September 2014

up
grade
Newsletter for customers, employees and partners
volume 16, issue no. 32, September 2014
News
Hirschvogel relies
on LASCO
pre-forming unit
The well-known German automotive
supplier Hirschvogel ordered a LASCO
forging roll type RCW 560 So for its
production site in Pinghu, China.
Mubea calibrates
with direct drive
technology
The new hydraulic servo direct drive from
LASCO is now used by Mubea, specialist for heavy-duty spring components for
vehicles, too. The automotive supplier
calibrates disk springs with a new LASCO
multi-purpose press VPE 400 in its plant
in Daaden (Germany).
Know-how
Higher efficiency
through
electric upsetting
The demand for higher and higher efficiency in production brings a classic forming
process, the electric upsetting, a renaissance: Due to extended requirements,
LASCO has completely re-engineered the
well-proven technology and offers lines
that highly convince in many fields of application.
LASCO UMFORMTECHNIK
WERKZEUGMASCHINENFABRIK
Editorial
Trends + Markets
Friedrich Herdan
Partner and
Chairman of the Board
Langenstein & Schemann GmbH
Bavarian State Minister of Economic Affairs and Media, Energy and Technology and Deputy MinisterPresident of Bavaria Ilse Aigner (3rd from left) is getting information about LASCO from Sales Director
Dr.-Ing. Stefan Erxleben (3rd from right) and Dr. Theodor Tutmann, Director of the Industrieverband
Massivumformung e. V. (German Association for Solid Forming) (2nd from right) at the exhibition stand.
Maintaining respect
Hanover Fair: State Minister Aigner visits LASCO
We are looking at the growing
international tensions caused by
the political developments in the
eastern neighbourhood of the EU
full of concern and are sharing the
hope with our business associates
in Russia and the Ukraine that
solutions will be found through
diplomatic channels that will bring
about acceptable reconciliation of
the legitimate interests of all parties involved. This requires direct
communication based on mutual
respect.
Impressed by innovative strength
We do not take it upon ourselves
to judge decisions and deeds
which are in the responsibility of
politics. However, in the light of
the 150 years of our company history and international experience,
it seems admissible to emphasize
one idea:
The highest dynamics in increasing wealth and benefits has always
been achieved in times of international cooperation and never in
times of confrontation.
Throughout the times of global
political changes of the 19th and
20th century LASCO has established and expanded international
business relationships and has
always been a reliable partner for
our customers. We want to and
will continue this way.
Yours
Friedrich Herdan
2
up grade LASCO 32/14
Bavarian Minister of Economic
Affairs Ilse Aigner was impressed
with the innovative strength of the
mechanical engineering company
during her visit to LASCO at the
Hanover Fair.
The Minister got a personal impression of
the international competitiveness of Bavarian companies during her tour of the most
important industrial fair world-wide. At the
joint exhibition stand of the Industrieverband
Massivumformung e. V. (IMU) she was informed about LASCO’s contribution to trends
and new develoments in the fields of material
and resource efficiency.
LASCO was one of 30 other IMU member
companies on an exhibition space of more
than 1000 m2. The key issue of “lightweight
forging” of the joint IMU exhibition picked up
the thread of the manifold research activities
of the association in this field.
21st IFC: Meeting
point of the
forging world
LASCO symposium
for experts
in Bratislava
With 750 delegates from 30 countries the 21st
International Forging Congress (IFC) in Berlin
(29 June – 1 July) advanced to the position of
meeting point for key members of the global
forging industry. The invitation for this event
was extended by EUROFORGE, the European
umbrella organization for eleven national forging organizations. The congress focussed on
high-calibre technical lectures on technology
and mega trends of the industry.
LASCO supported the event as ambassador
sponsor and took the unique opportunity to talk
to customers and prospective buyers from all
over the world at the accompanying exhibition. Following the congress 290 participants
accepted the offer to visit 41 leading forming
companies in seven European countries. A
large number of the host companies are among
LASCO’s customers and allowed access to their
production sites.
46 representatives of forming companies
from Slovakia, Czechia and Austria accepted
LASCO’s invitation to take part in a one-day
specialist symposium in Bratislava (Slovakia).
Its focus was on optimisation potential in
processes and technologies. Professor Bohuslav
Masek from the West Bohemian University in
Pilsen presented “New concepts and outlooks
on forging parts of the future”, Adis Huskic from
Leibniz University, Hanover, presented “Experimental and numerical studies of integrated
thermal treatment of forged steel components
using the forging heat”. LASCO experts Rainer
Scheler and Jochen Günnel gave information
on new and further developments from LASCO
such as the hydraulic servo direct drive or the
orbital forming press, the hydraulic horizontal
forging machine and stretching line AR-D as
well as on the forging and cross wedge roll with
direct drive.
News
Mubea calibrates
more efficiently now
The global Mubea group, too, has been using
the big efficiency advantage of the hydraulic servo direct drive since recently. At the
production site in Daaden (Germany) a multipurpose press VPE 400 with servo direct drive
has been used since recently by the specialist
for heavy-duty spring components and related
products for calibrating disk springs. With
the line the characteristic curve of the spring
disk is set by a calculated calibrating process.
The trace of the force–displacement curve
is monitored and the calibrating process is
controlled correspondingly. Springs with outer
diameters of up to 1,000 mm and a material
thickness of up to 40 mm can be calibrated
at a maximum calibrating force of 4,000 kN.
The owner-managed family business Mubea
(main production site Muhr und Bender KG,
Attendorn/Germany) sees itself as global partner to the automotive industry and lightweight
construction specialist for heavy-duty spring
components. With its lightweight construction
technologies, new materials and processing
methods Mubea substantially contributes to
the construction of lighter vehicles with innovative solutions.
Hirschvogel orders automated forging roll
Vehicle parts made of
aluminium for China
In the future the Hirschvogel
group in Pinghu/China will also
be using an automated forging
roll from LASCO for the manufacture of vehicle parts made from
aluminium for Chinese customers.
The well-known German automotive supplier
is having a forging roll RCW 560 So with automation tailor-made and equipped with set-up
device and replacement rollers for its Chinese
production site near Shanghai (established in
2005).
from aluminium (rolling temperatures of up
to 560°C) with a max. weight of 9 kg will be
produced from raw material of a maximum
diameter of 115 mm and a length of 300 mm.
The line has been equipped with a temperature control system and a tool lubrication
system for the rolling of aluminium materials.
The forging roll will be integrated into a
forging line for which LASCO is supplying the
complete automation and control technology.
The Hirschvogel Automotive Group (with its
headquarters in Denklingen, Germany) is one
of the biggest automotive suppliers operating in solid forming of steel and aluminium
world-wide.
The forging roll is designed for pre-forming
forging parts made from aluminium or aluminium alloys. Pre-forms for chassis parts
US forge
purchased another
double-acting
hammer
Due to its sustained success
with LASCO technology the US
American Moline Forge purchased another double-acting
hammer.
Customer acceptance of the HO-U 315 for Moline Forge (from right): Alexander Zeitler (head of LASCO
spare part department), Jeffrey Bolton (service engineer LES/USA). Bernd Schubert and Holger Welsch
(LASCO service technicians) with Dino Adamson (maintenance manager Moline Forge) and Jochen Günnel
(deputy sales director LASCO).
Recently representatives of the enterprise in
Moline/Illinois put the HO-U 315 optimised
for their individual applications to the acid
test before they released it for shipment. The
obligatory machine acceptance of the forming unit was a performance test attended by
experts, as Moline Forge is already absolutely
familiar with LASCO technology: At Moline
Forge hydraulic double-acting die-forging
hammers types HO-U 250, HO-U 500 and
hammers of the KH series from LASCO have
been in permanent use for decades. The US
forge produces forgings with approx. up to 40
kg used for rail traffic, mechanical engineering
and agriculture.
up grade LASCO 32/14
3
Know-how
LASCO electro-up
Energy-effi
and econo
Electro-upsetters in vertical an
now with extended process
Horizontal standard machine with
clamping feed
Possible processes and
shapes of volume gathering
Picture 1: Free upsetting
The once widespread electro-upsetting for
gathering volume on bar material made of
different metallic materials and alloys has
recently been experiencing a come-back
for special applications. With immediate
operational readiness (without a long start-up
process) upsetting can be carried out at the
bar end or any other part of the bar. Volume
gathered in free upsetting can be handled
in a further forming process without being
heated intermediately. Die upsets that are
produced in other competing forming processes are usually too cold for further forging.
Furthermore the electric upsetting process is
not restricted to specific cross sections and
mostly round material is used.
Additional properties
and advantages:
Picture 2: Form upsetting
Picture 3: Conical and spherical upsetting
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„„Only the section to be upset is heated.
„„No waste of heating energy and material.
The shaft which will not be deformed
stays cold.
„„Low ohmic and inductive (eddy current)
losses.
„„Very efficient energy consumption demanding 0.35 – 0.40 kWh/kg of heated
material due to the optimum design of
the high current circuit.
„„No or drastically reduced scale formation.
„„No environmental pollution by radiant
heat, smoke or other emissions.
„„ Good grain flow and wrinkle-free surface.
„„ Constant heating temperature.
Reliable process and
quality by:
„„constant and monitored heating temperature due to thyristor-controlled and
steplessly adjustable heating current,
„„monitored upsetting speed,
„„contact electrodes and guide jaws with
parallel and synchronized gripping at
constant height,
„„monitoring and prevention of buckling.
Centric upsetting
A renowned German manufacturer of large
valves recently placed an order with LASCO
for three horizontal electro-upsetters type EH
315 (transformer capacity 315 kVA).
The units have undergone the customer
acceptance test and have been shipped
meanwhile. The standard design of one of
the units was complemented additionally by
a special device for upsetting a collar (centric
upsetting) for a system that rotates the valve
between the working cycles to reduce wear.
Sequence of operations: Basically “centric
upsetting” corresponds to “free upsetting
at the bar end”. The difference is that the
forged valve cooled down to room temperature is contacted by two pairs of electrodes
with different potential below the valve disk.
The valve disk is supported by a fixed stop,
and a feed at the bar end gathers volume in
a controlled way between the two pairs of
electrodes. The heating current merely flows
between the pairs of electrodes, the valve
disk and the shaft remain cold.
Know-how
psetters EV and EH
ficient
omical
nd horizontal design
Picture of the machine for free, form and centric upsetting
Production of tie rod ends
Fields of application of
centric upsetting
Billet (bar end)
Upset length
Upsetting
Die forging
Trimming
Piercing
Large valve collar
Further fields of application of the process
There are possible uses in energy generation
and the aviation industry that go beyond the
well-known and well-proven applications of
electric upsetting.
Volume required for the root and cover of
turbine blades made from high-alloy materials
can be gathered by free upsetting as well.
Centric upsetting is also suited for the midspans of longer turbine blades.
Author: Franz Suttan
Steam turbine blade
Examples of applications of electro-upsetting
Valves for combustion engines
Tie rod end for steering
Aviation turbine
blade
Rear axle shaft with spline end
Drive shaft or torsion bar
up grade LASCO 32/14
5
Internal
Spotlights
High-precision boring mill: A new
boring mill type „SPIRIT T” of the
Italian manufacturer FTP has been
in operation at LASCO
since September
2013. The new
production
centre
offers a
number
Boring mill
FTP Spirit T
of advantages
that lead to a reduction
of the machining time of parts. After
some months’ practical experience in
three-shift operation on five days/week
the expectations pinned to this investment have been met. According to
LASCO machine operators the „Spirit”
is a very solid machine with good
cutting data (feed, rotational speed),
it is convincing by its good machine
concept and specially suited for deephole boring because of its high coolant
performance.
New facility: LASCO Beijing has
opened a new facility in Changchun to
be able to intensify its business activities in China and above all to shorten
the distances to customers. Li Bing
has been appointed Sales Director
Forging North China and Branch Manager. Changchun City is the capital of
Jilin province and with its more than
seven million inhabitants the second
largest city in the northeast of the
People’s Republic of China. Because
of the numerous automotive companies located there it is also nicknamed
„China’s Detroit”.
Franz Brosch (left), Director of the employers’ association bayme vbm Upper Franconia (Germany), and
Martin Kapp, Managing Partner of the KAPP Group (right) are congratulating Florian Brehm on his award.
„Dr.-Kapp-Vorbildpreis” for Florian Brehm
Exemplary commitment for
public welfare
Florian Brehm, third year mechatronics apprentice at LASCO,
has been awarded the „Dr.Kapp-Vorbildpreis”.
The award was named after its donor, Dr.
Bernhard Kapp, and founder of the KAPP
Group, an internationally active mechanical
engineering company from Coburg (Germany).
It honours unselfish commitment of young
people for public welfare. Florian Brehm has
been devoting a large part of his free time to
the volunteer fire brigade in Rödental (Germany), where he passed an intensive training in
fire fighting. Now he is responsible for training
junior fire fighters himself.
Brehm received the award together with
another 61 young people from companies in
the metal and electrical industry in Upper
Franconia who had been recommended by
their employers. The „Dr.-Kapp-Vorbildpreis”
includes prize money of EUR€10,000 and has
been awarded for the 10th time.
10 years with LASCO
Lars Ehrlicher
Wolfgang Foerster Thierry Lebailly Gerhard Schoder
01.12.2013
01.05.2014
17.05.2014
01.06.2014
25 yaers with LASCO
Ulrike Rusert Andrea Hamm 6
up grade LASCO 32/14
01.03.2014
01.07.2014
Vocational training finished successfully
Five young men successfully finished their apprenticeship at LASCO by passing their final exams at
the Chamber of Commerce and Industry at Coburg (Germany). After the ceremony of handing over the
diplomas Gernot Losert (left), Managing Director Administration/Production and the training supervisors
Björn Bühling and Georg Pfeuffer (2nd and 1st form right) congratulated the cutting machine operators
Richard Kouassi and Danny Streng (2nd and 3rd from left) as well as the industrial mechanic David
Schubert (4th from left). Not in the picture: Robert Neumann (electronics technician for operating technology) and Theodor Weinert (mechatronics technician).
Internal
Exchange of young people
EU project
„Leonardo
da Vinci“
The aim of the EU project “Leonardo da Vinci” LASCO has been
involved in for years is to improve mobility, cooperation and
division of labour of the economies in the European Union.
LASCO has been taking part in the project
since its launch in the Coburg area in cooperation with the vocational schools and the
Chamber of Commerce and Industry by e. g.
the exchange of apprentices for internships
in other European countries. Recently the
Swedish apprentices Simon Goja and Frederik
Wafs from SKF in Gothenburg (Sweden) as
well as Anthony Deboo and Juha De Praetere
from the Belgian “Vrij Technisch Instituut” in
Waregem did internships of several weeks at
LASCO.
In return the LASCO apprentices Marius
Kinhirt and Edy Hamuela (both industrial
mechanics) could do an internship in Sweden
respectively in Austria.
After his three-week internship at SKF in
Gothenburg, Kinhirt said he would highly
Marius Kinhirt (right) with colleagues from other training companies from Coburg at the SKF museum
in Gothenburg.
recommend this exchange of trainees to
everybody. According to him it was a good
experience of life to have to integrate oneself
in other countries, cultures and working methods and to use one’s knowledge of foreign
languages. It showed to him that the specialist
knowledge acquired during his vocational training so far could also be applied abroad. On
the other hand he was very impressed by the
working method of the Swedish enterprise that
reflected a strict commitment to sustainability and environmental responsibility. Kinhirt
passed his internship together with three colleagues from other companies from Coburg.
He said he had experienced a very hearty and
open welcome.
24 apprentices from the sectors metal technology,
wood technology and electrical engineering were
handed over the EU certificate „europass Mobilität”
(europass mobility) after three-week internships in
other European countries. Among them were Edy
Hamuyela (industrial mechanic 2nd year of apprenticeship) and Marius Kinhirt (3rd year of apprenticeship).
Fairs + dates
Metalform China
Beijing, China
16. – 19.09.2014
SENAFOR
Porto Alegre, Brazil
08. – 10.10.2014
EuroBLECH
Hanover, Germany
21. – 25.10.2014
5th Asia Forge Meeting
Kaohsiung, Taiwan
03. – 06.11.2014
up grade
Volume 16, issue no. 32 – September 2014
Publisher: LASCO Umformtechnik GmbH
Hahnweg 139 - 96450 Coburg
Senior Editor: Dr.-Ing. Stefan Erxleben
Photos: LASCO Umformtechnik, VDL
Weweler, IHK zu Coburg, Georg Weber.
Second round of „School physics meets mechanical
engineering practice”
The project „School physics meets mechanical engineering practice” intended to help secondary school students
in Coburg to choose a professional career is being continued. At LASCO young people were now able to try out the
contents of their physics class in the working life of a mechanical engineering company. The picture shows the guests
together with their teachers StD Scherbel (2nd from right), OStR Geißler (4th from right), Deputy Sales Director Günnel
(left), Managing Director Administration/Production Losert (2nd from left), the Head of Electrics/Electronics Stengel
(4th from left) and graduate physicist Taubmann (Design Department forming/special machines – 7th from right).
up grade LASCO 32/14 7
In practice
Interview
Acid test at Wewler
Dick G. Aalderink
Managing Director
VDL Weweler B. V.
Apeldoorn, Netherlands
Challenge
up grade: Mr. Aalderink, your enterprise is
the first company to use an automatic roller gap
adjustment. What is its benefit for Weweler?
Dick G. Aalderink: We don’t want to waste any
material in the pre-forming process. That’s
why we want to redistribute as much material
as possible until we get the material to where
we need it. This is possible with the very
comfortable and efficient technology of the
new forging roll. And this is also where the
process essentially differs from traditional
die-forging, in which relatively much material
is wasted by the indispensable flash.
up grade: This further development of
stretch rolling respectively roll forging was the
specific requirement you made to LASCO. Has it
been met?
Aalderink: Yes, it has – at least as far as
our technical specifications are concerned.
Now we are challenged by our own product
development, which had been limited by the
technical possibilities of the forming units so
far. The new forging roll enables us to generate completely new products that are feasible
as far as production technology is concerned.
Thus the correct answer is: As matters stand
we think so.
up grade: Has the new development already
passed its acid test?
Aalderink: As already said: It’s actually up to
us to furnish proof of it!
A subtle difference
Roll forging with process-integrated, dynamic roller gap adjustment
– that’s absolutely new. The Dutch spring specialist VDL Weweler is
the first user of this technical advancement. After some months of
practical experience Weweler is more and more convinced that the
new RCW 630 So is a milestone for spring rolling.
The short form „So” in the LASCO type
designations stand for „Sonderausführung”
(„special design”). The subtle difference
compared to standard designs of the forging
roll series „RCW” is the dynamic roller gap adjustment. It is required that rectangular steel
billets can be rolled on both ends in the shape
of an exactly defined parable without the
profile width changing significantly. LASCO
developed the new technical feature in close
coordination with the first user of this innovation, VDL Weweler.
As spreading cannot be avoided in flat rolling
with a tool without profile, it must be compensated by upstream or downstream upright
rolling. Depending on the tolerance requirement flat or upright rolling will be repeated
several times.
The basic design of the special longitudinal
rolling machine corresponds more or less
to the RCW series. The dynamic roller gap
adjustment is effected via two hydraulic
cylinders which are coupled with one of the
two bearing housings of the upper roller each.
The roller diameter is 630 mm, the maximum
rolling force 2000 kN. A specially adapted
and programmed industrial robot takes over
the function of the manipulator.
To be able to guarantee the necessary repeatability of the roller gap at a rolling speed of
up to 500 m/sec and a roller gap adjustment
speed of 100 mm/sec, the hydraulic system
with proportional control technology had to be
developed especially for this application.
Two standard tools are arranged next to each
other on the rollers: a contourless flat tool as
well as a tool with flute-type contour. During
the rolling pass the roller gap is adjusted synchronously to the roller rotation in a computer-controlled way.
The RCW 630 provides reliable services in
the new plant of VDL Weweler in Apeldoorn
(Ecofactory). The enterprise, which belongs
to the internationally established VDL Groep,
develops, produces and sells air suspension
systems for trailers, trucks and busses. Another business area is the development of lift
axles and parable springs.
up grade: How big do you think has your
edge over the competition become now?
Aalderink: It is important to us to point out
that we have great respect for our colleagues
in this industry. Therefore I would not like
to talk about an „edge over” them. We are
following a strategy aiming at niches by
having increasingly specialized in suspension
systems. The new technology allows us to
manufacture unique products of which we
expect USPs.
Dynamic roller gap adjustment on the RCW 630 at VDL Weweler in Apeldoorn (Netherlands).
up grade LASCO 32/14