WCA January 2024

Technology News

Successful commissioning at Henan Jiyuan Iron & Steel

operation is the third at Jiyuan, following previous orders for an RSB 300++/4 in 2019 and an RSB 370++/4 in 2008. The RSB 500++/4 has been installed in the bar mill line to produce straight bars from Ø 50 to 160mm onto the cooling bed. It is designed to allow thermomechanical rolling, to improve the material properties during the rolling process. This largest reducing and sizing block features remote-controlled roll gap adjustment (RC) and equipment for the roll shop, including Bamicon Octopus software, and hardware to

Chinese steel producer Henan Jiyuan Iron & Steel Co Ltd has rolled the first bar on its new Kocks reducing and sizing block RSB® 500++/4 in 5.0 design, after a smooth installation and commissioning period. This marks a milestone in the company’s bar mill revamping project, as part of its commitment to ongoing improvements and innovations in steel production. Henan Jiyuan Iron & Steel, based in Jiyuan City, Henan Province, China, produces special bar quality steel products (SBQ) that are used in a range of industries, including manufacturing and automotive. The Kocks block now in

The first bar has been produced on the Kocks RSB 500++/4 at Jiyuan Iron & Steel

assist operators in the stand and guide preparation and to support the entire tooling process in the roll shop. The block is the first of this size to feature the advanced RSB design presented by Kocks at METEC last year. Friedrich Kocks GmbH & Co KG www.kocks.de

Productivity improvements through CAD/CAM and ERP software Australian laser subcontractor Online Laser Pty has expanded its manu- facturing ability, using Lantek’s sheet metal CAD/CAM and ERP software. our old system there was no integration and we had to repeatedly enter the same information, which was both time consuming and error prone.”

note and pallet label. It also identifies when a customer has an account, so that parts can be shipped immediately or, if it is a new customer, what the payment terms are before shipping. The interface to Online Laser’s Xero accounting software automatically keeps this up to date with shipped and invoiced goods. The MES system and the real-time reporting from the machines provide accurate delivery times, and customers can be given consistent and accurate information on the status of their jobs. For urgent work, the company can quote at 8:30am and have the parts cut by 11:00am. Online Laser previously had difficulty managing 100 live orders, but the new system can operate quite easily with more than 200. The Lantek Expert CAD/CAM software has been tailored to the company’s machines with a customisable post-processor. For thicker materials, it has been tweaked to allow pre-piercing before cutting, spreading the heat across the part to avoid problems from a heat-affected zone. Support and training is supplied by Lantek from its head office in Spain, and from Klugo, which supports the software in Australia and New Zealand. Lantek Systems Ltd www.lantek.com Online Laser Pty Ltd https://onlinelaser.com.au

Online Laser installed Lantek’s Expert CAD/CAM, MES, Integra and WOS in July 2019. In 2023, it added the Lantek Opentalk connection directly to the laser machines, to automate the validation of the status of the machines and the parts being manufactured. Mr Harris added, “The vast majority of parts come as CAD models in several different formats, and we can import them directly into the Lantek software. The integrated Lantek Expert can quickly analyse the laser cutting times and within the Integra software combine them with subcontract costs such as folding, powder coating or machining to produce an accurate price for the whole job. Previously this could have taken a few days; now it can be done in one to two hours, and sometimes in minutes.” Where the material type and thickness are the same, the company nests parts from different customers in the same sheet. “The inventory system is worth the investment on its own,” said Mr Harris. “We can manage remnants of material to use them up and keep track of stocks so that we don’t suddenly run out of material. Now we only need to do a physical stock check every few months.” Once the job is complete, the Lantek software creates the invoice, delivery

The company, based in Bendigo, Victoria, Australia, has two Bystronic Bystar fibre lasers and previously used a proprietary system – no longer supported, to manage the machines and the workflow through its factory. Programming and production manager Ben Harris said, “We were looking for an end-to-end system to manage our quotations, programming and production. With

Parts from different customers can be nested in the same sheet

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January 2024