube and pipe mills and associated equipment to meet the industry’s needs, from the manufacture of aluminium radiator tubes to large pipe mills for the oil, gas and structural market sectors.

containing the butt weld, which also includes a full length of good tube. This tube is delivered to the test piece cutting saw using the feeding conveyor, which was supplied by the customer. When the pipe reaches the feeding conveyor it is accurately positioned using an encoder-controlled feeding mechanism. The good tube is cut to the correct length, then two test pieces required for destructive testing are cut from each side of the butt weld. After cutting the test pieces, the good pipe is returned to the conveyor system, the pipe containing the butt weld is sent to the scrap bay and the test pieces are safely delivered to the operator’s side of the machine through a delivery chute. One test piece is also taken from the middle of each coil of strip for destructive testing. The cycle time for cutting the test pieces is much shorter than the typical band saw that is in common use. As a result, destructive testing can be conducted faster, saving time and giving mill operators more timely feedback. The shortest test piece cut length is 100mm or less for any OD within the machine’s specified range, thereby saving material. Added to this is the material saved by being able to accurately cut a length of good pipe from the pipe containing the test pieces and the butt weld.

KUSAKABE Electric & Machinery Co, Japan, is a tube and pipe mill builder. It recently introduced a newly developed milling saw for cutting test pieces required for 16" OD API OCTG production at Tube 2016. the first test piece cutting milling type saw was successfully installed and commissioned in late 2015 at one of the largest API OCTG manufacturers in the USA. Kusakabe has supplied three flying-type milling cut-off machines to this customer, and this test piece cutting saw is the fourth machine order awarded to Kusakabe by the customer. Kusakabe has also delivered more than twenty flying-type milling cut- off machines to numerous customers worldwide and has extensive cutting experience and know-how accumulated over 55 years. The same cutting technology is used in the stationary test piece cutting saw. The test piece cutting saw is the stationary dual blade milling type and the test pieces are used for destructive and tensile testing, and cutting out UST defects. These test pieces are automatically cut by the saw, which is integrated into the conveyor system after the pipe mill flying cut-off. the pipe length required for test pieces is added to the nose and tail of the pipe The newly developed milling saw from Kusakabe

Kusakabe Electric & Machinery Co – Japan

Email: sales@kusakabe.com Website: www.kusakabe.com

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M ay 2016