Author: a.manzo

Universal forming line

In the last years, the request of higher production flexibility has grown more and more, forcing the technology in finding new solutions that permits to have short time in size change and less tooling needed to cover all the production mix.

Matching this wish with the big steps done by the electronical controls, Adda Fer has completed its product portfolio realizing new tube mills able to produce square and rectangular tubes with a universal set of rolls and with an automatic adjustment system controlled by the PLC. This decreases dramatically the time needed to change size and permits to have the possibility to produce all the sizes needed without delivery time lost for rolls manufacturing. Moreover, the direct forming of the 90° edges of these tubes, without passing from the round mother tube, permits also to save raw material.

In fact, this particular deformation of the metal strip interests a smaller area than the traditional forming and the thickness on the edges decreases instead of increasing as in the traditional forming when the round tube is squared.

For this reason, the starting width of the coil can be from 4% to 8% narrower saving tons of steel every year on the total production. The standard configuration of the mill is with eleven stands before the welding head, two or three sizing stands depending from the range of thicknesses required and two turk heads. The first five stands are used to form the lips from the flat strip. Then, four passaged complete the most of the forming using the internal rolls.

Two fin-pass stands are then completing the forming creating the V channel with the correct shape to weld the tube correctly. 

After the welding, scarfing and quenching, two or three sizing stands are calibrating the sides of the tube to the correct tolerance and two turk heads are straightening the tube before the cut-off. All the eleven stands before the welding and the sizing stands are driven with a dedicated motor for each stand and only the turk heads are idle.

The set up is made with hydraulic or electrical motors able to adjust the width of the forming stands, of the sizing stands and correcting the gap between the rolls for the correct thickness produced. The set of rolls is part of the machine and doesn’t require to be changed accordingly with the size. All the adjustment are done in automatic by means of the supervisor system.

Flexibility, quickness and technology! 

In one word: ADDA FER!

Tubular Products Europe

ArcelorMittal Europe’s Tubular Products division is a pan-European producer, manufacturing tubes and pipes in four countries and delivering its products through proximity agencies located in eight countries across the continent as well other major international markets. Active in the energy, construction, engineering and automotive sectors, the company produces and markets virtually the full spectrum of tubular products, with an increasing share of value-added products developed in cooperation with its customers. Tubular Products offers the broadest product range, from seamless to spiral and longitudinal welded tubes, available in both small and large outside diameters, as well as a variety of processes and/or finishing, including ERW, HFI, precision, cold-drawn, HSAW and LSAW.

A wide range of seamless pipes

ArcelorMittal Europe’s division Tubular Products offers seamless pipes with outside diameters ranging from 21.3mm – 508mm and wall thicknesses of up to 50mm. Access to high-quality steels allows the division to create pipe and tube solutions for the most challenging applications. Its mills in Romania and the Czech Republic have supplied many complex orders, including structural tubes for the Azerbaijan Olympic Stadium, piping systems for the UK Navy’s flagship aircraft carriers, and oil and gas projects across the world.

Flexible large-diameter welded facilities

Tubular Products’ highly flexible operations enable it to meet the demands of both large and small projects. The division has the capability to produce individual pipes, making it the ideal supplier for small projects with many components. A wide range of grades is available in strengths of up to X70. Additional services include end preparation for sockets, cut-to-length pipes and an in-house coating facility.

Extensive small welded offer

Small, welded cold-formed and hot-finished tubes are produced at Tubular Products’ mills in Eastern Europe in Karviná (Czech Republic), Krakow (Poland), and Iasi (Romania), and in France in Lexy, Rettel, Fresnoy and Vincey. These products are typically used in construction, and in the transportation of fluids and gases. The range is constantly developing to meet customer requirements for high value-added products. Over the past two years, Tubular Products Europe has made important investments to increase its production of galvanized and colour-coated tubes. These investments have enabled it to increase the variety of grades on offer and improve its logistics systems.

A leading manufacturer of automotive tubing

Due to their contribution to structural strength, reduced number of welds and light weight in relation to the optimised number of joints, steel tubes help to lower costs, increase safety and reduce overall mass – critical factors for car manufacturers. With five production sites in Europe specialising in automotive tubes, Tubular Products Europe is a leading manufacturer and marketer of tubes for the automotive industry with a wide range of welded and cold drawn mechanical steel tubes and tubular shapes, fabricated parts and precision components. The products are used for a wide range of high-value added applications, ranging from suspension systems to crash management components to axle housing assembly systems and instrument panels or seat structures.

The Power of a Turnkey Solution. 

Global Dom: from a Single Company, Complete Drawing Plants. 

One for all and all for one? This motto would be very convenient in our sector too, especially for those managers who are well aware of the complexity to choose the right suppliers when they need to purchase the machinery of a drawing line or even the whole plant. Global Dom, a company based in the North of Italy, makes this motto a reality. This is one of the few firms in the world able to supply complete cold drawing plants. They design, manufacture and test complete lines all over the world, covering a wide range of technical needs within the several different markets that handle the products of drawn pipes. The market area affecting the plants provided by Global Dom is concerned with cold-drawn tubes whose end-uses require mechanical properties like tensile strength, yield strength, elongation and other specific purposes related to their use and according to the current standards (DIN, ASTM, UNI, GOST). In addition to this, these tubes have very specific surface finishing characteristics in terms of roughness and mechanical tolerance. Tubes that have to be drawn originate from welded and seamless line pipes. Their end-uses concern the mechanical sector, aeronautics, cylinder industry, automotive, maritime industry and the energy sector. Global Dom’s plants can reach any market, anywhere in the world. Each project is customised according to their customer requirements. What are the component parts of a plant? Global Dom’s main goal is to meet an increasingly strong emerging need in the international markets. That is, dealing with only one qualified team to manufacture and coordinate all the processes concerning: design, furnace supply, pickling plants, pointing machinery, draw benches, straightening machinery, cutting to size solutions, Eddy-Current machinery, oiling, packaging, weighing and automation. One for all and all for one.

ZEPHYR, THE NEW EXTRUDER SERIES IN 40 L/D BY TECNOMATIC OFFERS HIGH PERFORMANCE AT REDUCED POWER CONSUMPTION FOR PE AND PP PIPE EXTRUSION

The ZEPHYR extruders are the evolution of the ZEUS gearless extruders and VEGA 37 L/D series, to set new standards in the extrusion of pipes. A year on, from their presentation at K-show in Germany, several extruders have been sold and tested in production process with excellent results. 

These new extruder series in L/D 40, designed by Tecnomatic engineers,

\offer a large number of innovative solutions that distinguish it and make it one of a kind in the market of pipe production. The key point and guideline of the new project was to increase the output rate at lower melt temperatures and power consumption. 

The result has been achieved thanks to the adoption of a spiral grooved feed bush and to further improvements in screw design. The new feed bush ensures minor friction, commonly generated by raw material transport, with subsequent increasing of the specific and total throughput. 

The further development in screw design, with optimisation and enhancement of torque and shearing elements, have improved the output but have also led to process the material at lower melt temperatures.* To complete the configuration and to meet the requirements for production efficiency the machines are equipped with torque or water-cooled motors (in this case with one or two steps gearboxes) and compact water-cooled inverters. 

These solutions combined with the mechanical features ensure outstanding power consumption levels (e.g. lower than 170 wh/kg for Zephyr 60.40 at 800 kg/h) but also low noise operation (< 74 Db), reduced workload for maintenance, higher efficiency within wide speed and load ranges, and faster dynamic response. The equipment also includes modules for a constant monitoring of power consumption and production cost calculation.

Engaged in the designing and production of equipment for the cold working of wires, tubes, rods and metal profiles since more than twenty-five years, Violi Srl boasts today an established presence on the main international markets thanks to a complete range of products.

Besides the line of machinery dedicated to the cold drawing of tubes and bars through hydraulic drawing benches, the company has also developed over time a line of machines dedicated to the straightening process:

MRT: straightening machine with hyperbolic rollers for tubes or rods

RPD: straightening machine for square and rectangular profiles

MRTV: wire-straightening machine with fly cutting system through shears or saw blade designed to straighten and cut wires

MRTS: straightening machines with saw blade cut for tubes with round and complex profiles

All the machines can be customized according to the needs of the customer.