MechChem Africa March 2020

⎪ Manufacturing and food processing ⎪

Ute Schlieder Metallwarenfabrik GmbH metalworks has been forming metal for 140 years. In equipping itself for the future, the company purchased a fully networked MSP 400 servo press from Schuler as part of the process, and it has been successfully running for more than six months Servo press provides short die and tooling change times

“ O ur dies kept getting bigger, and we were starting to run out of room,” says company president Frank Schlieder. “We had reached our limits in the production of our more sophisticated parts, and decided to purchase this machine.” The servo press was delivered by Schuler a yearago,totheSchliederfacilityinOlbernhau, where other company equipment is also in service. “The machine has been up and run- ningintwoshiftsforsixmonthsnow,”saysBen Schlieder, who serves as the company’s chief technologyofficer. “The servo technologywas new for us, since we’d previously only used presses with conventional drives at our com- pany.Butwe’vebeenabletomakeasuccessful transition, and we’re really pleased with it.” In a press shop, themain thing is to reduce setup times and get the most out of the ma- chine and the parts, adds Frank. He believes great company service andmachine improve- ment must be an everyday target. “A useful tool we took advantage of was the advanced operator training provided by experts from Schuler. This included explanations of the machine’s intelligent functions. “For us, it was obviously a big change with all of the different sensors,” Ben admits. “But we got used to that very quickly. We’re now monitoring many more parameters than be- fore; we keep an eye on the main drives and the temperatureandpress forcedata. And the operators use the ‘Assistant’ to optimise the movementcurves,forexample.”Forprocesses like stamping, forming, blanking, embossing, bendingordrawing,operatorscanalsochoose from pre-programmed curves. Ben notes that the training has yielded “major progress” and adds: “With the servo technology, we have been able to increase stroke rates by 15 to 20% in some areas, even though thepart is formedover the same inter- val of time. Clearly, that’s a big plus.” Schuler also supplied the coil line, which is perfectly tuned to work with the system and is able to keep pace with the high production rate. The highly dynamic torque motors on the press can be programmed so that the slide speed remains constant during forming Successful transition to new technology

Ute Schlieder Metallwarenfabrik metalworks’ company president, Frank Schlieder.

The Ute Schlieder Metallwarenfabrik metalworks invested in a fully networked MSP 400 servo press from Schuler. and only increases when the parts are being transported. “We don’tmakemass-produced parts; we manufacture high-quality items for the furniture and automotive industries,” notes Frank. “That’swhywe opted for a servo press, which also helps us meet strict quality requirements. As an added benefit, the ma- chine’s controlled forming process extends the service life of the dies.” Driven by gearless torque motors Mechanical benefits like the gearless torque motors and external pressure points, which permit eccentric loads, also factored into the company’s purchasing decision, says Ben, adding, “We were a bit skeptical at first. But in today’s environment, you have to keep up with technological progress. It was the right decision.”

The 400-ton machine has been up and running at the Olbernhau site in Germany’s Erzgebirge region for six months. He notes that the project was executed according to plan, without any delays during commissioning. “If we invest in another press in the future, there’s a 100% chance that we’ll go with Schuler again. They did a great job and were always available. For that we owe them a big ‘thank you’,” Ben concludes. q

Schuler also supplied the coil line, which is perfectly tuned to the high output rate of the servo press.

March 2020 • MechChem Africa ¦ 25