INDUSTRY NEWS
Tube bender makes light work of Halo
Investment in a Unison Breeze all-electric CNC tube bending machine has enabled UKbased SST Technology to become the only British-based precision fabricator authorised to produce the life-saving Halo titanium driver protection system , as used in Formula 1 . It has also equipped the business to complete numerous complex structural projects involving titanium tube – including roll-cage structures for military vehicles and aerospace components .
The machine , a Unison Breeze 130mm ‘ large diameter ’ multi-stack tube bender , was purchased to help SST produce highperformance optimal-flow exhaust systems for Formula 1 , IndyCar and other motorsport sectors . SST ’ s Halo design has secured FIA conformity for use in Formula 1 , Formula 2 and Formula E motorsport and is being adopted by several race teams . The Halo design requires the precise bending of titanium tube of 4mm wall thickness .
Titanium , however , is notoriously difficult to bend . With low uniform elongation typically requiring a much greater bend radii than other metals , titanium doesn ’ t readily lend itself to being formed – a characteristic that makes creating tubular structures for aerospace and motorsport applications particularly challenging . For successful tube forming , the material must be compressed on the inside of the bend and stretched on the outside , while wall thinning and ovality of the tube must be kept to very tight tolerances .
Traditionally , ‘ hot bending ’ - a process involving the use of super-heated tooling - has been used to overcome the challenges of bending titanium . However , the process of hot bending presents a number of issues . For example , the use of super-heated tooling requires considerable care and can present a hazard to operators ; complex modifications must be made to bending machinery and tooling heat-up times are lengthy .
“ In contrast , our controllable and robust all-electric machines enable safe , precise cold bending of titanium . With advice and application support from our technical team , SST was able to develop a cold-bending process for its Halo design that allowed for the low elongation of the metal and delivered precise results ,” Unison told ISMR .
“ Investing in the 130mm Unison Breeze machine has clearly paid dividends ,” said SST Technology ’ s group business development director , Daniel Chilcott . “ Tool changes are rapid and programming is incredibly userfriendly , while the automatic set-up ensures uncompromising levels of accuracy and repeatability . Sufficiently impressed with the capabilities of our 130mm machine , we have also purchased a smaller 65mm Breeze model for the production of more intricate pipework and parts for aerospace and gas turbine applications . Combining this capability with our AS9100REVD accreditation means that we are perfectly set up to support leading aerospace propulsion , fluid and air system OEMs .”
The Unison Breeze 130mm tube bender purchased by SST manipulates exotic alloys , such as titanium and Inconel , as well as Super-Duplex stainless
Above : The Unison Breeze 130mm multi-stack tube bender . Below : SST ’ s Halo titanium driver protection system .
steels and provides thin wall bending . “ Multi-stack tooling allows complex parts to be formed in one uninterrupted manufacturing cycle , while the bar code scanning system ensures that only the correct tooling is installed . The standard-fit rise and fall pressure die can result in significant savings in tooling costs and allows tools of very different radii to be used on a part within a cycle . The tube bender can be programmed manually or from CAD data using industrystandard IGES or STEP files ,” added Unison . n
New warehousing facilities at Lochem .
New factory for WILA
Despite the global COVID-19 pandemic , tooling specialist WILA has taken on a new challenge and built a new factory . The 14,500 square metre facility is its second production facility in Lochem , The Netherlands .
“ The expansion has given us plenty of space to divide up production . All toolholders will continue to be produced at our headquarters in Lochem , while the focus in the new production facility will be on pressbrake tooling ,” it told ISMR .
The machines have been installed and production has now started . New offices , spacious changing rooms and sanitary facilities have been integrated into the new building . Office staff have been distributed
WILA ’ s new factory in Lochem .
across both locations . More space also means better social distancing .
“ It remains to be seen how the economic situation will continue to develop . We hope that our expansion will help us to meet the needs of our customers and better optimise our production . We want to increase our customers ’ press brake productivity ,” concluded WILA .
14 | sheetmetalplus . com | ISMR March 2021