TPI July 2012

mater ials handl ing, logist ics & packaging

The word “handling,” with its suggestion of manual labour, may seem outmoded in a period when an industrial robot can feed blank hydroformed steel tubes into one end of a computerised injection moulding machine and collect over-moulded automotive front- end bolster assembly tubes at the other. When the same robot delivers the tubes to a trim station and – trimming completed – places them onto an outfeed conveyor for delivery back to the operator, “bundling” and “packaging” can carry the same whiff of bygone times. “logistics” – the management of the details of an operation – is a new word. but its very old meaning qualifies it for inclusion with the specialties reviewed here. For as long as hollow objects present more of a handling challenge than solid forms, these methods rooted in customised practice will retain their vital position in tube and pipe production.

Photo: Combilift