BystronicWorld 1/2011 - Bystronic Media Database

Transcription

Kema Schlosserei Discovers the Waterjet z h o n gx i n gx i n , C h i na : Of
Semiconductors, Housings, and Sheet Metal Processing f o c u s o n s o f t wa r e : Process Optimization at Kärcher and Huning L a r g e st sta i n le ss st e e l c e n t e r i n Tu r k e y : Saritaş Steels Itself
for the Future i n n ovat i o n s : Bystronic News at the EuroBLECH Expo
E x pan d i n g s e rvi c e s :
the magaz ine for cutting and bending 1/11
w e l a n d, S w e d e n :
Industrial Ascension in the Third Generation
38 | Stagnation equals decline: Large
investments at Saritaş, Turkey’s largest stainless steel center. www.saritas.com.tr
6 | Showing the flag: At Weland in Sweden
they have clear ideas about modern sheet metal
processing and growth opportunities.
www.weland.se
26 | Awakening: The Kema metal working shop in
Trierweiler has discovered its love of waterjet cutting.
www.kemastahl.de
20 | Zhongxingxin, China: Every electronic circuit also
needs a housing. www.ztecabinet.com
32 | Software: PMC
and Bybendpart during
practical testing.
2
at a glance
4 Short facts
A selection of events drawn from the
international Bystronic world.
6 WELAND, Sweden
Courageous Industrial group
14 Innovations
New Bystronic developments:
faster, stronger, safer
20
Zhongxingxin, China
ProviDes a home for the
e lectronics
26
KEMA, Germany
expanding to waterjet cutting
32Focus
Software
Pmc and bybendpart during
practical testing
SARITAŞ, TURKEY
a superlative stainless steel
center
Cover: Jonas Welandson, Weland Sweden; Photo: Yadid Levy/Anzenberger Agency
38
imprint
BystronicWorld – The Magazine for Cutting and Bending
Publisher:
Bystronic, Corporate Communications
Industriestrasse 21, 3362 Niederönz, Switzerland
Overall responsibility: Jean-Pierre Neuhaus
Editor-in-chief: Martin Engel
Consulting, design, editing and production:
Primafila AG, Zurich and Munich
Circulation: 21,000 (German and English)
Dear Reader
Act, don’t talk. Identify and seize opportunities. Select the right partner.
These basic principles played a decisive role in the successful rise of our
long-standing customer Weland Group, which is portrayed in the lead
article in this issue of BystronicWorld. In the following, I would like to
look briefly at these fundamental tenets.
Act, don’t talk – this is also a Bystronic maxim. Take the example of
customer proximity: During the latest crisis, we were forced to tighten
our belts as well. However, we made no cutbacks with services. Instead,
a new assembly shop, including a state-of-the-art spare parts and
tools warehouse, was constructed at the production location in Gotha,
Germany, in order to guarantee the fast delivery of machines and spare
parts. Sales and Services in Germany was relocated to its own, brandnew headquarters, and the head office of our subsidiary in the United
Kingdom was moved to the center of the industrial heartland around
Birmingham and Coventry. Other Bystronic companies also expanded
their services further.
The development of new machines and components was pushed forward too, so that we are always in a position to offer you an optimal
solution. Thus, for instance, we were able to launch numerous innovations in 2010 that will allow you, just like the Weland Group, to seize the
opportunities offered by the market. Naturally, we are all still some way
away from the sales volumes achieved in the years 2007 and 2008, and
obviously the growth in the sheet metal processing industries will primarily take place in China and the newly industrialized countries, but an
increasing number of machines are once more running at full capacity in
the “old” markets as well; in these countries, the opportunities are also
on the increase again. I see potential, for example, in product design. Almost every day, I come across objects that could be produced significantly more efficiently if the laser and waterjet cutting processes, as well
as the bending process, were already taken into account during the design phase. For this reason, we placed considerable emphasis on the
subject of laser-cutting-compatible and bending-compatible design at
the EuroBLECH 2010.
We are delighted that the Weland Group has chosen Bystronic as its
strategic partner. Personally, I am very proud of the fact that in this role, we
have been able to make our contribution in assisting the company in the
step-by-step realization of its future visions for almost twenty years. And,
as the case studies presented in BystronicWorld confirm, the future looks
good for Bystronic customers.
Printed by: Köpfli & Partners Ltd, Neuenhof, Switzerland
Paper: PlanoJet FSC, M-real Biberist, 120 g/m2
Please contact Martin Engel for all aspects of printing rights:
[email protected]
For all other queries: [email protected]
Reprints not permitted without prior agreement.
BystronicWorld 1/2011
Johan E lste r
Head of Market Division NAFTA & Europe North
3
Development engineer Sergio
Bossoni and other leading Bystronic
representatives accepted the John
Deere Supplier Innovation Award.
JOHN DEERE: DOUBLE HONOR
FOR BYSTRONIC
Twice within just a few months Bystronic
has been honored by John Deere for its exemplary partnership. In December 2010, the
company invited its suppliers in China to a
meeting in Hangzhou and awarded Bystronic
the Excellent Performance Award 2010. The
Head of the Bystronic Market Division Asia/
Pacific, Laurent Castella, and Bob Wang,
Bystronic Managing Director in China, grate-
fully accepted the award. The honor shows
that Bystronic continues to be regarded as a
provider of cutting-edge technology and
prompt and efficient service – for the longterm benefit of its business partners.
In March this year, Bystronic also received
the John Deere Supplier Innovation Award
for the following project: integration of a ball
bar measuring and machine qualification
procedure into its acceptance testing procedure for checking, monitoring, and correcting the geometrical accuracy of a machine
more efficiently than with the methods used
to date. “This award further strengthens our
already good relationship with John Deere
and also our position with the suppliers,”
explains Johan Elster, Head of the Market
Division NAFTA & Europe North. Bystronic
supplies the worldwide largest provider of
farm and forestry machines and the world’s
number two provider of building machines
with both laser cutting systems and pressbrakes, as well as the necessary software for
their operation.
BYSPRINT FIBER NOW WITH SIDE WINDOWS
Since April 2011, the BySprint Fiber laser cutting system has been
available with optional side windows. Originally, this feature had
been dispensed with, because the wavelength of the fiber laser is
considerably shorter than that of the CO2 laser, and hence expensive
special windows have to be used for safety reasons. With this option,
Bystronic is responding to a wish that has been expressed by many
(potential) customers for a comprehensive insight into the interior
workings of the machine.
With the Bystronic CO2 laser cutting systems, the side windows will
continue to be a part of the standard equipment.
Special windows allow a safe view of the
BySprint Fiber’s interior workings.
LAYING OF THE FOUNDATION STONE IN THE USA
The construction of the new Bystronic
US head office has entered the decisive
phase. On January 24 in Elgin, Illinois, the
foundation stone was laid for the new building, which is to be inaugurated in October
this year. Of the total of around 4,400 square
meters floor space, some 2,200 square meters will house the storage and the logistics
areas. This will ensure that customers in
North America will be supplied with replacement and wear-and-tear parts in the shortest
possible time. In the approximately 1,300square-meter demonstration center, customers and interested parties will be able to experience the impressive performance of the
Bystronic machines and systems.
Over the coming months, the headquarters
of the Bystronic Inc. sales and service company will be transferred from Hauppauge in
4
New York to Elgin, just outside of Chicago.
After completion of the building complex,
the company will be even more centrally located and hence in even closer proximity to
its customers. According to Robert St. Aubin,
Managing Director of Bystronic Inc., this investment is a clear demonstration of the company’s claim to always be the best choice.
Johan Elster, Head of Market Division NAFTA & Europe North (2nd from right), and Robert
St. Aubin, Managing Director of Bystronic Inc. (3rd from right), with Elgin’s city councilors and mayor.
Short Facts
AWARD FOR THE BYSPRINT FIBER
Award winners: (left to right) Mario Duppenthaler, Product Manager
Laser; Jürgen Hohnhaus, Head of Development; Ferdi Töngi, Bystronic
CEO; Jean-Pierre Neuhaus, Head of Corporate Communications;
Robert Suter, Conzzeta CEO.
Special prize for the BySprint Fiber: In the Cutting Technologies
category, the Bystronic fiber laser cutting system was awarded the
special jury prize at the German MM Award 2010. This was in recognition of the successful, innovative integration and combination of
the laser source and the cutting system as well as of the resulting
product: a machine that guarantees maximum part production and
perfect cutting results particularly with steel, stainless steel, aluminum, and nonferrous materials up to a thickness of four millimeters.
The BySprint Fiber has been on sale worldwide since the last
EuroB LECH exhibition.
The MM Award is the innovation prize of the German trade journals
“MaschinenMarkt” and “blechnet” that is awarded every two years
at EuroBLECH, the world’s largest international sheet metal working
technology exhibition.
NEW DESIGNATIONS FOR
PRESSBRAKES
Bystronic has simplified the product names of its pressbrakes. With
the Beyeler series, the former company name has been dropped.
Hence, for example, the Beyeler Xpert 150 has become the Xpert 150.
The designations of the AFM pressbrakes have been shortened in a
similar manner, and the multiple product names have been reduced to
two series: Xcel (at present available only in Asia) and Xact. Additionally, the bending length has been deleted, and the machines with mechanical crowning have received the “M” designation. For example, the
AFM EP25-80 has become the Xact 80M. Only the designations for
the Hämmerle 3P pressbrakes remain unchanged.
The reason for this step is that after the company names were
changed – Beyeler Maschinenbau became Bystronic Maschinenbau
and AFM was changed to Bystronic Tianjin –, the association with
the original product names was lost. “Many customers were confused. They didn’t know whether the Beyeler and AFM machines
were really Bystronic products or not,” explains Jean-Pierre Neuhaus,
Head of Corporate Communications. The new product names have
been in effect since the EuroBLECH 2010.
Comparison Table (Examples)
Old name
Xpert Series
Beyeler Xpert 150Xpert 150
New name
Xact hydraulic
AFM EPII31-100Xact 100
Xact mechanical AFM EP25-80Xact 80M
Xcel Series (only in Asia)
AFM Xcel16-50Xcel 50
TWO NEW MANAGING DIRECTORS
Left: Robert St. Aubin, Managing Director,
Bystronic Inc.; right: Günter Vollmann, Managing Director, Bystronic Austria GmbH.
The Bystronic country subsidiaries
in the USA as well as in Austria and the
Czech Republic have new Managing Directors. Robert St. Aubin (54) has been steering
the fortunes of Bystronic Inc. since October
2010, when he replaced Michael Zakrzewski
as the head of the American subsidiary.
Robert St. Aubin has gained a great deal of
experience in sales at one of the leading US
manufactures of machine tools and with a
laser manufacturer. Most recently, he served
as Vice President of a Japanese machine tool
manufacturer.
Bystronic Austria GmbH in Linz and Bystronic
Czech Republic s.r.o., with its registered office
in Brno, have been under the direction of
Günter Vollmann (42) since the beginning of
2011. He is an Austrian citizen and studied
engineering, economics, and management.
Before joining Bystronic, Günter Vollmann
was Managing Director of the Austrian subsidiary of a construction machine manufacturer.
5
Weland Sweden
a successful
Swedish family affair
The Weland Group steel conglomerate and its owners, the Welandson family,
embody the entrepreneurial spirit of the Swedish region of Småland. The
company is a major supplier of steel goods to leading Swedish corporations
and the global market. CEO Jonas Welandson explains his company’s preference
for laser cutting systems and pressbrakes from Bystronic.
Text: Nils Lindstrand, Photos: Yadid Levy/Anzenberger Agency
portunity instead of focusing on possible drawbacks,” he says. This attitude has been working for
his family since 1947. The region of Småland in the
south of Sweden is famous for entrepreneurship
and successful family-owned companies. At least
one of these enjoys an international reputation –
IKEA. Weland is not quite as global as that, but the
ideas behind the success are the same – hard work
and optimism.
Strong entrepreneurial spirit
Weland makes a variety of quality steel products at its factory in Småland.
Right: Jonas Welandson is the third generation to run the family business.
Don’t analyze every move you want to
make; take the step forward and make it work for
you. This might serve as the official motto of the
Weland Group. This industrial conglomerate,
mainly located in the Swedish region of Småland,
is a very successful producer of a wide range of
steel and metal products, such as industrial gangways and ramps, staircases, bus shelters, and warehouse systems. Weland is also a major subcontractor in sheet metal working and pressure welding
for leading Swedish companies such as Volvo and
Scania. Weland has been expanding for many
years, and the group today consists of more than
thirty companies. Many of these, like the original
factory Weland AB in Smålandsstenar, make steel
products; but the group also includes tourism
companies, printing shops, and a housing firm.
This mix may seem random, but CEO Jonas
Welandson, the third generation to run this family
business, explains the very clear underlying logic.
“When you see an opportunity to expand or find
new business, you have to act there and then and
focus on the possibilities. You must seize the op-
6
Weland’s production manager Björn Henriksson
confirms that this spirit is strong within the company. “A few years back, I was trying to calculate
the pay-off time for a machine I wanted Weland to
invest in. Jonas’s father Gösta Welandson, who
was still the CEO at the time, took notice of this
and told me to stop. ‘You will never get a positive
result from analyzing everything in detail,’ he said.
‘If you think this machine is going to help us to do
business and make our production more efficient,
then buy it! Once we have it, we will find the customers and the production to make it profitable.’”
Jonas Welandson emphasizes that this attitude
towards investments still is very much alive at
Weland. “New machinery is always better. It is
more efficient and provides new possibilities. This
helps us to get new customers and to keep the
ones we have. New technology makes production
faster and more flexible. Modern equipment also
means an advantage in recruiting the best workforce. There is fierce competition for skilled industrial workers in our part of the world. New machinery has an interface that makes the machines more
interesting to use, and also makes it easier to introduce new operators.”
Huynh Van Nguyen, a programmer at Weland, is a
good example of why it is important to recruit the
best people for key operations. Using Bystronic’s
self-developed software package Bysoft, including
Bybendpart for the convenient creation of bending
process data and Byorder for handling all customer
Weland AB processes more than 25,000 tons of material every year.
Facts: Weland AB
Weland AB is located in the town of Smålandsstenar in the southern
Swedish province of Småland, a region strongly focused on the manufacturing industry. In Smålandsstenar, Weland has a total factory area
of 80,000 square meters. At this site, Weland produces pressure-welded
grating, spiral staircases, and related products for industrial use and for
building projects. The company has about 250 employees at its location in Smålandsstenar. Weland has a total of about 900 employees.
8
Weland Group today consists of more than 30 companies, including
component manufacturers and companies producing machinery, golf
course equipment, warehouse systems, bus shelters, open-air restaurant
railings, and more. The group also includes other types of business,
such as printing shops, a ski center, an advertising agency, and a realestate company.
Weland Andersson founded the company in 1947. From the very
beginning, the company was a producer of metal components for
industrial use, the first product being butterfly nuts for the local furniture industry. In 1959, the company became Weland & Sons Inc.
One of the sons was Gösta Welandson, later to be CEO at Weland,
a position he held until 2009. Weland gradually evolved into a modern
company for press-welded grating manufacture.
Weland AB in Smålandsstenar processes more than 25,000 tons
of material every year. The factory in Smålandsstenar has 30 lasers,
including 18 tube lasers and 12 flatbed lasers, 11 of which are made
by Bystronic.
Weland Group also has subsidiaries in Norway, Denmark, Finland,
Germany, and the United Kingdom. Today, Weland’s CEO is Jonas
Welandson, grandson of the founder Weland Andersson.
9
Weland Sweden
“With many
suppliers, service staff and
support are far
away. Bystronic
helps us when
we need it.”
Jonas Welandson,
CEO, Weland AB
orders, he is able to program over twenty Bystronic
laser cutting systems all on his own. His job is to
make sure Weland gets as many parts as possible
out of a single metal sheet. Even with conventional
metals, the material often makes up for half the
cost of a part; with high-quality steel, this impact
may be much higher. Being efficient in this work
thus is of vital importance to Weland. So, is Huynh
a genius, or is the smart software really doing the
job for him? “No doubt it’s a bit of both,” says
Björn Henriksson. Huynh obviously has a very special talent for his job, but this efficiency still
wouldn’t be possible without clever software. Normally, you would use a whole group of people for
this amount of programming. To achieve even more
efficiency, Weland recently invested in Bystronic’s
latest Bysoft module Plant Manager Cutting (PMC).
With this unique software, all orders can be easily
processed and all production data is available at all
times, thanks to the integration with Weland’s ERP
system.
Working around the clock
with Bystronic
Weland’s production today is on a 24/7 basis. “Yes,
our laser cutting systems and other machinery run
day and night,” says Björn Henriksson, “but there
are many more people at the factory during daytime. At night, we focus on work that can be done
automatically, with just a few employees overseeing the operations. In the morning, the day shift
makes sure that the machines are maintained and
working properly, and that the products are put in
boxes and shipped.” Today, the Weland factory in
Smålandsstenar employs 250 people. “That’s a bit
too many for the close personal contact we try to
keep at Weland,” says Welandson. “I want to know
all the staff by name, which may be difficult with
250 people. If this was a consulting company,
we would probably consider breaking it up into
smaller units. But a manufacturing company like
Weland can’t really do this, so we have to make it
work. And I think we manage pretty well.”
The many purchases from Bystronic over the years
have been made in the same spirit that Weland
brings to its business in general: find good technology, seize the opportunity, and make the investment profitable. Bystronic has been working with
Weland since the early 1990s. What is Weland’s
experience from this long-time cooperation? “Well,
what do you think? Just look around you,” says
Jonas Welandson with a big smile. “We have
eleven Bystronic laser cutting systems here in
Smålandsstenar alone, as well as other Bystronic
equipment. And we have more machines at our
other sites. This would hardly be the case if we
hadn’t cooperated very successfully throughout
these twenty years.” He emphasizes that Bystronic
machines have been profitable for Weland, and
that the company gets quick and relevant service.
“With many suppliers, service staff and support
are far away, but Bystronic gives us help when we
need it. Johan Elster and the people from Bystronic
Scandinavia are also close to us and to our business, and are able to give valuable advice.”
Johan Elster, Head of the Bystronic Market Division
NAFTA & Europe North, is equally happy to work
with Weland. “The way in which Weland actively
seeks new technology and invests in new machines is unusual and invigorating. For us as a machine supplier, this attitude means a chance to introduce the latest technology in a successful
production unit. Needless to say, this is incredibly
important for a technology supplier like Bystronic,”
he adds. “You can always sell high-quality products if you are efficient in production,” Jonas
Welandson concludes. “What you want to do is
buy machinery some time before you need the
capacity; once the customers are queuing up, it’s
too late. This means investing during bad times in
order to be ready when things start moving again,
as they are today.”
Broad customer base
With Bysoft, Huynh Van Nguyen can program more than twenty Bystronic laser cutting
systems. Right: The cutting head of the Byspeed laser cutting system ensures quality
and efficiency.
10
Weland has customers within a number of business areas. Many of them are major building and
engineering companies that purchase Weland’s
gratings, staircases, and fire escapes for housing
and industrial projects. However, especially in subcontract work, Weland has customers as large as
Scania and Volvo Trucks, and as small as “the village blacksmith,” in the words of Welandson. “We
want to keep this wide range of customers and
have a personal relationship even with the small
ones. And it pays off; during the recent recession,
small customers have kept on buying products
much more constantly than the really big ones.
When it comes to our own products like gratings
and staircases, however, we have done good business all the time. The building trade has been quite
active even during the bad times we’ve seen recently.”
Weland Sweden
Partnership
The partnership between Weland and Bystronic has strong roots that reach back as far as 1990. It was at that time
that the company’s first laser cutting system was put into service in Smålandsstenar, a Bylas 3015 equipped with
what at that time was an impressive laser power of 1,500 watts. Subsequently, Bystronic became one of the most
important business partners for Weland – and vice versa. This can be illustrated with figures: currently, the Swedish
group operates a total of 25 laser cutting systems, ten pressbrakes, and one waterjet cutting system at five locations
in Sweden and England. Four of these laser cutting systems are connected to a Bycell fully automatic storage system,
and a further 11 are operated fully automatically either with a Bytrans or a ByTrans loading and unloading unit.
In 2011, a further three laser cutting systems were installed. The detailed list of this machine park is as follows:
Laser Cutting Systems
Location
Model
Laser source
Number
Miscellaneous
Smålandsstenar Bystar 3015
BTL 4000
1
With Byloader
ByLaser 6000
5One system with BytransCross,
two systems with ByTrans,
two systems with ByTrans Extended
ByLaser 6000
2
With BytransCross
Smålandsstenar Byspeed 3015
ByLaser 4400
5One system with BytransCross,
four systems connected to an
automatic Bycell warehouse system
Thanks to the extensive process
automation the parts output at
Weland is enormous.
Smålandsstenar Byspeed 3015
ByLaser 6000
1
Including nozzle and lens-cassette
changers, with Byloader, from 2011
with ByTrans Extended and BySort
Smålandsstenar BySprint Fiber 3015Fiber 2000
1
With Byloader
Ulricehamn
Bysprint 2512
BTL 3000
1
With Byloader
Ulricehamn Byspeed 3015
ByLaser 4400
1
With Byloader
Hävla Byspeed 3015
ByLaser 4400
3Each with ByTrans
Hävla Bystar 3015
ByLaser 6000
1
With ByTrans
Southampton, UK
Bystar 3015
BTL 2800
1
With Byloader
Southampton, UK Bystar 3015
BTL 3500
2Each with Byloader
Southampton, UK Byspeed 3015
ByLaser 4400
1
With ByTrans
Location
Model
Bending length
Number
Miscellaneous
Smålandsstenar Beyeler PR 800
6,200 mm
1
3,100 mm
2
3,100 mm
1
Smålandsstenar Beyeler Xpert 250
4,100 mm
2
Hävla Beyeler PR 800
6,200 mm
1
Pressbrakes
Hävla Beyeler PR 150
3,100 mm
1
Hävla
Beyeler Xpert 250
4,100 mm
1
Alvesta Beyeler Xpert 250
4,100 mm
1
With bending robot
Waterjet Cutting
12
Location
Model
Number
Miscellaneous
Smålandsstenar Byjet 4022
1
With shuttle table
Weland and Bystronic have been close partners for more than twenty years. CEO Jonas Welandson talking
to Johan Elster, Head of the Bystronic Market Division NAFTA & Europe North.
The recession meant a change in the balance at
Weland between subcontracting work on the one
hand and production of ready-made products on
the other. Today, the outlook for industrial customers has improved, and they are increasing the
amount of subcontracting work farmed out to
Weland. “Normally, these two areas of work account for equal shares of our production,” says
Welandson. “But during the last couple of years,
the emphasis has been on making our own products. Now, major industries are gaining speed
again, and we will soon be at 50/50 once more.”
And Weland is ready to meet higher demands; investments in machinery over the years, together
with the overall expansion of the Weland Group,
have resulted in a unique capacity and flexibility for
subcontract work.
Weland thus has a wide portfolio of established
customers. But the management is not content
with maintaining its current customer base. The
company is represented at major industrial fairs,
mainly in Scandinavia. Still, the optimistic spirit has
driven Weland to take marketing further. Today,
the conglomerate has its own advertising company
for producing web site material, brochures, and
adverts; and it even owns a couple of printing
shops. “Word gets around,” says Jonas Welandson.
“Weland distributes information material and has
an informative web site; combined with word-ofmouth referrals, this means people in the industry
get to know about us. When they need a producer
like Weland, they already have our phone number.
So, even in marketing, Weland is creating the opportunity before the demand is there, just as they
do with production.” Looking at Weland today, this
strategy seems to be a winning concept.
“New machinery is more
efficient and
provides new
possibilities.”
Jonas Welandson
Nils Lindstrand is an experienced freelance business,
science, and technology writer based in Stockholm,
Sweden.
13
Bystronic INNOVATIONS
AUTUMN of INNOVATION
“Bystronic – best choice.” This was the motto under which Bystronic
presented itself last autumn with extensive innovations from all product
areas. An overview.
Text: Martin Engel, Photos: Bernhard Strahm/Bystronic
“At Bystronic , we always focus on the customer. We always want to be the ‘Best Choice’ for
our customers.” With these words, Johan Elster,
Head of the Bystronic Market Division NAFTA &
Europe North, introduces the numerous innovations that were launched in the autumn of 2010.
BystronicWorld presents an overview of these innovations.
The BySprint Fiber
is ideal for custom
ers who mainly
or exclusively cut
thin materials.
14
BYSPRINT FIBER 3015 – THE FIRST FIBER
CUTTING SYSTEM FROM BYSTRONIC
The first Bystronic production model of a laser cutting system with a fiber laser is equipped with the
Fiber 2000 fiber laser. The BySprint Fiber ensures,
especially for thin metal sheets up to four millimeters, a unique parts output coupled with the
highest degree of precision. The drive and CNC concept of the system guarantee high dynamics, so that
the possibilities of the fiber source can be transformed into shortest of processing times. Additionally, the laser source has sufficient potential power to
process metal sheets up to a thickness of 12 millimeters. The cutting head of the BySprint Fiber has been
specifically designed for fiber laser applications.
The machine permits high flexibility: In addition to
steel, stainless steel, and aluminum, nonferrous
materials such as copper and brass can also be
processed with great precision. Additional process
safety is guaranteed by the unique Protection
Window Sensor, which reliably protects the lens
from damage. Thanks to the high energy efficiency,
the BySprint Fiber is also extremely environmentally friendly.
The transmission of the laser beam to the cutting
head takes place via a passive fiber cable, and not
as with CO2 lasers via a deflection mirror. The resulting simple optical path coupled with the undemanding high-tech fiber laser source and the wellengineered machine technology leads to very low
More flexibility: The BySprint Fiber
also cuts nonferrous metals like copper
and brass reliably and precisely.
15
operating and service costs. Also very low are the
space requirements of the BySprint Fiber: The laser
source is integrated in the control cabinet and
does not require additional floor space.
BYSPEED PRO 3015 – FULLY AUTOMATED
LASER CELL
Highly productive laser cutting with automated
processes, both on and alongside the machine, are
offered by the fully automated laser cell that was
first presented at EuroBLECH 2010. The heart of
the system is the new BySpeed Pro 3015 laser cutting system. If needed, it can be equipped with the
ByLaser 4400 or ByLaser 6000 laser sources. Both
these laser sources offer a constantly high beam
quality and extremely low operating costs.
16
In its standard form, the BySpeed Pro is equipped
with a completely new cutting head that optimally
supports the cutting and piercing technologies
used, such as the extremely efficient Regulated
Pulsed Piercing (RPP). Additionally, an optional automatic lens-cassette changer and the automated
nozzle changer introduced last year can be added.
These optional extras ensure that the laser beam
that hits the metal plate is optimally focused.
In order to take full advantage of the extended
machine autonomy of the BySpeed Pro, the automation alongside the machine has also been expanded. Already in the past, Bystronic customers
were able to take advantage of the Bycell fully automated storage system and the ByTrans and
ByTrans Extended storage systems. The latter pro-
Fully automated laser cell: BySpeed Pro
with ByTrans Extended and BySort.
vides the automatic unloading and loading of the
shuttle table and additionally provides a single
(ByTrans) or two cassettes (ByTrans Extended) for
the storing of material or cut sheets.
This automated solution has been extended with
the recently developed BySort facility. With BySort,
the parts are automatically removed from the cut
sheet and sorted and stacked. Because this work
no longer has to be done by hand and parts are no
longer scratched, both the user’s internal manpower and the material are protected. Additionally,
the transition to the subsequent processes is simplified significantly. As an additional advantage:
BySort can be easily controlled from the machine
terminal and permits unobstructed access to the
shuttle table when it is not required.
BYLASER 3300 AND BYLASER 4400 –
LESS ENERGY, GREATER EFFECT
With the new laser sources ByLaser 3300 and
ByLaser 4400, Bystronic increases productivity and
reduces the energy used. Thanks to a shorter startup time, the unit can be used to cut just six minutes
after it has been switched on. And the cutting process is accelerated: The new Regulated Pulsed
Piercing (RPP) is even faster than Controlled Pulsed
Piercing (CPP). It is also more economical on the
nozzle and the lens and much simpler to use since
fewer parameters have to be set. Thanks to the increased efficiency, the electricity used is lower
compared with earlier models. The Power Saving
Mode is an additional facility that considerably reduces the energy usage in the standby mode. A further electricity-saving measure also increases the
safety: The high voltage is switched off as soon as
a service technician opens the safety door to the
laser source.
The wear-free semiconductor excitation and the
magnetic bearings, which are thus also wear-free,
ensure low maintenance costs. Thanks to the reduced use of energy and the increased productivity,
the laser sources are extremely economical.
MICROWATERJET – FOR SMALL
PRECISION PARTS
A new addition to the Bystronic program is the
Microwaterjet. This machine is equipped with the
most precise cutting head on the market, produces
the (very) smallest of precision parts, and opens
the door to new, future-oriented markets. The
Microwaterjet is the only waterjet cutting machine
with which a reproducible manufacturing tolerance of plus/minus one hundredth of a millimeter
can be achieved. Additionally, it permits a constant
and reliable repetition accuracy of 2.5 micrometers
to the finest detail and across its complete working
range. With such values the Microwaterjet is able
to compete with fine milling and wire eroding,
which, while even more precise, are considerably
more expensive.
Typical uses can be found in the medical, electro,
and clock industries, but also in the vehicle,
17
The FixMaster automatically prevents
parts from tipping over into the jet and
being damaged.
New Options for Waterjet
Cutting
ByPump Ultra: The perfect solution for
handling extremely thick materials.
PrecisionAligner: Multihead cutting
with a single part. With the ByJet Pro,
a part can be cut four times as fast.
Complete flexibility in using the cutting
heads.
FixMaster: Parts can no longer be
tipped over by the water jet and damaged because glue points are auto
matically injected into the cut slit to
act as distance keepers. Microjoints
and manual fixing are no longer
necessary.
PositionPointer: Precise localization of
the material. The cutting plan is automatically aligned with the material
position. Permits even more productive
working and better use of the material.
The Microwaterjet opens the door to new
and future-oriented markets.
18
aeronautical, and space industries. Here the
Microwaterjet offers customers the possibility to
provide a high added value on the smallest of floor
spaces and permits a differentiation from its competitors while giving the company an innovative
image. The Microwaterjet is a Swiss product that is
sold by Bystronic within the context of a partnership agreement.
BYPUMP ULTRA – GREATER PRESSURE
FOR PARTICULARLY THICK MATERIALS
Additional waterjet innovations are the ultrahigh
pressure pumps, the ByPump Ultra and the
ByPump Ultra+. While the ByPump Active (previously known as the ByPump 50 APC) works with a
recommended working pressure of 3,600 bars, the
ByPump Ultra goes clearly over the 5,000-bar limit.
Hence, the pump is ideal for users who specifically
want to cut extremely thick materials.
However, anyone who wants to cut economically
and productively as broad a partial spectrum as
possible should continue to use the ByPump Active
in conjunction with multihead cutting. The reason
is that an increase in the working pressure from
3,600 to 5,300 bars on average provides around
40 percent more cutting power, which pays off
particularly in the case of what is known as niche
segments. If, however, 3,600 bars are used with
four cutting heads and the throughput is thus increased, the cutting rate can be increased by between 100 and 300 percent over a broad spectrum.
New Options for Bending
Energy Saver: Up to one third less energy usage, reduced machine noise, and less wasted heat. As soon as
the upper beam reaches the top dead center, the main motor of the pressbrake is automatically switched off
until the next bending process is started. The processing speed remains as high as usual. Optional for Xpert
pressbrakes.
LED workspace lighting: The working area is perfectly lit and operator fatigue can be avoided. The light
color of 8,000 Kelvin means that the metallic contours are ideally highlighted. The light is completely
shadowless, but also glare-free. It uses less energy than the conventional lighting, produces no heat, is maintenance-free, and is nonsensitive to vibrations. Optional for the Hämmerle 3P and Xpert pressbrakes.
New bending aid: Even greater flexibility with material handling, in particular with small lots with different
types and thicknesses of material. For example, it can be changed within just a matter of seconds from rollers to brushes or to plastic strips. Optional for the Hämmerle 3P and Xpert pressbrakes.
Bar code scanner: Once it has been read in, the bending program is opened automatically by the machine
control, and the job is started and completed without any further processing. Optimal extension to
Bybendpart, where the bar codes are generated. Optional for the Hämmerle 3P and Xpert pressbrakes.
The new bending aid enhances flexibility
in handling material.
Safety system Fast Bend+: Increased machine safety and productivity. Twenty percent less time required,
since it permits travel at the rapid-advance speed right until the tool is almost on the metal sheet. Automatically reset after every tool change. The tool parameters are stored in the machine control. If a tool is not
recognized by the system, the machine stops. Standard with the Hämmerle 3P and optional for the Xpert
pressbrakes.
19
Zhongxingxin China
High-tech from the
Pearl River Delta
China has transcended its former reputation as the factory of the world. the
country is transforming itself more and
more into a high-technology center. This
development is due to companies such as
Zhongxingxin, which produce high-tech
and import high-tech.
Text: Kristin Kupfer, Photos: Andy Maluche/OnAsia
Shenzhen, South China . With his hands
clasped together, engineer Chen Zhushan stands
in front of the Byspeed 3015 laser cutting system in
a production hall belonging to Zhongxingxin Telecommunication Equipment Ltd. “These fast, precise cuts,” marvels the 25-year-old in a blue work
jacket, “still seem almost like magic to me.” Chen
and a colleague have been operating the machine
for the last two years. They attended a two-week
training course to prepare for this. “What I like
about the Byspeed is that you have almost unlimited access to the cutting area,” says Chen, “furthermore, the control software is very user-friendly, and
naturally the performance of the system is really
impressive.” Zhong Jinqiang, Head of Sheet Metal
Processing, laughs and pats the young man on the
shoulder. “But without employees like you, even the
best machines are of no use to us.” Machine – made
in Switzerland; harmony – made in China.
Engineer Chen and the Bystronic system – employee and innovative investments – symbolically
represent the advances made by the technology
company. Founded in 1985 as a state-owned
semiconductor company, it subsequently benefited from China’s reform and openness policy,
which generated an enormous demand for tele-
21
Zhongxingxin China
New Zhongxingxin building at the
location in Dongguan.
communications equipment on the domestic market. This demand was satisfied, amongst other
things, by the first routers and switches, exotic
products at that time, which underline the company’s aspiration that is still valid today; to act in
plenty of time and not simply to react. Hence it
comes as no surprise to learn that in the mid1990s, Zhongxingxin was the first Chinese telecommunications company to be certified in accordance with ISO 9001, and in the year following
this – once again as the first local company in the
industry – began to sell its products and services
on the international markets. In 1997, the telecommunications business was consolidated under the
brand name ZTE and was listed first on the stock
exchange in Shenzhen and later also in Hong
Kong. Although it is only known to industry insiders in Europe and North America, ZTE is one of the
largest national and international suppliers of telecommunications equipment and network solutions today, with a turnover in 2009 of around
nine billion US dollars.
Subsequently, Zhongxingxin took on the primary
role of a holding company, which successively
encompassed further fields of activity. Today,
Zhongxingxin Holding consists of eight business
divisions that are almost exclusively active in hightech industries and manufacture fiber optics, highdensity multilayer boards, and environmental
monitoring systems, amongst other things, or offer
services, including in the field of environmental
protection. In addition, Zhongxingxin has the largely
independently operating Machinery Division,
which was founded in 1998 and today employs a
staff of around 2,600. Here, under the trade name
ZTE Cabinet, the primary focus is on the production of standardized housings for electronic components, initially for its own business with telecom-
munications and network equipment, later also for
sale to companies not belonging to the holding.
The number of cabinets sold to date lies well in the
seven-digit range. The products have already been
exported to some 150 countries.
International environment,
international customer base
The location of Shenzhen, Chinese for “deep irrigation canal,” played a decisive role in the development of the company. Once home to rice farmers
and fishermen, in 1980 the region was designated
as the first Chinese special economic zone. Using
tax reductions and other market-economy incentives, the aim was to attract foreign investment
capital. Today Shenzhen is a metropolis of nine
million residents surrounded by green hills not far
from the sea. With an average annual per capita
income of 14,000 US dollars, the city tops the table in a national comparison. A large number of
industrial parks have been established in Shenzhen
that have become home to many of the most important Chinese high-tech companies. Numerous
foreign and domestic IT companies have also
based their operations in this boomtown on the
Pearl River Delta. For example, in what has become known as the “iPod City” factory, the world’s
largest electronics manufacturer Foxconn produces iPods for Apple, amongst other things.
It was a mixture of a love for adventure and a
search for development perspectives that brought
Zhong Jinqiang to Shenzhen about ten years
ago. Although his hometown of Guilin has some
wonderful karst mountains, it offers virtually no
employment possibilities for a mechanical engineer. The 33-year-old Zhong Jinqiang joined
Zhongxingxin Telecommunication Equipment Ltd.
very early on and has worked his way up to be-
Zhong Jinqiang, Head of the Sheet Metal Processing department
of Zhongxingxin.
“Bystronic convinced
us with both the
price/performance
ratio and the service
package.”
Zhong Jinqiang, Head of
Sheet Metal Processing
22
Above: Workers prepare the metal housing for surface treatment. Below: Quality control and filing work on the ever decreasing number of punched parts.
Zhongxingxin China
iang, “including increased strategic thinking and a
stronger orientation towards international customers and markets.”
The managers at Zhongxingxin Machinery Division
also demonstrate their international orientation
in the production halls. Here one can find the
latest technologies from the USA, Germany, Japan,
Finland, Taiwan – and from Switzerland, namely
from Bystronic. The machine in question is a
Byspeed 3015 with 4.4 kilowatts of laser power,
which went into service about four years ago as the
second laser cutting machine at Zhongxingxin. The
first was provided by another manufacturer. However: “Bystronic convinced us with the price/performance ratio of the Byspeed, as well as with the
service package,” recalls Zhong. “Particularly important criteria were the flexibility of the system as
well as its dynamics and processing speed.” Speed
and flexibility are crucial, not least due to the buildto-order strategy the Zhongxingxin Machinery
Division introduced in 2005, which involves a
combination of serial production and customized
manufacturing. This means that the products are
offered as basic serial models, which the customer
can complement with specific details. The customer-specific configuration is completed after the order has been placed.
Technological expansion
Top: Byspeed laser cutting system in action. Center: The Xcel 50 pressbrake is the
new one in the Zhongxingxin range of machines. Bottom: The precise cutting of the
Byspeed can stand up to even the keenest inspection.
come Head of the Sheet Metal Processing department. He is equally respected and liked by his staff.
The average age difference between members of
the management and the men operating the machines is barely ten years. “Over recent years, there
have been a number of changes,” says Zhong Jinq-
24
While the investment in the laser cutting system
was pending, business friends also advised the
company to select Bystronic. “Word-of-mouth propaganda is very important here,” says Zhong,
“since in China, personal trust plays a central role
in purchasing decisions.” The Byspeed, according
to Zhong, has lived up to expectations. Furthermore, compared with its competitors, Bystronic
has the best customer service in China, with numerous services being offered and competent service technicians stationed nationwide. Following
installation of the Byspeed, a whole range of jobs,
which above all related to the mass production of
housing parts, were transferred from the punching
machines to the laser cutting systems. Particularly
for applications that demand flexibility, fast reaction times, and a high quality of the cut edges,
Zhong and his team put their trust in the Byspeed.
For example, door handles and wind-deflector
plates are now cut on the laser cutting system and
no longer punched.
The Byspeed also provides good service when
manufacturing prototypes, since it makes no difference to the cutting head of a laser cutting system what contour it has to cut, regardless of how
complex it may be. In contrast to a punching machine, a laser cutting system requires no special
tool, so that it can be used flexibly and economically. Zhongxingxin also benefits from this with the
latest addition to its product portfolio. Amongst
other things, the company develops temperature
regulators for the tracks of high-speed trains, since
China intends to upgrade hundreds of its railroad
Zhongxingxin China
“We must continue to invest in modern equipment,
especially as foreign orders are beginning to pick up again.”
Li Zhihong, Managing Director Zhongxingxin Machinery Division
lines. Thus, for example, the 1,100-kilometer-long
northern segment of the high-speed train route
from Beijing to Hong Kong will be completed in
2012, reducing the travel time between the two
cities from 23 to eight hours.
For Li Zhihong, Managing Director of the Machinery
Division, the continual expansion of the product
portfolio is one of the two most crucial challenges
for the company. The other consists of quality assurance, in particular in relation to large orders
that have to be processed within a short period of
time. “We must continue to invest in modern
equipment,” says Li Zhihong, “in particular at a
time when foreign orders are beginning to pick up
again.” This is also the reason why two brand-new
Bystronic machines were delivered to the new
factory in Dongguan just a few days ago: a
BySprint 3015 laser cutting system and an Xcel 50
pressbrake. The latter originates from Bystronic’s
own development and production plant in the
Chinese city of Tianjin, which the Swiss machine
manufacturer has operated since 2002. The
plant manufactures machines primarily for the
domestic market, but also for export.
Li Riliang, Chief Engineer at the Zhongxingxin
Telecommunication Equipment Ltd.’s factory built
in 2008 in Dongguan, is eager to see how the performance characteristics of the BySprint compare
to the Byspeed installed in Shenzhen. In terms of
dynamics, speed, and flexibility, the latter is the
flagship amongst the Bystronic CO2 laser cutting
systems, which admittedly has its price. The
BySprint, on the other hand, is extremely economical and an excellent alternative to the Byspeed
when predominantly parts with a material thickness of up to six millimeters are to be cut. What he
also likes about Bystronic is that the company is
based in a neutral country. “Of all the machine
producers on the market, our first choice is the
Bystronic brand,” says Li and smiles.
Dr. Kristin Kupfer, sinologist and political scientist,
has lived in Beijing since May 2007, where she
works as a freelance journalist. Amongst other things,
she regularly contributes to renowned German-
language media such as “Profil” and “Zeit Online.”
25
KEMA Germany
The Universal Cutters
The Kema metalworking shop has earned an excellent reputation through versatility
and flexibility. And now the business is being expanded to include waterjet cutting! For the
fitters, no problem part is so exotic that it is not worth attempting a trial cut on the
ByJet Pro L 6030. Mostly with success.
Text: Volker Albrecht, Photos: Stephan Dürer
26
KEMA Germany
Left: Dieter May and Klaus-Peter Kersch with
their ByJet Pro L 6030. Below: Raw material
waiting to be processed in the Kema factory
yard at Trierweiler.
Underneath the waterjet, a part that will
finally become a bioethanol stove revolves. The
1.5-meter-long 323 steel pipe with a wall thickness
of eight millimeters is being cut on the rotary axis
of a ByJet Pro L 6030 waterjet cutting system. The
machine stands in the Schlosserei Kema metalworking shop in Trierweiler, Germany, where it will
cut holes in another 400 such pipes this year. The
material for this is already held in stock.
Ceiling-high racks separate the system from the
rest of the workshop. With its six by three meter
cutting area, the installation of the ByJet Pro L was
carefully conceived and executed in order to save
space: The pump and other elements were installed on a three-meter-high steel platform, the
abrasive sand is stashed in a several stories high
hopper, and there are no big bags in sight. Even
the tank for the used water-sand mixture that has
to be disposed of is half hidden under the steel
platform. In December 2009, Dieter May and
Klaus-Peter Kersch entered the world of waterjet
cutting with their 35-person company – as a second business segment. Metal structures for the
building industry, balconies, handrails, and stair
constructions in steel and stainless steel are their
actual métier: “The word ‘Schlosserei’ (fitter’s shop)
in the company’s name says it all,” says Dieter May,
who set up the company together with Klaus-Peter
Kersch in two garages more than ten years ago.
The noise confirms this: In the workshop, the deafening sounds cause one’s eardrums to vibrate;
banging, hammering, welding – welding fumes
hang in the air; the smell of fresh paint is overpowering. The order currently being processed is
for cycle shelters for the city center of nearby
Luxemburg.
The internal fittings of the stage tower of the
Luxemburg Metropolitan Theater also originated
in the workshop in Trierweiler. And Kema has also
taken over the maintenance contract for the fire
doors of the new Philharmonic in the grand duchy.
Additionally, there are installations and customized
systems for industry. Kema’s preferred material is
stainless steel. Nevertheless, an example of a 20millimeter-thick glass oval engraved with a company logo sits on a samples table next to the
ByJet Pro L. It is a special Christmas gift for the key
“Many customers not
only place
fitter’s shop
orders, but
also cutting
orders.”
Dieter May,
Managing Director,
Kema Schlosserei GmbH
27
The optional rotary axis allows processing of round and profile tubes. Handling of the ByJet Pro L is extremely user-friendly.
KEMA Germany
customer, the Dr. Oetker frozen pizza factory in
Wittlich. “Not an easy task,” as Dieter May explains
in passing, since when glass is engraved on the surface, it releases tensions that can easily make it
shatter.”
The Demand for Cut Parts in a
Range of Materials Is Growing
Dieter May became aware that many customers
not only had fitter’s shop orders to place, but also
cutting orders, and not only in stainless steel, but
also in plastics such as S® (ultrahigh molecular
polyethylene). When the time came to replace the
obsolete plasma machine, it made sense to expand the business with a waterjet cutting system
offering high flexibility in terms of the type and
thickness of material. Following an intensive period
of assessment, about a year ago, the Expert version
of the ByJet Pro L was selected. It has four cutting
heads that can be individually controlled and
whose separation distance can be automatically
adjusted. Compared with a single-head system,
orders can be processed up to four times faster.
And with the PrecisionAligner, which was presented by Bystronic at the EuroBLECH 2010 exhibition
for the first time but is not yet used at Kema, multiple-head cutting is also possible within a single
part. The resulting productivity makes all notions
of requiring an even higher cutting pressure redundant. Dieter May is convinced that he would not
cut one jot faster with 6,000 bars than with the
ByJet Pro L with 3,600 bars. Furthermore, he
would then have to reckon with considerably
higher wear and tear and exorbitant costs.
The cutting area of six by three meters has two
advantages for Kema: firstly, extra-long parts can
be cut, and secondly, thanks to the option of subdividing the working area, the machine can be
used like a shuttle table system. This means that
one area of the cutting table can be loaded and
unloaded while the machine cuts in the other area.
To ensure that the loading and unloading can take
place conveniently and that it takes no longer than
the cutting process even with short-cutting-time
orders, the ByJet Pro L is equipped with exchangeable cassettes that can easily be lifted using a lifting
beam. The managers at Kema treated themselves
to a further extra, the rotary axis integrated in the
machine. With the aid of this rotary axis, round
and profile tubes with a diameter of up to 500 millimeters and a length of up to 5,700 millimeters
can be processed.
Immediately following the installation of the
ByJet Pro L, the investment was assessed in detail;
after all, the ambition to take full advantage of the
possibilities offered by the new high-tech weapon
was high. “We learned how to handle the machine
and waterjet cutting in a compressed form.” The
two most capable employees were trained to
become machine operators. The programming
know-how was acquired by Dieter May and his
workshop manager. “We collected and cut leftover
pieces of granite, glass, POM and S® Green, steel,
Despite the expansion of business to
include waterjet cutting, the fitter’s
shop remains the core business of Kema.
and stainless steel. Without having received any
orders. When the first orders came in after eight
weeks, we had mastered the machine.” Half a year
later, the programmers and operators have internalized the way to change the parameters in order
to optimize the cut quality with new materials. This
saves valuable time, since the machine capacity is
well used. For Dieter May, it is precisely the problem parts that are most interesting, not only
because they are technically appealing, but also
because with parts that could only be cut with
great difficulty using traditional processes, there is
seldom any haggling over the price.
“Our principal business is with stainless steel in the
30-millimeter range, sometimes also up to 45 or
50 millimeters,” says Dieter May. With construction steel, even greater thicknesses have been cut.
And additionally, of course, there is an enormously
broad spectrum of other materials. When he travels to visit customers, he takes a wide range of
samples with him. “It is astounding just how many
people involved in mechanical processing don’t
know what quality of cut is achieved with waterjet
cutting. A quality of finish for which no allowances
have to be planned in. We deliver the part in a
finished state; at the most, a thread may still have
to be cut. But one seldom receives an order without a visit, without consultation.” It is here that the
effort he has invested in creating samples from
various materials, of various thicknesses, and with
various cutting qualities really pays off. The spectrum ranges from Pertinax, which clogs up milling
machines, foam rubber that is cut as a sandwich
between wooden sheets because it would other-
29
KEMA Germany
Top: Cleaning the ByJet Pro L.
Center: Operation of the machine is
simple and highly intuitive. Bottom:
The exchangeable cassettes, together
with lifting equipment, allow easy
unloading of parts.
30
KEMA Germany
wise be blown away, through to polyamide plastic,
PVC, POM and S® Green, and on to DIN 1626
(St42) steel and aluminum. “We have even cut 3.5millimeter holes in 20-millimeter V4A stainless
steel. It’s possible,” says Dieter May
Versatility and Flexibility
Are in Demand
Only a year after the ByJet Pro L was put into service at Kema, Dieter May can already reel off one
cutting story after another. He talks about a glazier
who came to him with ninety glass parts that were
two centimeters too wide because the customer
had measured incorrectly. On the glass-cutting machine, the glass shattered during the trimming;
with the ByJet Pro L it was no problem. Or the
story about the granite mason for whom he was
able to cut small holes because the mason did not
have the corresponding diamond for this type of
granite. Today, this granite mason brings him the
craziest things to process. He has even cut crystallized quartz into thin slices for him: “That was a
pioneering feat.”
Waterjet cutting also offers advantages in Kema’s
core business. “It’s a refinement of our work. For
example, a traditional metalworking shop buys
standard die cast glass clips in order to secure glass
balustrades. But architects don’t want off-the-shelf
articles and design their own clips of stainless steel.
These are then cut by us precisely according to
specification – and the rubber washers at the same
time.” With such services one can soon make a
name for oneself in the building industry, just as
with the processing of weathering (Corten) steel,
which according to Dieter May has become an essential part of every building in the historic city
center of Luxemburg. If this steel, which when oxidized develops a decorative surface, is cut on a
plasma machine or a laser cutting machine, the cut
edges no longer rust as quickly. This is not an issue
with heat-free waterjet cutting.
And with that, Dieter May returns to the housings
for the bioethanol stoves. These, too, were once
problem parts for the retailer in Trier who assembles
the stoves for a Swiss stove maker. He was unable
to find anyone within a radius of 300 kilometers
who was able to cut the parts cleanly. Instead, the
frayed edges produced by laser cutting were welded, polished, and varnished. “We had to construct
special mountings for the rotary axis, but it’s possible
without additional finishing,” and in fact far better
than the customer had expected. The same customer has in the meantime requested sample cuts
of cylinders made of heat-resistant glass, and will
almost certainly place an order for this work.
In spite of, or perhaps because of, the good business trend, Dieter May now has a problem. “The
machine is operating almost at full capacity.” This
means that the ByJet Pro L is in service between 14
and 17 hours a day at the moment. From seven in
the morning until five in the afternoon, one of the
two operators monitors the system. “After five
o’clock we set up the machine with long-running
Reliable and powerful: The highpressure pump enables extremely
precise cutting.
orders that are programmed in sequence and are
processed unmanned throughout the night.” Dieter
May is delighted that he deliberately chose reliable
engineering, which in future will be supported by a
text message (SMS) notification system for the
operator and a webcam.
Today, Kema has adjusted its organization to the
new basic conditions: The reduction of throughput
time from one to three months in the metalworking shop to three to five days with waterjet cutting
has raised a number of issues as far as material
handling is concerned. In the meantime, an automated warehouse is under construction for steel
and stainless steel, and as far as the more exotic
materials are concerned, it is up to the customer to
deliver the materials and pick up the leftovers after
the job has been completed.
The ByJet Pro L now operates at almost full capacity, performing commissioned work on approximately a two-shift basis. Hence, the decision to
purchase an additional Bystronic waterjet cutting
system has already been made internally in order
to regain the flexibility to make samples and test
cuts. For in the final analysis, flexibility is the basis of
Kema’s success. “Mixed products, mixed customers:
That’s the strategy. We want to maintain our flexibility,” summarizes Dieter May. Proof of this approach can be seen in one of his latest projects,
which you would not normally expect to find in a
metalworking shop: “Very soon we will be cutting
pizza cheese on our system. On a test basis. This
cheese is used by the ton for frozen pizzas and always causes problems with the knives.” Naturally,
the cheese will be disposed of after the tests.
Whether or not this will lead to a long-term cutting
order on a specially purchased pure-water waterjet
system is still written in the stars. But in the meantime, it is clear in which machine manufacturer
Dieter May would place his trust.
“Mixed products, mixed
customers:
That’s the
strategy.”
Dieter May,
Managing Director,
Kema Schlosserei GmbH
Volker Albrecht, Dipl.-Ing., is a journalist who lives in Bamberg, Germany,
and has many years of experience as
editor-in-chief and publications manager with production-oriented trade
magazines.
31
Focus software
GREATER NET WORTH THANKS TO SOFTWARE
The right software pays off, because the right software makes
a company more productive and profitable. Here is the proof.
Text: Martin Engel, Photos: Rudolf Wichert/Laif, André Zelck/Laif
it’s Time to do away with the common
misconception that software has only a marginal
effect on productivity in sheet metal processing. Far
from it, say Achim Patz and Friedrich Feyl in unison.
Achim Patz is Head of Laser Technology and Sheet
Metal Processing with Huning Maschinenbau
GmbH, and Friedrich Feyl is Manager Factory
Engineering in the Obersontheim plant of Alfred
Kärcher GmbH & Co. KG. Both companies decided
to use the Bystronic CAD/CAM software Bysoft
and, according to the two protagonists, have thus
increased company profits: The costs were amortized within a time period that is virtually negligible.
This can be verified, and for this we will first point
the spotlight at Huning Maschinenbau GmbH.
There the focus will be on the financial benefit of
“It is important
that the processes be depicted
correctly in the
system at all
times.”
Achim Patz, Head of Laser
Technology and Sheet
Metal Processing, Huning
Maschinenbau
32
the Bysoft Plant Manager Cutting (PMC) module.
The function of this module is the planning and
monitoring of the cutting processes. Subsequently,
we will turn our attention to Alfred Kärcher GmbH
& Co. KG with a focus on Bybendpart. This module
is initially used to parameterize production-ready
3D models of bent parts and to generate the corresponding bending process data.
HUNING MASCHINENBAU:
THE INITIAL SITUATION
Huning Maschinenbau GmbH, based in Melle
about 100 kilometers southeast of Hanover,
Germany, is part of the Huning Group. All of the
four companies of this group are involved in the
broadest sense in environmental technology and
environmental protection, and their business areas
are complementary. By way of illustration: Huning
Umwelttechnik sells services in a wide range of
areas. The three other companies manufacture
the hardware that is needed for this, for example
container vehicles for bulk materials (Heitling
Fahrzeugbau), sieving machines and conveyor systems (Heitling Anlagebau), and components for
biogas systems (Huning Maschinenbau). Of course
this is just a brief summary of the full range. And in
order to avoid any misunderstanding: The products are not only used at Huning Umwelttechnik,
but are primarily sold on the open market.
Huning Maschinenbau comprises the environmental technology and biogas division as well as
the sheet metal processing profit center. Here, orders are processed for external customers as well
as for the companies of the Huning Group. Their
share has risen from around 40 to 70 percent in
recent years. “On the one hand, this is because
fewer orders were received from third-party com-
The PMC creates absolute transparency in the laser production.
panies during the economic crisis, and on the other
hand, it’s because the Group’s business is doing
pleasingly well,” explains Achim Patz. He manages
the superbly equipped sheet metal processing facility. In particular, after the move to the company’s
own brand-new headquarters in December 2010,
the modernization of the laser processing facilities
was continued. The following laser cutting systems
are currently installed at the new location:
•Bystar L 4025-80. Commissioned in 2011. Cutting
area eight by 2.5 meters. 6,000 watts laser power.
•Bystar 4020. Commissioned in 2011. Cutting area
four by two meters. 6,000 watts laser power.
Connection to automatic warehouse.
•Byspeed 3015. Commissioned in 2003. Cutting
area three by 1.5 meters. 4,400 watts laser
power. Connection to automatic warehouse.
Naturally, the two new machines have not been
able to provide reliable figures in such a short time
– figures that could serve to calculate the influence
of the software on the productivity of the laser
processing. Thus, we will first examine the situation
before the move. At that time, the following two
systems were in use:
•Bystar L 4025-60. Commissioned in 1999. Cutting
area 6.5 by 2.5 meters. 3,500 watts laser power.
34
•Byspeed 3015. Commissioned in 2003. Cutting
area three by 1.5 meters. 4,400 watts laser power. Connection to automatic warehouse.
HUNING MASCHINENBAU:
THE BENEFITS OF PMC
First of all, the most important fact is that by using
the PMC, Huning Maschinenbau GmbH makes
real savings. Calculations show that the costs for
the software license and the training of the employees were amortized by the company in less
than a single year. Since the expiry of this period,
the cost savings have been flowing unfiltered into
the profit calculation and ensure a competitive advantage that should not be underestimated.
However, this does not entirely illustrate the real
benefit of the PMC. Over and above the economic
figures, for Achim Patz there are additional criteria
that are of significant value. In his own words, “The
entire process, from the transfer of data from the
ERP, the order processing, and through to the
feedback of the production data to the ERP, is
100 percent transparent.” Two factors explain why
it is of prime importance for him to maintain an
overview. Firstly: Orders are received from different areas; they come from the individual compa-
Improved processes mean a higher parts output and hence increased profit.
nies of the Huning Group as well as from external
customers. Secondly: The order books are well
filled, so that the sheet metal processing department is working three shifts. “In situations like this,
it is important that the processes be depicted correctly in the system at every point in time,” explains
Achim Patz.
The correct reproduction of the actual situation
also takes into account that in rare cases, faults can
arise in the cutting process. For this reason, at
Huning, the finished report that the machine automatically sends to the software after finishing an
order is initially checked by an employee who is
closely associated with production, the “ByMaster.”
“Only when he has confirmed that all the parts are
correctly cut is the order reported back to the ERP
as completely processed and furnished with all the
relevant information,” explains Achim Patz. Thus,
he can always give the customer the correct information about the state of processing. From his
point of view, this is without doubt a further
strength of the software: “Subprocesses such as
the assignment of CAD data to the orders or the
creation of cutting plans are performed independently by the PMC, but can also be done manually.” It is like having a chauffeur: He can drive you
safely to your destination, but if you want to drive
yourself you can put him in the passenger seat.
The PMC creates transparency on many levels:
“We always know exactly at any point in time
which machine is working at what capacity and
how many shifts we need to plan,” says Achim
Patz enthusiastically. The software also supports
the billing by correctly and automatically assigning
all the necessary data to the orders. Thus, it was
only with this software that short-run orders became profitable, explains Achim Patz. Additionally,
a further project that is important both to himself
and his Operations Manager Heiko Schmidt is
made possible by the PMC: the introduction of
bonuses for the laser cutting employees. The PMC
supplies the necessary data for this scheme.
The company has had positive experiences with
the bonus system in other areas, at Heitling
Fahrzeugbau, for example, where productivity was
increased by over 20 percent.
No, Achim Patz would no longer want to do without the PMC, since it supports growth and profitability. He refers to the situation at a company
about which he has personal knowledge. “There,
the boss starts work at four o’clock in the morning
and finishes sometime in the evening. He could
35
Left: Bending programs are written at a separate workplace and called up on the machine. Right: Development of the 3D data using Bybendpart
and bending sequence simulation lead to high-precision bent parts.
not be more committed. So he can only grow by
improving his processes, for example by using the
PMC,” says Achim Patz. But this requires an initial
investment of time, which he thinks he cannot really afford. And thus he misses out on the enormous potential that lies in the process improvement. At Huning Maschinenbau, this potential has
been recognized. And thus the PMC contributes
its share to organizational improvement and to the
company’s success.
KÄRCHER: THE INITIAL SITUATION
Who does not know them: the yellow high-pressure cleaners and steam cleaners, the sweepers
and vacuum sweepers, the floor polishers, the
steam ironing systems, and so on? Kärcher, the
Swabian family-run business that celebrated its
75th anniversary in 2010, is the global market leader in cleaning technology. But what very few people know is that with the steadily growing subsidiary Kärcher Futuretech, the company also aspires
to achieve a leading position in the area of peacekeeping and relief work after disasters. The corresponding portfolio of products ranges from NBC
protection systems, water purification and camping systems, right through to mobile catering systems such as field kitchens. Equipment like this
from Kärcher Futuretech has already saved lives at
numerous global hot spots, for example after the
devastating earthquakes in Haiti and currently in
Japan.
Those who read Kärcher’s mission statement will
find that the terms “quality” and “technology” have
36
top priority. Accordingly, the company develops
and produces exclusively at its home base in
Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The central construction and development as well as a part of the
production are located at the headquarters in
Winnenden near Stuttgart. The Obersontheim
plant is one of three further production centers. In
particular, it distinguishes itself by its state-of-theart sheet metal processing facility. Here, virtually
all the sheet metal parts and components for all
the company’s businesses, including Kärcher
Futuretech, are produced. The bending is done on
a Bystronic pressbrake of the Hämmerle 3P series,
because the 3-point bending technology employed ensures extraordinarily precise work and a
maximum amount of flexibility. The latter is needed because of the nearly 9,000 different parts that
are listed in the corresponding database and because of the small orders that normally consist of a
maximum of fifty pieces. “We do not produce for
stock, but are demand oriented,” explains Friedrich
Feyl. The Manager Factory Engineering has a total
of five Hämmerle pressbrakes at his disposal, for
bending lengths up to 2.1 and 3.1 meters as well as
pressing forces of 100, 200, and 225 tons.
KÄRCHER: THE BENEFITS
OF BYBENDPART
Let us again start by saying that Kärcher makes
significant economies through the use of the
Bysoft module Bybendpart. As with Huning, the
costs for the software license and the schooling
were amortized within a short time. “In the invest-
focus software
ment request, we stated an amortization period of
six months,” Friedrich Feyl recalls. This period was
considerably undercut.
These savings are based on the fact that the bending programs are no longer written at the machines, but at a separate workstation with the aid
of the Bysoft module Bybendpart. Hence, the
downtime of the pressbrakes is significantly reduced. For Kärcher, this meant that no new machines had to be acquired to satisfy the increasing
demand for bent parts. And here also, the benefit
of the software goes beyond these advantages. For
example, 3D models can be created or processed
easily using Bybendpart. “In this respect, we have
a standardized procedure. This means that the
3D data is generated separately in Winnenden
without Bybendpart and is then sent to us in
Obersontheim via SAP,” Friedrich Feyl explains the
process. There, the STEP data is processed. Moreover, with the aid of a bending sequence simulation, a check is made as to whether a part is bendable at all. “It’s a real advantage,” says Friedrich Feyl,
and demonstrates two bent parts – one with 26
and one with 41 bends. “I would personally not
have thought that something can be bent like this,”
adds the Group Leader, “but with Bybendpart,
we are able to exhaust the full possibilities of the
machine.”
Thanks to the described process, one always has a
correct DXF file, followed by the corresponding
bending program a few minutes later, and subsequently the matching parts. This used to take a lot
longer. Friedrich Feyl doesn’t like to think back on
the times when the stretched lengths in the blank
drawings were usually faulty. “We had to make
countless changes before everything fit,” he says
with a dismissive wave of his hand. The introduction of Bybendpart was a quantum leap in this regard, he says.
A further advantage should not be forgotten:
thanks to the first-class 3-point bending systems
used in conjunction with Bybendpart, the motto in
the Kärcher sheet metal processing is: ”Less welding, more bending.“ With Bybendpart, models of
complete assemblies can be processed. In this way,
redundant welding can be identified quickly and
the individual assembly is easily redesigned. “Our
people have become quite competitive about using bent parts instead of welded assemblies,” explains Friedrich Feyl. Hence, the company saves
money and the assemblies are theoretically able to
withstand more stress, although their design tolerances ensure that this is never an issue.
The conclusion is: The right software pays off! It
saves time and money and can be acquired at low
cost. It makes sheet metal processing more productive and gives its users significant competitive
advantages. This is why every company owner and
everyone responsible for production must ask themselves whether they are giving enough thought to
the subject of software.
“With Bybendpart,
we are able to
exhaust the full
possibilities of
the machine.”
Friedrich Feyl, Group Leader
Production Planning, Kärcher
37
Geared up for the
stainless steel boom
The market for stainless steel in Turkey still
has massive potential. And just as massive
as the expected growth are the investments
with which Saritaş – the leading supplier
and operator of Turkey’s largest stainless
steel service center – is preparing itself for
the future: For a total of 230 million US
dollars, ONE OF the largest and most modern steel service centers in the world is
being constructed. Already playing a part
in this during the initial construction
phase: a Bystar 4020.
Text: Batu Köroğlu, Photos: Fatih Pinar /Anzenberger Agency
SARITAŞ TURKEY
Past and future: The current headquarters in Ümraniye (left) is complemented with a massive expansion in Gebze (right).
“By 2015, we
want to be delivering 150,000
tons of steel,
and by 2020 it
should be
200,000 tons.”
Ercüment Saritaş,
Chairman of the Board
Saritaş – in Turkey, this name is synonymous
with stainless steel. In a strategic realignment, the
company founded by Huseyin Saritaş in 1957, had
already in 1980 – at a turning point for the Turkish
economy – sold off its other divisions such as
the construction steel business, and focused ex
clusively on stainless steel. This proved to be a
spot-on decision, because the use of stainless steel
in Turkey has since significantly increased, and
Saritaş has become the leading supplier for the
Turkish market.
70,000 tons of stainless steel from well-known
European steel producers such as Outokumpu,
ThyssenKrupp, Arcelor, or Acerinox as well as topclass Asian stainless steel mills like Tisco, Posco, and
Yusco was delivered to a wide range of customers
in 2010. However, for Ercüment Saritaş, the Chairman of the Board, this is just the beginning. As early
as 2015, he wants his family business to be delivering around 150,000 tons of stainless steel, and just
five years later, in 2020, it should be 200,000 tons,
at a total capacity of 300,000 tons per year. The
basis for this ambitious planning is the current
Turkish annual consumption, which at four kilograms per person lies clearly below the EU average
of ten kilograms per person and promises enormous growth potential.
Innovation and growth course
Such dimensions will push the limits even of
Turkey’s largest stainless steel center to date, built
in Ümraniye by Saritaş in 1998. In spite of the very
latest equipment for slitting and cutting to length,
brushing, grinding, foil coating, and plasma cutting,
the capacity with a production area of 20,000
square meters is by no means adequate to handle
40
the targeted requirements. This means it’s time for
a new building, which will eclipse anything that
has existed until now.
In spite of the worldwide crisis, the company remained true to its innovation and growth course
and in the year of its fiftieth anniversary initiated
the largest investment in the history of the company: Construction is under way, with a price tag
of 230 million US dollars, on the Gebze industrial
estate, without doubt the most advanced and desirable in Turkey. As an extension to the factory in
Ümraniye, a stainless steel service center is being
built that is of international format and which,
when fully completed, will consist of a production
area of 160,000 square meters and a multitude of
state-of-the-art machines. Technologies that until
now were not part of the company’s portfolio will
also be introduced. At the top of the list is laser
technology.
Developing new markets with Help
from Bystronic
Thus, as one of altogether ten new production
systems, a Bystronic Bystar 4020 was already installed in the first construction phase (Gebze-1),
consisting of 25,000 square meters of production
area and 50,000 square meters of total area. The
first laser cutting system in the history of the company is a clear demonstration that with the new
factory, Saritaş intends not only to grow in the existing segments, but also wants to develop new
markets. One of the defined business objectives is
to invest continuously in state-of-the-art technologies and in the training of the employees in order
to be able to meet the steadily growing requirements of the market. Says Ercüment Saritaş: “As a
Relative quiet before the storm: Preparations are far advanced in the recently completed first building tract at Gebze.
Idleness equals decline. The Saritaş company aims to offer further services, develop new markets, and exploit the potential demand for stainless steel
in Turkey. The Bystar 4020 will be instrumental in achieving these targets.
SARITAŞ TURKEY
“We are very satisfied with the laser cutting system, and in
the next phase of the investment plan will probably once
again choose a Bystronic product.”
Ercüment Saritaş
significant component of our Master Investment
Plan, in an initial phase we are expanding our process capability and are complementing our portfolio with laser cutting, plasma cutting, guillotine
plate shears, and vertical sawing lines. With this
strategic decision, we are conforming to the wishes
of our long-standing customers.”
The fact that the choice fell on Bystronic for the
laser cutting system is mainly attributable – in addition to the good reputation of the company in
Turkey – to the service. Ercüment Saritaş explains:
“Bystronic is not only well known in Turkey, but also has the best service and support network – this
was actually the main reason why we chose
Bystronic.” Praise indeed for Bystronic’s Turkish
Sales and Service Company, which was set up
three years ago and will probably have cause to
celebrate another order soon. Ercüment Saritaş
adds: “We are very satisfied with the performance
of the laser cutting system, and in the next phase
of our investment plan will in all probability once
again choose a Bystronic product.”
The second construction phase, which should be
completed in 2012, will incidentally be significantly
larger than the first: 113,000 square meters will be
added to the initial 50,000 square meters, and the
roofed area of the stainless steel service center will
thus grow to 75,000 square meters. The objective
of the expansion and the numerous new machines
that will move into the halls is clearly defined by
Ercüment Saritaş: “We want to put our company in
a position to be able to meet to perfection the future demands of the market.”
Saritaş
The independent, family-run business Saritaş Celik Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S. is the leading supplier
of stainless steel in Turkey and operates the largest stainless steel service center in the country.
The company supplies stainless steel at thicknesses from 0.4 to 100 millimeters and uses the very
latest systems for slitting and cutting to length, for grinding and brushing of coils and steel sheets,
for foil coating, for plasma cutting, and for laser cutting.
In addition to the standard qualities AISI 304 / 304L / 321 / 316 / 316L / 316Ti / 310S / 430,
Saritaş offers special materials for special customer requirements. As one of very few companies,
Saritaş has been certified by TÜV (the German Technical Inspection Association) according to ISO
9001:2000 (Quality Management), ISO 14001 (Environmental Management) and OHSAS 18001
(Occupational Health and Safety).
43
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Laser | Bending | Waterjet
bystronic.com

BystronicWorld 1/2011 - Bystronic Media Database

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