TPT July 2014

Finishing and end f inishing

Precision edge preparation skiving machines

variable cutting rake angle for total cutting stability; and indexable tools, resharpenable

HEAVY-duty high metal removal edge finishing machines developed by Barnes Advanced Technology use vibratory energy to aid cutting, reducing mill pull through force, and allowing high metal removal at all cutting speeds from zero up, reducing scrap. Finish is claimed to be superior to milling, with easy bevelling or special shapes, instantly adjustable while running. Various pipe and tube edge preparation machines are available, covering thicknesses from 1 to 16mm and widths from 25 to 2,500mm, with cutting from zero to 300m/min or higher. The process improves welding and seam strength with any type of tube and pipe material. Vibrating the tools axially at up to 300 hertz peels off deep precise cuts of metal using the new cutting physics. The metal immediately ahead of the tool hardens and separates from the main material, leaving a smooth cleavage separation that is microscopically polished by the tool passing over it. Accuracy of cut

Edge preparation machine for 12mm thick, 70mm wide strip and (below) changing the cutting head

many times. Adjustment of one station does not affect downstream cutting, and cutters are automatically aligned with the material edge. The machines are usually provided with auto centring, with heavy rolls arranged to guide the material prior to mill entry. A swarf wiper removes any swarf clinging to the material. Tool units swing out for easy replacement of the tool inserts, which are of cobalt-bonded micrograin tungsten carbide. Inserts are heavy duty, 50mm square, 12mm thick, with a 45° bevel on the cutting edge. Heavy air driven swing arms engage the material edge with tool steel rolls, and precision wedge type screw jacks set tools to the exact cutting depth, with results indicated on the width sensors. Material width sensors at input and

output accurately measure material removal, and mill entry sizing. Bevel angle is also directly indicated within 0.1° accuracy. The vibratory energy is provided by air powered impacting vibrators, inducing ultrasonic shockwaves directly into the tools and the material about to be shaved off. Variations of the basic technology are useful for other special metal cutting operations such as grooving of strip. However, for these, magnetostrictive vibrators using sinusoidal shaped waveforms are preferred. Special versions are under development for producing tapered tubes such as poles, with the angle of bevel changing automatically with length to ensure correct seam abutting. The cutters follow the edges automatically as the tapered strip is traversed through the cutting heads. These machines can be adapted to any size or shape of product. Barnes Advanced Technology, Inc – Canada Fax: +1 905 478 1421 Email: abarnes@sympatico.ca Website: www.barnesadvanced-tech.com

and finish quality are improved, and swarf ejects as severed segments because of the imprinted shockwave cleavage planes, instead of the usual naturally cut, hard-to-handle continuous spirals. P r o d u c t i o n - e n h a n c i n g features include smooth cuts, accurate at any line speed; precisely adjustable depth of cut, settable while running; variable bevel angle for accurate abutting, as required;

Welding and finishing lines THE Asmag Group is a supplier of machinery and equipment for the steel and non-ferrous metal industry. It combines two enterprises: Asmag, whose core business is the design and manufacture of drawing, straightening, testing, cutting, chamfering, stacking and bundling machines; and Seuthe, with its core business of design and manufacture of tube welding and section mills. The ASMAG Group manufactures its machines and installations in its own workshops in Austria and Germany. At each location the engineering, automation, manufacturing and assembly

are under a single roof, resulting in high manufacturing quality, flexibility and improved service and support.

Asmag GmbH – Austria Fax: +43 7616 880188 Email: sales@asmag.at Website: www.asmag.at

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J uly 2014