Productivity-led innovations at Essen

ESAB, the world's leading supplier of welding and cutting equipment and consumables, will be on stand 309 in Hall 1 of the Schweissen & Schneiden exhibition with the theme for 2009 being 'Let’s talk productivity.' At 1225 square-metres, this stand will be the largest ESAB has ever had at the International Welding and Cutting Fair, which therefore provides ample space for both live demonstrations and areas where ESAB's experts can discuss visitors' welding and cutting applications.

One of the star attractions at Schweissen & Schneiden will be ESAB's Rosio™ robotic friction stir welding system. Previously friction stir welding has only been commercialised for straight joints, but the new five-axis robotic system enables joints to be formed around complex three-dimensional profiles in aluminium alloys. This creates entirely new opportunities in the aerospace, automotive, transportation and maritime industries, as well as others where there is a need to improve productivity in the fabrication of complex aluminium parts.

ESAB's MIG/MAG Robotic Welding Package for ABB robots will be demonstrated at the exhibition, with experts available to discuss its applications and benefits. Based on an ESAB Aristo™ W82 Integrated welding system and a robot equipped with the latest inverter power source, a robot mounted wire feeder and the client’s preferred choice of welding torch, the system also benefits from a Marathon Pac bulk wire drum. As a complete system, the Aristo™ robot package is probably the simplest way either to implement robotic welding on new projects or to upgrade existing operations.

On the same robot, ESAB will demonstrate the OK Tubrod 14.11 in diameter 1.2mm. It is a metal-cored wire for high-speed, thin-plate welding at substantially higher travel speed than 1.0mm solid wire.

Also on ESAB's stand will be a live demonstration of narrow gap welding using the Tandem HNG Multi. This fully automatic system for submerged arc welding of thick sections delivers shorter welding times and top-quality joints on high-tensile steels. Furthermore, the economical joint configuration helps to minimise the preparation and welding times, and the high-quality welds help to eliminate the need for rework.

Manufacturers of wind towers will be interested to see the Telbo™ column-and-boom equipment that features an innovative three-section telescopic arm requiring less workshop space than alternative column-and-boom systems. A maximum reach of 12m and a load capacity of 500kg make the Telbo™ ideal for internal and external welds on wind turbine tower sections, as well as pipeline production and similar applications. When equipped with a 1000kg BigBag™ of flux and a 1000kg EcoCoil™ of wire, the Telbo™ can minimise dwell times and maximise productivity.

Various welding equipment will be on display from ESAB's Aristo™ family, and visitors should take the opportunity to see the Aristo™ U82 Plus control panel that delivers higher-quality welds and reduces the need for rework. Suitable for advanced manual and mechanised welding, the recently introduced control panel supports a wide variety of processes, including MMA, TIG, pulsed TIG, arc gouging, MIG/MAG short arc, spray arc, pulse and SuperPulse™ welding. Furthermore, preinstalled synergic lines and a facility for creating new lines help to minimise set-up times and ensure consistent weld quality. Also included is QSet™ for the automatic generation of optimal short arc welding parameters. The WeldPoint™ software enables welding engineers and production engineers to use a remote PC to enhance, monitor and maintain consistent weld quality.

Those interested in automated plate cutting will be shown the latest developments in oxyfuel and plasma cutting, as well as the latest programming software. On show are::

• The new SUPRAREX™ SXG - combined oxyfuel/plasma cutting system, equipped with two completely new cutting heads – Bevel Excavator and QUATROJET™ – and the latest VBA Wrist.
  
• The AUTOREX™ fully encapsulated automatic plasma cutting centre which brings heavy duty and precision cutting at a surprisingly low cost.
• The new COLUMBUS.NET™ CAD/CAM programming system and DATA LEAP™ product data management software.
  

Welding consumables will also feature strongly on ESAB's stand. In particular, an area will be devoted to the Marathon Pac bulk drum that provides efficiency along the complete MIG/MAG production chain. AristoRod™ copper-free MAG welding wire benefits from ASC (Advanced Surface Characteristics) that increase productivity and cut welding costs through improved process stability and reduced requirements for maintenance and post-weld labour.

Other highlights on ESAB's substantial stand include the ESAB Knowledge Centre, a new head for spiral pipe welding, a new Demobus that will be packed with an extensive range of equipment, PPE (personal protective equipment) and accessories, and a new product range - details of which will be published nearer the time.

ESAB will be on stand 309 in Hall 1 of the Schweissen & Schneiden exhibition from 14-19 September 2009. 

Meanwhile, further information about the products mentioned above is available via the website at www.esab.com.

http://www.schweissenuschneiden.de/