Industry News

Throughout its long history, turning in the conventional direction – namely starting at the end of the workpiece and working longitudinally towards the chuck – has prevailed. Although this technique has proved successful, as the process has matured, ongoing advances in productivity and profitability have been increasingly difficult to achieve. Many are bound by the limitations of traditional turning. For instance, while experienced operators are aware that factors such as small entry angles permit increased feeds, they are restricted to around 90 degrees in conventional turning in order to reach the shoulder and avoid the long, curved chips that small entering angles characteristically provide. In recent years, the advent of…

Based in the town of Arch, DPRM regards itself as a watch manufacturer that is mainly focused on the bar turning of micro parts that constitute the working features of a watch. The company also performs all peripheral activities in the fields of production, quality control and even assembly. Established in 1947 under the name ‘ASKA’, DPRM has been built upon a unique knowledge base that its employees have gained during the course of time. Using bar turning and gear cutting technologies, the company can develop and produce all kinds of components that meet the requirements of the high-end watch market. Today, DPRM is a part of the Dubois Dépraz Corporation, a famous manufacturer of exceptional watch components. To manufacture components that set the benchmark in the watchmaking industry, DPRM utilises 44 machine tools. Besides specialised machines for blanking, burnishing, decoration, thermal and surface treatment, the Swiss company employs seven EvoDeco machines, four…

In high and low-wage countries, interest in the many benefits of industrial robots has never been higher. Released last year, the International Federation of Robotics (IFR) Industrial Robots report showed unit sales figures in 2015 up 15% on the year before, reaching an all-time high of 253,748. Since 2010, technical improvements in robots and automation have turbocharged investment, according to the report. Furthermore, double digit percentage growth is predicted to continue every year up to 2019 . However, within CNC machining, robotics applications have been dominated by machine tending. Overall, the benefits enjoyed by industrial users of robots – such as accuracy, productivity and capacity utilisation – have been under-realised by machine tool users. According to 2012 IFR research, only 1.5% of machine tools were being automated in conjunction with robots . Nonetheless, this trend is starting to shift, with robots becoming increasingly affordable and easy to program – making the technology more accessible to the CNC grinding market. Global influences are also having an impact, such as the South…

Manufacturing companies today are embracing more cutting-edge technologies than ever before. In fact, global market intelligence firm IDC predicts that by 2019, 75% of large manufacturers will have updated their operations and operating models to incorporate the Internet of Things (IoT) and associated software applications to help mitigate risk and increase efficiency. This increased connectivity of IoT devices, robotics, and human-machine interfaces as a way to improve automation means that there are now an overwhelming number of connected devices and technologies within manufacturing that need to be monitored 24 hours a day, seven days a week to ensure they are delivering top performance at all times. For organisations in the manufacturing industry, a high-performance network is becoming a basic ‘must have’ in this automated world – particularly when it means ensuring a functioning IT infrastructure is properly maintained. To ensure smooth operating procedures, all processes in the production line should run without complications, as…

Based in Artarmon, NSW, KBW is a family-owned and managed business with over 30 years of experience in vehicle repairs. KBW caters for both vehicle repair insurance and private work as well as specialising in car and motorcycle custom and restoration work. Dedicated to completing work at the highest standards, KBW keeps its team trained in an evolving industry while investing in state-of-the-art machinery to ensure each motor vehicle leaving the shop looks better than ever. From powering air tools to the spray paint booth, compressed air is integral to the operation. Just over a decade ago, an ageing compressed air system prompted KBW’s Manager Charles Koudsy to contact the company’s longstanding compressed air partner Fracks for a solution. Fracks – an authorised Kaeser partner – recommended and subsequently installed an Airtower 11 from Kaeser. The Airtower was a compact compressor solution that incorporated a rotary screw compressor and refrigeration dryer within one housing. This series was…

AMT: Tell us firstly about the Cumberland Business Chamber and its membership. Craig Hingston: Cumberland Business Chamber was formed 30 years ago in the Smithfield-Wetherill Park region of western Sydney, which is home to the largest industrial business park in the Southern Hemisphere. This is a strategic hub representing a board cross-section of the manufacturing and engineering sector. There are over 20,000 people employed here and many of these businesses have been here for decades. Because we are an industrial-centric chamber, as opposed to a strictly geographical one, we attract people from all over Sydney. Our members range from CEOs and management at multinational corporations to owners of SMEs and micro-enterprises. They represent manufacturing and the many sectors which support it. Our purpose is to encourage and stimulate business growth. We are advocates for ‘Support Australian Industry. Buy Australian Products.’ AMT: What sort of services and projects does the Chamber…

Many of us have experienced that nervous feeling you get when you’re following a trailer that has begun to sway and it would appear that at any moment it could fishtail out of control. Worse still is the feeling of a loss of control while negotiating the twists and gradient of the road with a trailer in tow. Both circumstances can be stressful, and for both driver and surrounding traffic, potentially very hazardous. Trailers can easily become unstable and cause accidents when braking, swerving, overtaking, driving in high winds or on difficult roads. In 2016, loss of control accounted for 30% of caravan accident claims, with oversteering and fishtailing among the main causes. The need for a solution to this problem was identified by Bosch’s Australian Vehicle Safety Systems engineering team. This prompted an innovation idea and subsequent R&D project in 2014. The parent company acknowledged the local engineering capability and market opportunity, which led to the establishment of a Bosch global Centre of Competence for…

Many of us have experienced that nervous feeling you get when you’re following a trailer that has begun to sway and it would appear that at any moment it could fishtail out of control. Worse still is the feeling of a loss of control while negotiating the twists and gradient of the road with a trailer in tow. Both circumstances can be stressful, and for both driver and surrounding traffic, potentially very hazardous. Trailers can easily become unstable and cause accidents when braking, swerving, overtaking, driving in high winds or on difficult roads. In 2016, loss of control accounted for 30% of caravan accident claims, with oversteering and fishtailing among the main causes. The need for a solution to this problem was identified by Bosch’s Australian Vehicle Safety Systems engineering team. This prompted an innovation idea and subsequent R&D project…

Iscar’s best cutting tool recommendations and cutting data can be downloaded anywhere and at any time. The Iscar Tool Advisor (ITA) will automatically calculate the preferred cutting tools for the job. All that the user has to do is enter a few machining parameters. The ITA is an Industry 4.0 standard, consisting of a user-friendly, cyber-based tool selection software package that uses a unique mathematical algorithm. The tool selection process maximises productivity and is based on objective technical data as opposed to an intuitive method of search. For this Fourth Industrial Revolution, it is a optimal tool advisor based on application parameters and available machine power. It works in conjunction with Iscar’s electronic catalogue, from where the tool parameters are accessed and used for continuing machine processing. The ITA also includes sub-applications such as machining power, grades and chipformer selection tools. Iscar’s ITA package reduces tooling scenarios while accounting for cutting conditions, workpiece material, machine power and metal removal rates. The ITA places emphasis on customer profitability while assuring the right method of tool…

With most packing operations still finishing with an operator loading a carton onto a pallet manually, ADDE saw an industry need to find a solution that could automate one of the most physically demanding – and liable to cause back injuries – tasks on the production line. ADDE’s response was to create the Zero Footprint Palletiser (ZFP), which takes no more space than a pallet on the floor and an operator, and allows manufacturers to generate greater efficiency and safety across operations, while also enabling employees to work closely in collaboration with the palletiser. To create the ZFP, ADDE started with a UR10 robot, which can work without safety caging or barriers (subject to a risk assessment), and then added the hardware and software needed to achieve an affordable, minimal footprint and easy-to-deploy solution that can reach an Australian standard pallet. “The intuitive nature of the UR10 provided a great starting point for us to build a flexible, easily programmable solution that takes…

Keyways and splines are generally manufactured through broaching, slotting, milling, EDM or wire cutting. Each method has its own restrictions, particularly in the length they can achieve. Misalignment, deflection, vibration and size limitations are common problems faced by engineering workshops using conventional methods to cut keyways or splines in long parts. However, one Queensland-based company is providing a solution, promising a fast and reliable turnaround, cost effective production, tight tolerances and a high quality finish in difficult parts, with keyways up to 700mm long. Elmass (Australia) discovered this niche market 18 years ago and has been manufacturing precision keyways and splines for a wide range of industries across Queensland and Australia using its patented broaching tools and machines. Starting…

As with many other success stories, C&S Engineering and Toolmaking began in a shed in a backyard. Trading since 2003, Craig and Steven Darvill’s business got started after Steven got tired of commuting from The Oaks to Greenacre, and joined his dad – who repaired trucks – in the family workshop, with Steven’s brother Craig subsequently joining in his off-hours. The brothers invested in an old manual machine, and word got out that if a job needed doing, then Craig and Steven could get it done. Neighbours were early customers, then they told their friends, then those friends told their friends and so on. “Once we got our first CNC machine, it was only a month and Craig had to give up his full-time job,” says Steven. “Very daunting, of course, because we’d never taken a wage out of the company at that stage. And I think a month or two after that, once they knew someone was there all the time, we just got flooded. We purchased two more CNC…

It’s an honour to stand here and talk to a group of people about a business that we’ve owned since 1989, and talk through what we’ve been able to achieve. I’d like to preface something like this to say that this is just what we’ve done, it’s not at all what I’m telling anyone else they should do – it’s just some of the lessons and things that we’ve done over our journey. CME (Composite Materials Engineering) is a family business and until last Thursday was a supplier to the Australian automotive industry. Our main customer was GM Holden, and we supplied everything in the boot of the Commodore except the carpet. This included a spare wheel tub, spare wheel cover, all the assemblies… you open the boot, it…