EDITOR’S CHOICE
CUTTING-EDGE TECHNOLOGY
RITTAL
REDUCING THE ENERGY OUTPUT OF MACHINE TOOLS
No business should ever underestimate
the large amount of energy consumed by
machine tools. Cooling enclosures and
spindles alone commonly account for more
than 15 per cent of a company’s annual
energy bill. A test installation at a CNC lathe
has demonstrated that Rittal Blue e+ chillers
significantly reduce energy consumption
while also being simple and easy to use.
Bosch Rexroth AG, a long-established global
manufacturing company, runs an energy
efficiency consultancy called GoGreen at its
headquarters in the Bavarian town of Lohr
am Main. GoGreen’s purpose is to examine
and improve the energy efficiency of the
company’s production plants worldwide.
To this end, GoGreen works closely with
institutes, as well as technology partners such
as Rittal, to test possible solutions.
One of the most important research projects
which GoGreen is involved in is the “Eta-
Fab” (energy efficiency, technology and
application centre) project at the Technical
University of Darmstadt. The project is headed
by the University’s Institute for Production
Management, Technology and Machine Tools
(PTW); a facility that can closely replicate
conditions and processes used in the Rexroth
plant in Elchingen, allowing effective and
accurate testing of potential innovations in
areas such as improving the energy efficiency
of machine tools.
Retrofitting CNC lathes Ease of Use
Among the products made at the
Elchingen plant are hydraulic pumps and
motors for mobile machines. Many of the
components for the hydraulic power units
are manufactured on a CNC lathe which has
a total connected load of 75 kVA and runs for
up to six days a week in three-shift operation.
CNC lathes need their spindles to be cooled
to dissipate the heat generated by the drive
technology – and this is typically achieved
through liquid cooling. The GoGreen team
examined what would be the impact of
replacing the existing compressor cooling
unit on the lathe, with a new Rittal Blue e+
Chiller. The Blue e+ delivers the cooling
medium and its DC compressor, controlled by
an inverter, generates the necessary cooling
output in the chiller. A circuit then transports
the cooling medium to the spindles. The trial also highlighted how easy the Blue
e+ is to operate.
An impressive increase in energy efficiency
The test demonstrated that the Blue e+ could
reduce energy consumption significantly. Leo
Pototzky, GoGreen Project Manager, Bosch
Rexroth, said of the trial: “The Rittal Blue e+
chiller consumes 50 per cent less electrical
energy than the old chiller, while the saving
achieved by the cooling unit in the enclosure
even exceeded 80 per cent. This example
shows us that a great potential still exists in
many sectors.”
The control panel with its touch display
communicates to operators in plain text, and
in up to 21 different languages.
This means that operators receive clear
information and updates in status, which
allows them to respond quickly to any issues.
The Blue e+ App communicates with
the cooling units via NFC (Near Field
Communication, an international
transmission standard based on RFID
technology for contactless data exchange),
allowing important information to be
transmitted wirelessly; a functionality which
is especially important when a number of
chillers have been configured.
It allows operators easy operational oversight
and facilitates a swift response, if required.
Further information at
www.rittal.co.uk and
www.friedhelm-loh-group.com
or on twitter @rittal_ltd.
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