FACE TO FACE
latest IoT systems , and the ‘ Area for Creating the Future of Manufacturing ’ with modern digital imaging equipment and information devices .
In nine customer-specific spaces equipped with modern solutions and advanced inspection equipment , its customers can address various issues by working with AMADA technical staff to verify their processing and quality requirements .
“ We created the Innovation Labo as a free laboratory area where customers can explore the future of manufacturing and use the facility as a place to create innovation . They can come with difficult challenges with which they need help and to solve manufacturing problems . They may bring parts , materials or 3D data etc . It is also a way for us to engage more with other stakeholders such as material suppliers and academia to create future technologies and programming systems . We feed strands from this work into our machine development cycles . It is all linked to our Future Vision strategy to help us come up with new ways of doing things ,” explained Matt Wood .
“ In this room , there are nine private individual rooms ( controlled by QR codes ). We respect NDAs with our customers and respect their privacy on what happens in this room . Each room has different machines and specialists i . e . welding equipment ; laser processing equipment ; robotic bending ; bending equipment and combination machines . Software is also included ,” he continued .
Opposite the laser room is an inspection room with over one million euros ’ worth of equipment ( 20 measurement machines ) installed . It includes X ray machines to check for impurities ; an electron microscope to check material structures ; CMM equipment ; tensilestrength testers etc . Customers can check parts processed on machines in this inspection room . The Labo area also has meeting and presentation rooms ; common rooms ; locker rooms etc . The demonstration and verification
Locus Beam Control ( LBC ) technology .
AMADA ’ s Soft Joint technology .
Matt Wood demonstrated laser cutting quality on the REGIUS 3015 AJe fibre laser at the EuroBLECH 2022 exhibition in Hanover , Germany .
areas are separated to accommodate customer needs .
Innovation Site 01 : blanking technologies
AMADA ’ s “ Innovation SITE ” has product areas for sheet metal , cutting and structural , as well as presses , but it is not simply a conventional display of the machines . With the concept of moving from “ what is possible ” to “ why it is possible ”, the facility enables visitors to experience AMADA ’ s latest technologies such as for mechanisms and structures . The aim is to deepen the understanding and satisfaction of customers by providing them with an experience centred on explaining the technical processes and benefits . Innovation Site 01 features blanking and welding machines , technologies and software .
Demonstrations on the 12kW REGIUS 3015 AJe fibre laser cutting machine at
AMADA ’ s Locus Beam Control ( LBC ) technology , unique to the VENTIS-AJ Series , manipulates the laser beam motion , managing beam patterns during the cutting process
Innovation Site 01 included AMADA ’ s new cutting innovations such as the fibre silky cut improvements on aluminium and stainless steel . The technique involves a mixture of optical path ( beam ) adjustments , higher power fibre engines and gas flow dynamics and is an automatic function of the machine once the operator selects the cut data .
New AMADA innovations , such as the patent-pending Soft Joint , are also showcased at AGIC . Operators can specify soft joints through the offline software and the laser will cut lines where soft joints are needed on straight or curved-edge sheet metal parts . The laser will then cut the outline of the part itself using the thermal stress of the material , through the soft joint , to clamp the part in the sheet . There is no physical joint between the two pieces of metal ; only the physical pressure holds the part in the sheet skeleton .
“ The soft joint can be used in up to 12mm stainless steel , 10mm aluminium and 9mm mild steel . It is a simple but particularly useful innovation to help reduce or even eliminate tipped parts and cutting head collisions . It will save operators a lot of time lifting parts out
94 | ismr . net | ISMR October 2023