WORLDS
LARGEST VERTICAL BANDSAW INSTALLED AT BRITISH ALUMINIUM PLATE
A capacity of
8m x 2.5m x 600mm deep and weighing 66 tonne, the Prosaw Danobat
VLTA bandsaw supplied to British Aluminium Plate, is believed to
be the largest machine of its type in the world. In spite of its
size, it cuts aluminium plate to an accuracy of less than 1mm,
and is also highly productive being able to automatically
machine all four sides of a plate.
The
need to invest in new bandsaw technology was influenced by
customer increased expectations of dimensional accuracy and
repeatability.
Prosaw
Danobat VLTA bandsaw is highly productive being able to
automatically machine all four sides of a plate.
“The
Danobat enables us
to meet this requirement by cutting plate to an accuracy of +/-1mm
over its 8m length capacity. The confidence given by the high
level of repeatability means we do not need to add on allowances
‘just-in-case’ and this further helps to save material.”
Another
major benefit is the increased throughput. Once a slab has been
loaded and clamped the process continues under automatic control
with no need of manual intervention. On the Danobat with its
automatic operation, output averages three times that of the
older machine.
..
In spite of its size, it cuts aluminium plate to an accuracy of
1 mm… over its 8 metre length… and output averages three
times that of the older machine…
Operations
may be to simply trim the ends of a slab, cut all four sides or
‘slice’ a slab into multiple pieces.The blade is fed along
the machine for longitudinal cutting while the workpiece is
driven for transverse cuts, and the blade rotated through 90
degrees to switch from one direction to the other. All movements
and operations are CNC controlled. There is also a laser beam
projected along the cutting line to aid the operator when
setting up the work.
The
Kitts Green company’s decision to invest in the Danobat VLTA
came after a thorough examination of the large bandsaw market
mainly from manufacturers in Germany and Italy.
The
company’s decision came after a thorough examination of the
market from manufacturers in Germany and Italy .
Mr. Lane
comments “While all the other manufacturers produce large
bandsaws as a one off, Danobat have a standard modular range and
we were able to observe a similar one to ours cutting steel at a
plant near Barcelona. That impressed us, as did Danobat’s
design and manufacturing facilities. They are a very ‘customer
friendly’ organisation always keen to know of any problems
that will help them to improve their product. In addition to
that, we have the expertise and local support of Prosaw that was
so vital during commissioning and production run-up”.
“..
Danobat is a very ‘customer friendly’ organisation. In
addition we have the expertise and local support of Prosaw that
was so vital …”
Danobat
is a major producer of a wide range of CNC machine tools and the
design and manufacturing criterion identified by Mr. Lane. This
results in a saw that is technically and cost competitive.
