Technical
Raw castings require numerous actions to achieve the finished entity
“If a machine is drilling a hole and the drill bit goes dull, the
change in the resistance of the drill bit, so it will put the process on hold while it automatically changes the drill bit”
machine will sense a
Much of the welding is performed by highly skilled individuals
paint particles are negatively charged and the work-piece being painted is positively charged. When the paint particles are sprayed towards the work- piece, they are attracted to the item - similar to two opposing magnetic poles - and completely cover it.
Just in case there are any really awkward areas that could occasionally be missed by the process, we have two guys in the paint booth, complete with breathing apparatus and safety suits, whose job is to spray these awkward areas to ensure a quality finish.
Once the item is fully coated, it then continues on the conveyor belt into the oven, where it is baked and the powder melts and covers the item.
Integrated into the paint booth is a powder recovery unit, which recovers between 95% and 100% of the paint over-spray and this can be recycled for the next run. This electrostatic paint process is hugely more efficient than wet painting and provides a better finish.
In theory, we now have most of the manufactured components ready for assembly of the mower to commence, but we still have the most important component to build.
Cutting cylinder production
A myth surrounding the production process at Ipswich is that we don’t make our cutting units, but buy them in ready- made. However, nothing could be further from the truth; we have been building our own cutting cylinders since 1832 and that’s why they are among the best in the industry.
A cutting reel consists of multiple helix-
Paint booth conveyor
shaped reel blades fixed to a rotating shaft. The smaller the diameter of the reel and the higher number of blades will determine that the reel is designed for fine turf. Conversely, the larger the diameter of the reel coupled with a lower number of blades determines that the reel is designed for longer grass.
We begin the construction of the reel by laying out the ‘Spiders’, the circular discs that support the cylinder blades, in a specially constructed jig. These spiders would have been cut with the laser cutter from sheet steel as described at the beginning of this feature.
We buy-in the blades, made from steel that we have specified and cut to an oversized length. The cut lengths are then passed through a machine that bends them into a helix and the shaped blade is then positioned into the spiders. When in their correct position, they are welded into place and then the blades are cut to the correct length.
The embryo unit is then heat treated and shot-blasted as part of the pre-paint preparations and the shaft is inserted and welded to the spiders.
Situated within the cutting reel manufacturing area, we have a smaller, dedicated paint plant which, again, uses the electrostatic process to apply paint to the reels. It is smaller replica of our larger paint booth, with a conveyor, pre- wash system and powder particle recycling.
After painting, the unit is ground to ensure that it is cylindrical and then balanced in a similar manner to that when a new tyre is fitted to your car. Small lead weights are attached to correct
Awkward areas are hand sprayed 128 PC APRIL/MAY 2013
Cutting blades are bent into a helix
The embryo unit is heat treated and shot blasted
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