Tube Design Evolution
Manufacturing using tubular components is no longer just the purview of furniture manufacturers as other fabricators are now using new technology and design theories to enter the mainstream
June 1, 2010
An evolution in the design and fabrication of products and assemblies is under way as the use of tube stock in manufacturing becomes more commonplace.
Progressive-thinking companies are incorporating laser tube cutting and all-electric tube bending to create new and innovative product designs that not only increase product appeal, but also reduce the cost of manufacturing by eliminating setups for multiple manual operations.
“Fabricators who have embraced automated laser tube cutting are enthusiastically converting bent sheet metal assemblies into tubes,” explained BLM Group Product Manager Jeff Arendas. “Tube laser users are now able to process tubes in ways that they never previously could using conventional tube fabrication techniques.”
Tube lasers allow specially shaped tubes to be used in the fabrication process. Designers are no longer limited to just round and rectangular tubing during part design.
For example, by using the laser to V-notch a tube, a fabricator can create a fold-up-style part from a single tube, rather than multiple tubes welded together. This technique not only eliminates welding, but the associated fixturing, consumables, and labor costs as well.
In addition, the use of tube eliminates the setup and labor of the press brake operation while at the same time improving accuracy of the finished parts.
It’s not only laser tube cutting that has an effect on part design.
“All-electric benders with multistack tooling and variable radius capability are opening up new opportunities in tube design,” said Arendas. “The improved control of the electric bender lets the user consistently make high-quality parts.”
Multiple tools reduce setup and changeover and variable radius capability (push bending) provides designers with the ability to produce any desired radius.
Lights-out Manufacturing
Many manufacturers are moving toward lights-out processing, and tube fabricators are no different. However, this slice of the fabricating industry has its own needs.
According to Arendas, the good news is that automated laser tube cutters can run parts in a fully automated mode. The bad news is that the laser produces so many parts so quickly that an operator needs to be in attendance to periodically unload the machine.
“Many customers now have their laser operator doing secondary operations while the machine runs parts automatically,” said Arendas.
Tube benders also can be loaded automatically, and this sets the pace of the machine’s throughput. When the correct options are selected, the bender can automatically discharge a bent part and move it to the next operation. After that point, it is generally the operator’s job to stack the bent tubes or move them on to the next manufacturing step, such as painting or powder coating.
“The concept of lights-out production has started appearing in the general tube industry, but has not caught on quite as well as in some other metal fabrication industries, such as sheet metal and chip-making,” said Innovative Tube Equipment Corp. (ITEC) North American Sales Manager Brian Julien.
However, added Julien, these lights-out-style workcells may be what North American fabricators need to compete with low-labor-cost markets as well as other domestic and international competitors.
ITEC is a newly formed distributor specializing in tube equipment. It has offices in Montreal and Rockford, Ill.
The company offers a fully automatic tube loading, bending, cutting and endforming cell referred to as the Green Automation cell. The cell utilizes four all-electric pieces of equipment including a Herber CNC tube bending machine, tube endforming and nick and shear cutoff equipment from their partner Bors Automation & Tool, and a Kuka material handling robot.
“The Herber all-electric tube and pipe bending machine system has the advantage of a quicker and more repeatable bend tooling setup, which allows lower production volumes to be run more efficiently than traditional hydraulic CNC bending machines without the concern regarding loss in hourly utilization due to setup times or scrap in the setup process,” said Julien.
This type of bender also has a centerline booster system that permits the boost function on all bends, including the last bend, without necessarily having to add back part length to grip the tube in the collet, which would normally interfere with the pressure die on the final bend. This usually requires the additional operation and cost of trimming the final part to length and the scrap that this generates.
“Labor and material costs are saved, which amount to lower per-part costs than possible with traditional CNC bending machines,” said Julien.
Another way to reduce cost per part is during the programming phase.
“The manufacturability of certain bent tubes using new programmability features such as free-radius bending software has kept the prices of producing complex parts reasonable by eliminating secondary fabrication steps and hard tooling,” said Julien. “This new type of bending technology is greatly blurring the lines between a designer’s dream or vision and the sacrifices that were previous made to produce a part that is truly cost effective for manufacturing. This means that North American companies can truly design products and parts that are both functional and stylish without sacrificing part or product price point or cost.”
According to Julien, if OEMs and job shops can truly harness the power of this new bending technology, they will lead their companies into the new manufacturing millennium.
For more information, visit www.blmgroup.com and www.tube-equipment.com.
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