M
arch
2014
125
Technology News
Cleaning and
de-burring in
one machine
WHENheating and cooling equipment manufacturer HCCoils
started producing copper tubular components in-house, the
company needed an industrial washing machine to remove
coolant residue and swarf deposited during sawing, and to
wash off mandrel lubricant used for CNC bending.
Failure to achieve a high level of cleanliness would have
resulted in unacceptable joint porosity when subsequently
brazing the tubes in a heating or cooling block. In addition,
unpleasant smoke would have been generated in the
working environment, contravening health and safety
regulations.
To clean the components thoroughly, the company bought
a Turbex 2100 aqueous cleaning machine that uses a slowly
rotating basket to maximise exposure of the components to
jets of hot water. Not only does the automatic batch washing
remove all soils to the required standard, but the action of
the tubes gently tumbling against each other was also found
to remove small burrs created by sawing. Joining the tubes
to the blocks is consequently more consistent and there is
no risk of operators touching sharp edges during assembly.
HC Coils manufactures finned heat exchangers and
associated products for heating, ventilating, air conditioning,
refrigeration, process cooling and heat recovery. The firm
designs and supplies systems worldwide for a diverse range
of uses in supermarkets, commercial buildings and hospitals,
food manufacturing and storage facilities, and induction
furnace and plastic moulding machine manufacture. Fast
turnaround and production of bespoke new and replacement
heat exchangers, as well as standard units, are hallmarks of
the company’s service.
Mike Theed, in charge of production at HC Coils,
commented, “We wanted to avoid solvent-based cleaning
due to the legal restrictions on its use. After researching
aqueous cleaning machine suppliers on the Internet, we
shortlisted four potential suppliers. Turbex was our eventual
choice due to successful trials on our tube components
carried out at their technical centre in Alton.
“The machine has been very reliable since it was installed.
I think only one seal has been replaced in two years and that
was done on the same day by a Turbex engineer. Apart from
clearing out the filter weekly, the only other maintenance is
to empty the machine annually and give it a thorough clean.
For the rest of the time, it runs without a hitch.”
During operation, the basket is pulled forward from the
machine on its central spindle, approximately 350 copper
return bends or header legs are loaded, and the basket is
pushed back until it engages with a drive mechanism at the
back. To ensure thorough penetration of all components,
water and detergent are sprayed through the spindle and
continuously recycled via the filter.
Turbex Ltd
– UK
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