Tried And Tested Hepcomotion Saves Design Time

Industrial Automation’s original thinking is complemented by the inclusion of tried and tested components in its one-off machines and this allows its design team to hit the ground running. It is a formula that minimises design time and contains costs. This means that when a project calls for effective linear or circular motion, Industrial Automation will automatically ask its HepcoMotion® sales engineer to call.

“In the eight years we have been using HepcoMotion® we have never had a problem with slideways,” confirms Industrial Automation’s, Senior Consultant Engineer, Graham Thexton.

Industrial Automation provides innovative automated machinery and production systems for the automotive, food & drink, consumer goods and general manufacturing industries. A division of the TEW Engineering Group, it is a world leader in rubber/weather strip sealing systems. Indeed it is the company’s pedigree in this field that led to its recent selection by an Italian automotive manufacturer for the design and manufacture of a bespoke car door sealing system.

The customer wanted to introduce an innovative method of applying a seal to a car door. Whilst other automotive manufacturers wrap the seal around the door, joining the two ends, this company wanted to apply the seal as a complete band. This would ensure a better fit and a speedier process.

The resultant system designed by Industrial Automation comprises two side-by-side workstations; whilst one is in production, the door panel on the other is being manually loaded/unloaded. Both stations have as their basis, a HepcoMotion® Heavy Duty Ring that is responsible for indexing the door panel to allow a static drilling head to fix the seal to the door. The positioning accuracy that the ring achieves is to within +/- .04mm.

When one cycle is completed the entire production table containing the two rings is shunted sideways, engaging the second station under the drilling head. HepcoMotion®’s Winkel Heavy Duty Linear System is responsible for this shuttle movement. This is a range that is suitable for capacities that range from a few kilograms to a 50,000 kg. Bearings can be from 40mm – 280mm in diameter and specially coated if required.

“You can buy heavy duty slide bearings that are very expensive but also very temperamental,” Graham Thexton explains. “For us Winkel is the ideal solution as they are so strong, we fit them and know they will do their job well.”

He continues, “Whenever we need slideways and continuous motion systems we use HepcoMotion®, their products meet the requirements of many applications. We’ve tried other brands but they have proven unreliable. It’s vital that we have confidence in the product that we are designing in and that it is not over-engineered. It’s all about optimising cost.”

Another important factor in Industrial Automation’s choice of HepcoMotion® is the company’s quick grasp of what is needed for a given application. Graham Thexton concludes, “We both apply our expertise and specialist knowledge to the project in hand and this is an important part of the process as our machines are largely one-offs and often world-firsts.”