Bystronic Australia opened up its showroom in Cranbourne West, Victoria, on 29-30 November to demonstrate some of the latest state-of-the-art technology in sheet metal laser cutting, bending and automation.
The Bystronic Automation Day was an opportunity for the company to catch up with its existing customers as well as to connect with potential new clients, while presenting some of the highlights from its product range. Already world-renowned as a leader in the fields of sheet metal cutting and fabrication systems, the event was also an opportunity for Bystronic to showcase its latest innovations in automation technology.
Automation represents a key area of focus for Bystronic worldwide, and 2018 saw the Swiss-headquartered company taking a number of significant strides in this area. In March it completed the takeover of TTM Laser, Italian specialists in laser-based tube and profile processing, enhancing Bystronic’s existing technology offerings along the cutting, bending, and automation process chain. This was followed in June with the acquisition of a majority interest in Antil, a highly innovative company specialising in automation solutions for sheet metal processing, headquartered in Milan, Italy. Both TTM and ANTIL had their own dedicated exhibits at the Bystronic Automation Day.
Alongside these new acquisitions, September saw Bystronic hold a groundbreaking ceremony just outside Chicago at the site of its new Experience Center. With the construction phase now well underway, this state-of-the-art facility is on track to be completed by mid-2019. Once opened, it will offer visitors the chance to to experience a “smart factory” for sheet metal processing. Built on a site occupying more than 15,000 square metres, the Experience Center will include an advanced showroom where Bystronic will be able to demonstrate how sheet metal products can be manufactured in an age of automation, digital networking, and intelligent services.
Demonstrations of the latest technology were also the main attraction at the Bystronic Automation Day, with a rolling program of displays going on throughout the two-day event. First on the agenda was a Laser & Automation Demonstration, comprising the ByStar Fiber laser with 10KW laser power, coupled with a ByTrans Extended automatic loading and unloading system, and a ByTower flexible storage tower. This impressive set-up is capable of handling sheet metal up to 25mm thick, up to a weight of 33 tons(11 cassettes/3 tons), enabling extended automated processing for full lights-out operations.
Next up was a demonstration of the Xpert Tool Changer 150, Bystronic’s compact automation solution for fast bending tool changing. This machine combines the Xpert 150, Bystronic’s top-of the-range pressbrake, supplemented by a robot arm to enable automated changing of upper and lower tools. Allowing users to reduce set-up times while increasing bending quality, the Xpert Tool Changer 150 brings the potential benefits of automation to even the smallest SMEs.
For manufacturers seeking a more compact solution, the Xpert 40 pressbrake was the focus of the third demonstration. Combining a small footprint with very low power consumption, this machine is the fastest pressbrake in Bystronic’s line-up, offering maximum process speed thanks to the high acceleration of its upper beam and back gauge. With an ergonomic design and individual customisable work environment supporting high ease of use, the Xpert 40 is an impressively flexible machine that can be also operational as a Mobile Bending Cell with a robot attached in less than five minutes.
Finally, tying all the machinery displays together, the last demonstration focused on BySoft 7, Bystronic’s latest software solution for bending, folding and cutting. BySoft 7 enables users to design parts, program cutting plans, create bending sequences, and monitor processes, facilitating a digitally networked manufacturing environment that guides users from the incoming order to the finished part, in a fast and efficient workflow.
Drawing a strong turnout over the course of the event, the Bystronic Automation Day was attended by clients from Queensland and New South Wales as well as Victoria – and even as far afield as New Zealand. With a barbecue lunch, refreshments and networking breaks throughout, and a special gathering for families on the afternoon of the second day, the event was a forum for Bystronic’s Australian team and their customers across ANZ to get together and catch up in a relaxed formal setting. But above all it was a chance to see some of the most advanced manufacturing technologies of their kind on the market today, providing ample proof that Bystronic are among the real pace-setters for manufacturing in the future.