A fine line

From a Group perspective, Vetchberry's expertise is focused on stainless steel processing and the company occupies a 100,000ft² site just off junction 6 of the M6 motorway. Over 3,000 tonnes of material is held in stock covering a wide range of specifications and gauges. “Our vision is to become a multi-product service centre capable of processing aluminium, copper and brass,” enthuses Vetchberry's divisional director, Chris Wilson.

The main catalyst for the purchase was a recently won order that involves the processing of over 500 tons of slit stainless steel blanks per annum. “Our current capability before the investment meant we were restricted to a maximum width of 625mm,” Mr Wilson explains, “and this was precluding Vetchberry from serving customers who used wider blanks. It was also a chance to update our equipment to a more modern blanking line.”

At a cost of over €300,000, this represents a serious investment by Vetchberry. Consequently the evaluation process prior to making any firm purchasing decisions was a lengthy one. “We eventually decided to use Italian company Camu,” Mr Wilson reveals. “We needed to ensure the line was capable of producing thin gauge blanks without damaging the surface finish but the problem is that whilst many suppliers will promise you the world from a technical perspective, very few can actually deliver.

“Previous experience tells us that these types of machines rarely produce quality products at both ends of the gauge scale so we needed to be sure that the line was capable of meeting our customers' needs. We did evaluate a number of suppliers but in the end the Camu offering was top of the shortlist.”

The new line will certainly extend Vetchberry's product and service portfolio with the capability of handling material up to 1,500m wide. It will process stainless steel blanks from 0.4mm to 2mm thickness.

The starting coil entry is 25 tons and the line has a fully automated blank stacking system. The head of the line is also capable of processing trapezium blanks if required. Line speed is a rapid and productive 30m/minute.
The installation itself took place during December 2012 and January 2013 and this in itself was a relatively complex undertaking. “It was far from straightforward because we had to have a 4m looping pit dug and other foundations laid,” Mr Wilson recalls. “We hit the water table at 3.5m so there were some delays while the contractor steel lined the pit and used water repellent concrete to line the base. Despite these challenges the whole project went very well and we're currently experimenting with trial coils before going into full production.”
Mr Wilson is in no doubt that the new investment will benefit customers significantly. “At 30m/minute this is a rapid line and it will enhance our productivity dramatically,” he predicts. “It also means we can start with larger master coils – which in turn means less downtime during coil changes. “With the automated blank stacking system, once the first pallet is full the machine switches stacking to the other side so we can stack another pallet whilst strapping and removing the first. It's a significant step to able to finally offer our customers these benefits and ensure our business is keeping up to date with modern technology. It also enhances ThyssenKrupp's commitment to make Vetchberry the UK's leading processing centre.”

Vetchberry Steels
www.vetchberrysteels.co.uk