TPT November 2013

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November 2013 111
Welding technology
Longitudinal
welding lines
THE Machines Yvonand SA has
continued to expand the field and
application areas of the well proven LSL
type forming and longitudinal welding
lines.
New is the use of very thin gauged
high precision tubes in the automotive,
medical, aeronautical and aerospace
sectors.
In addition to the wide range of alloys
that can be used, the particular feature
of process stability in the manufacture
of the thin-walled precision tubes must
be highlighted and emphasized.
The LSL range of equipment is used
in the manufacture of tubes ranging
from 2 to 125mm in wall thickness
from 50 micron (0.05mm) upwards,
and engineered and conceived for line
speeds up to 60m/min.
The continuous and non-contact
laser welding is subjected to a full in-line
and real-time 100 per cent verification
and testing. Additional measuring
and visualisation systems support the
process management and line control.
Given that the setup and re-tooling
time of the line, for making other
dimension tubes, is in the range of a
very short 30 minutes makes the LSL
range also suited for small lot and
batch size production or JIT (just in
time) orders.
Also new is the welding of aluminium
tubes without any edge trim and without
protective gas which, given the shortage
of helium, secures and assures the
future supply of these products. Since
the edge trim alone makes up some 15
per cent of total material requirement in
the manufacture of smaller tubes, the
materials savings not necessitated by
elimination of this process step can be
deducted in the equivalent amount.
The actual laser source and power
can be individually tailored to suit
customer application needs, thus
resulting in a highly favourable energy
efficiency requirement when compared
to alternative welding technologies (eg
TIG, HF and older laser types).
Weld seam reproducibility, (weld
shape and microstructure) and full
process stability are achieved by the
consequent absence of any setting
adjustments, especially in the forming
benches.
THE Machines Yvonand SA supplies
alongside the LSL line the complete
range of equipment for the continuous
and endless production of tubes,
including laser cross welding of the
coils as well as tape accumulators
with all other up and down stream
requirements, right through to the full
turnkey process and solution.
THE Machines Yvonand SA –
Switzerland
Website:
THE Machines
has expanded its
welding lines