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International Metal Tube Volume 1 Issue 4

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rt • Boru 2009 Report • Boru 2009 Report • Boru 2009 Report • Boru 2009 Report • Boru 2 Comment For many years we have been told of over-capacity within certain sectors of the metal tube and pipe industry, and the need to bring production into line with demand. This over-capacity is now at the forefront of most mill owners’ minds, not least because of the need to preserve cash reserves during these hard economic times. Cutting production is never an easy decision, but with the cost of energy and raw materials becoming ever more unpredictable this is at least one clear way to control and reduce costs. This need to match mill capacity with falling demands has led many mill owners to take drastic steps, simply to ensure their long-term survival. Fortunately many had the wisdom to look ahead and, where possible, maintain a level of production that will protect their companies and workers alike. At times like these that we can all relate to the human cost of closures or long-term shutdowns. Layoffs have a profound impact on individual employees, their families and communities they live in. But what of the future? Skills shortages are a problem in a number of industries; in the past such shortages have delayed economic recovery by hampering companies’ expansion plans despite increasing demand. All we can hope for is an adaptable workforce with skills that are transferable across a wide spectrum of industries, combined with global action to make the current recession as short and as shallow as possible. • In the next issue of IMT (May-June) we plan to include information on tube and pipe inspection, measuring, testing and marking; welding technology and consumables; tube and pipe mill automation (systems, controls, drives and more); and automotive tubing (suppliers and processing). If your company is active in any of these fields we’d like to hear from you, so please contact me as soon as possible. Vince Maynard IMT Contact Information PUBLICATION MANAGER & EDITORIAL CONTROLLER Vince Maynard +44 (0) 1732 505724 Mobile +44 (0) 7747 002286 Fax +44 (0) 1732 860052 imtmagazine@btopenworld.com EDITORIAL ADVISOR Dave Richmond editorial@internationalmetaltube.com TRANSPORT & LOGISTICS EDITOR David Young editorial@internationalmetaltube.com CIRCULATION June Bray Fax 01268 711567 PUBLISHER - PAUL BARRETT hartswoodmedia@aol.com REPRO BY Anton Print Solutions antonprint1@btconnect.com www.antonprintsolutions.co.uk DIGITAL CONVERSION BY Print to Digital PRINTED BY Holbrooks Printers Ltd, Norway Road, Hilsea, Portsmouth, Hampshire, PO3 5HX. Tel: 02392 661485 PUBLISHED BY Hartswood Media Hallmark House 25 Downham Road Ramsden Heath Essex CM11 1PU United Kingdom T- + 44 (0) 1268 711560 F- + 44 (0)1268 711567 www.internationalmetaltube.com www.internationalmetaltube.com Tubular Turkish delight Turkey’s premier tube and pipe show has made light of the global recession by attracting more exhibitors and more visitors than last year, and international interest was stronger than ever. B oru 2009, the 5th Turkish Tube, Pipe and Fittings Fair, held at the Istanbul Expo Center from 5-8 March, was so successful that exhibitors overflowed from its two halls to fill the venue’s foyer. The event was opened by Islas Holding deputy executive chairman Yavuz Özgün, ÇEBID (Steel Pipe Manufacturers Association) executive board chairman Bülent Demircioglu, International Tube Association secretary-general Phillip G Knight, ISKI general manager Mevlüt Vural, and Industry and Trade Ministry Deputy Undersecretary Professor Yavuz Cabbar. A series of seminars hosted by Igdas-Ugetam were well supported while almost 20,000 visitors were kept busy with 181 stands showcasing some of the world’s leading tube and pipe products and services. A third of the exhibitors were from abroad and this growing overseas interest will be reflected in the show’s title next year when it officially becomes International. Hatboru has global aims and coatings to suit the toughest environments, while the company meets international quality standards including TS EN, ISO and API, ISO 14001, OHSAS 18001, ACC, API-L, EN, DIN and ISO 9000. More information on Hatboru at: www.hatboru.com, tel: +90 326 285 5241 fax: +90 326 285 5639 Hatboru Çelik Boru San ve Ticaret range to include SSAW (spiral 200-3,000m. These include: is a good example of the many submerged arc welded) pipes for • Gas and petrol pipes to API 5L; thriving Turkish pipe water, petrol and gas as well as • Water pipes to AWWA C-20, BS manufacturers that were displaying construction and piling work; it is 534, DIN 2460, DIN 1626 and TS their wares at Boru 2009. now competing effectively in the EN 10217-1; This family firm has been in global market. • General-purpose pipes to BS business since 1964, With a 100,00m2 site in Hatay 3601 and DIN 1626; manufacturing steel pipes for including a 15,000m2 factory, • Pile (stake) pipes to water projects and drilling. It Hatboru runs three production ASTM A-252; currently exports to countries in lines for spiral welded pipes and • Pipe jointing pieces to AWWA North Africa, the Middle East, the another for drilling pipes. Total C-208 and BS 534. EU and eastern Europe. capacity is 120,000 tonnes a year, These pipes are available with a In 1998 Hatboru expanded its with pipe diameters ranging from comprehensive range of linings Re-equipping was key to WTF’s success W hen, in late 2006, Graham Barrows and Peter Fellows embarked on a buy­out of tube manipulation, machining and welding specialist Willenhall Tube and Forging Co (WTF), they found themselves in competition with a couple of large PLCs and a rival subcontracting company. What tipped the scales in their favour was the fact that both directors, born and bred in the historic Black Country in the West Midlands, were committed to protecting jobs and maintaining the company’s long established links in the Walsall area. “The immediate priority was to move the company locally from very old premises into a modern 4,000m2 facility on the Bloxwich Lane Industrial Estate,” says general manager Matt Gilkes. “We are now adjacent to J10 of the M6 motorway, easily accessible from anywhere in the country and with plenty of room to expand.” The next step was to implement an investment programme focused on replacing ageing equipment that was no longer competitive. “There’s no denying we had inherited some rather old-fashioned production processes,” he adds. “For example, virtually every tube manipulation job seemed to require a wooden pattern board to check the first-off sample component. If a correction needed to be made it became a matter of judgement rather than of precise measurement feedback. “However, within a very short space of time we had identified the technology required to achieve our ambition of developing into a world-class manufacturer capable of satisfying the most diverse and stringent demands of our customers.” WTF already had a dozen or so tube bending machines but the new owners decided that the business needed a multi-axis tube bending capability. Having evaluated the available options, the decision was made to install a BLM E-TURN 52 – an all-electric 12-axis CNC tube bending machine. It is designed specifically for bending the small to medium sized tubes typically used for complex automotive and aerospace components, operating via VGP-3D Visual Graphic Programming software. Because the complete head can rotate through 180º, the BLM E-TURN 52 is capable of highly accurate and repeatable left- and right-hand bending in automatic cycle, eliminating work-in­progress and optimising just-in-time production. But what WTF also needed was a fast and reliable way of accurately measuring the critical dimensions of each first-off component. Once again the ISO 9001:2008­accredited company looked to BLM Group UK for the answer. According to Matt Gilkes, the BLM MT4 measuring system meets all of the company’s tube measuring needs. The system is available with either a Renishaw touch probe or a non-touch laser probe, and it can be used either for machine programming of tube parameters or for controlling the bending of tubes during the production cycle. Among the system’s features are the automatic set-up of tube inspection procedures, including editing procedures for holes, flanges or other fittings, and a 3D graphic representation of the measured tube with printout capability. “Because the MT4 system is fully compatible with the BLM E­TURN 52, information can be sent back across the factory to modify the bending parameters,” says Matt Gilkes. “Now, if you want to make a copy of an existing part, the measured dimensions can be sent automatically to the E-TURN 52’s operating software and can then be recalled at any time to make an identical part.” WTF, which has 60 years’ experience of processing a wide range of materials, including mild and stainless steels, titanium, brass, copper and aluminium, has since moved to the next stage of its investment programme. This was the installation in 2008 of a BLM Adige LT120 CNC laser tube cutting system, complete with a fully automated loading system. This tube laser is ideally suited to the cutting and profiling of the light metal and thin walled tube components up to 120mm diameter produced by WTF for major industry sectors, including automotive, medical, commercial furniture, agricultural equipment and architectural components such as balustrades, as well as a wide range of bespoke components for brand leading manufacturers. “We had a number of jobs for which we were outsourcing the laser tube cutting but this involved keeping a very close eye on lead times as any delays affected our delivery schedule,” says Matt Gilkes. “There was also the problem of ensuring accuracy all the way through a production process that can include robotic welding and assembly. “Installing the new tube laser has resolved these issues and reflects the very good working relationship we have with BLM,” he adds. “They have recommended the right machines for our applications and have delivered on their promises with regard to machine reliability and service and support. “Evidence of this support was demonstrated during our last visit to the BLM factory in Cantù, Italy, when it was confirmed that, as part of the BLM service package, our machines would be connected to the company’s dial-up diagnostic systems as soon as our development work has been completed. “Having invested more than £¾ million since the take-over, and with plans to invest more, we are confident WTF is at the leading edge in terms of what we provide to our customers. We see this recession as a challenge but also as an opportunity, because we have the equipment and the skills needed to survive and grow. In the longer term we could be installing a second or even a third tube laser, bearing in mind that by 2012 new automotive models will be coming through to market.” More information on BLM Group UK at: tel: +44 (01525) 402 555 fax: +44 (01525) 402 312 sales@blmgroup.uk.com www.blmgroup.uk.com More information on Willenhall Tube and Forging Co at: tel: +44(0)1922 725505, fax: +44(0)1922 720131. enquiries@willenhalltube.co.uk www.willenhalltube.co.uk UK subsidiary BLM Group UK is the UK subsidiary of the BLM Group, which also comprises BLM, based in Cantù, Italy; Adige, based in Levico Terme, Italy; and Adige-Sys, based in Novaleno, Italy. BLM specialises in CNC bending machines and end forming machines; Adige specialises in tube laser cutting machines and sawing machines for tubes, solids and profiles, as well as deburring and washing machines; and Adige-Sys specialises in combined tube and sheet laser cutting systems. Bant Boru has a Universal finish Vacuum coating system. U niversal Finishing Systems has designed and manufactured a coating and drying line for Bant Boru, Turkey’s sole manufacturer of double-walled copper brazed tubes. Bant Boru has gained an enviable reputation for the reliability and quality of its tubing, which is supplied to the automotive sector for fluid storage, transfer and delivery pipelines for brakes, fuel and air-con. The tubes are also supplied as condenser tubing in refrigeration equipment. This is the fifth international order for Universal in this sector; its finishing lines have already been installed in Germany and Italy. The new line at Bant Boru’s plant in Gebze, just outside Istanbul, incorporates Universal’s Supa-Vac vacuum coating system for the application of a water-based etching treatment, which is then dried with an in-line gas infra-red drying system using cylindrical emitters. Following application of this coating, Universal has manufactured a custom designed cartridge coating system for the application of a solvent primer coating, which is required to ensure excellent adhesion of the final high performance PA coating. In order to dry the primer Infra-red drying system. coating and convert the volatile solvent emissions into harmless gases, Universal supplied an integrated hot air dryer/thermal oxidising system. “This coating line is a very efficient and environmentally friendly coating line, utilising 100% transfer efficient application machines, a high-Speed radiant drying unit and a convective drying system which burns off harmful solvent emissions and re­circulates the hot air for drying,” says Universal Finishing Systems’ managing director Kevin Whittle. Bant Boru’s managing director, Ismail Cenker, explains: “This line illustrates Bant Boru’s commitments to its customers and will enable us to respond to our customers’ demands for quality, high-performance brake pipe and rapid delivery times. Plus, it helps us to be environmentally friendly and provides significant energy savings. We were delighted with Universal’s co­operation with this project and the smooth installation and start-up of the line.” More informational on Universal at: tel: +44 (0)1244 280654 fax: +44 (0)1244 288102 info@universalfinishing.co.uk www.universalfinishing.com Formtek firms upgrade websites T wo Formtek Group members, Dahlstrom USA and Tishken, have revamped their websites. The Dahlstrom site, www.dahlstromusa.com, features: • Increased information and services for tooling and aftermarket support; • Explanations of equipment, systems and applicable industries for new and existing customers; • Updated equipment and product offerings in roll forming, flexible fabrication and material handling. The Tishken site, www.tishken.com, features: • Added parts and service page with a contact form for enhanced accessibility; • Expanded equipment rebuilds and system integration information; • Graphic descriptions of each roll forming machine series; • Increased capabilities and offerings for roll tooling design, manufacture and regrinding services. Both sites welcome feedback, so if there is any information you cannot find on one of them, or you would like to comment on a site, use the website contact pages. Alternatively email dahlstrom@formtekgroup.com or tishken@formtekgroup.com. More information on Formtek Group at: tel: 216 292 4460 fax: 216 292 2898 www.formtekgroup.com Award for excellence Formtek Asia-Pacific has been awarded ISO9001:2000 certification in recognition of its quality management system in the metal forming equipment design and manufacture area. This achievement reflects Formtek Asia-Pacific’s continuing focus on quality and reliability in manufacturing metal forming products. More information on Formtek Asia-Pacific at: tel: 86 10 89751509 fax: 86 10 89758065 max li@ formtek.com.cn www.formtek.com.cn Group profile Formtek is a group of long-established companies, each with a well-known name and a history of providing innovative, reliable equipment to the metal forming and metal processing industries. They include B&K, Cooper-Weymouth, Peterson (CWP), Dahlstrom, Engel, FMI/Dahlstrom, Hill Engineering, Iowa Precision, Lockformer, Rowe, Tishken, Winpro, and Yoder. Beat the Competitors with Advanced Technology Visit us at Tube Russia stand no. 7-5A19 Z umbach Electronics has published a catalogue of its on-line profile measuring and monitoring systems. With more than 50 years’ experience, the company supplies measuring and control systems to a wide range of industries. The new Profilemaster catalogue includes details in a number of languages about Zumbach’s on-line profile measuring and monitoring systems for any continuously produced profiles of any shape and any material, helping clients achieve the optimum price– performance ratio. Zumbach spreads Zumbach at Wire Russia 2009 Zumbach will be in Moscow for Wire Russia 2009 with a selection of its measurement and control systems. It will also be demonstrating some of its latest technology including: • ODAC laser diameter scanners (dual- and triple-axis models); • UMAC ultrasonic wall thickness measurement and control system; • ODEX combined laser/magnetic non-contact concentricity gauge and diameter measuring system; • DVW oscillating device with ODAC laser diameter gauge for sector cable measurement and similar applications; • USYS high-end multi-sensor data acquisition, processing and display units. the word Electronic and printed copies are free on request. Also available from Zumbach is a comprehensive range of modular, single-axis ODAC laser gauges. They are available either mounted on a rail or as components – with separate emitter and receiver units for flexible installation in any position, depending on the application. Thanks to the use of high-precision, telecentric optics, it is possible to mount emitter and receiver units up to 3m apart, facilitating installation in confined areas. Alternatively, multiple emitter/receiver pairs can be arranged in the same measuring level, offering a multi-axis measurement. The gauges, which are based on the latest laser scanning technology, can be used in all manufacturing processes, including the extrusion of hoses and large-diameter pipes. Claimed advantages include: • A high scan rate of up to 2000/sec; • Market leading accuracy and repeatability; • A compact and rugged design; • Various measurement modes, including diameter, gap width, depth penetration and multiple products; • Special beam geometries, depending on the model; • A narrow beam for contour measurements; • A parallel beam for profiles and the like; • Models with integrated processors (RS, Ethernet, Profibus DP) or connection to a wide range of remote processor for process control, SPC and SQC data collection. More information on Zumbach Electronics at: tel: +41 (0)32 356 0400, fax: +41 (0)32 356 0430. sales@zumbach.ch www.zubach.com Italian team with a polished finish Coil processing equipment manufacturer Faspar and Costa Levigatrici, which specialises in polishing and brushing machines, have teamed up to develop a lineup of products under the Surface Finishing Lines banner. Faspar is a globally recognised producer of turn-key equipment for metal coils processing. Established in 1966 as a press designer and manufacturer, Faspar has a 4,000m2 factory near Milan, Italy. Since 1977 the company has been producing complete sheet metal working lines. Its product range includes slitting lines; levelling, straightening and cut-to-length lines (with feeder or rotary shear or flying shear); surface finishing lines; feeding and pressing/punching lines; tension/stretch levelling lines; roll forming lines; and sandwich panel lines. Costa Levigatrici, based in Schio, Italy, was established in 1982 and has grown to become a world leader in manufacturing wide belt sanding machines. In 1989 Costa developed the first 2,500mm-wide metal polishing machine, and in 1993 it set up a Costa Metal division which now has more than 1,000 units installed. It has become a major manufacturer of polishing, brushing, grinding and deburring machines for ferrous and non­ferrous metals. Costa Levigatrici employs about 200 people at three plants with a total covered area of 17,000m2. Its product range includes: dry and wet polishing and brushing machines for coil processing lines and sheets; dry and wet polishing and brushing machines for flat bars and tubes; grinding lines with abrasive belts for optimum accuracy and high-grade finishes; and dry and wet universal deburring and polishing machines for sheets cut to size Both companies work with a wide range of materials including stainless steel, steel, galvanized steel, pre-painted steel, aluminum, titanium, copper, brass, tin plate and special steels. More information on Costa Levigatrici at: tel: +39 044 567 5000 fax: +39 044 567 5110 email: rm@costalev.com www.costalev.com More information on Faspar at tel: +39 02 947 1274 fax: +39 02 947 1611 faspar@faspar.it www.faspar.it Unison catches a bus with UK’s top builder A lexander Dennis’s PSV chassis manufacturing plant in Guildford, UK has taken delivery of an advanced all-electric tube bending machine from Unison. It will be used for in-house production of many of the custom tubular components – including hydraulic brake pipes, air-con ducts and exhaust pipes – that are hidden inside the chassis of vehicles once they have been built. Alexander Dennis is the UK’s leading manufacturer of single-and double-deck buses and coach chassis. The company’s principal markets are the UK, the Far East and the USA. It supplies all of the UK’s major bus operators – 70% of London’s fleet of 8,000 buses are Alexander Dennis models – and is the market leader in Hong Kong. Alexander Dennis operates three large factories in the UK – chassis production is handled at Guildford while body production is based at Falkirk in Scotland. In 2007 the renowned Scarborough­based coach builder Plaxton also became part of the Alexander Dennis Group of companies, making it the UK’s largest bus and coach builder. According to Brian Davidson, chief operating officer for Alexander Dennis: “We were originally looking for an electro­pneumatic tube bending machine to replace an existing hydraulic unit – we wanted something that could handle a wider range of tube sizes and shapes, at lower cost. “However, following an exhaustive six-month technical evaluation, during which time we looked at a number of competitive tube bending machines, we decided that Unison’s all-electric technology was a better option. Unison subsequently won our business in a competitive bid, based on technical capability, capital cost and projected cost of ownership.” The Unison tube bending machine being supplied to Dennis is a three-axis, single-stack Breeze 130 which is capable of handling tubes and pipes up to 130mm (5in) in diameter. In place of hydraulic force the Breeze 130 employs servo motors to control the bending process, including clamp, pressure die, mandrel and follower. More information on Unison at: tel: +44 (0) 1723 582868 fax: +44 (0)1723 582379 enquiries@unisonltd.com www.unisonltd.com The Unison Breeze 130 tube bending machine at Unison’s Scarborough factory prior to dispatch to Alexander Dennis’s chassis building division in Guildford. Electric benders in Norway Norwegian metalworking machinery and tool specialist P Meidell has added Unison electric tube bending machinery to its range. “All-electric tube benders are now taking a larger and larger share of the market from traditional hydraulic powered equipment. This is because of a combination of advantages, including precision bending, de-skilled machine set-up, reduced scrap, almost silent operation and very significant energy savings,” says Meidell's sales engineer Bjorn Garvik. "I am delighted to have secured the Unison franchise for Norway, as this company has a genuine reputation for innovation and regularly wins orders for some of the most challenging tube bending applications in the world,” he adds. Unison chose Meidell as its agent because of the company's detailed knowledge of Norway's metalworking manufacturing base, and because of its long experience with related automation including sheet metal machinery and machine tools. Company profile Unison, Based at Scarborough, North Yorkshire, is a world leader in tube bending and end-forming technology. Founded in 1973 to design and build computerised control systems for industrial processes, the company rapidly gained specialist knowledge of automated tube bending. In 1995 it launched its first proprietary all-electric tube bending machine; it now produces a wide range of servo-controlled machines spanning tube diameters from 20-170mm and is the UK’s only manufacturer of CNC tube bending equipment. Among Unison’s latest innovations are a laser measurement system that dynamically measures the accuracy of bend angles and automatically compensates for any errors, and all-electric machines capable of bending tube diameters up to 150mm including exotic alloys. Rates campaign launches website T he British Property Federation, the ‘trade body for property’, has launched a website, www.emptyrates.com, to “offer the public a voice on property tax chaos”. The website, backed by major names including ASDA, Tesco, EDF, AXA and the CBI, is designed to track demolitions and scrapped regeneration schemes since the government removed the relief from business rates for empty commercial space last April. The BPF estimates that 15 million square feet of property has been demolished and many businesses have gone under because rates now have to be paid on empty business premises. Until 1 April last year, empty offices and shops were liable for half their rates bills while empty industrial units paid nothing; the BPF wants this level of rates relief to be reinstated. Its website features comments from politicians and businessmen; Koerner promotes pickling at Tube Moscow and Ukraine: • UGMK, Ekaterinenburg – delivery of a major pickling plant for galvanizing; • Centravis, Nikopol – delivery of developed to withstand the demanding conditions in pickling plants undertaking piece work. Customers worldwide value the plants’ long lifespan of 20 years or more and the ease with which repairs can be carried out. Koerner also supplies fume extraction plants which comply with all European environmental standards. A galvanizing plant based on the KVK system prevents acidic vapours from corroding the building or other parts of the plant. Major recent installations have been completed in Russia it also allows evidence to be submitted to MPs and the BPF. * Emptyrates.com was constructed by Cantos Communications and was jointly funded by ASDA Retail Development and the British Property Federation. 20m pickling tanks for pickling stainless-steel pipes; • AVISMA, Tube Works VSMPO, Dniepropetrovsk region – delivery of 20m pickling tanks for pickling stainless-steel pipes; • Paldiski Tsingipada, Estonia – delivery of complete galvanizing plant enclosed pickling line and fume treatment. The Centravis and AVISMA tanks feature integrated waste air channels to collect acidic vapours. More information on Koerner at: tel: +43 3465 2513 fax: +43 3465 2118 office@koerner.at www.kvk-koerner.at US extends purchase tax breaks The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act extends tax breaks for small business equipment purchases under Section 179. It also introduces a 50% bonus depreciation allowance for new machine tools and other equipment ordered and placed in service during 2009. Assume that a company in the seven-year asset depreciation class orders and puts into service a new machine tool costing $100,000. Under the new 50% bonus depreciation it can write off 57% of the asset in the first year, as opposed to 14% if bonus depreciation had not been enacted for the 2009 tax year. This equates to a total deduction on a $100,000 machine of $57,000 – $43,000 more for a new machine purchase than in 2010. Under Section 179, small businesses (whose total equipment purchases in 2009 don not exceed $800,000) can also offset the first $250,000 for the 2009 tax year until 1 January 2010. In the case of a $400,000 machine the total first-year deduction under the old US tax rules would be $166,080. Under the new rules this rises to $335,500 for a new machine or $271,000 for a used machine. More information on The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act from Liz Nicolson, government relations director at the Association For Manufacturing Technology, tel: 703 827 5229 enicolson@amtonline.org Caparo wins top supplier rating C aparo Precision Tubes (CPT), part of Caparo Steel Products, has been named a Grade A supplier by Bosch, the world leading manufacturer of DIY, garden and trade power tools.Having boosted its consistency of product quality to 95.4%, the company believes it is in an excellent position to retain the Bosch garden tools business.Dennis Morrill, managing director of CPT, says: “We have worked hard over the years to develop a relationship with Bosch which goes beyond the supplier-customer transaction. And we have proven that we believe in investing in our factory and quality for the future, in order to provide distinctive benefits for Company profile The Caparo Group is a global manufacturing company specialising in steel, aluminium and composite products. Its steel operations span the UK, USA and India. Caparo Steel Products is one of the largest steel conversion and distribution businesses in the UK, manufacturing an extensive range of structural steels, precision tube, spirally wound tube, special bar qualities, industrial wires, cold rolled strip and spring steel strip for a range of industries. Caparo Precision Tubes, based in Oldbury, West Midlands, produces more than 100,000 tonnes of welded steel tubes per annum for the UK and export markets – it offers the largest product range of any domestic UK manufacturer. The company’s product portfolio includes standard ERW tubes, aluminised, pre-galvanised, Flo-Coat, decorative tubes, plastic coated, high-tensile and fin cut materials. Complementing the manufacturing capability is a range of tube cutting, end forming and heat treatment services. Major markets include automotive, garden and leisure, furniture and horticulture. our business partners. “In recognition of this fact, we have not only achieved the much sought-after A-supplier rating, but Bosch has been able to offer a generous discount on all its power tool products for all CPT employees… I would like to congratulate everyone on a job well done.” More information on Caparo Precision Tubes at: tel: +44 (0)121 543 5706 fax: +44 (0)121 543 5750 enquiries@caparosteelproducts.com www.caparosteelproducts.com Going green with gas Adventurers Rainer Zietlow and Franz Janusiewicz left Irschenberg, Southern Germany in January at the start of a 20,000km promotional tour of every one of Germany’s 800 compressed natural gas (CNG) fuel stations. A number of Swagelok sales and service centres co-sponsored the tour, not least because the pair drove the recently launched VW Passat 1.4 TSI EcoFuel on their 80­day tour – Swagelok parts form a vital part of the Passat’s eco­friendly technology. The tour was designed to highlight the increasing availability of CNG in Germany; Swagelok is a major developer and provider of fluid system component technologies, with a global network of more than 200 authorised sales and service centres in 57 countries. advancement of alternative fuel Deric Wallace, the company’s technology in Germany at both the regional director Europe, says: vehicle and fuelling station level, “Swagelok is proud to support the and we are proud to say that Volkswagen has chosen Swagelok tube fittings, valves and hoses as reliability and safety is paramount.” During their tour Zietlow and Janusiewicz visited Germany’s largest natural gas field in Münsterland, as well as the only gas station where motorists can buy “100% German natural gas”. They recently completed the EcoFuel World and Asian Tours, which earned them an entry in the Guinness Book of Records. The tour also raised funds for a charity funding children's villages in Berlin and Sulzburg which supports abandoned children and orphans, as well as disadvantaged families. More information on Swagelock at www.swagelok.com. capability it turned to its original supplier, Demag Cranes & Components. F ollowing investment in its Vitoria factory, Spanish welded steel tube manufacturer Aratubo needed to extend its materials storage facility. The company was happy with its two existing automatic stores, which were supplied by Demag Cranes & Components, so it went back to Demag for the construction of a further crane-served store. At the same time Aratubo decided to upgrade the crane controls of its existing stores to match its new acquisition, and to install a higher-level warehouse management system. The company was set up in 1997 with two tube production machines and a Demag automatic double-girder overhead traveling The warehouse management system controls the crane motions with centimetre accuracy to ensure that the product is stored safely ‘’ and reliably crane. Steady growth justified investment in further machinery and a second store with an automatic crane was added in 2003; at the same time the warehouse management computer system was expanded. When the new third automatic store was integrated into the system it had to be done without interrupting production. The Spanish subsidiary of Demag Cranes & Components started by installing the runway for the new crane. This was followed two months later by the installation of the open-winch crane, which has a span of 25m. At the same time Demag Cranes & Components installed a new management computer for the new store. Without interrupting production, both of the existing S5 crane control systems were upgraded to S7. Crane No 1 was then fitted with new end carriages, followed by implementation of the new warehouse management system, which subsequently entered service without any problems in April 2008 the S4 tube production facility delivered the first batches of tubes. Aratubo made the cranes available for up to 10 hours during the day to enable the S7 control system to be installed. When the company needed to resume production, mostly during the night shift, the system was restored to its previous condition before the refurbishment and conversion work continued the following morning. Now the three automatic stores, even more than the production machinery, are seen as the core of the company’s operations, with a total capacity of 13,000 tonnes. The production and storage operations cover some 25,000m2, with the three building sections of the automatic crane-served stores arranged around Aratubo’s tube production facility like a horseshoe. This means the manufactured materials only have to travel a short distance to enter storage. When they receive them from production, the automatic cranes pick up the bundles of tubes, which measure up to 8m in length and weigh up to 1.3 tonnes, with a telescoping magnet spreader and quickly lift them up to the highest hook position. By fixing their load handling attachments into position via a pin-and-recess arrangement, the automatic cranes are able to transport the long material at high speed without any load sway, travelling between the various positions in the tube stores at up to 100m/min. A further new system detects any incline in the position of the spreaders. The greatest challenge posed by the new store was the bundling and storage of tubes with small diameters, which have to be stacked as precisely as the as the larger tubes. The solution is ingenious: following the cutting and bundling operations, the production machine automatically inserts square sections of wood to stabilise the products from four sides and then wraps steel straps around the bundles of tubes. The warehouse management system controls the crane motions with centimetre accuracy to ensure that the product is stored safely and reliably. Every package of tubes is stacked with a 20cm overhang at the end, allowing the bundles of tubes to be placed in stable stacks of up to eight units without the sections of wood resting on each other. The warehouse management system provides information on the storage position and dimensions of every bundle to be stored to the crane control system, which has its own position measurement system. The control system then specifies the position of the telescopic magnet spreader to ensure that the bundles of tubes are picked up precisely between the wooden sections. Trucks deliver the raw material in the form of coils that weigh 25 tonnes. A manually controlled Demag double-girder overhead travelling crane unloads the vehicles and stores the rolled sheet metal in the coil store. The coils are then cut to the widths needed to produce the tubes by a coil splitting machine. This step in the production process enables Aratubo to react very quickly and flexibly to urgent customer orders. Conveyors transport the finished parts coming from the four tube production installations to the store, where they are stored by each crane according to previously defined storage strategies, such as sorting into stacks of single products or the assembly of bundles of tubes for a particular customer order within the given store. Tubes requested by the shipping department are retrieved by the cranes and placed on conveyor units that are defined as deposit points in the control system. As in the storage operation, the cranes handle the bundles of tubes in pairs. To do this the single magnets are moved to an offset position, which enables the spreader to pick up two bundles simultaneously. The cranes also place finished products into storage and, on the return journey, transport parts for transfer to shipping. The material flow runs from Store 3 via Store 2 to retrieval. Material in Store 1 can be retrieved directly or – depending on the specified strategy – can be transported to Store 2 via a transverse conveyor. Aratubo relies on a manually controlled Demag double-girder overhead travelling crane to load the trucks in the shipping zone. These cranes operate around the clock, so the Spanish subsidiary of Demag Cranes & Components provides 24-hour backup from its centre in Bilbao. Second-level service is provided by the software suppliers using remote maintenance tools from a site in Wetter, Germany. Thanks to the new facility and conversion of Stores 2 and 3, Aratubo has significantly increased its handling rates and optimised storage of the finished products. The company also has scope to further increase its capacity. More information on Aratubo at: tel: +34 945 292200 fax: +34 945 290659 aratubo@aratubo.com www.aratubo.com More information on Demag at: tel: +49 (0) 2335 92 7788 fax: +49 (0) 2335 92 7200 info@demagcranes.com www.demagcranes.com Company profile Aratubo, which has around 100 employees, manufactures welded steel tubes in diameters ranging from 10-78mm with tube wall thicknesses from 0.7-3mm. As well as round tubes Aratubo produces square and rectangular sections. The tubes are used for steel superstructures in the construction industry and plant engineering sector, for metal furniture, garden, leisure and hospital equipment, shop fittings and children’s pushchairs. About half of Aratubo’s output goes to steel wholesalers in Spain, other West European countries, Scandinavia, Poland and the Czech Republic. The rest goes to industrial customers, including the automotive and furniture sectors. The Vitoria plant processes up to 170,000 tonnes of steel every year – the company’s production, storage and marketing operations are certified to ISO 9001:2000. All Weldac solid-state welders now come with a 5-year warranty for their inverter modules, driver cards included. Since its launch the Weldac has become a proven solution; a welder that’s boosting productivity at companies worldwide. Weldac’s unrivalled reliability is based on a robust design and robust components. In fact, our IGBT transistor solution makes the Weldac virtually short-circuit proof. To learn more about Weldac, its proven reliability, and the warranty, just write to us at: sales@no.efdgroup.net The Weldac 1800 —for API pipes up to 26” OD. EFD Induction | www.efd-induction.com | Putting the smarter heat to smarter use. Top quality starts at home J ulia Utensili, a world leader in the production of HSS circular sawblades, produces a wide range of sawblades with diameters from 20-620mm for tube cutting. Over the past few years steady investment in modern production systems at the company’s plant in Tarcento, Italy have increased its production capacity as well as enhancing quality standards. Some of the company’s competitors are transfering production to countries with low labour costs such as China. By contrast Julia Utensili is determined to put quality first by keeping its production in Italy. To remain competitive it is holding down production costs by automating the factory – and steadily rising turnover indicates that the plan is working. The company’s success is also HSS sawblades offer enhanced cutting precision and better surface finish. rooted in investments in research coatings, especially with high-and development; its new Silver speed cutting. Fox surface coating offers better Collaboration between Julia performance than traditional PVD Utensili technicians and those of some leading machine manufacturers has helped the company develop sophisticated software for the precise calculation of optimum cutting parameters. These improvements have been applied to its latest sawing machines, leading to better sawing performances and longer tool life. For example, when compared with friction saws, HSS sawblades offer enhanced cutting precision and better surface finish, and they stand comparison with the most expensive carbide tipped sawblades. A number of major end-users rely on the support given by Julia Utensili’s technicians and distributors to improve the productivity of their own cutting lines. More information on Julia Utensili at: tel: +39 0432 784 723 fax: +39 0432 784 725 juliacom@julia.it www.julia.it Latest planisher from Kent K ent Corporation has prevents over planishing and allows for strip processors to sell developed a coil end eliminates the need to adjust the weld in their final product. weld planisher pressure for each thickness. More information on Kent featuring a fixed upper The planisher will flatten TIG Corporation at: planisher roll that is welds back to original metal tel: 440 237 9286 hydraulically driven on two linear thickness so they can easily pass fax: 440 237 5368 bearings. through roll form, tube and sales@kenttesgo.com The lower anvil is adjusted up progressive die lines. This also www.continuouscoil.com and down by a precision screw and wedge assembly. A machine-mounted dial indicator allows for the anvil to be positioned to the exact material thickness – this Round holes for ROLLIT® The Solutions for Hot Metal Forming Square Tube Improving overall yield in tube mills with Kent Corporation has TIMCAL lubricants and descaling agents developed an automatic drilling comprises six (24) drill heads Timcal recommendations for seamless tube production can be divided in three mounted in opposing pairs. These pairs of drill heads are main categories: mounted on a common back plate. ROLLIT® Lubricants. Based on high purity graphite are applied to the mandrel bars The drills are located into 44 precision predrilled positions – to protect them, reduce friction, withstand high pressure and temperature during adjustments simply require the operator to unbolt and rolling process. relocating the drill heads into new locations indicated on a ROLLIT® Descaling powders. To treat the scale on shell interiors and/or lubricate the machine-mounted rule and chart. The machine includes a shell. Products blown into the hot shell before mandrel insertion. magazine load station, indexing conveyor system, tube flip ROLLIT® Technologies. Reliable application systems allow a perfect application of station, drilling station and the positioning station for drilling ROLLIT® products under the most severe conditions and control the quantities applied. This drilling station is TIMCAL Ltd. Strada Industriale CH-6743 Bodio, Switzerland mounted on beams, bridging the indexing conveyors, with the Tel: +41-91-873-2010 Fax: +41-91-873-2019 n.richle@ch.timcal.com drill head pairs being For more info please visit: www.timcal.com suspended on anti-friction linear bearings on the beams. Chip blowouts are located at each drill head to keep chips from building up. Fast measuring with LaserLine N on-contact tube measurement has been well known in the international tube market ever since Homer Eaton introduced the first Laservision Measuring table from Eaton Leonard in 1973. Since then the non-contact fork has set a high standard for tube measurement. Infrared and laser beam were subsequently combined in many similar methods to get points in crosslines to calculate tube data. Then laser technology found its way into the CAD world. It was used for geometric parts, with software that takes millions of points to generate surfaces. Tubes treated as geometric parts are created out of two half-shells or as linked cylinders and bends in some construction software, to be retreated and reassembled to get the design of the scanned object on the screen. But as tubing needs a completely different algrorithm, there was no tube data to be found in those results. TeZetCAD is still the only specialised tube software which generates tube xyz data during the scanning of a tube and converts it into bending data in the same process. But the scanning procedure for long tubes with lots of bends, or small tubes with small diameters, is really time consuming work. Then Swiss software company TeZet found the solution. The cutting-edge LaserLine feature in TeZetCAD software lets the laser do its work as ‘faciliator’ in tube measuring. A synthesis between today’s laser technology and yesterday’s non-contact fork evaluation, combined with TeZetCAD, is a significant new mode of operation in tube measurement. It is said to be extremely quick: one laser line at the A-end, only two LaseLine measurements on one cylinder (one at the beginning of the straight and one at the end of the straight continuously repeated on each straight till the B-end) as known from the non-contact fork ‘tak, tak’ method – with real time xyz and bending data output. TeZetCAD is the only software to provide this feature, with FARO V3 features and MicroScribe with MicroScan. Maintaining a market lead in this economically demanding time also calls for miniaturised measurement systems with high performance technology, such as 3D Linelasers with two workspaces – one for smaller tubes and one for bigger diameters – for example, the MicroScribe measuring device with the MicroScan-3DLinelaser. More information on TeZet Technik at: tel: +41 56 249 3760 fax: +41 56 249 2878 tezet_leistritz@compuserve.com www.tezet.com Expanded SKH range can stand the heat Stahlkontor Hahn (SKH), the tube grade: E355 (mechanicals); and pipe division of • Hollow sections grade: S355J2H ThyssenKrupp Materials (structurals); International, has expanded its • Seamless precision and stock range with heat resistant hydraulic steel tubes, grade: E235 grade TP310S/310H for seamless (automotive). tubes from ¼-8in NPS. SKH offers seamless carbon, alloy and stainless-steel 904L, Duplex and Super Duplex; grades: P11, P22, P5 and P91 More on Stahlkontor Hahn at: tubes and pipes, both ex-stock • High-temperature services (boiler tubes for pressure tel: +49 2102 402 210 and ex-mill. grades: TP304/H, 321/H, 347/H; applications). fax: +49 2102 402 262 • Seamless stainless-steel pipes • Heat resistant grade: TP310/S; Other tubular products include: stainless@s-k-h.com stock: TP304/L, 316/L, 316Ti, • Seamless alloy steel pipe stock • Seamless heavy wall steel tubes www.s-k-h.com Products & Equipment parameters, such as root opening, shrinkage, bevel, and profile type, Missing link software for into Tekla Structures. The new NC tubular profiles F innish-based Tekla and HGG in the Netherlands have co-operated to develop an integrated solution for modelling and manufacturing tubular steel structures. This includes: • Full range of components in Tekla Structures software for modeling tubular structures; the new component types are offshore saddle (AWS), offshore chamfer, saddle and hole, mitre and hole, chamfer and slotted hole; • Integrated export of total manufacturing data from the model directly to 3D tube profiling production; • XML format-based industry standard for transferring data that is accessible by any tube profiling machine; • Company or design software supplier; • Visualisation module for 3D representations of cutting shapes on tubular structures. This new software is unique in that it covers all 3D tubular profiles from design and detailing to automatic fabrication. Previous design programs required separate manual data input and editing before fabrication could take place. With Tekla’s Building Information Modelling (BIM) concept for tubular steel construction projects, all information can be managed and kept up-to-date in the BIM model so all data can be extracted from one source. No manual input or editing of manufacturing data is needed. The concept also includes automatic handling of all 3D tubular connections. HGG’s Management Information System (MIS) ProCAM equips the system with industry-specific tools (eg, can rotation for the offshore industry); integral production management (eg, return signals confirming processing); project planning (eg, estimated production times) and much more. The new solution for tubular profiles is available with Tekla Structures 15.0. The objective has been to enable input of required application creates the required control data file in XML format from these parameters; an HGG calculation module generates contour information from this file to be used as input when visualising weld preparations in the Tekla Structures 3D environment. The NC application will be distributed as part of the standard installation of Tekla Structures 15.0 Steel Detailing configuration. More information on Tekla at: www.tekla.com tel: +358 30 661 10 fax: +358 30 661 1500 saku.jarvinen@tekla.com More information on HGG at: tel: + 31 227 50 40 30 fax: + 31 227 50 19 03 info@hgg.nl www.hgg.nl In-Line Diameter and Shape Contr ol For Hot and Cold Processes – For Any Pipe, Tube, Profile STEELMASTER Gauges Hi-speed laser scanning. Measurement of diameter, ovality, height, width and diagonals. s Possible measuring modes sStandard measuring ranges up to 500 mm s1 up to 6 measuring axes sMeasuring frequency: 1000/s for each axis New! Measuring solutions for round and non-round products. Captures also asymmetrical shape deviations of round, oval and polygonal products. PROFILEMASTER® Gauges Advanced vision technology (light-section). s Any shape sStandard measuring ranges up to 300 mm s1 up to 6 laser/camera modules Visit us at: Moscow, Russia May 12 -15, 2009 Booth FOB02 Worldwide Customer Service and Sales Offices: Pittsburgh, PA, USA Zumbach Electronic AG – SWITZERLAND (H.Q.) Zumbach Bureau France – FRANCE Zumbach Electronics Far East – TAIWAN May 04 -06, 2009 Zumbach Electrónica Argentina S.R.L. – ARGENTINA Zumbach Electronic S.A. – BELGIUM Zumbach Electronic GmbH – GERMANY Zumbach Electronic India Pvt. Ltd. – INDIA Zumbach Electronics Ltd. – UK Zumbach Electronics Corp. – USA Booth # 1211 Zumbach do Brasil Ltda – BRAZIL Zumbach Electronic Co., Ltd. – CHINA P.R. Zumbach Electronic Srl – ITALY Zumbach Electrónica S.L. – SPAIN Plus more than 40 agencies www.zumbach.com ZUMB.707.0092.E_Feb.09 D emand for steel tubes has been rising steadily over the past few years for two main reasons: the enormous industrial development in China and the rapidly increasing global demand for energy. When it comes to energy production there’s a trend towards higher-tensile alloys. Salzgitter Mannesmann Grobblech of Mühlheim, Germany is a leading supplier of pipeline sheet steel with major customers including Europipe. It reports that pipeline producers, who are operating under increasingly harsh environmental conditions and at higher pressures, are demanding higher-tensile steel grades such as X80, X100 and above. Users of large-diameter tubes are also moving towards thicker walls and increased resistance to low temperatures. Salzgitter Mannesmann Forschung (SZMF) is among the worldwide leaders in terms of steel research and development. At its base in Duisburg-Huckingen, Germany, the institute’s metallurgy, casting and rolling technology departments have recently been enhanced by the largest test roll stand in the European research community. The new hot-rolling simulator has a maximum rolling output of more than 1,000 tonnes. “With the new test roll stand we are very close to industrial process conditions at the production operation," says division manager Professor Roland Krengel. With a roller diameter of 650mm and a useable machine width of approximately 700mm, the forming of original slabs up to 400mm thick into sheet metal can be now simulated under realistic conditions. This allows for the quick and flexible testing of new alloy concepts. As a result test rolling at the Mühlheim MGB sheet metal rolling factory has been significantly reduced, leading to savings in development time and costs. The test roll stand, installed by group subsidiary SZST Salzgitter Service und Technik, will soon be complemented by a ground-breaking water cooling track. Specialised steel Germany’s largest steel producer, ThyssenKrupp Steel, is a significant manufacturer of feedstock for tube production. Since the mid-1980s the company has been supplying hot strips for tubes welded with longitudinal and spiral seams. It has specialised in input stock for tubes with diameters of more than 20in (508mm) and in sour-gas resistant qualities. ThyssenKrupp Steel delivers about 500,000 tonnes a year to tube manufacturers around the world – and the numbers are increasing. The company is well aware of the increasing demands of the changing demands for input stock. Hendrik Langenbach, team co-ordinator of the technical customer support department, says: “Customers mainly demand higher strengths in order to be able to transport larger oil or gas volumes at higher pressure, among other things. “While a few years ago an operating pressure of 80 bar was standard for gas pipelines, nowadays pipes are run at a pressure of up to 100 bar. To keep pace with this trend, the development of higher-tensile tube steel grades with a classification of X80 for the standard grades and X70 for sour-gas-resistant materials is under way.” Mr Langenbach explains: “The X-classification is based on the American measuring units and measures the strength in kilopounds per square inch. The approximate value for the minimum limit of elasticity in megapascals (MPa) results from the multiplication of the X-value with a factor of seven. “Micro-alloyed tube steel grades contain exact amounts of niobium, vanadium and titanium, which are used to precisely determine the strength of the material. The viscosity of the materials is also controlled via the alloy concept. For example, high viscosity can prevent the creation of kilometre-long tears caused by small defects exposed to the pressure in a pipeline.” During further processing, pipe casing places high demands on the hot-rolling process, in particular. Pipe casing can be up to 1in (25.4mm) thick, even in high-tensile steel. For safety reasons, thick-walled tubes are used mainly in inhabited areas. The materials must be cooled quickly and to the core in the cooling stretches of the hot strip mills. The winder at the end of the hot rolling process is used to the limits of its capacity, as it requires a lot of power to roll the thick and high-tensile material into coils. With this in mind two new winder systems have been installed at the hot strip facility No2 in Duisburg-Beeckerwerth. They can process 2,000mm-wide pipe casing with a strength of X80 and above – the previous limit was 1,700mm width for quality grades up to X70. At 1,300kW the new winder is nearly twice as powerful as its predecessor. The factory currently under composite material off the coil”. The hot-rolled material combines an impressive range of material characteristics in a three-layer steel strip to combine high wear resistance with good plasticity. The company is also working on combining a comparatively low-cost, high-quality, hot rolled steel strip with a thin corrosion-resistant stainless-steel surface. MultiBond products will expand the original three-layer TriBond design to five or more layers. Hot roll bonding of various steel grades is not a new concept, but until now it has not been used with coil material, being restricted to heavy plates. The procedure creates a homogenous metalline bond at the atomic level between the individual layers in a single step. The high adhesive power of this bond can be demonstrated using techniques including shear tests. Dr Tamler says, “As a coil material TriBond can be processed economically, and it can be etched, cold-rolled and processed like conventional steel strips.” During production, the preliminary strips and the appropriately prepared slabs are first cleaned of any forging scales, placed on top of each other and connected with circular welds. During the hot roll bonding process a homogenous metalline bond is formed at the atomic level. construction in the US State of Alabama will feature similar winders, to allow for the processing of these higher tensile tube steel grades. Crack resistant Just under 25% of the pipe casings supplied by ThyssenKrupp Steel comprise the so-called HIC (Hydrogen Induced Cracking) grades. It is planned to expand the strength range of these sour-gas­resistant tube steel grades, offering HIC steel grades with strengths up to X70. These grades resist the hydrogen-induced cracks that can appear in pipeline tubes if the transported oil or gas contains hydrogen sulphide – such sour gas wells exist in the Gulf, as well as in Canada and Mexico. During hydrogen induced cracking hydrogen sulphide combines with water or water vapour in the oil or gas to form sulphuric acid which attacks the tube walls. During the corrosion process hydrogen is produced, which diffuses into the steel and can lead to cracking. This can only be avoided by producing steel grades with a high purity level and an even texture. HIC grade steel must be desulphurated to contain less than 0.0015% sulphur. In addition, calcium is injected into the liquefied material during production. Hendrick Langenbach reports: “ThyssenKrupp Steel is one of only three suppliers worldwide that can produce such quality safely in large quantities.” Customised composites Dr Horst Tamler, senior manager process technology at ThyssenKrupp Steel, describes the company’s new Tribond product as “a customised The welds stabilise the steel package and prevent the intrusion of furnace atmosphere between the layers during the heating process, which leads to the creation of forging scales. The material bond is created when the steel package, heated to approximately 1,200ºC, is pre-rolled in the roughing stand of the hot strip mill at a pressure of 2,000-4,000 tonnes. Afterwards the material can be rolled into hot strips of 2.5-7.5mm and cold strips of 0.1-2.0mm. The selected thickness ratio of the individual material layers remains stable during the entire process. Multiple uses The composite material could be useful in car production, not least as a crash element. During an axial crash test, a rectangular TriBond tube was tested. It measured 60x60x350mm with a wall thickness of 1.13mm. The C70/C15 test sample, made of cold-rolled, annealed plate which had been formed into a tube using a longitudinal laser weld, showed very even energy absorption along the path of distortion with very symmetrical distortion. Now researchers are working on the further exploitation of this technology. For example, asymmetrical-layer designs could be produced, in which layers of varying thickness and strength enclose a core material that can be re-formed. It is also possible to combine high tensile strength and good re-forming characteristics, or to connect wear-resistant and weldable materials. A further project in development is Nirosta TriBond – a three-layer combination of high-grade steel with a low carbon ratio with corrosion-, acid- and heat-resistant steel grades. One result could be tubes with corrosion-resistant surfaces for the chemical industry as an economical alternative to stainless-steel tubes. More information on Salzgitter Mannesmann Grobblech at: tel: +49 (0) 208 458 04 fax: +49 (0) 208 458 1912 info.service@smgb.de www.smgb.de More information on ThyssenKrupp Steel at: tel: +49 211 824 0 fax: +49 211 824 36000 info@thyssenkrupp.com www.thyssenkrupp.com R esearch by Buying non-core goods and services international corporations, many UK businesses are faced Team, the UK’s leading (systems or services that are BuyingTeam has calculated that with urgent cost cutting independent needed to run a company but that £65bn of that figure could have measures, the last thing that procurement specialist, are not sold on by the company). been saved. companies want to do is lose indicates that UK businesses Using data from over a decade During the current economic valuable personnel as part of a spend over £350bn per year on of managing expenditure for large, uncertainty, and a time when cost cutting exercise. The difficulty that many companies of all sizes face is that they can’t easily get a view of overall annual expenditure, or that they don’t have the necessary experience or capacity to comprehensively review spend and implement the necessary change. “It is amazing that despite the current economic retraction and the daily reality of redundancies, organisations can still be so unclear as to what exactly they are spending their increasingly hard to earn capital on,” says Guy Strafford, client services director at BuyingTeam. “We estimate that mismanaged expenditure adds up to around £65bn in wasted outlay per annum for UK plc. When cashflow is tight and financing difficult to find, now is definitely the time to review all potential waste, especially as we’re really seeing contraction in fees and expecting a drop of 14­18% in IT costs in 2009.” Shirley Cooper, procurement & supply chain director at Computacenter (UK), says: “At first sight, indirect spend seems unimportant and not worthy of so much time and attention, However, when we saw the figures and realised how much we could take off our annual outgoings, we were amazed. “Over the past few months we’ve saved millions of pounds just by reviewing our indirect spend and improving our internal processes to ensure better use and buying by all members of our company”. Guy Strafford continues: “We analyse the spend of companies that we work with and our research regularly suggests that large companies can usually save up to 20% on their indirect spend. Some of these savings can be almost immediate.” Unless you have money to burn it makes sense to keep a close eye on your procurement. He offers a series of recommendations for finance directors and those in charge of procurement: • What gets measured, gets done – ask yourself if you have a clear view of all company expenditure; • Economies of scale – see if there are multiple suppliers for the same product or service; • Prices are dropping – check when your contracts with suppliers were last reviewed or renewed; • Some spend is unnecessary – ask how suppliers are used; are they needed? • Ensure that close management of suppliers continues after the contract has started. More information on BuyingTeam at: tel: 44 (0) 20 7611 4999 fax: 44 (0) 20 7611 4998 info@buyingTeam.com www.buyingteam.com Company profile BuyingTeam is a leading independent procurement consultancy. It works with £200m-plus companies, helping them to ‘buy better’ with the goal of reducing the cost of buying goods and services, minimising overheads and efficiently managing purchasing processes. BuyingTeam has more than 100 procurement specialists working in the UK and on the Continent; it manages £2bn of client expenditure. Companies working with BuyingTeam include British Airways, Universal Music, Channel 4, MAN Group and 3i. Facts and figures Methodology for BuyingTeam’s research was based on detailed analysis of available UK company data. First the spend of the FTSE 250 was analysed for 2008 (total sales – EBITDA). Taking total sales as a percentage of UK gross domestic product (GDP), BuyingTeam was able to calculate what proportion of GDP was made up by the FTSE 250. Taking 16.49% as the representative figure (210.2/1,275), BuyingTeam was able to take the spend figure and extrapolate it for UK PLC. This equates to a FTSE250 spend figure of 210.2, equating to a UK PLC spend figure of £1,107.9bn. Calculation of savings was based on data that BuyingTeam has built up over a decade of working with companies. BuyingTeam’s analysis shows that some 33% of spend is usually attributable to indirect spend; on average BuyingTeam saves its clients 18%. Therefore, BuyingTeam calculated that total spend (£1,107.9bn) multiplied by 33% (indirect spend) multiplied by 18% (average savings) = £66.47bn. Unison makes a key appointment T ube bending machine manufacturer Unison has appointed Steve Haddrell as key accounts manager for the UK. His remit includes many of the best known names in aerospace, shipbuilding, automotive, furniture and general industrial sectors. Mr Haddrell has an impressive background in technical sales, with extensive knowledge of the machine tool market. For several years he was UK sales manager for the Optonics division of Mazak, the world’s largest supplier of CNC lathes, machining centres, industrial laser systems and flexible manufacturing systems. He has also worked in senior sales management and technical support roles for a number of manufacturers, including Kerf other prestigious machine tool Developments and the 600 Group. “We are extremely pleased that Steve has joined our sales team”, says Jim Saynor, Unison’s technical sales manager. “He is a well-known and popular face in the industry. Steve’s machine tool background, combined with his customer knowledge, will prove to be key assets in helping us to develop new business opportunities and grow market share.” More information on Unison at: tel: +44 (0)1723 582868 fax: +44 (0)1723 582379 enquiries@unisonltd.com www.unisonltd.com Building mills around the world O to Mills is a market leader with more than 25 years' experience in designing, manufacturing, and installing complete systems for the production of welded tube and/or profiles in carbon steel, stainless steel, and other special materials. It currently has more than 350 tube mills working around the world with total customer satisfaction. The company belongs to the Marcegaglia Group which, with more than 6,000 employees and an aggregate turnover of € 4bn, is the European leader and one of the foremost global manufacturers of welded tube and open profiles. Oto Mills is now able to produce an average of 30 tube mills a year, thanks to its team of 250 specialised technicians and engineers working in two subsidiary companies based at three production plants. Choosing Oto Mills will give its clients immediate access, anywhere in the world, to highly trained technical staff and top level facilities, backed up by reliable data and class-leading services, all of which are available at a quality/price ratio that is extremely competitive on all world markets. The company enjoys total control of the technology used in its tube mills, including mechanical, electronic, and automation technology. Thanks to these capabilities and the synergy developed with Marcegaglia Group, Oto Mills has been able to develop its range with state-of­the-art solutions for: • Turnkey production plants; • Logistic goods management; • Machine installation and connection; • Production implementation and start-up; • Training for systems staff; • Assistance and spare parts; • Technical assistance to manage faults; • Modernisation of existing plants and technological upgrades. Thanks to recent investments, the production range has been enlarged, and it is now possible to offer tube mills for sizes up to 24in. More information on Oto Mills at: tel: +39 0522 481211 fax: +39 0522 964188 otoinfo@otomills.com www.otomills.com Measure for measure for Zumbach Zumbach Electronics has developed a range of accurate and dependable technology for non-contact in-line dimension measurement in the tube and pipe industry. Z umbach Electronic was founded in 1957 in Orpund, Switzerland, where it is still based. The group’s core goal is to offer industry the most comprehensive line-up of measuring and monitoring instruments on the market, while maintaining the highest quality and most advanced technology. Zumbach systems are widely used in the manufacture for hot-and cold-rolled metal products, and in cold processes for semi-finished products: Typical areas where Zumbach systems are used are hot rolling mills for wire steel rod, profiles and seamless pipes, for the manufacture of welded pipes and for test stands (NDT), as well as in cold processes, including peeling, grinding, straightening and polishing. The group has identified a series of clear goals in response to market demands: • Closer tolerances (½,¼ DIN); • ‘Zero fault’; • 100% quality control; • Higher productivity; • Faster startup; • Reduced downtime; • Lower manpower. Three ranges of measuring systems serve as a good representation of the group’s current output: * Steel master non-contact laser measuring systems for hot and cold, in-line and applications in rolling mills; * Profilemaster profile and shape measuring systems for hot and cold in-line and off-line applications; * ODAC trio three-axis laser diameter gauges. Steelmaster Steelmaster gauges and systems are based on the latest technology and on the experience gained from close to 300 units in hot rolling and similar processes; they are supported by many thousand ODAC scanners operating in cold processes. At the heart of the Steelmaster system is its processor, which is effectively the brains of this technology. It processes the measuring data, communicates with the plant network and provides the operator with intuitive displays and key data. Process transparency is dramatically improved, especially where multiple measuring heads are installed. Steelmaster uses SMO (oscillating gauges) and SMS (static gauges) which each have their own advantages. SMO oscillating gauges are suitable for round and non-round products such as flats, squares and hexagons. They offer up to six measuring axes with seamless 360° coverage (no blind zones) and measurement independent of twist. They compute cross-section with oscillating or static operation. SMS static gauges are ideal for round products. They are extremely compact and offer up to six fixed axes with no moving parts, practically eliminating any need for maintenance. Other benefits include an extremely fast measuring rate, short measuring distances and low cost. Steelmaster gauges offer a number of advantages, such as easy integration, dependable operation and excellent data processing and display. State-of-the-art laser scanners deliver superb accuracy with up to 6,000 measurements per second (1,000 per scanner). They work via compact industrial PCs to ensure the best possible reliability, running highly developed Steelmaster software with sophisticated mechanics and an effective protection system needing almost no maintenance. Profilemaster Profilemaster delivers accurate in-line profile measurement using ‘light section’ principles and machine vision. One or up to six laser/camera modules measure the cross-section of the moving profile. A powerful PC-based processor combines the partial pictures of the cameras, comprising straight lines and radii, to yield a momentary cross-section of the profile. All relevant dimensions such as width, height, angle and radii are added together to form a comprehensive cross-sectional picture. The nominal values for the profile can be directly imported from the CAD construction (as DXF files) which allows easy and problem-free programming. Changes in speed and twist within normal limits have no effect on the measurement. Profilemaster systems are available for all requirements. When designing the Profilemaster system Zumbach technicians focused on the most suitable solution in terms of price/performance ratio for the application; they opted for a modular system. The combination of 1-6 laser/camera modules allows the measurement of virtually any shape, achieving an optimal measurement result with the smallest possible number of laser/camera modules. ODAC TRIO With three-axis laser measurement, the ODAC Trio is Zumbach’s solution for accurate diameter and ovality measurement. It’s based on Zumbach's vast experience, gained over many years of designing and manufacturing optical diameter gauges. This measuring heads features three integrated measurement axes. Conventional two-axis instruments with laser or CCD can only provide approximate values for minimum outside diameter, maximum outside diameter and ovality. The mean value (X+Y/2) is influenced by the orientation of the product ovality within the measuring field. The Trio concept solves such problems. Advantages: • Three synchronised measurement axes on a single plane; • Ultra compact; • Reliable detection of out-of­round condition, regardless of the orientation of the product ovality; • Detects any deviation from roundness of oval and out of round with polygonal shape (multi-lobe); • Delivers a highly accurate mean value, regardless of the orientation of the product ovality • Computes accurate values of circumference and cross-section – this is important when confectioning tubes and hoses; • Increased measurement accuracy and reliability; • Integrated fault detector offers three times higher detection certainty and sensitivity than two-axis models • Choice of interface – RS-232/­422/-485; Prefabs DP; Ethernet; and J standard for USYS processors from Zumbach. More information on Zumbach Electronics at: Tel: +41 (0)32 356 0400 Fax: +41 (0)32 356 0430 www.zubach.com be showcasing a number of products at Achema 2009, the chemical engineering show, in Frankfurt, Germany from 11-15 May. Taking centre stage will be the expanded language capabilities of Swagelok’s M200 welding system power supply. Combining a 200A capability with a weight of less than 23kg, the M200 features simplified and traditional). A high-resolution 307mm colour touch screen gives users a simple, intuitive way to enter weld programmes, including automatic weld schedule programming. The M200’s automatic shield gas control simplifies set-up of shielding gas with no need for a separate flowmeter. Only a cord/plug change is needed to accommodate an input Innovations at chemical show voltage of 100-250V. Visitors to Achema will also be able to check out Swagelock’s Coreflex Series U-COR hose which features a silicone and stainless-steel reinforced, smooth-bore PFA core. This maximises hoop strength, minimises force-to-bend and resists kinking The PFA core provides a chemically inert non-stick surface – U-COR hose is non-absorbent and will not impart taste or odour. The hose can be autoclaved and sterilised. Hoses in the Coreflex series include: Coreflex Series SBI smooth-bore, insulating PTFE hose; Coreflex Series S-COR smooth-bore, silicone covered PTFE hose; Coreflex Series C­CON convoluted-bore PTFE hose; and two smooth-bore PTFE hoses – Coreflex Series B­COR and Coreflex Series BX-COR, which features an additional fibreglass braid for added hoop strength. Hose products are available as components or complete assemblies can be produced by factory-trained technicians. More information on Swagelock at: www.swagelok.com Magnatech welder’s in a higher orbit Magnatech has released the Tubemaster 514B orbital welding system to supersede the successful 514A which was introduced in 2005. The 514B can operate both analogue heads (using tachometer motors), as well as Magnatech’s current digital encoder motors. This allows the operation of many weld heads from other manufacturers, with ‘drop-down’ model selection and auto-programming for these other heads. On-screen calibration of competitors’ heads eliminates trim potentiometer adjustments. The 514B operates 10 Magnatech head models, a manual tack welding torch and many competitors’ heads. Software upgrades can now be sent as email attachments and transferred using a standard USB addition to the standard method ‘key’ drive. A USB keyboard can and a teaching mode has been be connected to enter text in added for programming open-arc heads with wire feed. With the earlier model, tack welding immediately led to the start of a weld program. Now a user can simply tack weld tubes (four or eight tacks) without weld out, if desired. Some contractors prefer to remove all unused programs from the memory on a new job site to eliminate mistakes. A new delete option allows the deletion of all old programs from memory in one step; also, a group of programs can be copied from the USB key to facilitate downloading programs to multiple systems. More information on Magnatech at: tel: 860 653 2573 fax: 860 653 0486 info@magnatechllc.com www.magnatechllc.com Book early for Tube 2010 T ube 2010, the biennial 2006 and 1,026 in 2008, while More information on Tube 2010 International Tube and visitor numbers rose from 28,000 at: www.tube.de. Pipe Trade Fair, will be to 32,000 and 41,000 over the held in Düsseldorf, same period. Germany on 12-16 April 2010. Following a successful debut * Tube 2010 shares the The show has grown steadily in 2008, the Pipeline Technology Düsseldorf venue with Wire 2010. over the years. Exhibitor numbers (OCTG Technology) segment will More information on Wire 2010 at: rose from 730 in 2004 to 827 in once again feature at the show. www.wire.de. Valve World moves to Düsseldorf The seventh biennial Valve World Expo is on the move, from its established base in Maastricht to Düsseldorf. The exhibition and conference is scheduled for 30 November-2 December 2010 and more than 220 companies from 28 countries have already booked 80% of the available space. Interest has been particularly strong from Italy (40 exhibitors), China (32), Germany, (29), UK (19), Taiwan (14), the Netherlands (12) and France (10). More information on Valve World Expo 2010 at: www.valveworldexpo.com International Metal Tube To start receiving your FREE copy of IMT magazine please complete in full the registration form below, for individuals outside of Europe we will be providing the magazine in a digital (cover to cover) version to ensure the fastest delivery. The printed version is however available outside of Europe via a subscription. To receive your free copy simply return this form either by fax on +44 (0)1268 711567 or post it to: Hartswood Media, Hallmark House, 25 Downham Road, Ramsden Heath, Essex, CM11 1PU, United Kingdom. I reside outside of Europe and would like to receive a printed version of the magazine and would like to subscribe at the discounted rate of £100.00 per year (Outside UK a sterling draft is required, or add £10 to cover charges). I do not want to receive a printed version of the magazine but I do want to access the online version of International Metal Tube. Section 1 Type of Business: . D Non-Ferrous pipe producer . H Pipe End User . A Ferrous tube producer . E Tube/Pipe Supplier . I Machinery/equipment . B Non-ferrous tube producer . F Tube/Pipe Buyer & lubricant supplier* . C Ferrous pipe producer . G Tube End User . I Other *Please note, we will not include machinery/equipment & lubricant suppliers in our circulation list. A separate database for free copies will be maintained and used on a rotational basis. Section 2 Job Title/function: . D Engineering Management . H Maintenance Management . A Corporate Executive . E Mill Director/Manager . I Sales/marketing: . B Management . F Purchasing . J Other: . C Production Management . G Product R&D Management Section 3 Purchasing Responsibilities: . A Ferrous tube . E Tube/pipe manufacturing machinery . I Plant engineering & maintenance . B Non-ferrous tube . F Process technology tools/equipment . J Other . C Ferrous pipe . G Measuring/control technology . D Non ferrous pipe . H Testing Section 4 Do you influence/authorise purchasing decisions? Yes . No . Please tick Section 5 what is your company’s main area of activity/application? Please tick a maximum three boxes: . A Automotive . F Chemical & pharmaceutical . K Utilities . B Non-automotive transport . G Petrochemical . L Agriculture . C Aerospace . H Mining . M Nuclear . D Defence . I Construction . N Other . E Oil and gas . J Food & drink Section 6 Number of Company Employees: . A 1-49 . D 250-349 . G 1000+ . B 50-99 . E 350-499 . C 100-249 . F 500-999 If you wish to receive further promotions from us or other carefully selected companies, please tick the boxes: . post . fax . email Important: To process your registration this form must be completed, signed and dated Including COSPONSORS INDUSTRY PARTNERS November 15–18, 2009 McCormick Place | Chicago, Illinois USA