TUBE BENDING
INDUSTRY NEWS
Tube bender extends shape forming capabilities
The aerospace tubular parts manufacturer SL Engineering is continuing its investment in advanced automation with the acquisition of a second all-electric CNC tube bending machine from Unison.
T
he new machine enhances their manufacturing
capabilities, especially
their ability to produce more complex tubular shapes. It also extends the size range of tubing that can be bent using all-electric servomotor-controlled movement - to tube and pipe diameters up to 80mm. “Engine and aircraft manufacturers are taking advantage of the advanced shape forming capability of state- of-the-art tube bending machines by specifying more complex shapes and highly challenging tighter-radius bends - to save weight and space and eliminate welded joints,” says Shaun Stevenson of SL Engineering. “The sophisticated bending capability of Unison machines, which allow greater control over tube clamp and carriage push forces, helps us to achieve these new levels of precision. If we did the same jobs on our old hydraulic machines we would be much more reliant on highly skilled operators to both set up the machines, and make the parts with additional weld joints, and hence additional cost.” The average batch is around 5 to 25 parts, and orders can even be for just a single emergency ‘aircraft-on- ground’ part.
SL Engineering (SLE) is one of Europe’s leading Tier 1 suppliers of rigid tube assemblies and precision machined parts for aerospace applications, and supplies components to major engine and airframe programs from commercial Airbus and Boeing aircraft to leading military programs such as the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF). Although the aerospace sector accounts for a large proportion of turnover, SLE
22 IMT June/July 2014
also provides parts for industrial gas turbines, marine propulsion, and other critical industry applications.
SLE’s business today is characterised by a need for average batch is around 5 to 25 parts, and orders can even be for just a single emergency ‘aircraft-on-ground’ part. Demand for greater precision and shape complexity is another major facet of its work. Until recently, few tubular parts required bends with radii of less than 2D (twice the tube diameter). Today, however they regularly receives requests for bends of 1D, and for shapes with minimal straight sections between bends. The use of thinner walled
tubing, and expensive specialist materials such as titanium and Inconel are further trends. These demands are behind the company’s moves to all-electric tube bending such bending machine in 2010 - a 30 mm diameter Breeze from the UK manufacturer Unison. Much of SLE’s work is on diameters of 30 mm or less, and most of its current work falls into the sub-50.8 mm has proved critical for SLE, allowing it to handle small batch set-ups - with zero or minimal scrap. As a result, the company channels most new work for smaller parts onto the 30mm all-electric machine, and transfers many older parts onto the
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machine by creating new bending programs as orders come in. After almost four years of operation, the 30 mm machine now produces business. The latest machine that SLE has acquired, a Unison Breeze 80, now gives the company all- electric CNC tube bending options for tube diameters up to 80 mm. The machine also incorporates a multistack/multiradius tooling capability. This feature is a critical aspect of achieving some of the complex tubular part shapes and multiple bend sequences that aerospace programs. “We continue to see many challenging opportunities in the sector, but it does require adds Stevenson. “The new Unison bender, along with further investments in 5-axis machining, has helped SLE take its manufacturing capability to a new level. We can meet the most complex tube assembly companies require today, and the combination of advanced machinery and our know-how gives us a platform to raise the bar from our competitors. Another are able to provide us with pre- release drawings, is evaluating manufacturability and advising on the potential for manufacturing and cost saving improvements As an example of the exacting program calls for a shape with multiple 2D bends but minimal straight sections between bends, using thin wall titanium tubing. Tube
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