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Schuler Service repaired two machines damaged in a fire at Mühlhoff Umformtechnik, an automotive supplier in Uedem, Germany. As a result, part production on a new 2,000-ton press from the TSD series can also start on time – all within just 12 months of the fire. Because drive components with long lead times were already accessible, Schuler was able to shorten the time to commissioning by three months. This happened even though the experts on site had to contend with challenges such as the foundation, which was designed for the previous and significantly smaller 800-ton line.
Schuler will deliver a 16,000-ton forging line, which includes a Farina forging press, to thyssenkrupp Gerlach. Internal assembly for the 16,000-ton line – one of the largest mechanical machines in the world, according to Schuler – has been completed at Farina’s facility in Suello, Italy. After the test run, the components (with a total weight of 1,700 tons) will make their way to thyssenkrupp Gerlach’s forging plant in Homburg, Germany. Production is expected to start in 2022.
This final installment of three parts reviews FutureForge at Scotland’s Advanced Forming Research Centre (AFRC) at the University of Strathclyde. Not too big and not too small, FutureForge is just the right size to not only stimulate radical developments in the art and science of forging, but it will also nurture new thinking on the scale, and therefore investment requirements, for tomorrow’s experimental infrastructure.
When it comes to forging research, it turns out that size really does matter. The bigger the press, the lower the chance of using it for experimentation and the higher the costs associated with the research.
Today’s rapidly changing economic climate has affected the forging community unequally, depending on which economic sectors companies serve. A post-crisis rebound strategy may help you decide how to cope with a reopening economy. Here are some matters to consider, in Q&A format, as your operation moves into the next economic phase.
The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the forging landscape –seemingly overnight. With many in the industry initially expecting the impact to last a matter of weeks, most forgers are now preparing for a much longer recovery period that will likely last into early 2021.
The FutureForge program and model at the University of Strathclyde’s Advanced Forming Research Centre (AFRC) encompasses collaboration across academia, research and technology institutes and industrial organization. This second of three articles discusses the future of forging as a part of the cyclical economy in which, ideally, nothing goes to waste.
In the manufacturing world, many people use technology readiness as a means of describing the journey within the valley of death, the gap between proof of concept and first use in the operational environment.
Germany’s Kaiser Aluminium-Umformtechnik GmbH, a manufacturer of forged-aluminum components for small- and medium-sized products, successfully started up its first Schuler servo screw press. The system will be primarily used to produce complex chassis components for the automotive industry. The investment further expands Kaiser Aluminium-Umformtechnik’s market position as a competent partner for forged parts and components in the aluminum sector.
France’s Transvalor, a manufacturing process-modeling software developer, joined the University of Strathclyde’s (Scotland) Advanced Forming Research Centre (AFRC) as a tier-one partner. The first partner to join the AFRC in support of its soon-to-be-opened FutureForge facility, Transvalor will provide process simulation expertise and deep insight into material behavior resulting from manufacturing processes. The FutureForge facility will help manufacturing companies of all sizes become more competitive by exploring less energy-intensive methods of forging. It will also use digital technologies to accelerate the development of forged products.
SMS group put a 31.5/34-MN open-die forging press into operation at Gustav Grimm Edelstahlwerk (GGE), a forge based in Remscheid, Germany. GGE specializes in the manufacture of high-alloy forgings. Because of the built-in hydraulic and control systems, GGE’s new high-speed forging press achieves time savings of about 10% compared to the old press. For the first time, SMS group has installed an additively manufactured machine component in an open-die forging press. The 3D-printed hydraulic manifold block is lighter, more compact and has a flow-optimized design. Designed by SMS group and made of an aluminum alloy, it weighs just one-tenth of the conventional steel component. The manifold block is used to distribute hydraulic oil for operating and venting the cylinders.
The Advanced Forming Research Centre (AFRC) at Scotland’s University of Strathclyde is trying to transform the global forging supply chain. AFRC’s FutureForge program, scheduled to launch later this year, will offer a virtual forging experience coupled with a versatile forge shop to develop production processes and solve industry challenges.
For millennia, a sword was a warrior’s weapon of choice. Forged by a blacksmith heating metal or a combination of metals and working it into shape, the best swords for winning battles were not the sharpest or the longest, they were the strongest, most hard-wearing ones.