This breather cap filter part for a large-vehicle application was thermoformed recently from ABS material on a Brown Machine rotary cut sheet unit at Meyer Plastics, based in Indianapolis, IN.
AVT employees stand in front of a thermoforming industry milestone: the world ?s largest rotary thermoforming machine at 25 ft long by 10 ft wide with 6-ft-deep draw, awaiting shipment to Texas. 1 16 plastic sheet production line
The Ovation Rotary Series, suited for higher -volume production as compared to shuttle thermoformers, comes in three standard models, providing for different maximum mold sizes.
Lyle?s162FM thermoformer is a servoactuated, personal computer-controlled, form-only machine that uses standard oven configurations sized to accommodate dimensions larger than previously available.
As demand becomes greater for larger and more complex thermoformed parts with deeper draws, machinery manufacturers are making equipment to accommodate that demand.
A VT, supplier of Advanced Thermoforming Centers, 10-year-old designer and manufacturer of thermoforming and vacuum forming machinery and accessories, recently announced the installation of what the company claims is the world?s largest rotary, three-station heavy gauge sheet-fed thermoforming machine.
The unit, sold to Better Bath in Fort Worth, TX, was delivered on eight low-boy flatbed trailers, and assembled measures nearly 70 ft in diameter and 40 ft high. It will produce parts up to 10-by-25-ft, with draws of up to 6 ft. The machinery is being used to produce one-piece panels and fixtures for motorized recreational vehicles and towable trailers. The parts replace pieced-together metal or glass-fiber-reinforced plastic units.
In another instance, Meyer Plastics Inc. (Indianapolis, IN) decided it was finally time to replace a 30-year-old thermoforming machine. With the retirement of a 40-year Meyer thermoforming processing expert also fast approaching, the need for a machine technologically advanced in programmability, setup, and controllability became more urgent.
Two main concerns were the need for decreased cycle times and lesser setup/changeover times. Meyer Plastics would run five to seven jobs across one machine in one week, with each job requiring different setup specifications. The ability to recall those specifications at the push of a button was what Meyer wanted, and Brown Machine (Beaverton, MI) provided. Their needs were met with a 4-by-6-ft Brown (R-223E-46) rotary cut sheet thermoformer.
Meyer Plastics Inc. officially began in 1950 as Meyer Materials Inc., when Charles F. Meyer, Jr. began to sell crushed limestone throughout Indiana. Soon Meyer?s two sons joined what was to become the family business and the focus on thermoforming, fabricating, and distribution of plastics began in 1970. The company went through major expansion in the 1990s to Fort Wayne, Lafayette, Evansville, Goshen, IN, and Dayton, OH.
Upgrading to Modern Production Equipment
Meyer Plastics wanted a machine that could be programmed to remember part specifications to cut down setup time and increase reliability. The company has operated a larger (5-by-7-ft sheet size) Brown Machine for ten years. ?It was our experience with that machine that convinced us that we ought to spend the extra money and stick with the Brown label,? Meyer Plastics president Ralph Meyer says.
The Brown rotary thermoformer offers the rapid-setup AL90 four-way adjustable clamp frame system, cutting the three-frame clamping setup time to about 15 minutes. This helps to eliminate approximately 45 minutes per job changeover on average. Top and bottom ceramic oven elements with multizone control is more efficient and is equipped with infrared sensors that monitor the temperature of the plastic sheet, further allowing the cycle to be set by the surface temperature of the sheet. Meyer says the machine?s controllability helps them to properly heat sheets of varying thicknesses and material types.
?We had to know when the sheet was hot enough, as well as remembering things that we don?t today because we have the advanced technology that is already built into the pieces of equipment,? Lorris Brown of Meyer Plastics says. The machine?s fully digital, computerized control offers a host of benefits. ?This advanced control allows us to store hundreds of job setups online so that all we have to do is call it back up when we?re ready to set up the next part,? Lorris Brown says. He expects numerous benefits for changeover times because of the control feature and AL90 clamp frames. They estimate the equivalent of a full shift?s worth of saved time over a week?s production.
Processing a Wider Material Range
The Brown cut sheet rotary thermoformer gives Meyer Plastics the opportunity to process a wider range of materials. In the past, acrylic and black ABS were typically vacuum formed by the company, but now they can use materials like polycarbonate, polyethylene, polypropylene, and vinyl.
Typical part sizes range from 4 by 4 inches all the way up to 7 by 8 ft (on other machines/processes?4-by-8-ft and 5-by-7-ft capabilities on the Brown thermoformers), and draw depths ranging from 1 inch to 4 ft. Meyer hopes to be working with even more exotic materials with the new Brown machine. ?The confidence, control and repeatability we get from the Brown machine allows us to work better with the material vendor and lets the vendor make changes to allow a wider window for production,? Meyer said.
Brown Machine recently completed the reengineering of their standard rotary cut sheet line of thermoformers?the Brown Ovation rotary series. This new series combines the thermoforming industry?s strongest and longest technology leadership with a reengineered design?all important to deliver upon the industry?s need for shorter machine lead-time deliveries and cost effectiveness in the capital equipment purchase.
The Ovation rotary series, suited for higher volume production as compared to shuttle thermoformers, is comprised of three standard models: Model R-46, 48-by-72-inch maximum mold size; Model R058, 60-by-96-inch maximum mold size; and Model R-610, 72-by-120-inch maximum mold size. Thermoformers with special requirements for larger mold sizes can choose from other Brown R-Series four-station designs and/or the need for pressure assistance in their process?even systems for twin sheet vacuum forming applications.
To provide thermoformers with the ability to reduce changeover times, Brown Machine introduced its quick-change features incorporated on C-Series and CS-Series thermoforming machines with T-Series and V-Series trim presses. This allows product-to-product changeover in less than two hours. Several of the quick-change items are standard features and a variety of other items can be included as options.
To accommodate faster mold changes, the rails on the thermoform machine are designed from rigid channels that not only provide stability, but incorporate v-tracks mounted on top of the rails to roll the tool in/out of the forming station with ease. No additional tool carts are required. Virtually tool-less mold changes are accomplished by utilizing quick-change cylinders within the upper and lower platens, coupled with utility quick disconnects.
Recipe storage is available through the human-machine-interface (HMI) to quickly download retained key process variables, including form, index, oven, feed, and eject variables. A note section within the recipe also allows for keeping key process notes and settings for auxiliary equipment setup.
Platen strokes on the CS-Series equipment are accomplished through the HMI, eliminating all mechanical adjustments. Servo valves are used for the vacuum bleed and air ejection functions. An electrically controlled regulator for the blow form allows for process recipe setup. Motorized rails facilitate a quick and accurate repositioning of the rails for different sheet widths.
The trim press incorporates a side-loading feature that allows the trip tool assembly to be rolled in and out, eliminating the need to remove parts tables, part handling equipment, and granulators during tool change. Quick-change cylinders within the moving platen permit the moving side of the tool to be quickly mounted for final alignment with the stationary tool side. The stationary side is then bolted into a rigid position.
Features within the tooling complement various features on the machine to quickly change the mold base, pressure box, and trim assemblies. Further, when simply making a product change, Brown offers multiple tool-less quick-change features of inserts and plug assists proven to decrease changeover time to 92% over conventional methods.
Brown is seeing big demand for its quick-change equipment. Brown Machine?s Jim Robbins says that customers are looking at their productivity?inline vs. cut sheet?and asking ?how do I increase my productivity with my current equipment or boost productivity with new equipment??
Robbins says that the primary business driver is the value that Brown offers with both its lines. With material price as a real concern among formers, features that can speed cycles and reduce scrap are in demand.Enhanced Equipment Drives ProcessLyle Industries Inc. also introduced a new thermoformer designed for quick-change, steel rule trim and stack applications. The RFT Custom provides an economical alternative to traditional equipment. The machine can be configured with options that add flexibility in both short- and long-run forming.
The basic configuration of the RFT Custom includes a dancer unwind station, 110-inch oven, 60-ton form station with 7 inches of stroke, 100-ton trim station, and scrap winder. The machine is designed around four oversized, round platen guide posts and rugged tubular chain rails. Lyle has also introduced a new continuous, roll-fed thermoformer that features 40% greater mold area and 40% higher product output compared to other machines in the company?s line, making it the largest available in the industry.
Designated the 162FM, the new thermoformer accepts molds up to 62 by 62 inches (1575 by 1575 mm), which allows manufacturers to dramatically increase the throughput and efficiency of thermoforming operations. The 162FM is especially designed for heavy duty, high-speed, high-production forming of virtually all commonly thermoformed raw materials.
GN Plastics, maker of thermoforming machinery in Chester, NS, announced that it is opening a dedicated sales and service office in Europe to take advantage of growth in the Central European packaging industry and to expand their presence in Western Europe. The new office is located in Jihlava, Czech Republic.
GN Europe will have a parts department in Jihlava and is also in the process of hiring a technician to serve its European customers. At this time, all manufacturing operations will remain in Canada. However, to meet the requirements of the European market, GN Plastics will expand its engineering capacities to ensure equipment is designed to meet European market demands.
Trimming is critical in the thermoforming process. To reduce scrap and improve productivity, Robotic Production Technology introduced its RoboTrim RT-1000 Router Trimming solution, designed specifically for thermoformers but also applicable for other plastics processing requirements.?In many cases, this flexible and safe system provides 50% higher throughput than the traditional five-axis CNC trimming machines formerly used by some of RPT?s newest customers,? said Paul Schuch, RPT?s routing sales manager. ?In addition, the Accuracy Enhancement software tools available with this system allow for quick changeovers between parts, resulting in more run-time.?The RPT RoboTrim RT-1000 is designed to use one or two Fanuc M-16iB robots and an aux-axis, servo-controlled 10-ft rotating table. RPT developed application-specific software tools?RPT RouterWare?that make the system easy to use. The system comes equipped with the Fanuc Robotics iPendant and features a 3-second index of the 10-ft diameter rotating table with a 1000-lb fixture and part capacity on each side.
One application required trimming all the components for a race car kit, including doors, hood, and trunk. The process to trim four sets of panels (eight doors, four hoods, and four trunks) took 7.5 hours. Factory Five Racing met with RPT in 2003 to review its objectives and develop an overhead mounted robotic router trimming system with an M-710iT Fanuc robot mounted on an 18-ft overhead rail.
The new system gives Factory Five the flexibility to trim a wide variety of parts with high accuracy and speed, reducing the time to trim four sets of panels to just 24 minutes from 7.5 hours, a 95% reduction.
?RPT is investing significant resources into developing pre-engineered robotic trimming solutions for the routing market,? said Chuck Russo, CEO of RPT. ?The RoboTrim RT-1000 is just one of a family of products that RPT will be introducing over the next few months to address the different part size needs of thermoformers and molders.?
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