France’s Obut has been producing steel balls weighing around 700 grams each for popular sport Pétanque since 1955. In an effort to improve production of boule balls at its headquarters in Saint-Bonnet-Le-Château, the company ordered a 1,300-ton forging press from Farina. The forging press replaces two lines with a press force of 600 and 800 tons respectively, which are becoming obsolete. The future line, which also includes a transfer and a furnace, will form a half shell every 2 seconds. The starting material for the boule balls, which have a diameter of just over 2.75 inches (7 cm), are steel rods cut into sections that a press first forms into discs and then into half shells. These are then welded together, machined and polished to a mirror finish.

Italian ring and bevel gear manufacturer Molla has been evaluating forging presses from Schuler's subsidiary Farina to produce its products for use in trucks and construction and agricultural machinery. Following successful preliminary acceptance, a 10,000-ton line will be on its way to the company’s facility in Solbiate Arno this summer. Molla currently operates a 6,000-ton press and a 1,000-ton press. The three machines form a forging cell for preforming, deburring and finish forging of rings. This cell will increase Molla’s production capacity in preparation for future market requirements. 

Italian company San Grato produces numerous forged parts for cars, motorcycles, industrial and commercial vehicles, and agricultural machines. Many of them are made on seven Farina presses with press forces between 1,000 and 5,000 tons at the company’s sites in San Carlo Canavese (Torino) and Malonno in the province of Brescia. San Grato recently ordered its eighth press from Schuler affiliate Farina. The 2,500-ton machine features a kinetic energy recovering system (KERS), which reduces the power demand by 40%. San Grato already covers two-thirds of its energy cost through its hydroelectric power station located close to Torino and a photovoltaic system installed on the roof of both plants. The Farina press also offers increased output and reduced maintenance costs.

Otto Fuchs KG ordered a crank forging press with ServoDirect technology from Schuler for its Shenyang, China, location. The automotive supplier will use the machine, which has a press force of 3,150 tons, to produce more aluminum chassis components for customers in China. In crank forging presses with ServoDirect technology, several torque motors operate on a main shaft via a step-down gear unit. They are suitable both for wear-free single-stroke operation and for forging in continuous operation.

Mosdorfer GmbH, a manufacturer of fittings for high-voltage overhead lines, ordered two screw presses and five C-frame presses from Schuler. According to Schuler, its screw presses with ServoDirect technology are the ideal solution for Mosdorfer’s new forge in Weiz, Austria. The press models have 2,100 and 1,100 tons of press force. Thanks to the servo motors, the screw presses have a lower design and offer improved drive controllability and higher starting torques with shortened stroke cycle times. The closed water-cooling circuit for the servo motors results in optimized temperature stability of the drive system independent of operational air conditions.

A. Benevenuta & C. S.p.a. ordered a 2,500-ton mechanical forging press from Farina, a Schuler affiliate. The company produces hot-forged steel components for the automotive industry near Turin, Italy. The parts are used in suspension systems, transmissions, engines and brakes in passenger cars, tractors, trucks and earth-moving machinery. The press force of the Benevenuta production lines ranges from 1,200 to 2,500 metric tons.

In the hot and warm forging of steel, there is a clear trend to replace graphite-based die lubricants with synthetic lubricants. This is driven by the need for cleaner work environments, easier handling and to avoid graphite-induced galvanic corrosion of equipment.

Schuler and its affiliate Farina demonstrated what the companies say is the world’s largest mechanical forging line to an international group of 60 forging experts. A live video stream transmitted from the production site in Suello, Italy, highlighted the features of the 16,000-ton press, which has a stroke of 600 mm, in action. The press will be delivered to Germany’s thyssenkrupp Gerlach. Due to its Scotch Yoke design, the press has a total height of 14 meters – making it much smaller than conventional presses. This enables high off-center loads and a high number of strokes. From the outside, the GLF-type machine looks like a conventional press, including the flywheel, clutch and crown gear. However, the Scotch Yoke directly works in the slide, which is the reason for the compact design.

U.S.-based suppliers can optimize processes, uptime and cost for the long haul with responsive expertise and readily available parts and service.

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.