Tag: <span>FABRICATION AND MACHINING</span>

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Metal fabrication refers to the process of combined operations that are used to make something out of metal. The equipment used to perform the operations are: metal shears, laser cutting machines, water-jets, turret punches, machining centers, press brakes, rollers, and welding machines.The most commonly used types of metals are carbon steel, stainless steel, and aluminum. Most metal fabricators buy metal in the shapes of sheet, bar, and tubing to begin the fabrication process.

Metal sheets are used as a starting basis for a very large variety of metal products and can be purchased in a variety of gauges or thicknesses. When the thickness of the sheet is 3/16″ or greater, it is then referred to “plate”. Sheets are fabricated into thousands of different types of items such as industrial machinery, augers, conveyors, electronic enclosures, brackets, machine components, appliances, food processing equipment, just to name a few.

The first process of sheet metal fabrication is often to either shear, laser cut, or punch shapes into it. The equipment used to perform these steps is a metal shear, a laser, and a turret punch. Sometimes all three of these operations may be used while the metal is still in a flat shape. Once the basic flat shape is achieved, the metal goes to the press brake machines to make the bends. This process is called forming. Dies in a variety of shapes are used in the press brake to make one bend or a series of bends to form the metal as specified on the prints. At this point, some projects may be complete and can then be shipped to its end use, but often it goes to the welding tables next.

Welding is a true art in itself. It is the job of the welder to take a pile of cut and formed shapes, read the prints, then weld the metal pieces together for the final product. There is a plethora of welding techniques that can be used and it is important for the welder to use the appropriate procedure in order to get a good penetrating weld that will not fail. Welders must know how to deal with the expansion and shrinking of metal as it is heated during the welding process, then cools. Many metal fabrications, especially machine parts, have narrow tolerances that must be met. Fixtures are widely used by welders to help them quickly put the pieces together and hold them in the right place while they are welding them together.

Metal tubing and barstock is another common item purchased by metal fabricators. Railings and machine frames are two very common places that metal tubing and bar is used. Tubing is made in square, round, or rectangular shapes with a common wall thickness of about 1/8″, referred to by the industry as 10 or 11 gauge, or schedule 40 pipe. The reason metal tubing is commonly used is because it provides a lot strength with less metal than solid bar. Large tubing, 2-4 inches in diameter is used to fabricate railings that are installed along highway bridges where a very strong railing is needed should a vehicle crash into it. Using tubing as opposed to solid bar translates to less weight and lower cost, both desirable to the end user of metal fabrications. However, there are still many cases where solid bar is preferred. One case would be the shaft of a screw conveyor. There is extreme pressure applied by a motor to turn the auger and solid metal is necessary for successful operation of the screw conveyor. Many railings are also made of bar stock or made of a combination of bar and tubing. Bar is used on applications where the railing doesn’t have to be super heavy duty and thinner bars are desired.One half to 1 inch bar is widely used for railings in both residential and commercial purposes. Metal railings when made out of galvanized, painted, or stainless steel fabrication can be expected to last a lifetime with little to no maintenance.

Strength, low to no maintenance.Long lasting. That’s the beauty of metal. That’s why so many products are made with metal. Metal fabricators have the machinery and knowledge of how to take base metals that are melted and manufactured by steel factories, and turn them in to very useful products that can last a lifetime.

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Source by Albert Right

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Plastic contract manufacturing is the process of manufacturing plastic products on a contract basis. There are many contract manufacturers of plastic products, rubber products and other specialty chemical products. They produce fabricated and extruded plastic products. The plastic fabrication facility of most of the plastic contract manufacturers include the latest Computerized Numerical Control (CNC) routers, mills and lathes for top quality machining of plastic parts and products. Plastic contract manufacturers handle plastic fabrication, CNC machining and CNC turning projects. They usually make plastic products from both natural and synthetic materials. Contract manufacturing of plastic provides plastic products of high abrasion resistance, high tensile strength, high tear strength and good oil resistance.

Plastic contract manufacturers usually make plastic products, components and assemblies at the lowest possible prices. They work together with their customers to determine the materials needed, time taken, design specifications, production developments and certifications required. Contract manufacturers of plastics come up with plastic products in any size, design or quantity, according to the needs of the customer. Most contract manufacturers have a full range of services for design engineering and manufacturing of plastic products.

Plastic contract manufacturing mainly focuses on the quality, repeatability and performance of plastic products. Some contract manufacturers specialize in producing the plastic components for high precision electronic and electrical products, consumer products, automobile products and parts. Many of them also manufacture the press components and precision components of other engineering plastics. Plastic contract manufacturers usually manufacture containers, jars, jigs and fixtures. Generally, contract manufactures use advanced technologies in injection blow molding and compression molding to produce high precision components for electronics and electrical plastics. The materials used in plastic contract manufacturing include low density polyethylene (LDPE), linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE), polypropylene (PP), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and high density polyethylene (HDPE).

Injection molding is widely used for thermoplastics. This process avoids the hardening of plastic in the machine. Injection molding helps to produce more accurate moldings having better control on the material usage. Many contract manufacturers of plastic specialize in the manufacturing dies for injection molded products such as plastic compounds, fan regulators, fan regulator switches, electrical rotary switches, fuse boxes and other special purpose machine parts.

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Source by Jimmy Sturo

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You can expect a high level of expertise if robotic technology has been introduced in the structural application of metal fabrication and welding. Robotic machining has attained a high value preference in the field of industrial mechanics since it integrates automated robotics for achieving quality manufacture and servicing. Power driven robotic tools can address mechanical impediments making them a constructive asset to have. If you’re searching for robotic project design and execution in your city then you can obtain a variety of precision equipment from the best machining facilities.

The use of robotic technology in the field of material removal applications like drilling, deburring, milling and chamfering has exceeded clientele expectations. For the production of machined prototypes that are utilized in aerospace, cryogenic, automation and medical technology, there are plenty of worldwide establishments that have topped the list. This business comprises of support services, material fabrication and high-powered robotic machinery. The production yield of appliances incorporated with robotic precision machinery is higher than manually empowered apparatuses.

Need for Robotic Machining

Machining applications suffer from individual threats however these complications can now be resolved using robotic technology. Industrial robotic technology is rigid, durable and incredibly strong. Consisting of automated engineering, the appliances are ideal for shaping or drilling into hard surfaces like metals. High speed performance and precision are particular characteristics of robotic machining based products. Developed to improve aesthetic and mechanical framework, robotic machines having multifaceted geometrics that function on computer based technology. This means that robotic machining requires a refined software and efficient EOAT resolution.

Benefits of Robotic Machining

With the constant pressure of high productivity and rising competition in the market, robotic precision machining has developed into a valuable alternative. It can readily replace machinery that functions on high power, electricity and physical components. Most robotic machining companies consists of facilities that offer efficient and quality products. The idea of introducing robotic precision machining is to improve the production line by automating the fabrication of materials through robots.

1. Instead of using manually controlled technology we introduce robotics to control the pace of production. It helps by saving time for every cycle. It is manually impossible to supervise the controls on a machine at regular intervals but a robot tending saves seconds per cycle for significant increase.

2. Excessive expenditure is calculated for the case of manually controlled machinery that suffers the consequence of retardation and easy degradation. This can happen if the machine is being handled by inexperienced hands. Replacing manual labor with robot tending reduces labor cost.

3. The alternate to specially designed feeding apparatus is a robotic controlled machine with a decreased cost. A robot tending device can function 24×7 without facing any physical drawback. It is flexible since it can easily be adapted to different kinds of machinery.

4. Based on robotic machining consists of facilities that manufacture appliances but the operation is user-friendly since it is robot tended. Instead of a manual faculty, the robotic technology saves space serving two machines at the same time.

Conclusion

Robotic technology that tends to machinery consist of a flexible framework and use of software that is installed in the working vicinity. The programming of robotic precision machining requires firsthand proficiency by engineers (mechanical and computer) which cannot offer visual inspection but is time efficient. Using reliable robotic machining based products has definitely improved the standard quality of manufacture and ensured financial insurance.

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Source by Ford Brown

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Robotics is a branch of engineering science that deals with robots and computer systems. Extensive research on the functionality and possible uses of robots was commenced in the 20th Century. One of the objectives of developing industrial robots was to improve the quality of manufacturing processes. The fact that robots can work in any environment makes them immensely useful in the manufacturing industry. Hazardous and complicated jobs such as metal fabrication, bomb defusal, exploring shipwrecks and mines can conveniently be performed by bots.

Robotic metal fabrication is a highly sophisticated and complicated technology that automates several manufacturing processes like welding, cladding, machining, and assembling. Working with metal fabrication equipment can be a dangerous task. An automated metal fabrication system minimizes the risk associated with human error and fatigue. Bots automate a series of production repetitive tasks including line configuration, loading, and unloading parts. Automating these tasks help manufacturers achieve a higher level of productivity and safety.

Robotic Machining

Industrial automation technology resolves many issues associated with machining applications. Industrial robots are considered ideal to carry out tasks where accuracy and consistency are of immense importance. They are contributing largely to the improvement of efficiency in machining processes. They have completely outsmarted the conventional machine tools.

Robotic Welding

Robotic welding, in simple words, is an automated process of welding two or more than two metal parts with the help of robots. Articulating and rectilinear are two common types of industrial welding robots. Articulating robot has an arm with rotating joints that work like a human arm. With rotational movements, a rectilinear robot moves in regular lines along X, Y, and Z axis. The best thing about these intelligent industrial devices is that they perform flawless welding in a range of sensitive applications such as automotive and aircraft components. Some of the advantages of automated welding are:

• Reduction in capital and operating cost
• Improved consistency and weld quality
• Reduction in over welding, distortion, and gas consumption
• Improvements in workplace safety
• A bot can work for days continuously without showing physical fatigue and drawbacks.
• Less space is required to install and operate automated industrial production units.

Robotic arc welding is another growing aspect of automated welding. Manufacturers use welding bots to fabricate a wide range of products from cars to airplanes in a fast and cost-effective manner.

Computers have improved the functionality, accuracy, and reliability of industrial automation devices and enable them to be the intelligent controllers of automation. The reason why industries are increasingly deploying automated manufacturing systems, in form of AI bots, is that bots can dramatically improve the productivity and product quality.

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Source by Basharat Khadim

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This article sheds light on why to cut foam, which uses are there for cutting foam, the types of industries using foam cuts and what is the process of cutting. It also explains the types of foam used and the equipment involved in the process

There is a vast growth in demand for foam cutting nowadays, especially for fabrication and machining. The demand for foam cutting and machining is essential in various types of industries, including props, sculptures and monuments, boats, kayaks and canoes, signs, displays, proto types, and architectural shapes, crown moldings for construction, packaging insulations and wings.

Companies cutting foam need to use top of the line cutting equipment to offer a wide range of foam cutting services. The cutting can be done either by using a CNC hot wire foam cutter, or a CNC laser cutter. The hot wire can cut almost any thickness of foam, and up to 12 feet projects and more; While the laser cutter is cable of cutting very thin cuts (up to ¾”), manufacturing a high-quality surface finish. The decision of whether to use the laser or the hot wire cutters is based on the type of foam (for example, Polyurethane, also known as PU foam can only be cut with the laser), on the thickness and the size of the foam to be cut.

Most CNC hot wire foam cutters are capable of cutting EPS foam (also called Expanded Polystyrene), EPP foam (called Expanded Polypropylene) and XPS foam (Extruded Polystyrene).

The smaller foam cutters will usually cut wings, fuselages, logos and letters. The medium foam cutters will cut similar shapes to small ones, with the addition of being able to cut crown moldings and trims used in the architectural industries, while the large foam cutting machines are used mostly by construction contractors and large sign manufacturers.

Laser cutters and engravers can cut various types of foam, including Polyurethane, mainly for packaging, insulation and gun cases; Polyethylene or EVA foam for creating 3D shapes, packaging and tool trays; Polystyrene for packaging, crown moldings, signs and props; Polycarbonate (also known as Plexiglas) for cutting and engraving and MDF for vacuum molding forms.

If the materials to be cut are wood or light metals, the use of a CNC router is necessary.

The different cutting machines differ in their dimensions and size, including their effective cutting on the X axis (horizontal) and the Y axis (vertical), their hot wire length, and other features such as cutting speed capabilities, how many blocks of foam can be cut in one single cut and the type of cuts made (tapered or not tapered).

For projects requiring machining foam or fabrication of foam there is a need to use CNC routers or a combo of a CNC hot wire foam cutter with a router system. Full scale racing cars, 3D topographic maps (up to 10’x5’x20″ on a single cut), props and art work can all be machined, and foam molds can also be created.

All of the cutting machines are CNC, which means they are controlled by a computer and come with specialized cutting software.

The process of cutting the foam involves specialized files that include the shape drawing. For 2D shapes a DXF file is required, while for 3D shapes an STL file is needed, which allows to rotate the shape and see all the angles of it for better accuracy.

Once the right file is received, the data is entered into the computer which is connected to the foam cutter, including all the coordinated needed for cutting that specific shape. Upon finishing of cutting the shape needed, it can be sanded to either a rough or a smooth finish, according to the customer’s request. Large scale shapes are made in several pieces, then glued together to make the complete shape. The cut can also be coated with Polyethylene coating, Polyurea and paint it if needed. The end product needs to be durable, strong and long lasting.

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Source by Sig Barnea