General Machining & Manufacturing Processes

Using industrial robots is an important element in creating more autonomy and efficiency. Rollomatic has been involved in developing advanced human-like robots for some years now.

The week after CemeCon Inc. held a ribbon-cutting Jan. 17 to officially open its new 15,000-sq.-ft. headquarters and CVD diamond coating facility, I spoke with Gary Lake, company president, to discuss the expansion and developments in cutting tool coating technology. The opening marks the fourth expansion of production capabilities since the company, which is a subsidiary of Wuerselen, Germany-based CemeCon AG, was founded in 1998 and the third increase in capacity for the CVD diamond process since 2014.

With its Sinamics S210 converter designed specifically for use with the newly developed Simotics S-1FK2 motors, Siemens is offering a new and innovative servo drive system in an initial offering from 50–750 watts. The converters come with integrated safety functions and enable rapid engineering via motion technology objects in Simatic S7-1500 controllers.

With the SC2818, Nanotec presents a stepper motor with a flange size of 28 mm and a torque of up to 0.22 Nm. The SC2818 thereby boasts in excess of 30 percent more torque than conventional motors of the same size. The step angle of the 2-phase hybrid stepper motor is 1.8°.

TigerStop offers a new software upgrade for TigerTouch called Dynamic Pack Optimization , which nests packs or bundles of material for the greatest yield. Dynamic Pack Optimization enhances raw material usage and reduces scrap waste.

The eWON Flexy 205 is a versatile industrial internet of things (IIoT) gateway and remote access router designed for machine builders. In addition to VPN remote access with eWON Talk2M remote connectivity services, it allows users to enable alarm notifications, machine data reading, historical logging to monitor and collect vital key performance indicators (KPIs) for analysis and predictive maintenance.

BIG KAISER announces its HDC Straight Shank holder to the market, used for increased versatility. The slim design provides superior balance, concentricity and is suitable for reaching into confined areas.

Dorner's 2200 series Precision Move pallet systems are now available with new features, including heavy load corners, tight turn corners, low-profile lift and locates, and elevators.

TDM Systems, a subsidiary of Sandvik Machining Solutions, has announced the introduction of TDM Shopfloor Manager in TDM 2017 Global Line. The Shopfloor Manager software module records the entirety of a tool's circulation, from planning for tool assembly, presetting and tool use at the machine, to disassembling.

Tungaloy is enhancing TetraMini-Cut, one of the best of its grooving tool family, by adding a substantial number of new items to its TCG18 insert lines.

The Rhode Island Manufacturers Association has chosen Henry D. Sharpe Jr. to receive the inaugural Samuel Slater Lifetime Achievement Award, writes Kate Bramson in The Providence Journal. He was a longtime president of Brown & Sharpe and the third generation of the Sharpe family to run the machine tool powerhouse.

Grayson College has unveiled its $1.4 million Advanced Manufacturing Lab for the school's Career and Technology Center, writes Rhea Bermel in the Herald Democrat. The lab will provide space for large industrial machinery, classrooms and storage and will be used largely to educate students participating in the Advanced Manufacturing Program.