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Category Archives: Siemens Digital Factory

DMG MORI Machine Produces Oil Field Rock Bit Using Full CAD-CAM-CNC Process Chain on 5-Axis Machining Center

Major machine tool builder offers their customer an entry-level, compact machine that works a 440-pound steel workpiece into a rock bit with better tool life, higher degree of accuracy and overall production efficiencies through partnership with Siemens

A DMG employee showcasing the DMU 50 with Siemens’ 840D sl CNC. The features of the 840D allow a streamlined simulation of the actual cutting path.

DMG MORI manufactures a wide variety of conventional chip-cutting machining centers for OEMs and production job shops serving the demanding oil-and-gas industry.  Inherent in this market are several factors that lobby for great care and planning in the machining process. Typically, components produced for the oil-and-gas field are very large, very heavy and often have complex contours, making the machining time long and the tool life short. The DMU 50, although an entry-level 5-axis machining center from DMG MORI, is a compact unit that features considerable strength, as the following example will detail.  “It is a David handles Goliath type of story,” says Matthias Leinberger, the business development director for Siemens PLM (Product Lifecycle Management).

On one recent application, DMG MORI was challenged with a 440-pound, 8” diameter x 8” high workpiece made from 1045 grade steel and being machined into a rock bit for oil field exploration. The customer further presented the builder with the need for fast changeover to produce the part from various metal materials, with all the attendant tool changes and workpiece setup variances present. The customer, a major upstream oil industry supplier, was trying to decide if the better path for this product was a single block of steel or a near net casting being machined.  Both high-speed roughing and then very precise 5-axis machining were required in this small footprint machine, which had been selected by the customer due to specific plant capacity utilization concerns, plus their desire for a flexible, reasonably priced and highly cost-effective machine tool.

Close up of the DMU 50 with Siemens’ 840D sl CNC.

The machine builder turned to its longtime business partner, Siemens, for assistance.  By offering a total package of CAD-CAM-CNC hardware, software and engineering services, Siemens was able to help the machine builder substantially improve every aspect of part production, including reduction of design-to-part protocols, machining time, tool life, surface finish, dimensional accuracies and overall production efficiencies.  This scenario was particularly applicable in this case, as the production runs were anticipated to be low with short lead times.

Starting from the CAD file, the Siemens PLM team ran the program through its NX CAM process, eliminating the set-ups through full 5-axis operation. The User Defined Events (UDEs) feature inside the NX program allows simple check boxes for triggering post-processors references for coolant pressure, spindle speed settings and more.  This avoids manual programming and, as a result, reduced the program transition time from as long as two days to approximately 30 minutes.

An oil field rock bit being machined on a DMU 50 with Siemens 840D sl CNC. Both high-speed roughing and precise 5-axis machining are possible on this small footprint, entry-level machine.

Once the program was ready for the CNC, the features of that control allowed a more streamlined simulation of the actual cutting path. The 3D quick set compressor feature provides a parametric itemized data file for all path motions, thereby eliminating collision and ensuring the optimum tool path, in conjunction with the NC kernel and PLC on the machine tool.  As Siemens technical applications center manager Randy Pearson observes, “This feature is a huge time saver for our customer, as the test ball and probe in the spindle mechanism can be run at any point in the cycle, testing the actual machine kinematics at any time. The procedure can also be automated to run on the table at prescribed time intervals.”

The high-speed machining feature is highlighted here by Cycle 800, which is a static plane transformation that allows a 5-axis machine to define a rotated working plane in space. It is commonly known in the trade as 3+2 programming.  The cycle converts the actual workpiece zero and tool offsets to refer to the rotated surface.  Of note here, the cycle accommodates particular machine kinematics and positions the physical axes normal to the working plane.  This is referenced as TRAORI or transformation orientation.

Meanwhile, Sinumerik Operate, the CNC’s easy-to-use, graphical user interface on the machine allows the operator to perform a variety of integrated tool management and information management functions, all transportable on a USB or network connection.

In the simulation, the loading and fixturing of the workpiece is performed virtually in the NX CAM program, which also calculates a consistent chip load, critical in these large material removal applications. The simulation further verifies the tool length at all cutting sections and the program is finalized for the machine to begin.

In production, this process also yielded a substantial improvement in tool life on this very heavy part over the 3-¾hour cycle time, according to DMG National Product Manager, Luke Ivaska.  “With the combination of the NX CAM software, plus the CNC on the machine and all it could do, we had some initial challenges, as most software programs are purpose-built CAM packages that allow quick and easy use by anyone.  They have significant limitations; however, as the software drives the tool path and the operator has very little control.  With NX and Sinumerik CNC, we have a lot more input on the creation of the tool path.  I have yet to find a problem I could not solve with NX.”

In the CNC, the Sinumerik Operate affords the end user’s operator and manufacturing engineering personnel full access to a variety of conditions in production, including all roughing and finishing data in plain text, plus all 5-axis transformation orientation data logged for restart after any interruption and manual restart.

An 8×8″ rock bit machined from 1045 grade steel on the DMU 50. Speedy setup and machining was made possible with Siemens’ total package of CAD-CAM-CNC hardware.

Easy-to-use probing for work offsets is another advantage the builder and their customer enjoy with the CNC used on this machine.  The operator is guided graphically for setting the workpiece zero, for example, while the tool length is automatically included in the calculation.  With the Operate system, the difference between the position value in the machine coordinate system and workpiece coordinate system is saved in the active zero offset.

The variable streamline operation of the machine tool combines here with an interpolated vector to produce a smoother finish in the machining of the intricate rock bit surfaces in a single tool path. The machine seamlessly transitions from square-to-round machining and then the extreme angle paths needed to accurately machine the internal surfaces.  A single bit portion of the program is automatically captured, so a step-and-repeat program can be built-up. The simulation of each bit cutting path was done on both the NX CAM and the CNC programs. It is literally like working with a “Digital Twin” of the machine.

This vectored program, it should be noted, is transportable to any machine with comparable results, according to Randy Pearson and PLM director of business development Matthias Leinberger, who comments, “Precisely because the machine kinematics are knowable, this program, once created, can be transferred onto multiple machines within the same facility or run by shops around the world, all tied together by the control, so there is total continuity between the operations, the data capture protocol and feedback received for production analysis.”  Randy Pearson further noted that, in this application, the customer’s desire to change the materials used on successive runs could be easily accommodated by the control, owing to its ability for on-the-fly adjustments, based on the orientation of the tool tip to the workpiece.

This project was accomplished, using CELOS® onboard the DMG MORI machine.  CELOS facilitates the total interaction between operator and machine, in this application, as it has numerous apps to enable instant call-up of actual conditions, full data comparison through a link to CAD and CAM products, plus full interface to the customer company’s ERP system for logging and analysis, with in-process remote adjustments achievable.  In the case of this oil-and-gas customer, interactive communication to a global production network is also provided, which allow the customer to run parallel production of different rock bits at locations around the world, with seamless data tracking and full production analysis.


For more information on this story, please contact:

Siemens Industry, Inc.
John Meyer
(847) 640-1595
john.meyer@siemens.com

For specific product information and inquiries, call (800) 879-8079 ext. Marketing Communications or send an e-mail to:  cnc.us@siemens.com

To watch a video of this line in operation, please visit https://youtu.be/xA1hyv6A7Hs

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Digitalization… the Future Is Now

Myriad ways to boost productivity, enhance shopfloor flexibility and preserve data security…
all on the market today for machine shops of many sizes

by Ramona Schindler, Siemens Industry, Inc.

Ramona Schindler is the business development manager for the digitalization of machine tools at Siemens Industry, Inc.

With the machine tool industry in flux currently, as it seeks to find its way into the digital world, the entire process chain necessitates the integration of suppliers who can respond to the needs of the industry.  The situation has very little “history” and so large end-customers and machine shops of all sizes are seeking assistance from their suppliers, while the machine tool builders are likewise seeking to partner with hardware, software, communications and controls suppliers to bring the most needed machine types to market.

Within this scenario, the large manufacturers focus on the “big picture” as they link their production departments, often located in different cities or even countries throughout the supply chain, while the small contract manufacturer with a dozen local customers wonders how this drive to the digital factory will impact their world— and it will.  The good news is they can already utilize the IT, apps and communication devices onboard many of today’s advanced machine tools and the rapidly emerging skill sets of new workers in the machine tool industry to develop and implement the three basic levels of machine shop operations.

These levels comprise the communications hardware and protocols at the machine, the integration of inline machine production and the data resident in the cloud, which can be used today in many ways to boost productivity through automated analytics of the shopfloor’s utilization; to enhance shopfloor flexibility through optimized methods of production; and to preserve data security by state-of-the-art software solutions.  In essence, the capture and manipulation of such data drives the productivity of a small shop or large production department in quite similar ways.  The concept of your manufacturing seen as an eco-system, with information and control capabilities at all levels, can drive that “factory of the future” and, the good news, it can do so today.

From the CNC on your machines, whether they are number three in a mold shop or three hundred at a transmission plant, you can extract the pre-analytics that can be used to feed existing apps or to develop the most beneficial apps to suit your production scheme and workflow.  The beauty of the app, whether you create your own, have a third-party integrator develop it or use existing solutions, is that it provides the hierarchy of information to your operator, line supervisor, plant operations personnel or global IT department in a similar manner.  This scalability offers immediate benefit to manufacturers of all sizes and it does so, right now.  For example, machine tool users can quickly and easily configure a CNC machine’s connections and ascertain its program status and operating mode.  This will lead to increased manufacturing productivity, reliability and availability of the machine.

Cloud-based systems always raise the question of security issues, as the data flow in real time at high-speed and can be made accessible to many levels of information managers and operations personnel.  It is critical that a thorough assessment of the access to that data precede the development of any communications protocol.

Digitalization is not necessarily a costly undertaking. First steps can be quickly implemented on the shopfloor, for example, through the use of small PCs like Raspberry Pi. Likewise, for the machine tool builder, the development of “digital twin” engineering, where a machine is fully designed, commissioned and test run in a virtual environment, is rapidly changing the playing field in this industry.

The number of connected machines is increasing exponentially and this is not simply engineering adornment, it is a necessary function for any manufacturer.  Being able to quickly determine the overall equipment effectiveness (OEE) and conduct practical, beneficial predictive maintenance actions on your machines will contribute greatly to the production and profitability of your operation.

The management of today’s manufacturing shops and production departments have the challenge to become aware of all these available technologies and chart a course for their implementation.  This is not a “someday” scenario; it is a vital journey for shops of all sizes, if they want to remain competitive in today’s changing market.

My last advice, look at digitalization as an umbrella for the secure shielding of smart data, not just big data.  IIOT is the essential connectivity for all the elements of data on machine performance, materials flow, operations efficiency and ultimately your overall productivity.

It’s an exciting time in our business.

Digitalization, for example from Siemens, can be implemented at every level of machine tool operation today.

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Siemens Introducing IPCs for Medical Market

Siemens Factory Automation seeks to open market for its embedded and panel PC products in healthcare segment, including x-ray, analyzer, imaging and diagnostic equipment plus data acquisition to patient and hospital records; domestically sold product now assembled in Lebanon, Ohio

At the recent Medical Design & Manufacturing (MD&M) show held on February 6-8 in Anaheim, California, the PC-based Automation Marketing Manager from Siemens Digital Factory Division, Thorsten Julich, announced at the booth that the company plans to develop the medical equipment market for its box, panels and rack PC products. In addition, Julich noted the suite of products targeted for use in the North American market are being assembled at the Siemens facility in Lebanon, Ohio, thereby shortening lead times significantly, up to 40%, for the OEM machine builders and system integrators.

“As time to market for new product development continues to shorten in the industrial PC market, while the life cycle of such products has become longer,” Julich noted, “it is critical that Siemens bring its embedded box and panel products to market in a more efficient manner.”  He also observed the drive to upgrade systems from older technologies at all levels of the healthcare industry is moving quickly, as the market trends toward a digital and cloud-based environment with customized apps to enable more immediate and network-wide system of record-keeping.

Commenting on the Lebanon, Ohio facility, Thorsten Julich noted the in-house development of Siemens IPC technology for this market segment will include both software and motherboard manufacturing.  Complementing the PC product offerings, rugged handheld units with Windows 7 or 10 compatibility, will be offered for technician ease-of-use and connectivity to cloud-based systems.

A scalable portfolio of products, based on Intel CPU technology, will provide a full spectrum of configurations to suit most applications currently in the medical equipment market, Julich said.

Single- and multi-touch panel PCs will be offered in 7”-22” displays in the company’s Nanobox/Nanopanel and Microbox/Micropanel designs.

Julich concluded, “Because our IPC range has full interface capabilities with SCADA software plus the medical grade tablets offer full compatibility with networking solutions in the digital world, we believe the company is well positioned to enter this medical equipment market with a very substantial and sustainable suite of products and services.”  He also mused the Lebanon, Ohio facility would give Siemens something of a “home field advantage” in the market.


To learn more about the event and products, please visit: usa.siemens.com/ipc or contact Siemens via email at info.ipc.us@siemens.com.

Siemens Digital Factory (DF) offers a comprehensive portfolio of seamlessly integrated hardware, software and technology-based services in order to support manufacturing companies worldwide in enhancing the flexibility and efficiency of their manufacturing processes and reducing the time to market of their products.

Siemens Corporation is a U.S. subsidiary of Siemens AG, a global powerhouse focusing on the areas of electrification, automation and digitalization. One of the world’s largest producers of energy-efficient, resource-saving technologies, Siemens is a leading supplier of systems for power generation and transmission as well as medical diagnosis. With approximately 351,000 employees in 190 countries, Siemens reported worldwide revenue of $88.1 billion in fiscal 2016. Siemens in the USA reported revenue of $23.7 billion, including $5.4 billion in exports, and employs approximately 50,000 people throughout all 50 states and Puerto Rico.

 

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Siemens SCADA/IPC Days 2018 Event Introduces New Products and Emerging Communications

Siemens Factory Automation gathers its team, Solution Partners and End User community for four days of learning and fun

130 people gathered for Siemens’ SCADA/IPC days in San Antonio.

From February 19-22, 2018, at the Riverwalk Westin in San Antonio, Texas, approximately 130 people gathered for four days of product presentations, emerging technology discussions and a market trend outlook at the Siemens Factory Automation SCADA/IPC Days 2018.  Members of the Siemens management, sales and support team joined their Solution Partners and a diverse assortment of end user companies from various market segments to review new product offerings in the IPC segment of the Siemens portfolio, plus a number of new platforms in the SCADA segment.  The event was hosted by the product marketing teams for Factory Automation, based in Norcross, Georgia.

Following a welcome session on the first evening, a series of presentations were made on day two to the entire group by Siemens management and technical thought leaders, covering the digital factory strategy and the company’s forward-thinking move to Digitalization, the current theme for the Siemens marketing message across its entire industrial platform.  Key speakers were Kevin Lewis, Russell Barnes, Thorsten Julich, Bernd Raithel, Michael Steigberger, Bernd Staufer and Tom Elswick. The primary message takeaway for the group was that Digitalization will hallmark the factory of the future and SCADA will be the “digital doorway for data” in that rapid evolutionary process, as it impacts all industries, both discrete and process.

Alessandra Da Silva leading the industrial PCs workshop.

There were also presentations on cloud computing and edge computing, the constituent elements of the Digitalization trend, comprising both hardware and software elements.  This discussion led directly into the program’s introduction of various new thin client IPC product offerings and the latest version of SIMATIC WinCC SCADA systems.

In addition to the technical presentations and market overviews, a very interesting end user application was detailed by end user Derek Thoma of Hop Valley Brewing, a Miller/Coors company.  Thoma spoke on the marked improvements in production and product quality tracking made possible by the advanced IPC and HMI provided by Siemens, in addition to the SCADA software for process monitoring and management.

During that evening, the entire group enjoyed a genuine Texas BBQ and a good time was had by all.

Presenters at the event (starting from left): 1-Russell Barnes, 2-Johann Strobl, 3-Bernd Staufer, 4-Kevin Lewis, 5-Michael Steigberger, 6-Thorsten Julich, 7-Bernd Raithel

Day three began with a review of new IPC products and emerging technologies on the horizon from Siemens, followed by more intense product and software breakout workshops, tagged the Wisdom Series by the event coordinators.

Finally, day four offered direct consultation from the Siemens product specialists gathered at the event, including the Solutions Partners, who represent the system integrator community at Siemens, as they bring the products, application engineering, installation and service, plus related data gathering and process control products to the process industries.  In addition, those interested in becoming a WinCC Specialist were offered the opportunity to take their certification test during the event.

Todd Malone presents on the topic of custom toolboxes at a Siemens workshop.

Guest instructors were present during the workshop sessions to discuss such topics as Automation for Networks, Using WinCC to Build a Toolbox, Batch Tracking Made Easier with WinCC Archives, Mindsphere and Cybersecurity, and the Industrial PC of tomorrow.  Rapidly developing MindApps for performance optimization on all types of industrial manufacturing and process machines were also discussed in detail, as Siemens seeks to assist its customer base and machine builders alike to gather, process, analyze and apply relevant data.  Such data allow better process control and KPI development, plus have positive uses for machine liability, insurance, warranty and even energy saving calculations.


To learn more about the event and products, please visit: usa.siemens.com/automation

Siemens Digital Factory (DF) offers a comprehensive portfolio of seamlessly integrated hardware, software and technology-based services in order to support manufacturing companies worldwide in enhancing the flexibility and efficiency of their manufacturing processes and reducing the time to market of their products. 

Siemens Corporation is a U.S. subsidiary of Siemens AG, a global powerhouse focusing on the areas of electrification, automation and digitalization. One of the world’s largest producers of energy-efficient, resource-saving technologies, Siemens is a leading supplier of systems for power generation and transmission as well as medical diagnosis. With approximately 351,000 employees in 190 countries, Siemens reported worldwide revenue of $88.1 billion in fiscal 2016. Siemens in the USA reported revenue of $23.7 billion, including $5.4 billion in exports, and employs approximately 50,000 people throughout all 50 states and Puerto Rico.

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Beckwood Partners with Siemens to Produce Hydraulic Press, QDC Workcells

Machine builder develops fully automated die handling system with 15,000-pound capacity to load and unload presses with staging tables for continuous production; die change time reduced from two hours to ten minutes

 

beckwood press

Beckwood twin hydraulic presses, each 1400-ton plus Quick Die Change (QDC) assembly with 15,000-pound load capacity and T-table staging devices for fully automated workflow.

Beckwood Corporation in Fenton, Missouri (St. Louis) is a leading manufacturer of custom hydraulic presses, automation systems and the Triform line of precision forming equipment. While their machinery serves a variety of industries and applications, they excel at developing robust aerospace forming technologies engineered for accuracy and repeatability. In detailing the sophistication of their machine designs for this challenging market segment, their website includes something of a company mantra, “It IS rocket science.”

One customer, a metalform fabricator and producer of various components for the commercial and military aircraft sectors, brought Beckwood their challenge.  The company was seeking a turnkey package consisting of two 1400-ton hydraulic presses and two automated stamping die handling systems to load and unload the presses more efficiently than the conventional forklift and manual labor-intensive system this customer was currently utilizing. The presses and quick die change (QDC) workcells would be used to form a variety of parts in relatively low volumes, so the system to be designed needed a more automated die handling system.  In addition, a 42”-diameter deep draw sheet hydroforming press with staging table was needed.  Such a press would be the largest of its kind in the world, once produced.

beckwood press and siemens control

Siemens motion control and HMI are used on the entire system, with Safety Integrated features, allowing operators to remain outside the work envelope, in full machine process and monitoring mode.

A critical part of the challenge involved the need for a QDC system with 15,000-pound capacity to feed each 1400-ton press.  As Beckwood’s lead electrical engineer John Harte explains, “We conducted a thorough review with all our local die cart suppliers and all passed on the bid, citing too many obstacles on that large a load.  So, as we often do, we decided to design, engineer and build the system ourselves.”  The presses each had a footprint approximately 30’ square, and the QDC would need to service the presses with T-table staging devices, allowing the next die to be prepped and ready to insert upon completion of the previous run cycle.

With the degree of automation involved, Beckwood worked with the customer’s engineering staff to devise a workcell concept comprised of two 4-post presses, each with a QDC system including a cart, rack and T-table with 15,000-pound load capacity.  Each press would be over 33’ in height and positioned in a 10’ deep pit.

As the customer was a longtime user of Siemens motion control and HMI, they specified this supplier for the project.  Harte connected with Derek Eastep, his account manager for Siemens, and the product list for the project began to take shape.  Various drives, PLCs, displays and motion controllers were specified.  The latter was a critical component, as the motion controller was required to operate all press movements, as well as the motor starters, QDC integration, light curtains that protect the workcell and operators plus area scanners that maintain the integrated safety condition monitoring on the entire cell.

The system logic and data logging setup was to be done by the customer, who had considerable experience with Siemens controls, with the Beckwood team integrating the QDC and overall cell management.

The QDC operates in tandem with the two presses, using four 15HP motors to drive the lead screws on this massive die handling system.  They are electrically geared through the onboard Siemens PLC to move the ram and shuttle.  Additional motors and drives on the feed tables allow the next die to be positioned during press operation.  When a press cycle is completed, the air bags on the feed tables lift the next die for positioning onto the QDC, then a shuttle inserts the die inside the press, with all motion controlled by the PLC.  These T-tables and the QDC were designed, engineered, built and tested by Beckwood at their factory prior to shipment and installation at the customer’s facility.  Both Beckwood and Siemens personnel were active in the commissioning of the entire system.

beckwood press

Press/QDC workcell currently utilized by a metalform fabricator in the commercial and military aircraft industries.

The PLC is a Siemens S7-1515—a robust controller that integrates function control, safety and condition display in a single module with Profinet protocol for bus communication.  Through the TIA Portal and Step 7 software provided by Siemens, the end user can customize the operation of the devices remotely, integrating multiple part files and related safety commands in one controller.  This “library” feature allows the end user, as they run a variety of parts during a shift, for example, to use one software package to program quickly and more efficiently.  Likewise, the safety switches on the entire system are programmed through this secure and redundant safety back-up software through the TIA Portal.

All motor movements on the twin four-post presses are controlled with Siemens drive technology.  In operation, the Beckwood presses with the QDC systems are expected to reduce die setup and changeover from approximately two hours to ten minutes.

As Derek Eastep from Siemens notes, “Because the end user was a longtime customer, we performed the application engineering with Beckwood and their customer, fully confident that the system would be set up and running in a relatively short time, as all parties had good familiarity with our protocols.”  Harte adds, “We used the Selector, Sizer and Starter engineering tools from Siemens to spec and then commission the drives, which saved us a substantial amount of time.  It made our lives a lot easier,” he muses.

The two 1400-ton presses in the workcells are Beckwood’s robust four-post frame style with replaceable, graphite-impregnated bronze bushings and solid chrome-plated posts to ensure precision ram guidance. Designed to form parts with challenging geometries in low-volume, high-mix production environments, the 42” Triform deep draw sheet hydroforming press will be the largest press of its kind in the world.

Josh Dixon, director of sales & marketing at Beckwood, says in the company video, “We hate the word ‘no’.”  The success of this unique and first-of-kind press and QDC workcell, built by Beckwood with the help of its controls supplier Siemens, bears out that statement.

Due to the versatile nature of Beckwood’s “built to order” business model, their machines are engineered to serve a variety of industries. Beckwood’s extensive experience serving so many industries provides a unique vantage point that customers find incredibly valuable. They are often able to recommend process improvements that customers may have never known or considered, revolutionizing their manufacturing operations. Beyond metal forming, the company also manufactures presses used to form rubber, plastic, composites and other material substrates.  The business started in 1976 and is today led by company president Jeff Debus.

 


For more information on this story, please contact:

 

BECKWOOD CORPORATION
889 Horan Drive
Fenton, MO 63026-2405
Phone:  636-343-4100
www.beckwoodpress.com
or

Siemens Digital Factory
5300 Triangle Pkwy
Norcross, GA 30092
(678) 427-8319

 

About Siemens USA

Siemens Corporation is a U.S. subsidiary of Siemens AG, a global powerhouse focusing on the areas of electrification, automation and digitalization. One of the world’s largest producers of energy-efficient, resource-saving technologies, Siemens is a leading supplier of systems for power generation and transmission as well as medical diagnosis. With approximately 348,000 employees in more than 190 countries, Siemens reported worldwide revenue of $86.2 billion in fiscal 2015. Siemens in the USA reported revenue of $22.4 billion, including $5.5 billion in exports, and employs approximately 50,000 people throughout all 50 states and Puerto Rico.

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Siemens Introduces Nema 1 and Ul Type 1 Wall-Mounting Kits for Its G-Series Drive Platform

Low-cost kits allow easy-to-install, direct mounting of G120C Compact and G120 PM240-2 modular drive

Siemens announced today the availability of wall-mounting kits for its Sinamics G120C and G120 PM240-2 modular drives.  These low-cost kits allow easy, fast installation of the drives and conform to NEMA 1 and UL Type 1 standards for interior applications. These wall-mount kits are designed in accordance with UL 61800-5-1 standards for AC drives.

Available in power ranges from ½ to 200 hp and voltages from 230V to 690V, the kits offer streamlined, compact design for use with all drive frame sizes of the corresponding Siemens drive units.  Each kit provides best-in-class space-savings and direct access to the drive-mounted operator panel for simple commissioning, condition monitoring and even troubleshooting.

The new kits accommodate all G120C, PM240-2 and PM240P-2 power modules, control units and operator panels in the Sinamics drive family.  Standardized designs permit efficient side-by-side mounting with minimal clearance, while multiple conduit knockout holes allow separate power, motor, I/O and network cabling.

Seven kits are currently available to fit all drive units from AA to F frame sizes.

Siemens offers seven sizes of NEMA 1/UL Type 1 wall-mounting kits for its popular G120C and PM240-2 modular drives. The kits feature space-savings plus multiple knockouts for separate power, motor, I/O and network cabling.

 


For specific product information, please visit:  www.usa.siemens.com/sinamics-g120

Siemens Digital Factory (DF) offers a comprehensive portfolio of seamlessly integrated hardware, software and technology-based services in order to support manufacturing companies worldwide in enhancing the flexibility and efficiency of their manufacturing processes and reducing the time to market of their products. 

Siemens Corporation is a U.S. subsidiary of Siemens AG, a global powerhouse focusing on the areas of electrification, automation and digitalization. One of the world’s largest producers of energy-efficient, resource-saving technologies, Siemens is a leading supplier of systems for power generation and transmission as well as medical diagnosis. With approximately 351,000 employees in 190 countries, Siemens reported worldwide revenue of $88.1 billion in fiscal 2016. Siemens in the USA reported revenue of $23.7 billion, including $5.4 billion in exports, and employs approximately 50,000 people throughout all 50 states and Puerto Rico.

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KraussMaffei Berstorff Supplies KRAIBURG TPE with Advanced Extruder Control Technology

Co-rotating twin-screw compound extruder used in R&D facility to test material batches, recipes; pre-configured extrusion solution on control package monitors entire machine, providing “big data” for customer at attractive price point

Typical parts made from TPE at Kraiburg | Siemens Industry

Typical parts made from TPE at Kraiburg

KRAIBURG TPE Corporation in Duluth, Ga. is a manufacturer of custom-made thermoplastic elastomer (TPE) compounds for a variety of market applications in the automotive, medical, general industrial and myriad consumer sectors. At the Duluth facility, the product development department routinely evaluates material batches and new custom compounds for performance and customer specification viability. As an integral step in that process, KRAIBURG TPE engineers utilize sophisticated co-rotating, twin-screw extruder technology provided by KraussMaffei Berstorff, from its facility in Florence, Ky.

Owing to the substantial varieties of color, durometer and the wide-ranging performance properties required at KRAIBURG TPE, monitoring every aspect of the machine performance is critical. This includes all temperatures, speeds, pressures and torque on the extruder itself, plus an underwater pelletizer, gear pump and multiple loss-of-weight feeders used on the line.

KraussMaffei Berstorff Supplies KRAIBURG TPE with Advanced Extruder Control Technology | Siemens Industry

At a glance, the operator sees the condition of the machine in real time and can make better on-the-fly adjustments

For the latest machine installed at the KRAIBURG TPE facility, as senior application engineer at KraussMaffei Bertstorff, David Frankenberg, explains, “The lab extrusion line is used for both process and product development assessment. A key requirement was the generation of all data in real time, as part of the management system to be used, as well as the condition monitoring system needed for predictive maintenance strategies being employed.” In cooperation with the KRAIBURG TPE team and after evaluating the competitors for the control scheme, KraussMaffei turned to Siemens for assistance, as this supplier was able to bring a pre-configured and highly cost-effective solution to the requirements on this machine.

KraussMaffei Berstorff Supplies KRAIBURG TPE with Advanced Extruder Control Technology | Siemens Indusry

Siemens temp zone control system monitors all aspects of extruder, providing “big data” to the host network

As Frankenberg and his electrical engineering associate Martin Gonzalez detailed, the Siemens EXT3370 application package represented a blending of the current PLC technology and drives platform with an HMI capable of providing all graphics and multiple data screens on a single display. In addition, the system had the ability to feed the “big data” directly to the KRAIBURG TPE process data archival & analysis system, where it would reside for real-time and long-range performance evaluation by the product development, quality and process teams. All speeds, pressures, temperatures and other parameters can be instantly assessed, using set point and actual value data on the display, either at the machine HMI or a remote monitor within the KRAIBURG TPE network.

On the KraussMaffei Bertstorff machine, the control system comprises the software solution, Siemens drives and motors, the ability to monitor up to 32 separate temperature zones, touch screen technology on a 15” HMI and scalability on the drives to accept the ancillary equipment being monitored at the KRAIBURG TPE facility. In this way, a truly customized solution was devised using an entirely standard and thus highly cost-effective array of components, according to Frankenberg. As an additional benefit, he noted, the training needed was minimal, owing to the plain language on the control with no need for knowledge of high-level programming skills. Finally, all compound recipes can be easily transferred via USB for portability and security.

KraussMaffei Berstorff Supplies KRAIBURG TPE with Advanced Extruder Control Technology | Siemens Indusry

Extruder line built by KraussMaffei Berstorff in Florence, Kentucky for Kraiburg TPE

Allen Donn, product development engineer at KRAIBURG TPE, along with his team of engineers and tech specialists, evaluated the installation and commissioning of the machine at the Duluth facility. “The data transfer from the PLC into the same process data archival & analysis system that we use for our other lines at KRAIBURG TPE. A simple Excel file is generated with any parameters desired for analysis, plus we can easily exchange data between R&D and production here. The result is that our ability to utilize production machinery more efficiently has increased substantially with the use of the new KraussMaffei Bertstorff machine in our test department, as the control system gives us real-time hard data we can use to make adjustments on new recipes and entirely new materials.” KRAIBURG TPE performs extensive new compound property performance testing on its TPE formulae and the time compression realized by using the new extruder line in this “real world” R&D operation is providing substantial advantages for the compounder.

KraussMaffei Berstorff Supplies KRAIBURG TPE with Advanced Extruder Control Technology | Siemens Indusry

Various compounds are formulated at Kraiburg and test run on the KraussMaffei Berstorff extruder at the Kraiburg lab in Duluth, Georgia

KRAIBURG TPE typically runs materials in the 20-80 Shore A hardness range and, as an example, might test out a variety of adhesion grades for over-molding onto polycarbonate, nylon, or other substrates, Donn explained. “When we can pull the data from any machine in the system, adjust it, run it on the R&D machine, and then feed that data back into production, it makes a huge difference in our efficiencies.” In one instance, shortly after the KraussMaffei machine was installed, KRAIBURG TPE engineers were testing 15 compound varieties on the machine very quickly, compared to using production equipment to do that task. “I could look into the software to compare all set point and actual values, remotely, over the entire test period,” Donn noted. He added that the substantial raw material cost savings of more tests, faster results and less waste all contribute to an improved profitability for the company, as well.

For more information on this story, please contact:

KRAIBURG TPE CORPORATION
2625 North Berkeley Lake Road
Duluth, GA 30096
Phone: 678-584-5020
www.KRAIBURG-tpe.com
info-america@KRAIBURG-tpe.com
Attention: Katherine Olano

Or

KRAUSSMAFFEI GROUP USA
7095 Industrial Road
Florence, KY 41042
Phone : 859-283-0200
www.kraussmaffei.com
david.frankenberg@kraussmaffei.com
Attention : David Frankenberg

Or

SIEMENS
Digital Factory
5300 Triangle Parkway
Norcross, GA 30092
Phone : 770-871-3848
www.usa.siemens.com/plastics
mathias.radziwill@siemens.com
Attention : Mathias Radziwill

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Upgraded Controls On ESCO Machine Help Reduce Urethane Cutting Production Time From 3½ Hours To 20 Minutes

Advanced motors, drives and rapid feedback controls make substantial improvements in machine performance at Grand Rapids supplier to poly foam insulation and padding industries

As Rick Hungerford, president and CEO of Edge-Sweets (ESCO) points out, think of the mattress that remembers, the steering wheel that saves lives or the bandage pad with built-in antibiotic.  All these products start from blocks of cast polyurethane foam in various densities, then get cut, profiled or shaped by special machinery.  ESCO is a leading manufacturer of such machinery, supplying the furniture, mattress, automotive, packaging, pipe insulation, healthcare and other industries with automated CNC profilers and horizontal cutting machines.  Production speeds up to 840 inches per minute (21.33 meters per minute) are achieved on flexible and rebonded polyurethane, latex and viscoelastic materials, when used as either stand-alone cutting machinery or in tandem with automated materials handling and packaging lines.   The ESCO end user base reaches into many industries in the global market.

On two recent developments in the company’s machinery line, an engineering evaluation of competing motor, drive and controls lines was conducted, under the direction of Hungerford, who notes, “On our PMIII-1530, a horizontal profile saw with a 1.5 meter x 3 meter block cutting capability, we worked with one of our most trusted local suppliers of automation components, Wes Morgan from Electro-Matic Products, who introduced us to the Siemens motion controller, servomotor, gearmotor and drive package. We were seeking a controls platform that would have global support and standards compliance, as more of our machines are utilized for production outside the U.S. today than at any time in the past.” Hungerford further noted that, while the axes of motion are relatively limited on his company’s machine lines, the high-tension maintained and the need for precise positioning of the cutting wire on this machine made it necessary to have the most accurate and durable motor and drive combinations available onboard.

Upgraded Controls On ESCO Machine Help Reduce Urethane Cutting Production Time From 3½ Hours To 20 Minutes | Siemens Machine Tool Systems

Rick Hungerford Jr., president and CEO of ESCO (left), inspects the drives cabinet with Wes Morgan of Electro-Matic, the local Grand Rapids supplier of the Siemens product line.

Incorporating the Simotion motion controller, Sinamics low-voltage drives and Simotics S-1FK7 servomotors from Siemens gave ESCO not only the performance levels desired, but also the global application engineering, technical support and parts inventory benefits of this international supplier. “Our machines are in use around the world,” states Hungerford, “and we needed great confidence in our control package supplier’s ability to support the machines and our sales team with parts and service, everywhere in the marketplace. In Siemens, we found such a partner. Plus, their local representative here in Grand Rapids, Electro-Matic, had established a solid relationship with our company and my team.”

Functionally, according to Hungerford, the Siemens package allowed a single, common DC bus without stand-alone drives plus the system provided by Siemens is scalable to allow the cutting machine being interfaced with additional mechanisms and loading/unloading devices as part of an overall automated production line for customers. The PMIII-1530 is operated by a single PC plus a remote operator pendant that allows free movement with full operation control of the machine during setup.

In selecting and programming the proper components for the ESCO machine, Siemens and Electro-Matic Products provided an optimized solution using the Sizer and Simotion Scout software provided by the component manufacturer. Once all the parts are in-house, construction of this machine is typically achieved in approximately 30 days, according to Hungerford, as ESCO does the bulk of the framework and final assembly onsite at the Grand Rapids factory.

Upgraded Controls On ESCO Machine Help Reduce Urethane Cutting Production Time From 3½ Hours To 20 Minutes | Siemens Machine Tool Systems

The Foamular® industrial pipe insulation produced on the PMIII-1530 is used in the oil and gas industry.

The operation of the machine (as shown in the photos) begins with the CAM programming software written by the ESCO engineering team, plus additional data programs made available through ASTM for pipe and tube configuration. Hungerford mused, “It’s sorta like Etch-A-Sketch, but hardly a toy. Our engineers can take the canned programs and quickly make the necessary adjustments to the cutting paths to suit the machine cutting capabilities and the workpieces our customers are producing.” The software program is vital in accomplishing both an effective cutting as well as optimum utilization of the raw materials, through the nesting of the parts in the master workpiece block, done by the computational algorithms in the program.

The workpiece is then loaded onto the vacuum table, the cutting head is positioned and the process begins. The material used by the ESCO customer, in this case, is Owens Corning Foamular®, a rigid polystyrene prepared in a tongue-and-groove configuration for industrial pipe insulation as the end product.

In operation, the motors, drives and feedback devices work in tandem to ensure a quick, smooth and efficient cutting of the material into the desired shapes.

The customer using the upgraded controls model of this ESCO machine is currently reporting a reduction in its cutting cycle times from 3½ hours to 20 minutes, according to Hungerford.

Commenting further about the drive performance, Wes Morgan of Electro-Matic noted that the Sinamics drive platform offered three distinct benefits. “The product line is consistent across a wide range of motor capacities, which is a real advantage for ESCO. Also, the regenerative feedback feature creates substantial energy savings for the end users, plus the Sinamics drives have a smaller footprint, owing to the dual motor modules and common DC bus system and this results in a more compact control cabinet.” He also noted the Simotion motion controller allows ESCO a single platform to perform simple axis to very complex integrated motion controls with a standard product, resulting in greater efficiencies in the design, programming and installation time for this builder and its customers.

Upgraded Controls On ESCO Machine Help Reduce Urethane Cutting Production Time From 3½ Hours To 20 Minutes | Siemens Machine Tool SystemsOn the second machine where ESCO implemented a controls upgrade, the HTX high-tension slitter/stacker incorporates a Simatic PLC, Sinamics variable frequency drives, Simotics servomotors, motor starters and contactors from Siemens. This machine, instead of a cutting wire, utilizes a tangential razor-like blade in a slit-and-retract motion, with the blade articulating on each pass through the material workpiece and then being automatically coated with silicone in the blade housing to maintain cut integrity.

The unit shown in the photographs here is the HTX 51-88 (indicating a 51” high x 88” wide x 132” long cutting zone), making ¼” thick cuts in a poly foam block. The machine is further capable of 1/8” cuts in production, as Hungerford noted. “This machine operates in tandem with other machinery we build, so the conveyor feed mechanism positions the workpiece for the cutting at the first station, then indexes it through the HTX to the next stations, where additional cuts and profilings are performed.

ESCO also produces vertical cutting machines, convoluters, roll splitters, contour cutting machines, metering and dispensing solutions for lab and production use, plus the company supplies fully integrated systems for polyurethane processing, including robots, curing ovens and mold designs to its worldwide customer base.

For more information on this story, please contact:

EDGE-SWEETS COMPANY
ESCO GROUP INC.
2887 Three Mile Road NW
Grand Rapids, MI 49534
Phone: 616-453-5458
Web: www.edge-sweets.com
Email: info@edge-sweets.com
Attention: Rick Hungerford, Jr., President & CEO

or

SIEMENS INDUSTRY, INC.
DIGITAL FACTORY
GENERAL MOTION CONTROL
390 Kent Avenue
Elk Grove Village, IL 60007
Phone: 847-640-1595
Fax: 847-437-0784
Web: www.usa.siemens.com/lv-drives
Email: SiemensMTBUMarCom.industry@siemens.com
Attention: John Meyer, Manager, Marketing Communications

Watch videos of these machines in operation! https://youtu.be/4lpQ22d7niM

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