AMT: Sep / Oct 2010

Advanced Materials Today Sep/Oct �

� Advanced Materials Today Sep/Oct �0�0

67824 Robor Build_cons ad.indd 1 8/23/10 4:26:00 PM


Sep/Oct 2010

ContentsCover Story4 Don’tMoveaMuscle

Castings, Forgings, Furnaces and Refractories8 ShoppingIndustrialStyle

Machining11 GettingMachiningRight

TDM Today(Tool,Die&MouldMaking)17 CEO’sComments18 AutoIndustryInnovators21 TrainingUpaStorm23 HelpforSMEs

Afrimold Exhibition25 AfrimoldHeretoStay

Corrosion28 StopCorrosionofProfits

Fabrication32 HowSafeisaSafe?

IndustryNews33 IndustryNews

EndorsingBodiesSAIMechE(SAInstitutionofMechanicalEngineering)AFSA(AluminiumFederationofSA)CorriSANTIP

•

•••

Proprietor and Publisher:PROMECH PUBLISHINGTel: (011) 781-1401Fax: (011) 781-1403E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.promech.co.zaManaging Editor:Susan CustersEditor:Raymond CamplingAdvertising Sales:Di Bluck

DTP: Zinobia Docrat and Sean Bacher

DisclaimerNeither PROMECH Publishing nor its endorsing bodies are responsible for the opinions expressed by individuals.

Printed by:Typo Colour PrintingTel: (011) 402-3468

The monthly circulation is 6 034

CopyrightAll rights reserved. No edi-torial matter published in “Advanced Materials Today” may be reproduced in any form or language without written permission of the publishers. While every effort is made to ensure accurate reproduction the editor, authors, publishers and their employees or agents shall not be responsible or in any way liable for any errors, omissions or inaccuracies in the publication whether arising from negligence or otherwise or for any conse-quences arising therefrom. The inclusion or exclusion of any product does not mean that the publisher or editorial board advocates or rejects its use either generally or in any particular field or fields.

Durma (SA) (PTY) LTDTel: (011) 827-0639Fax: (011) 827-0643

Email: [email protected] Web: www.durma.co.za

67824 Robor Build_cons ad.indd 1 8/23/10 4:26:00 PM


COVER STORY

The equipment offers twice the value when compared to current market offerings. Firstly, it’s designed and built in Europe, arguably by the most exciting manufacturing facility

on the continent. Secondly, the machines are priced well below equivalent machines with similar build quality and components.

The brand is well-known across the globe, but for a while now did not get the exposure and back-up it needed. With the appointment of sheet working specialist, Rijva Quality Machines as the official local distributor, this exciting brand will again be presented to local buyers with the service, back-up and expertise that it so richly deserves.

Coup for SA“Rijva has pulled off a coup with its appointment. The Turkish manufacturer supplies machines of a quality that can easily compare with the best in the

Don’t Move a Muscle

If you are in the market for sheet metal working ma-chines don’t spend a cent until you have seen the latest range of Durma machines from Durmazlar, a

division of Rijva Quality Machines.

world. On the other hand, the modern manufactur-ing operation is able to supply the machines at a fraction of the price of its European counterparts,” says Byron Gueffroy, director of Rijva Quality Ma-chines.

“The South African market traditionally bought qual-ity machines, but with tough economic times and rising prices, some were forced to forsake quality for cheap imports from the East.

“This need no longer applies and whether the buyer still upholds quality above everything else, or is price sensitive he or she need look no further than Durma equipment,” adds Byron.

Always thereDurma’s range of press brakes, guillotines, notch-ing machines, iron workers, punching machines, plasma and laser cutters, section and plate rollers, and band saws are sold on five continents in more than 80 countries around the world. Its history spans five decades in which it has grown and captured significant market share in all the countries where it is represented.

Byron Gueffroy (centre) and Robbert van Rijssen (right) of Rijva Quality Machines with Johnny Barecchia (left)

The machines are priced well below equivalentmachines with similar build quality and components


COVER STORY

Although it has a massive range of standard ma-chines, it has a reputation for de-livering end-to-end solutions for un-usual or oversized operations. Most recently it pro-vided a large scale roll, press, punch and forming solu-tion to a company in Mexico to manu-facture large street

light poles in a single operation. It has also produced some of the world’s biggest and most powerful press breaks, some over impressive spans.

Apart from their role in general manufacturing, the machines are synonymous with precision engineer-ing disciplines elsewhere in the world, such as in the aviation and automotive industries. In South Africa, the brand already has a fair sized footprint in general fabrication and engineering, but Byron expects that mines and power generation facilities will gravitate towards the Durma brand because of the flexible options the machines offer.

Come to the partyNow that Durma is represented in South Africa by Durmazlar, a division of Rijva Quality Machines, the market will be in for a veritable treat. The company has built a reputation for providing quality solutions to sheet and plate working industries.

The company’s product ranges include brand-names like Voortman, Herrblitz, Toolcraft, Almi, P/A In-dustries, Ter Hart, RHTC, Dimeco, Darley, Rolleri, Matrix, Costa and Hypertherm. These brands have taken the company to the forefront of their industry and the company is comfortably the market leader in this section of the market.

“The reason for our success is that we are specialists in the field and despite requests and sometimes temptation to sell machines into markets we don’t know, we prefer to stick to what we know. In the last 15 years this has paid off and we find our-selves comfortable leaders in the sheet, plate and structural steel working sector.

In-depth knowledge“We like to think that we know what we are talking about and when a customer comes to us with a requirement we place their satisfaction at the top

In the Durma range:

• Press brakes

• Guillotines

• Iron workers

• Bandsaws

• Plasma cutters

• Laser cutters

• Section rollers

• Bending and rolling

• CNC punching

• Notching

Durma CNC punch

Durma shears

Durma hydraulic bending machine

When a customer comes to us with arequirement we make sure they get what they need and not simply what we have in stock


Rijva represents a number of top brands

of our agenda and make sure they get what they need and not simply what we have in stock,” says Byron. “In fact, both directors of the company grew up watching their fathers manufacture machines for the sheet metal industry.

Fellow director, Robbert van Rijssen agrees that specialisation in their field enables the company staff to provide a better service to its customers.

“With our reach and trusted status in the market we foresee that the Durma brand will become a prominent player in the South African market. But, beyond that, the addition to our existing products means we are even better able to supply end-to-end solutions to the industry,” Robbert continues.

Move to automateHe adds that there is currently a strong move-ment within the industry to automate processes to ensure that maximum efficiency is attained so local companies can continue to compete in the global market.

At present, the company’s sales are being consider-ably bolstered by companies seeking solutions to automate their processes.

“We have clients that have realised a vast im-

Durma machines are used in general industry with strong representation in the following industries:

• Automotive

• Aviation

• Maritime

• Defence

• Power generation

• Construction

• Textile

• Electronic

provement in output by minimising processes and automating work throughput from coiled steel to pressing, punching or whatever, to the end product. This is certainly a trend we are perfectly positioned to capitalise on,” he adds.

Good going “Since we were awarded the agency for Durma, we have had a positive response from existing owners enquiring about servicing of machines and perhaps, not surprisingly wanting to add to their “fleet” of Durma machines,” says Byron.

He concludes that the brand will go from strength to strength and that packaged solutions are avail-able from Durma in South Africa. “We want to challenge buyers to compare price and quality of our machines before they make their final buying decisions.”

Durma (Pty)Ltd, Byron Gueffroy, Tel: (011) 827 0639, Fax: (011) 827 0643, [email protected], Web: www.durma.co.za

There is currently a strong movement within the industry to automate processes

COVER STORY


CASTINGS, FORGINGS, FURNACES AND REFRACTORIES

P ieter Schutte, the charismatic CEO of In-simbi, laughingly refers to the operation as the Pick ‘n Pay of the industry because “clients can shop for everything they need

under one roof, on one account.” He points out that the primary focus of the company since the buy-out remains the expansion of products and services required by clients in order to provide them with whatever they need whenever they need it, at the right price in the right quantity.

Shopping Industrial StyleIn just six years since management bought out the overseas principals of Metallurg SA to form Insimbi

Refractory and Alloy Supplies, the company has gone from strength to strength to become a one-stop-shop for anything related to the reconstitution of alloy.

The company has a forty year history in South Africa and boasts long-standing relationships with blue-chip mining companies and chemical and synthetic producers locally and abroad. “Our rela-tionship with producers is the primary strength of the company as we are able to provide all the raw materials required for metals manufacture, casting and refractory services. In this regard, we also play a vital and unique role to these companies. Our marketing and distribution expertise allows them to focus on their core activity to produce goods that, we in turn, market, warehouse and distribute on their behalf,” Pieter explains.

Although its primary activity is trading and ware-housing goods for distribution, this slick operation

provides a far greater service than initially meets the eye. It employs highly qualified technical experts at the coal face of its operation in sales. And they are expected to do more than just sell. “An Insimbi sales engineer is just that, an engineer, with hands-on experience in the markets that they service. In this way our clients benefit from their expertise and advise in addition to the goods that they sell to them at a later stage.

“Our product and service offerings are so broad that a single visit from a sales engineer may result in raw materials, components for kilns and furnaces or service and maintenance contracts being offered to a client. Although the customer will deal with different sales engineers for these products, they will sign one contract and get the goods from under one roof.”

Cooking up a stormEver the joker, Pieter compares the industry to a kitchen in an attempt to underpin the vast array of services offered. “Anyone in the business of reconstituting metals needs materials and consumables like a chef needs in-gredients and spices. In this kitchen we can supply the oven’s components and linings, the baker’s gloves and toweling, the raw ingredients and the spices to make the recipe unique.” He goes on to explain that the company has eight divisions, namely foundry, non-ferrous, refractory, specialty, steel, rotary kiln,

Anyone in the business of reconstituting metals needs materials and consumables like a chef needs ingredients and spices

Pieter Schutte (CEO) and Danny O’Conner (Chairman) of Insimbi


CASTINGS, FORGINGS, FURNACES AND REFRACTORIES

textiles and secondary aluminium. Beyond this, the value add chain includes sourcing and supplying foundry equipment and consumables, rotary kiln supplies and maintenance, mechanical servicing of refractory and machines, refractory bricks and non-ferrous supplies such as copper, nickel, alu-minium. Specialist chemicals are also supplied to metals, glass, cement and other refractory related industries.

FoundryThe division supplies heavy, light and automo-tive foundries with a wide range of consumables and hardware. Through-out the duration of the recession the heavy foundry industry has remained a mainstay for the division with good growth as a result of infrastructural spend, while the mining and automo-tive industries have seen some decline due to falling demand for vehicles and commodities. The division holds the agencies for Nimag, Assore, Xstrata, Sasol, Exarro and Amplats. Its most notable customers include Scaw, At-lantis, Halburg Guss and Steloy.

Non-ferrousThe supply of hardware and consum-ables to the aluminium, non-ferrous, wheel, lead and coin industries has been boosted by the company’s acquisi-tion of a secondary aluminium smelter which is able to supply custom grades of aluminium in the form of ingots or pellet to the industry. Nickel, however, remains the single most important commodity that the division supplies to clients that include the South African Mint, Mozal, Hulamin, Borbet and BHP. Agencies in-clude Amplats, Xstrata, Sasol and LSM.

RefractoryInsimbi is probably best known for its refractory supplies and services. Its refractory division is one of the leading suppliers of refractory bricks in the country and its value-adding know-how and design abilities are well utilised within the steel and platinum industries. It has the agencies for Refratech-nik, Rath AG, Laizhou and Ametsa. Customers include Bindura, Cisco,

Zimasco, Zisco, Lonmin and Scaw.

SpecialtyThrough its expertise in shaping and milling products to conform to grades and specification of clients, the company has built up considerable expertise in producing materials that are made to unique requirements. The speciality division mills and

Steel manufacture is a highly specialised process with many different grades available to suit different requirements

Rotary kiln division

Insimbi also undertakes maintenance

�0 Advanced Materials Today Sep/Oct �0�0

produces powdered alloys for use in the manufacture of welding supplies and for final lens polishing and other chemical applications. It holds agencies from Sasol, Assore, LSM and Xstrata and supplies customers including Afrox, Promax and General Optical.

SteelBy far the largest contributor to the company’s overall turnover comes from the steel division. Steel manu-facture is a highly specialised process with many different grades available to suit different require-ments. Ingredients including bulk raw materials, micro alloys and fringe elements are supplied in the form of pig iron, ferro manganese, titanium, molly, nickel, copper, aluminium, as well as cored wire and more. Metallurgists provide an invaluable input into client processes and as a result large volumes are moved to steel producers on a monthly basis. The division has agencies for Injection Alloys, Assore, Exarro, Amplats, Sasol and Xstrata. Major customers include Mittal, Columbus, Cape Gate and Highveld Steel.

Rotary kilnThis division supplies refractory products and me-chanical services to industries using rotary kilns and driers. Kiln maintenance and rehabilitation of old or mothballed plants recently has lead to the separation of the supplies division and maintenance section. It holds agencies from Refratechnik, Phillips Kiln and Ketten Wulf. Customers include Cimpor, PPC, Afrisam, Lafarge and Sappi.

TextilesIn 2008 staff were afforded the opportunity to buy into and own 51% of the textiles division and form a subsidiary company under the banner of Insimbi Thermal Insulation. The remainder of the shares are held within the group and the subsidiary supplies and fabricates heat-resistant textiles to all industries where heat or steam is part of the process. Major customers include Eskom, BHP, KCM, Konkola and Xstrata.

Year aheadInsimbi’s outlook for the year is positive. The company will look for value in the market and is looking to acquire companies and assets that can add value to the operation and its customers. Pieter sums up the company’s prospects for the year, “The past year’s recession was not the first one that the company has had to endure and through previous lessons learned, we can actively go into the market with products and solutions that will benefit our clients and increase outputs as well as consumption. This year we will focus on growing our customers to grow our market share.”

Insimbi, Pieter Schutte, Tel: (011) 902 6930, Fax: (011) 902 5749, Email: [email protected]

The company will look for value in the market and is looking to acquire companies and assets

CASTING

Advanced Materials Today Sep/Oct ��

A trend that has emerged among South African machine shops is that machine purchases aren’t always made according to the work they will perform, but rather

what machine is in stock at the supplier. Some-times little, if any, forward planning is done and the machines are bought solely to service the orders at hand rather than for future expansion.

This goes hand-in-hand with the findings of the benchmarking study undertaken by the National Tooling Initiative Programme (NTIP) (of the Tool-making Association of South Africa) that found lo-cal manufacturer’s approach to be too narrow and centred on too few clients. One of the symptoms therefore, is that shops get into a comfort zone and make do with the first usable machine, rather than the right machine for the job.

Right for the job“Advanced Materials Today” raised the matter on a recent site visit with Alroy Savides of PBS Machine Tools and asked about his experiences. Although Alroy says many companies carefully specify ma-chines, a fair percentage of buyers do shop for whatever is in stock.

“We see it all the time, where a call comes through and we get asked a few basic questions like bed size of a machining centre. Then the buyer wants to know the speed of the spindle and whether we have any in stock.

“We often speak to buyers who are ill informed and want to buy machines that we know will not be suitable for the purposes they intend to use them for. This is particularly true in the TDM industry where you often need machine tools that are capable of holding precise lines, boasting high-speed and powerful spindles for working with tool steel.

“All too often we hear later that the person bought a machine that was not capable of efficiently making the items required and all too often they lose a lot of money. Finding a machine that is effective and efficient should be the first priority,” he says.

Hurry-up and wait…He continues that any lathe or milling machine can remove steel. What really counts is how efficiently

Getting Machining RightMaterials used in the making of tools, dies and moulds dictate the type of metal removal machines that can be used to manufacture cost effectively. The difference between using fit-for-purpose machines and run-of-

the-mill machines not only shows on your bank balance, but can also mean the difference between making a profit or a loss.

Tongtai vertical machining centre

MACHINING

A fair percentage of buyers do shop for whatever is in stock

�� Advanced Materials Today Sep/Oct �0�0


and accurately it can do this. Some people don’t realise that some machines are designed to “rough” and others to “rough and finish” specifications. Still other machines are built for precision engineering while others are built for general engineering.

“If you are looking for precision to within tenths or hundredths of a micron don’t expect any old machine to deliver the goods. In real terms, the difference between making moulds for quality high-speed injection moulding processes, for example, and low volume blow moulds for small-scale packag-ing is vast.

“You’ll need a specialised machine with a strong, high-speed spindle and ability to keep close toler-ances for the first job, and will need a lesser machine for the latter. Likewise, a cheap machining centre may suffice for the blow moulding job, but it will never be efficient nor effective at making quality moulds from hardened tool steel.

“Again, conversely, a precision machine will be able to make rough moulds, but then the cost of operating the machine will probably not be effective. It is a case of buying the right tool for the right job while bearing future requirements in mind,” says Alroy.

Establish the requirementEver practical, Alroy goes on to suggest that buyers ask some hard questions of the sales people they are dealing with before buying a machine tool. But, before setting out to meet them face to face he has the following advice:

Study your current operation, try to accurately assess it, and envisaged future requirements. Look at current work and possible future contracts.

•

Tongtai mold and die machine

MACHINING

It is rare that a single supplier will always have the right tool for the right job for every application


Research and specify requirements such as power, precision, skills available to operate specialised machines vs more basic machines and metal removal or cutting rate.

When specifying. bear in mind the types of materials that will be machined and research best practices for the materials involved.

Questions to askHere are some questions to ask your machine tool supplier:

What is the overall speed of operation of the machine including tooling changes, turret speed, predictive machining ability? High-speed ma-chining means more than just the cutting rate, it requires overall high-speed operation to be truly quick.

How fast is the controller and how much control or accuracy is enough for the job?

How powerful is the machine and how does the torque transfer to the workpiece to deliver

•

•

•

•

•

Tongtai vertical 5-axis machining centre

MACHINING

efficient cutting or removal of material?

What is the availability of spares, service and after sales back-up?

Single vs multiple supplierA difficult question to ask any machine tool supplier is whether a single supplier scenario is preferable to having multiple suppliers. Alroy is of the opinion that it is rare that a single supplier will always have the right tool for the right job for every application.

“There comes a time when you just cannot supply the right machine for a specific job whether the client’s requirements are just too simple, or just too specialised. In cases like that we normally advise our clients and in some cases will procure the machine for them, but to say one brand suits all is a stretch,” says Alroy in conclusion.

PBS Machine Tools, Alroy Savides, Tel: (011) 914 3360, Fax: (011) 914 3366, Email: [email protected], Web: www.pbsmt.co.za

•


Produced by:

PROMECH PUBLISHING,P O Box 373, Pinegowrie, 2123Republic of South AfricaTel: (011) 781-1401Fax: (011) 781-1403Email: [email protected]: www.promech.co.za

Managing Editor Susan Custers

Editor: Raymond Campling

Advertising Di Bluck

Circulation Catherine Macdiva

DTP Zinobia Docrat/Sean Bacher

DisclaimerPROMECH Publishing does not take responsibility for the opinions expressed by individuals.

Printed by: Typo Colour PrintingTel: (011) 402-3468/9

CopyrightAll rights reserved. No editorial matter published in “TDM To-day (Tool, Die & Mould Making)” may be reproduced in any form or language without written permission of the publishers. While every effort is made to ensure accurate reproduction, the editor, authors, publishers and their employees or agents shall not be responsible or in any way liable for any errors, omissions or inaccuracies in the publication, whether arising from negligence or otherwise or for any consequences aris-ing therefrom. The inclusion or exclusion of any product does not mean that the publisher or editorial board advocates or rejects its use either gener-ally or in any particular field or fields.

The TDM industry will use the Afrimold platform over the next five years to streghthen the capacity of the local industry. The Toolmaking Associa-

tion of SA (TASA) and the National Tooling Initiative Programme (NTI) hosted several of its member companies and exposed the sector to the extensive skills development programme being piloted at seven institu-tions across six provinces.

The 175 students currently on the programme had the chance to interact with the industry and see some of the exciting technologies and career opportunities offered within the sector. The industry, on the other hand, was pleasantly surprised by the quality and positive attitude of the TDM Powered Programme students, resulting in a growing interest from companies to participate in the programme.

All 175 students have been placed within the industry for their “on-the-job” training phase of three months as part of the comple-tion of their pre-apprenticeship orientation programme.

Localisation projectThe big news from the NTI, however, is the launching of the Tooling Localisation Project in August 2010, which will aim to:

Localise tooling developments for products designed and developed through South African innovation, and attract specialised technol-ogy tooling companies from the international arena to set up businesses or joint ventures in South Africa, to specifically support the new Automotive Investment Scheme (AIS). The focus will be on speciality tooling which is currently not manufactured in South Africa and where the technology quality standards and the international OEM and toolmaker relationships will prevent local tooling companies from competing.

The strategy is that these high technology com-panies entering the South African environment will stimulate the upstream and downstream

supply chain and will fa-cilitate tech-nology and skills trans-fer.

Appren-ticeships The next phase, NTI’s “TDM Pow-ered” new competency based ap-prenticeship programme, to be launched in January 2011, will start with an intake of 490 students countrywide at the partner institutions, that will complete the first phase of their apprenticeship training. This programme is set to firmly re-establish the apprenticeship system to populate the skills value chain for the TDM sector, in the production of artisans, technicians, engineers and specialist skills required by the TDM sector.

The recent establishment of the Mpuma-langa Tooling Initiative structure will form the basis for the NTI to establish a TDM cluster in Mpumalanga in partnership with provincial governments and industry stakeholders. This new structure will be formally launched in October where the intervention projects of the NTI in Mpuma-langa will be showcased.

National Tooling Initiative, Dirk van Dyk, Tel: (012) 643 9360, Email: [email protected], Web: www.ntipweb.co.za

CEO’S CommentsThe recent Afrimold exhibition created a firm platform from which the local

TDM sector can showcase its capabilities.

The strategy is that these high technology companies entering the South African environment will stimulate the upstream and downstream supply chain

Dirk van Dyk


TDM COMPANY PROFILE

Auto Industry Innovators

Motorcars are complex pieces of machinery with thousands of individual

parts and components fit-ted to the main structure and engine. Manufactur-ing and supplying parts

for this industry is poten-tially lucrative, but only if

done right.

The operation needs to be geared towards upholding quality levels at all times and producing items to the exact specifications of the international motor manufacturing

giants. Moreover, it is about customer relationships and the ability to satisfy their requirements and assist in adding value to their operations.

Ramsay Engineering is such a company that has diversified its product offerings. Commercial direc-tor, Mark Gutridge, tells “Advanced Materials Today” that the compa-ny is a privately owned, volume manufacturer of metal, plastic and leatherette auto-motive compo-nents. In addition, the company is a supplier of tooling and dies.

“Our core com-petence is metal stamping which contributes to 60 percent of our sales revenue. The other divisions include plastics, trim, component assem-blies, accessories, logistics, quality management, tool and die, product development, total industrial engineering and training,” he adds.

“This variety of manufacturing processes allows us to supply a broad range of automotive components. Customers benefit from our diverse capability as it allows them to deal with one supplier for a part

Main customersToyota SA Motors

BMW (South Africa)

Ford Motor Companyof South Africa

Volkswagen of South Africa

Land Rover

General Motors SA

Nissan South Africa

Feltex Automotive

Smiths Manufacturing

Visteon South Africa

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

A rapid prototype

The finished product

Fabrication tools and jigs


TDM COMPANY PROFILE

comprising different materials and related pro-cesses,” says Mark.

Relationships are keyCustomer relationships have been developed over more than forty years and Ramsay Engineering is entrenched as a longstanding, reliable and respon-sive organisation. Supplier relationships are equally important to the company.

The company readily accepts challenges and ac-tively applies innovation and expertise to solving customer problems. A dynamic approach together with strong ethics enables the company to live to the motto of, “Our customers come first.”

Start to finish service“We are able to supply a comprehensive package, from the design through to the delivery of the final product.

“We are committed to the use of cutting-edge tech-nology and have recently installed new systems in the metal pressing and tool and die manufacturing facilities. Ongoing investment in technology and equipment enables us to improve the output of our products and services,” says Mark.

He continues by saying that all activities are con-ducted in strict accordance with the international requirements of ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO/TS 16949. The principles of total quality management are applied throughout the company, with all qual-ity problems being analysed to determine the root causes and resolved using PDCA cycles.

Tool and die“We design, manufacture and maintain all of our metal forming and fabrication tools, jigs, injection moulds and special purpose machinery. This broad capability guarantees the continuity of supply to our

Tool roomThe 1 200 m² tool room includes three designers, 13 tool and die makers, nine apprentices, 28 machine operators and three CMM operators.

Machines include:

10 CNC milling machines

3 CNC wire eroders

2 CNC spark eroders

5 surface grinders

9 universal milling machines

6 Lathes

SoftwareCimmatronCatia V5 (release 17)Solid Works (2010 S/P4)

Main processesMetal stamping and forming

Plastic injection moulding

Automotive trim

Component assemblies

Automotive accessories

Tool and die

Product development

•

•

•

•

•

•

•••

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

customers and also facilitates continuous improvements while preserving the value of our assets.

“Our second principle design engineers take our customers’ drawings and use comprehensive project manage-ment systems to ensure all products are made within agreed time frames and to specification,” Mark adds.

The company has the ability to undertake first principle design work using a team of engineers who work on the latest software packages to create products that meet customers’ ever more demand-ing requirements.

Analysis is keyFinite element analysis is undertaken in the company’s own in-house climatically controlled

The company readily accepts challenges and activelyapplies innovation and expertise to solving customer problems


testing facility. Off-line commis-sioning of equip-ment is done prior to on-line use to ensure that there is a seamless tran-sition between engineering and production.

A lot of empha-sis is placed on maintaining skills within the company and

training for the future. As a result, the company is a Merseta workplace training provider and runs a number of training initiatives including: Learnership apprenticeships, graduate development, environ-mental training, health and safety training. Train the trainer programs, SSACI programs and school career guidance is also offered.

KEW

TDM COMPANY PROFILE

Ramsay Engineering is able to add value to its customers through its technical aid agreements and joint ventures it has established with global companies in various parts of the world. Thule (Netherlands), PWO (Germany), AISIN (Japan), BATZ (Spain) and BEW (Spain) are just a few examples. These partnerships ensure mutual interchange of technical expertise and knowhow, thus ensuring global standards and world-class lead times coupled with cost efficiencies.

Ramsay Engineering, Mark Gutridge, Tel: (033) 387 1575, Fax: (033) 387 4535, Email: [email protected] 67542 KEW Foundry Ad.fh11 5/3/10 9:17 AM Page 1

Composite

C M Y CM MY CY CMY K

The company has the ability to undertake first principle design work using a team of engineers who work on the latest software

The workshop is fully kitted-out


TDM TRAINING

Under the auspices of the National Tooling Initiative Programme (NTIP) 18 students are undergoing pre-apprentice training in order to be ready to start the NTIP’s full

apprenticeship programme next year. At the end of the apprenticeship programme the students will qualify as fully fledged toolmakers.

“Advanced Materials Today” visited the workshop and found that the South West Gauteng College is one of several colleges across the country that has adopted the NTIP’s curriculae, based on a model adapted from the United States known as the National Institution for Metalworking Skills (NIMS).

Better trainingThe full course will equip the students with the technical and theoretical expertise to become fully functional toolmakers when they qualify with no further training needed. This is set to improve on the current learnerships being offered at national level and that the industry has found to be insuf-ficient in meeting its demands.

Training Up a StormA fresh batch of toolmakers is being prepared at the South

West Gauteng College in Soweto and trainers are ensuring that the curriculae has all the right ingredients for the South

African market.

“The NTIP adopted this model following the collective assertion of the Toolmakers Association of South Africa (TASA) that the current learnerships being offered by colleges do not work,” says Roger Skidow, lecturer and project manager at the NTIP.

He says the new apprenticeship curriculae will be adopted at colleges and training institutions affiliated with the NTIP from next year, but that pre-apprenticeship is geared at improving mainly township learners’ English and Mathematical skills. In this way, they will be able to fully participate in the apprenticeship programme without the disad-vantage of language barriers or the shortcomings of education in less privileged areas.

Soweto style The Soweto college is equipped with all the con-ventional machines required for the pre-apprentice programme and first year of the actual apprenticeship, after which advanced machines such as wire and spark eroders, CNC machines and surface grinders will be procured for further training.

“The South West Gauteng College is eager to work with the NTIP and has committed to forming a long-standing relationship with the NTIP. The environment at the college is conductive to the students’ learning requirements and offers all the amenities needed by them to be productive,” adds Roger.

“It also offers space to grow and enables us to think big in terms of future pupil intake. The programme is in its infancy now, but will no-doubt grow in time and it is good to be partnered with a college that offers us this space,” concludes Carlos Barbosa, NTIP project manager.

National Tooling Initiative Programme, Carlos Barbosa, Tel: (012) 643 9360, Fax: (012) 663 9418, Email: [email protected]

Roger Skidow

Hands-on training at the NTIP's pre-apprenticeship programme

The full course will equip the students with the techni-cal and theoretical expertise to become fully functional toolmakers


The MDP was started to implement initiatives and programmes that can respond directly to the recent finding of the Institute for Advancing Tooling (IAT). According to these

findings, the South African tooling sector is under severe pressure from countries such as China and India, which tend to outperform local suppliers substantially, both in terms of levels of on-time delivery and overall competitiveness.

Grant Stevenson, WCTI CEO, explains that the primary aim of the MDP is to improve the com-petitiveness of SME clusters in the tooling sector, thereby empowering them to increase their market share. The programme came about as a response to a benchmarking study that found that South African tool rooms are generally technically on a par with their global counterparts, but lack management skills and customer relationship management (CRM) systems. The programme also offers specific training to equip SME owners with the needed business management skills.

Plug the gapsGrant notes that as part of the programme, the WCTI will develop a supplier action plan in which eight selected tool making compa-nies will receive support over a period of five months to identify weaknesses and develop systems to plug the gaps.

These interventions seek to improve managerial and business systems capacity at a company level. The overall aim is to establish an in-dustry that is based on world-class delivery,

Help for SMEsThe Western Cape Tooling Initiative (WCTI), in partnership with Swisscontact, a non-profit organisation

founded by the Swiss business and the Swiss government with the goal of stimulating growth in the private sector in selected developing countries, has developed and implemented a Market Development Programme

(MDP) for the Western Cape Tool, Die and Mould (TDM) sector.

competency and reliability, leading to an increase in the volume of business for local tool makers who will, through the programme, be able to meet demanding customer expectations.

Additional programmeIn addition to the MDP, Swisscontact has linked the WCTI with another USAID funded SME develop-ment programme, the South Africa International Business Linkage (SAIBL) organisation. This part-nership will combine WCTI and SAIBL resources, which will ensure each SME in the Western Cape goes through a holistic development programme for a period of three years. The WCTI will also make use of the services provided by the Small Enterprise Development Agency (SEDA) to imple-ment business improvement projects in the sector where appropriate.

Grant Stevenson, Western Cape Tooling Initiative, Tel: (021) 592 3695, Email: [email protected]

TDM NEWS

The primary aim of the MDP is to improve thecompetitiveness of SME clusters in the tooling sector


A lready the Tool-making Associa-tion of South Af-rica (TASA) and

operational organisations under its guidance including the National Tooling Initia-tive Programme (NTIP) and Intsimbi have thrown their full support behind future events. Furthermore, or-ganisers have reported that many of the exhibitors are already booking their space at next year’s event.

The show is relevant to the entire industry from ma-chine tool and consumable suppliers to toolmakers.

Afrimold Here to StaySuppliers to the tool, die and mould making industry are bristling with excitement at the prospect of the event

becoming an annual feature on the events calendar.

AFRIMOLD EXHIBITION

Good startThis year’s show was held in Sandton and achieved an impressive debut. The 77 exhibitors were vis-ible to more than 2 100 visitors and 80% of the foreign exhibitors have already re-booked for the 2011 show, taking up treble the space they oc-cupied this year.

Officially opening the show, Gauteng Economic Development MEC Firoz Cachalia said a positive outcome of the global financial crisis was that Government is recognising that future economic developments will be dependent upon the manu-facturing industry. Afrimold was therefore timely, serving to highlight the role of the tooling industry as the most critical component behind manufactur-ing industry development.

The 77 exhibitors were visible to more than 2 100 visitors


Exhibition director Ron MacLarty com-mented that the spirit of the show and the overwhelmingly positive feedback from visitors and exhibitors alike took the tooling industry by surprise.

Long overdue“Personally, I am over the moon. It has been a triumph for all who were involved and it has given the industry both direc-tion and confidence for the future. This exhibition should have been held years ago, such has been the impact. Not only has it demonstrated the excellence of the local tooling industry, but it has created an environment of forward thinking and progression that was lacking before.”

Ron adds that an Afrimold exhibitor involved in industrial, mechanical and electrical design, who had never before ventured into the public arena in this way, ended the exhibition with more than 20 new business leads.

“We also had 100 university students and apprentices in training come through to the show and they were able to see that there is a world out there in which they can be assured of good jobs, not just in South Africa, but anywhere in the world.”

Shifting perceptionsDr Eberhard Döring, CEO of Demat Fairs and Exhibitions, the founding organisa-tion of the Mold exhibition concept, said Afrimold had confirmed that there is a good future for the general industry in South Africa.

“The World Cup lead to a paradigm shift in the international perception of South Africa, and Afrimold got off to a wonderful start. I am amazed that it was able to attract so many quality visitors in the limited time available to prepare the show.

“The tool-making and design industry is critical for South Africa and with this show we now have the full backing of the DTI (Department of Trade & Industry) and the support of the industry itself. It has been a great success.”

Tasa inputThe representative organisation for the South African tool, die and mould

AFRIMOLD EXHIBITION

The products of entrepid toolmakers

Not only has it demonstrated the excellence of the local tooling industry, but it has created an environment of forward thinking


AFRIMOLD EXHIBITION

industry, Tasa, was strongly visible at the show. Tasa Gauteng secretary, Henk Snyman says, “This exhibition is long overdue and Tasa supports it 100%. Our aim is to co-host Afrimold in the fu-ture and our involvement will be to assist with the organisation and management of the conferencing side of the event.”

Tasa’s objective is to reverse the 80% of tooling

that is presently imported into South Africa by increasing local tooling skills and providing plat-forms for sustainable, well-paid job creation. Each qualified toolmaker can create or at least preserve 15 downstream jobs and up to 25 jobs if the total supply chain is included.

Afrimold, Ron MacLarty, Tel: 072 353 6699, Email: [email protected], Web: www.afrimold.com

Toolmaking Association of South Africa Zimmerman Grinding

Retecon Bohle Uddëholm

TDM Powered

UV Tooling


hCORROSION

Corrosion costs the country the equivalent of the contribution of the entire mining sector every year. By stopping or slowing

corrosion, the situation can be turned around and profits and productivity can be increased.

Nowhere is the importance of corro-sion protection more visible than at the state owned utilities such as water and electricity supply. Corrosion had its hand in decaying infrastructure and poor maintenance thereof has contributed significantly to the power shortages and looming water crisis that everyday South Africans are living with.

Just like our utilities, industry does not fare much better when it comes to deal-

ing with corrosion. Lost time and productivity are incalculable when it comes to failures or production losses as a result of corrosion.

Corrosion controlVanessa Sealy-Fisher, vice president of the Corrosion Institute of South Africa (CorrISA), tells “Advanced Materials Today” that the prevention of corrosion should be prioritised throughout every operation and should be viewed as part of the general main-tenance budget.

Fortunately CorrISA has its finger on the problem

Stop Corrosion of ProfitsCorrosion costs the country the equivalent of the contribution of the entire mining sector every year. By stopping or slowing corrosion the situation can be turned around and profits and

productivity can be increased.

and continues to expand its range of training courses geared at educating business and industry on the importance of corrosion control. In addition to existing courses, it will shortly introduce a special course aimed at non-technical stake-holders within operations.

Not just rust“It is important that we educate our business owners and accountants as to the importance of corrosion and the benefits of extending the lifespan of capital equipment, plant, machinery and buildings,” says Vanessa.

The new course, Not Just Rust, is designed to assist in the identification of different types of corrosion and protection through materials selection, coatings and cathodic protection. It supplements courses geared toward technical staff within organisations and corrosion protection specialists. These courses include:

Field Joint Coatings

Fundamentals of Corrosion Control for Water Utilities

Cathodic Protection Basics

Understanding Corrosion

Corrosion Engineering

Corrosion Protection of Steel

General Paint Supervisors

General Heavy Duty Coatings Applicator

Corrosion School

Additionally, professionals can sit at the two main NACE programmes offered by CorrISA namely:

Cathodic Protection Programme (CP) and

Coatings Inspection Programme (CIP)

CorrISA, Beverley van Niekerk, Tel: 0860CORRSA (267772) or (011) 802 5145, Email: [email protected]

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

Corrosion costs the country the equivalent of thecontribution of the entire mining sector every year

Corrosion prevention is better than cure


h How Safe is a Safe?For as long as we have kept valuables in safes, so too have enterprising criminals specialised in the art of

cracking them to get their hands on the loot.

Following the most recent spate of safe crack-ing cases in upmarket hotels throughout Cape Town, we thought it a good idea to look at just how easy, or difficult it is to

get into a good high-security safe. Using modern techniques and machines we asked ourselves, “How hard can it be?”

In true metal worker fashion we decided to forego the fine art of deciphering fancy locking mecha-nisms and decided instead on battering, cutting, burning, but stopping short of bombing our way through a high level safe’s defences.

Heavy artillerySo, bring on the heavy artillery. We assembled the tools most likely to gain quick entry to a safe. We also placed a time limit of 30 minutes

FABRICATION

on opening the safe because we figured that criminals would have police swarming all over them if they took any longer.

The tools we assembled included a demolition drill, cutting torch, thermal lance and an all steel grinding disc partnered with a powerful industrial grinder. These tools were chosen from a cross section of suppliers in the vicinity, who felt their choice of tool would do the job, but would not go on record as they didn’t want to get into trouble.

They also didn’t want their brand associated with criminal activity. With that out the way we set off and got our hands on a safe from one of the most trusted safe manufacturers.

Solid feelLike the customary tyre-kick when buying a sec-ond-hand car it is customary to knock the walls and door to test the solidity of the safe. This one gives almost no sound feedback and is as solid

They also didn’t want their brand associated with criminal activity


as a battleship’s hull in dry dock.

It is rated to withstand tampering, fire and explosive forces and has an outer shell of hardened steel. Inside, the walls have layers of other materials that repel different forces and this is top secret stuff that the technical experts at the company are not too keen to elaborate on.

Safe to say that the materials are equal to current technology and are updated in the face of newer more effective technologies as and when they become available.

Demolition drillUsed in the construction industry to smash through concrete and construction materials, this tool seems a likely candidate to smash anything when you see it in operation. It drills and hammers in the same motion and makes light work of any materials. But, not a hardened steel safe.

The drill chugged and churned away, hammering and despite a lot of noise and vibration it was clear that the hard-plate steel was too much. The safe’s solid construction didn’t budge, even at the door and hinges.

Even turning the heavy piece of equipment around holding it on the chuck and using it as a sledge hammer didn’t work. As pieces of plastic, buttons and steel flew around us, the drill was wrecked and the safe unmarked. Afterwards we learned that some safes also have the added strength of composites that can include tungsten and other materials that are designed to break drill tips.

Enter the dragonFire breathing equipment was next on the list. In James Bond films the villain or hero is able to cut his way into safes or out of tight spots in the blink of an eye. Safe in the knowledge that cut-ting torches, such as an oxy acetylene or plasma can cut through hard steel, we figured, depending on the thickness we’d be through and inside with time to spare.

As the flame spluttered and fired to life, the metal

FABRICATION

Even turning the heavy piece ofequipment around holding it on the chuck and using it as a sledge hammer didn’t work

Cutting flame

Thermal lance


almost instantaneously turned bight red and then yellow, a good sign.

A couple of minutes later we were making steady progress, carving into the hard steel plate of the side of the safe. Just then a series of pops and bangs and some smouldering alerted us to the fact that something was wrong. A cement or ceramic barrier didn’t take kindly to our ingress. Moisture seeped from inside the safe, meaning that continuing would risk an explosive reaction. In any case, we weren’t making much progress beyond that layer.

It seems that many safe manufacturers make use of strong concrete mixes that are poured between

FABRICATION

different layers of the safe walls. In addition, some make use of refractory materials such as ceramics and even ceramic fibres compressed in water to both insulate the contents in the event of a fire and repel cutting flames.

Cutting discWith the surface steel already pocked and damaged, we unsheathed our most impressive machine yet. A heavy industrial grinder with a diamond tipped “all steel” cutting disc that could cut through anything.

The grinder’s powerful motor growled to life and as it got up to speed, it looked like nothing could stop it. Sparks flew as it inched into the metal where it was previously damaged by the cutting torch. A while later, it began tearing into the filler material, but at a tediously slow rate.

Some of the safe’s metal started caking and in its semi-molten form began gumming up the works. Other layers that included tempered glass and different composites took the edge off the disc, slowing us down even further. As the 30 minute time limit ticked by we managed to create a tiny opening and although we technically cracked the safe, the opening was barely big enough to give access to a drinking straw.

Although we technically cracked the safe, the opening was barely big enough to give access to a drinking straw


The slow progress was due to the hard nature of all the materials used and blunting composite materials that are specially included to stop a grinder’s progress. Manufactur-ers also often use soft metal fillers to effectively coat the disc and cause it to chatter and cut less effectively.

The Jedi’s swordIn recent years, a tool was developed for cutting mixed materials in emergency situations such as building col-lapses. The thermal lance can cut through different metals with ease and even cuts concrete. Its white hot tip and sword-like appearance earned it the nickname “Jedi’s sword” and it can surely cut through a safe with comparative ease.

Our safe gave some resistance and with the combined power of the thermal lance and all the other tools at our disposal we gained entry to the safe in just under the al-lotted time. After letting the hot metal cool off and after discarding all the safety gear that had to be worn to protect us against noxious fumes, molten metal and other nasties, we got our first glimpse of the contents.

But, alas, nothing. Nothing but molten metal where there were coins, powdery ash instead of notes and crystals in place of the compact discs containing information on the JFK assassination.

So what now?The moral of the story is that a safe only buys you time. With enough effort, any one of the tools may have found a way in given persistence and enough time. New technologies like thermal lances can gain entry into all but the highest security safes, but the size of the device, gas bottles and risk of fumes or explosion in enclosed areas would make it unsuitable for the vast majority of safe cracking jobs.

Add to this the fact that some safes lock down when they detect mechanical or heat intrusion and that many carry spoiling devices or liquids that mark or ruin the contents, and it is clear that this is no easy job.

As a safe expert points out, the safe is but one barrier. When something is very valuable, it is usually protected by electronic safety systems and any number of other counter measures to deter would be cat-burglars. Even if they were to get to the safe, it is usually so heavy that it is almost impossible for criminals to move and if they decide to crack it on site they would need a long time.

Recent cat burglariesAs for the burglars in Cape Town, it is interesting to note that they chose to decipher the fancy electronic locking systems on the hotel room safes rather than use any other method. Perhaps that’s because they didn’t have a kitbag big enough to hold the kind of equipment it takes to open even a relatively simple safe?

Certain safes are made to withstand:• Fire

• Water and chemicals

• Tampering and mechanical tools

• Cutting tools and drills

• Percussion and pressure

• Thermal devices and cutting flames

• Explosions

FABRICATION


New on-site service and support contractIn a contract valued at an estimated R3 billion, Tectra Au-tomation, in agreement with Bosch Rexroth Electric Drives and Controls, is to provide the Ford Struandale facility in Port Elizabeth with on-site service support for the duration of the Puma Engine Machining project.

The Puma project will entail the export of new four- and five-cylinder engines to both Europe and the United States. This new generation, turbocharged, common-rail diesel engine utilises Ford’s newest power train technologies and complies with the latest EU5 emissions standards; bring-ing matching benefits in environmental compatibility, fuel efficiency and performance.

Tectra Automation’s relationship with Ford will involve on-site assistance during the installation and commissioning of approximately 100 advanced new machines by various machine builders from abroad. The project will produce an estimated 220 000 machined components per year, of which about 75 000 will be used in local vehicle production. The first production engine is scheduled to come offline in August 2011. The project will create many jobs in the region that previously starved due to the current economic climate.

The on-site support will consist of a close working relation-ship with all machine builders and Ford personnel by the project co-ordinator, Jason Saunders, and newly appointed

During the installation and commissioning of approximately 100 advanced new machines from abroad at the Ford Struandale facility in Port Elizabeth, Tectra Automation will provide on-site support to all machine builders.

on-site engineer, Adriaan Botes. The Puma engine will be utilised in many vehicle models across the range, including the Ford Transit, Mondeo, Ranger, Jaguar X type, Land Rover Defender, Freelander and Mazda BT50.

Tectra Automation will train Ford personnel, ranging from machine operators to maintenance artisans, to gain a better understanding of Bosch Rexroth Electric Drives and Control products.

Tectra Automation, Kevin Lombard, Tel: (011) 971 9400, Fax: (011) 971 9440, Email: [email protected]

Precision water jet cutting Precision machine building company MDC Max Daetwyler AG and specialist water jet company Waterjet AG, in collaboration with NUM, have developed an innovative CNC-based water jet cutting machine capable of cutting materials to within

Industry News


The new Womajet/microWaterjet machine

±1 micron – which is 20 times more accurate than competitive machines.

The new WOMAJET/microWATERJET machine is also extremely efficient – it consumes considerably less water and abrasives than traditional systems and looks set to open up entirely new ap-plication areas for this form of materials processing technology.

Many of the new product fabrication materials introduced over the past few years react negatively to the effects of heat during machining. However, using a jet of water to perform the cutting opera-tion ensures that the material structure remains unchanged; furthermore, the technique can be used on virtually any type of material even foodstuffs, provid-ing they are not water soluble. In the light of this, MDC Max Daetwyler, Wa-terjet and NUM chose to combine their expertise to jointly develop a water jet cutting machine specifically for precision materials processing.

The new WOMAJET/microWATERJET machine provides a stable, precise and repeatable manufacturing process capable of creating complex contours – it can handle land widths as narrow as 20 microns (0.02 mm). The machine uses a very high precision water jet, with a diameter of less than 300 microns, and can cut materials at a rate of up to 4000 mm per minute. All three of the machine’s axes are driven by NUMDrive C servos; these have a very high power density, which helps minimise the size of the control cabinet. Overall control of the machine is handled by a NUM Flexium CNC system, equipped with a NUM FS152i HMI for operator input commands.

NUM, Email: [email protected], Web: www.num.com

No limits laser cuttingPrima Industrie, through South African agent First Cut, has introduced its Maximo large cutting system, a large machine based on Prima’s Platino – an effective 2D laser machine.

A large 2D laser machine, the Maximo has been introduced to the local market by First Cut

Industry News


As a distributor of leading international capital equipment, First Cut is offering local industry the Maximo system – a machine that is accurate and speedy for large work areas, boosting productivity with less downtime,” says Andrew Poole, director of First Cut.

Essentially, the Maximo is a complete Platino machine, with its mechanical structure, laser generator, CNC, moving carriages, optical chain and focusing head. “The machine also travels on rails over a fixed working table, processing sheets of any lengths with the only limitation, that of the space available in the workshop,” adds Andrew.

In technical terms, the Maximo features a further Y2-axis, allowing the machine to move beyond the Y1-axis stroke. This means that more is offered to the sheet metal process, resulting in numerous economic advantages.

“In addition, Maximo can be equipped with one or more piece supporting tables, with the length determined by our customer’s demand, and the relevant devices for fumes extraction and scraps collection,” notes Steve van Wyk, director at First Cut.

Features of the machine include an adjustable focal position, allowing a variety of materials and thicknesses to be cut without manual interventions, and keeping the process ac-curate in the entire work area; a rapid lens changing system; an offline 2D CAD/CAM and the nesting software package for quick, easy and cost-effective programming.

The machine is also equipped with a fast-piercing unit for thicker, ferrous materials; a laser piercing monitor and the plasma monitoring and automatic restart.

First Cut, Andrew Poole, Tel: (011) 614 1112, Email: [email protected]

Electric bendingUnison launched a new range of all-electric tube bending machines in-corporating a real-time Ethernet control system architecture, and a new release of programming and control software.

The machines take the advanced shape forming capability and flexibility of servomo-tor-controlled bending to a new level. The new UK-built Breeze machines bend faster The Breeze machines bend faster and boast multi-axis synchronisation capabilities

and use advanced multi-axis synchronisation capabilities to support very sophisticated roll-forming technology to improve the tool adjustments that can be employed during the bending cycle.

This enables ultra-precise part shapes, and offers a visual collision checking programming feature as standard. The Uni-son machines also feature an open architecture that is easily adapted to integrate application-specific capabilities.

An all-electric architecture provides tube benders with significant performance benefits in terms of set-up speed, repeatability, lower energy consumption and noise reduction compared with traditional hydraulically powered machinery.

At the heart of Unison’s new Breeze machine range is a real-time machine and motion system based on the deterministic Ethernet-compatible Powerlink protocol. A 100 Mbits/second network links all of the servomotor drives required to control bending operations. The speed of the network makes it pos-sible to coordinate the movement of the various servomotor axes used during bending - such as the carriage, plane of bend, and clamp roller - more rapidly, allowing Unison to improve the speed of bending for many common tasks by typically around 10%.

Unison Limited, Web: www.unisonltd.com

Industry News


Industry News

Welding and grinding safetyMany companies have discovered, too late and to their detri-ment, that the Department of Labour is practising zero toler-ance with companies that do not comply with the health and safety regulations stipulated in the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Act, particularly with regard to environments hazardous to worker health.

“Welding and grinding are among the most notorious culprits for causing nasty accidents, not only in the imme-diate environment, but in the broader workplace, by spreading noxious fumes and endangering the eyesight of those in the immediate vicinity,” Wim Dess-ing, managing director of Apex Strip Curtains, says.

However, there is a certain resistance to providing solid wall barriers to counter UV radiation and weld splatter because of the cost and practicality, particularly in confined spaces. “Some manufacturers resort to makeshift protective structures, erecting wooden or metallic partitions or even hanging opaque canvas sheeting from the ceiling and crossbeams,” Wim continues. “None of these measures complies with the OHS Act and all fall far short of total worker protection and safety.”

The answer lies in installing welding and safety screens which not only protect from weld splatter and fumes, but also from harmful UV radiation.

Manufactured from a specially formulated PVC material which extensive SABS tests have proved to be superior to conventional materials, Apex Welding and Safety Screens

Welding stalwart recognised at SAIW AwardsThe Southern African Institute of Welding (SAIW) recognised exceptional achievement across a broad spectrum when

it presented its annual awards recently.

The Institute’s highest honour, the Gold Medal Award, went to weld-ing stalwart Prof Andy Koursaris in recognition of the impact he has made on training welding engineers and his contribution to the develop-ment of the Institute.

Introduced in 1966 this award recognises a company or an individual who has significantly contributed to welding technol-ogy or to the Institute. In SAIW’s 62nd anniversary year they were pleased to have a winner who is widely acknowledged for his contributions to both.

Born in Cyprus Prof Koursaris came to South Africa in 1975 and joined Wits University carrying out research which lead to his PhD. He became a lecturer at Wits in 1979 and remained with the university

until his recent retirement in June this year.

For the last 10 years or so Prof Koursaris has been the coor-dinator of the Wits/SAIW welding engineering programme. He took over the programme when it was undergoing significant change and has been primarily responsible for its rationalisa-tion and alignment with the International Welding Engineer programme of the International Institute of Welding. The programme still runs successfully and has produced well in

Andy Koursaris

Apex Strip Curtains installed in a workshop

come in various configurations to suit a variety of individual require-ments. “The most popular version has a freestanding frame, allowing easy handling and portability,” concludes says.

Apex Strip Curtains, Wim Dessing, Tel: (011) 452 8723, Email: www.apexstrip.co.za


half, the sector was employing approxi-mately 63 800 peo-ple. This corresponds to a fall of almost 10% compared to the preceding year. In the last few months, however, there has been discernible sta-bilisation.

There continue to be imponderables, Wilfried points out, such as setbacks on the US market, the anticipated slowdown in China’s growth or risks in the financial market.

German Machine Tool Builders’ Association, Tel: +49 69 756081-0, Fax: +49 69 756081-11, Email: [email protected], Web: www.vdw.de

Industry News

German machine tool orders hit the ground running In the second quarter of 2010, order bookings in the German machine tool industry showed another unexpectedly steep rise, of 71 percent. Domestic demand soared by 81% while export orders were up by 66%.

During the first half of 2010, overall demand was 58% up on the preceding year’s figure. Domestic customers ordered 51% more than in 2009, while export orders rose by 61%.

“The order engine is running at full throttle again,” comments Dr Wilfried Schäfer, Managing Director of the VDW (Ger-man Machine Tool Builders’ Association) in Frankfurt. “The steepest slump in the history of the machine tool industry has now been followed by the highest growth rates we’ve seen since the early 1970s.” What he finds particularly gratifying is the high rate of growth in domestic demand during the year’s second quarter. This, he adds, shows that production output has found its feet again in wide sections of German industry.

Other important statistics for machine tool trends are also pointing upwards. Capacity utilisation has climbed from its nadir in the middle of last year, at 65.9%, to 76.3% in June of this year, while the order backlog, following its low point of 5.6 months in October 2009 has recovered to 6.9 months in June of this year.

In view of the downsized total capacity, however, this may be regarded as encouraging. At the end of the year’s first

Dr Wilfried Schäfer

Sheave wheels for India KEW Foundries was awarded the contract to supply the Shaft Sinkers group with sheave wheels to be used on the largest joint sector hydroelectric project in India – the Teesta Hydroelectric Project for Teesta Urja Limited. The project marks an expansion of the Shaft Sinkers operations portfolio into arenas outside of commodity mining, and is the first Shaft Sinkers project to be conducted on Indian soil.

“KEW Foundries is our preferred supplier when it comes to sheave wheels,” says Petra Dippenaar, Group Procurement Manager, Shaft Sinkers. “With the success and safety of a project hinging on critical components such as sheave wheels, it makes nothing but perfect business sense to utilise a sup-plier which has consistently delivered the highest quality products, and has a proven record of excellence.”

excess of 100 welding engineers.

The Harvey Shacklock Gold Medal Award for best Technical paper went to Morris Maroga of Eskom for the paper ‘Mate-rial Selection and Design for Supercritical Boiler Pressure Parts’ which was presented to the SAIW Technical Meeting in October last year.

Top student Mark Sloan received the Phil Santilhano Award which is presented to the best student on the Institute’s flagship courses in Welding Supervision and Inspection. Mark achieved distinctions in both the Level 1 and Level 2 Inspector courses. Since completing the inspector courses he has also gone on to successfully complete both Competent Persons courses and the ASME Codes course.

Southern African Institute of Welding, Jim Guild, Tel: (011) 298.2100, Fax: (011) 836.4132, E.Mail:[email protected], Web: www.saiw.co.za


KEW Foundries has worked together with METS, the mining and engineering technical services division of Shaft Sinkers, to design and develop the sheave wheels for the project. In total 43 sheave wheels have been supplied, with diameters ranging from 960mm to 2 555mm. Comprising the order are four Kibble sheave wheels, nine stage headgear sheave wheels, five sliding sheave wheels and 25 stage sheave wheels.

The project, located in India’s Sikkim province, involves the sinking of two pressure tunnels known as the Teesta – 1 200 MW Pressure Shafts, which will both have final diameters of 5.4 metres and total depths of 630 metres. The tunnels are expected to take two years to sink.

KEW Foundries, Jaime Goncalves, Tel: (053) 841 0474, Fax: (053) 841 0473, [email protected], www.kewfoundries.co.za

Industry News

The diameters of the 43 sheave wheels supplied for this project range from 960mm to 2 555mm

Please fax us if you wish to subscribe to “Advanced Materials Today” at R375,00 (incl postage and VAT) per year; R875,00 per year for Af-rica/Overseas. We will post you an invoice on receipt of your fax.

PROMECH PUBLISHING Fax No: (011) 781-1403

From:.........................................................................................

(insert your name)

Title: ..........................................................................................

Company: .................................................................................

Address: ...................................................................................

....................................................................................................

......................................................................Code: ..................

Telephone: (.......) ....................................................................

Fax: (.......) ...............................................................................

Email:........................................................................................

Subscription

AFSA �Afzelia Inside Back CoverCeradvance ��Chemserve ��Craft Machine Tools ��, ��, �0, �� FirstPro Tooling ��Goscor Outside Back CoverILS ��KEW Foundry �0Opticore �0Orlik Metal Chemicals ��PBS Machine Tools ��Rely IntraCast ��Retecon ��Rijva Outside Front CoverRobor Inside Front Cover Toyota Forklift ��Uretech �Urethane Moulded Products ��Universal ��

IndextoAdvertisers

Conveyors manufacturedSwiss manufacturer Beutler Nova, a subsidiary of the Schuler Group has supplied a C-frame press with a press force of 250 metric tonnes to local company, Lorbrand for conveyor manufacturing.

Located near Johannesburg, Lorbrand had already been manufacturing on two Beutler Nova presses since late 2007 – both C-frame presses with forces of 100 and 250 metric tons. The third press has been installed to produce rollers for conveyor belts, which are needed in gold mines. The mines are located between Johannesburg and Pretoria and have been dormant for over 70 years. They are now being reactivated as a new chemical separation process and much higher gold price has made them economic again.

“We are in close contact with our South African customers,” explains Hans Schaerli, CEO of Beutler Nova. Within the Schuler Group’s Blanking and Forming Systems division he is responsible for the South African market and is regularly in the country.

“We work closely with our representatives Retecon in Kempton Park which helps guarantee optimum customer support. We are currently negotiating two other projects with South African customers,” adds Hans Schaerli.

Retecon, Hans-Peter Neth, Tel: (011) 976 8600, Fax: (011) 394 2471, [email protected], Web: www.traconsa.co.za


Offices in Johannesburg, Durban, Cape Town & Port ElizabethTel: 0861 GOSCOR (467 267)

[email protected] • www.goscor.co.zaA proud member of the Goscor Croup of Companies

LIFT TRUCKCOMPANY

Goscor Lift Truck Company has been supplying the South African market with quality materials handling equipment for 26 years. Our goal is to ensure efficiency, reliability with low down time and low maintenance!

LIFETIME

Oil Cooled Disc BrakesPowerful • Efficient • Reliable

Quality Through Reliable Innovation

Oil-CooledDisc BrakesMaintenance Free, Lifetime warranty from Korea.

AMT: Sep / Oct 2010

Documents

Transcript of AMT: Sep / Oct 2010