INDUSTRY NEWS ISSUE NO. 64 DECEMBER 2004


IRONSIDES ARE INCREASING GREASE PRODUCTION CAPACITY BY A THIRD


Ironsides Lubricants Ltd, the UK’s largest independent grease manufacturer, is strengthening its lead by installing another manufacturing unit to cope with increasing demand for grease, both in the UK and overseas.


In September, a second Stratco® Grease Contactor™ was commissioned, just 24 years on from the installation of the first Stratco® unit, which was installed following a fire that destroyed the original Stockport plant in 1980.


Why have Ironsides elected to acquire a second Stratco Grease Contactor?


Soap thickened greases are traditionally reacted in autoclaves or ‘kettles’, which is slow and time consuming. However, by using the Stratco Grease Contactor, it is possible to process greases up to five times faster than by conventional autoclave methods, so providing Ironsides with an impressive manufact- uring output. The Contactor has approximately three times the heat transfer area of a conventional grease kettle of similar volume. Because of the unique and rapid flow path, the total heating surface area is always in contact with the circulating material, so speeding up the reaction time.


The Stratco Grease Contactor can process various types of greases, ranging from lithium, calcium, sodium and complex greases, to the more specialised greases such as aluminium complex and polyurea. The high speed mixing facility incorporated in the Contactor uniformly disperses the thickener to a point that the yield (the


proportion of kilos of grease produced per kilo of soap used) is optimised and subsequent finishing processes are made more efficiently, resulting in smoother and homogeneous greases.


To ensure their commitment to ISO14001 Environmental Management certification and to reduce processing times still further, Ironsides have also recently invested in a cooling system which enables rapid cooling of the grease by using recycled water. Additionally, two new finishing vessels have been installed to cope with increased manufacturing output and to provide added flexibility for the production of their range of speciality greases.


How do Ironsides view the way forward?


Not only is it important to have a manufacturing facility to produce high quality greases competitively and on a production scale that will satisfy demand, but Ironsides are looking to increase the market’s awareness of a whole range of speciality greases that are designed to cope with arduous operating conditions. Ironsides product range now encompasses the complete spectrum of greases to satisfy all lubrication requirements, with one main objective: to ensure the end user saves on overall maintenance costs.


LINK www.ironsideslubricants.co.uk


IT DEVELOPMENTS: OSC QUESTIONS ROLE OF PROPRIETARY VENDORS


A coalition of over 60 European Open Source service providers have united to form the Open Source Consortium, (OSC) an independent reference point to give an unbiased “proprietary- vendor free” voice for all organ- isations deploying or contemplating the Open Source alternative.


The basic idea behind open source is very simple: When programmers can read, redistribute, and modify the source code for a piece of software, the software evolves. People improve it, people adapt it and people fix bugs. This can happen at a speed that, if one is used to the slow pace of conventional software development, seems astonishing.


The open source community has learned that this rapid evolutionary process produces better software than the traditional closed model, in which only a very few programmers can see the source and everybody else must blindly use an opaque block of bits.


ANOTHER HIGH PERFORMER FROM MASTER CHEMICAL


High chemical and mechanical lubricity, minimal maintenance and a formulation suited to the most demanding of fluid management systems are the distinguishing characteristics of Master Chemical’s new high quality, universal soluble oil, TRIM® E805. The stability of this latest addition to the TRIM® range makes it the perfect choice for consistent parts manufacture. Its qualities have already earned it the approval of one of the world’s leading aero engine OEMs.


As well as a long operational life, it is also formulated for both grinding and machining. In high-speed turning and milling, TRIM® E805 has the perfect balance of cooling and lubrication qualities to provide superior tool life and surface finish.


During trials, one manufacturer was able to increase the surface quality on its aluminium tail rotor supports significantly by switching to TRIM® E805 as well as greatly extending sump life. Tool life was an issue at another trial site – a manufacturer of aero-engine turbine and compressor blades. In this trial the product was installed in a Bridgeport VMCIOOO, a machining centre responsible for the heaviest duty cutting. Whilst previous coolants had made little contribution to reducing the excessive and expensive tool wear, the new TRIM® fluid concentrate made - and continues to make - a big difference.


TRIM® E805 has been designed to protect machine the


tool surfaces while also preventing sticky ways; the coolant is easily removed with water, working solution or aqueous cleaners. Extremely hard water tolerant, this new emulsion has a fine particle size that reduces carry-off and facilitates the fluid’s delivery to the cutting point.


TRIM® E805 is compatible with aluminium, steel alloys, cast iron and yellow metals and is easy recycled. As expected from a new addition to the Master Chemical coolant family, TRIM® E805 does not need costly and hazardous additives such as phenol to maintain its long life. Its non-chlorinated and non- sulphurised formulation controls build-up even in the toughest of operations. This was confirmed by a manufacturer of aluminium profiles who was experiencing residue problems with its existing coolant.


TRIM® E805 was put to the test in a CNC machining centre, employed to roll tap M3 aluminium profiles. Not only did TRIM® E805 keep the machine clean with no residue problems common to the previous coolant, it was also used at just 10% concentration. The old coolant did not even deliver this performance at 15% so thanks to TRIM® E805, this company improved quality and reduced costs.


LINK www.MasterChemical.com


13


The OSC, which is borne out of a fusion between the Open Source movement and prime-mover demand from areas such as the Public Sector, aims to bring impartial clarity to the debate.


LINK www.opensource.org


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24