Designers in Austria find a better way to maneuver materials
Above: ASMAG manufactures in-house its automatic binding unit for long products.
Designers in Austria find a better way to maneuver materials
February 2015 - Sometimes, the right answer is deceptively simple. For many manufacturers that work with hexagonal bars, changing up inserts for different dimensions is accepted practice. Workers normally adjust the stacking device using hand wheels, attempting to bundle them efficiently without damage or creating a bundle that is askew. Although this method works, it is seen as tedious.
Only recently have engineers found a plainer solution: Eliminate the need for inserts, those forms placed inside a stacking machine that provide support for laying down the bottom layer of long products.
Metalworking shops pay a great deal of attention to the quality and fabrication of tube and pipe, but navigating the material around the shop and onto the delivery truck is no simple task. When working with round and hexagon bars and round and square/rectangular tubes, handling is an involved process.
Changing from round to hexagon bars, and from one size to another is where traditional stacking and bundling systems fall short. Operators must change the inserts to adjust for the size of hexagons. This takes time. New technology allows for an automated method.
Conventional bundling systems for tube, pipe and bar use forks or magnets that carry the tubes and bars to the stacking area. Then, they lay each load in layers on top of one another, placing them onto an insert. It becomes more difficult to keep the material stable when the tube or bar is not round or when bundle sizes vary. ASMAG, headquartered in Scharnstein, Austria, with a U.S. location in Schaumburg, Illinois, set out to create a simple device, then put it in a customer’s hands to test.
“We felt that manually adjusting the stacking machine each time dimensions or shapes changed was unnecessary,” says Herbert Plank, ASMAG’s vice president of sales and marketing. An operator typically spends one minute for each time he must replace inserts to accommodate changing hexagon bar sizes, or when an insert must be removed altogether to switch from hexagons to rounds, says Plank. This pause occurs each time sizes change and inserts are replaced. ASMAG’s design eliminates that step.
“We wanted to make a fully automatic stacker where we didn’t have to use these inserts on hexagon bars,” Plank explains. “One of ASMAG’s designers came up with the idea for this system but he didn’t know whether it would work, so we made a simple device we could test and went from there.”
The simple system prototype was manually operated at a nominal cost. “We wanted to find out if our theory worked,” says Plank. It proved promising so engineers worked to get the design into the marketplace. Through the testing, they found the new design shortened setup time in the stacker and inserts were no longer necessary.
Previously, a worker would need to place multiple inserts onto the machine depending on the hexagon size. The number of inserts is defined by the length of the bar.
Hexagonal material tends to tilt at the wrong angle. The ASMAG innovation uses additional arms to tilt material at the correct angle so when the first layer is laid down, the bars fall into the right position (see diagram, below). “It’s a simple idea but hasn’t been used before,” Plank says. Because the arms automatically line up hexagons at the correct angle, they serve as the only guide now required for correct stacking and laying the material down.
The right angle
The fully developed stacker—all components used in ASMAG machines are made in-house—works with hexagons or round bars made from brass, copper or steel. ASMAG’s bundling system uses servomotors to automatically set up the stacking unit.
In addition, software automatically calculates several possible bundle shapes and sizes based on production orders. Normally, an operator would need to adjust the stacking device using hand wheels. If, for example, you need to bundle 500 pounds of tube or bar, the software analyzes the material sizes and shapes, then determines whether, say, three or four bars in a layer at the bottom would be the best configuration.
“You don’t want to end up with asymmetrical bundles, because such bundles could become loose during transport,” explains Plank. “If they do, you have a dangerous load,” he continues, “and while it’s a standard concern with anyone working with tubes and bars, ASMAG’s software specifically addresses this problem.
“Before, the operator would have to manually calculate the bar bundle and how it would best be distributed,” he continues. “That is no longer the case.” With ASMAG’s solution, the operator waits for the software to calculate the best options and confirms his selection from the touchscreen, prompting the stacking device to adjust automatically. The stacker/bundler can be used for all types of products and any changes are made on the computer.
Real-time results
ASMAG engineers were confident they had a useful innovation on their hands but “we didn’t try selling the concept right away.” Instead, a customer that had already ordered a bundling system was offered the new design. The customer was advised that if the new design for hexagons didn’t meet expectations, they would not have to pay for the device. “But if it worked, we would be able to offer it to more customers as a better choice,” says Plank.
The innovation was an ideal fit for the test customer’s new production line, with which it performed drawing, straightening, cutting, chamfering, stacking and bundling units. “It was the perfect opportunity to prove our innovation for a busy plant situation,” he says.
ASMAG’s in-house manufacturing features such capabilities as design, mechanical and electrical engineering, production of components, assembly, testing of machines, production of switch cabinets, and programming of machines and entire lines. Having that kind of control over such processes helps the company guarantee quality control for complete lines and custom solutions.
ASMAG opened its northern Illinois facility last year.
“The U.S. is an important and growing market” for ASMAG, as 60 percent of sales came from American customers last year, says Plank, adding, “Industry is coming back in the U.S. and many customers are looking to make their operations more efficient.” MM
