MACHINERY & MACHINE SAFETY
£1M CAPEX INVESTMENT EXPANDS PRODUCT RANGE WAREHOUSING, HANDLING & STORAGE
S
ince launching as a new company, under a new brand earlier this year, Lesjöfors Heavy Springs UK has invested £1.1m in new machinery, in direct response to customer demand and growth in newly identified markets.
Following a 60% growth in their industrial sales in 2021 and further growth of 20% for 2022, the Cornwall based spring manufacturer, with sites in Penryn and Redruth, is significantly increasing capacity, expanding production capabilities and advancing their supply chain processes with a suite of new state-of-the-art machinery. Michael Gibbs, Managing Director of the UK factories says: “This is a big investment and this year has seen a number of big changes, showing confidence in our market position. Our strategy for growth has enabled us to expand our capacity in the UK, to separate our automotive and industrial sector work across two industry specific dedicated sites and to expand our industrial business even further.”
The industrial divisions expansion in Penryn includes investment in a new CNC coiler which extends the wire coiling capabilities in the UK to 20mm wire diameter, in line with larger spring wire requirements from a growing global customer base. Weighing in at 30 tonnes, the new CNC coiler is integrated with a new 10m long in-line heat treatment oven, doubling heat treatment efficiencies. Rounding off a grinding equipment investment programme of a further £1m since 2017, a new spring grinder doubles the grinding capacity in the industrial division. There has also been further investment in new lifting equipment. Luke Smith, Operations Manager for Lesjöfors Heavy Springs UK confirms: “Peak production efficiency is challenging when manufacturing is across two sites. These latest investments allow us to separate our automotive and industrial work so that each location is dedicated to its sector, which will significantly improve output and increase our efficiencies.
It also allows us to further develop our in-house expertise specific to these sectors and to continue delivering the quality, accuracy and performance our springs are recognised for.
Michael Gibbs concludes: “We have been at our second site, in Penryn, for three years and have always aimed to strengthen our site-specific dedicated expertise and machinery bespoke to each location.
Achieving this with our recent investment in new machinery and a restructured team, drives these efficiencies, reduces costs and allows us to pass those cost reductions on to our customers. We’re committed to investing in the future and predict, working on current projections, a payback on the capex investment of approximately five years.” Concluding the investments is an additional shot peener for the newly dedicated automotive sector manufacturing site in Redruth.
BOFA International
www.bofainternational.com
AN OPEN AND SHUT CASE: UPVC WINDOW MACHINERY MANUFACTURER CHOOSES MATARA LINEAR MOTION PRODUCTS
M
atara UK Ltd, specialist
in automation,
pneumatics and linear motion products, has supplied linear rails and guides, and SFNHR precision ballscrews, to Pernamatic
Engineering for a new
CNC Corner Transom Machine for uPVC Double Glazed Windows. The XY linear system at the heart of the machine allows for tight tolerances and can be programmed to accommodate 100 different positions.
Established in 1996, Pernamatic Engineering provides professional, reliable precision engineering services, with a focus on the uPVC window industry. It designs and manufactures specialist uPVC window machinery, including Corner Cleaners which automate the process of removing the surface weld sprue which forms from welding the mitre joints. Whilst Pernamatic Engineering have an off the shelf Corner Cleaner, a customer needed a bespoke solution, which required a new XY linear system. Pernamatic Engineering designed a CNC Corner Transom Machine for UPVC Double Glazed Windows to meet the customer’s exact requirements. At the heart of the new machine is an XY linear system which uses Matara MSB compact 35mm type linear rails and
34 NOVEMBER 2022 | FACTORY&HANDLINGSOLUTIONS
guides and SFNHR precision 20mm ballscrews which position the internal radius tool to 100 different programmable positions. All Matara components were available from standard stock for a quick delivery.
The MSB Series is renowned for its compact nature whilst maintaining a quiet and smooth motion. It features a 45° contact angle to bear an equal load in radial, reversed radial and lateral directions, along with high rigidity, four- way equal load and self-alignment capability. The ballscrews, which are machined in- house at Matara, suit the fixed ballscrew end supports which give the ballscrew excellent rigidity. Additional benefits of using Matara linear ballscrews include high efficiency due to reduced friction during use, high load capacity at fast speeds, and cost-efficiency. The resulting CNC Corner Transom Machine for UPVC Double Glazed Windows is both flexible and fast. It is capable of handling 200 different UPVC window frame configurations and finishes a complete frame in just 80 seconds. Previously, it was taking Pernamatic Engineering’s customer 15 minutes for an operator to finish each corner - a very laborious manual process using several hand tools. It is also highly accurate as the Matara linear rails and guides allow the machine to position the tool to 0.016mm tolerances.
Lesjöfors Heavy Springs UK
www.lesjoforsab.com
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