Honed to perfection

Honing and grinding expert delapena group’s service and product offering focuses on providing high accuracy surface finishing on internal bores and external diameters with excellent surface finishes.

The company’s portfolio comprises electronically controlled grinding and honing machines, plus tooling, fixtures, abrasives and oils to support honing operations across the globe.

Literally hot off the press is delapena group’s new PowerHone machine, the PowerHone E – pioneering the way for intelligent servo-motors and cutting-edge iHone technology working in unison, guaranteeing a consistent crosshatch surface finish across any honing application.

Designed by delapena’s engineering team, the advanced iHone software serves to simplify and speed up the honing operation. Programmes can now be stored on the PowerHone E’s HMI screen and when honing repeated parts, all the original parameters can be easily applied and replicated.

The state-of-the-art geometric mapping software featured within the PowerHone E necessitates minimum operator invention. Historically, when a new component is inserted into the machine, the incoming geometry can be poor; this requires the operator to spend large amounts of time altering parameters to correct the defect.

Through delapena’s new software, the control system within the machine will sense any abnormalities and automatically correct the geometry, eliminating the need for operator intervention. As with all previous delapena PowerHones, the machine features interlock guarding to ensure optimum operator safety.

Martin Elliott, delapena group’s managing director comments: “One of the key benefits offered by the machine is speed of set-up. All programmes are now stored on an HMI screen, meaning that the operator can simply use the programme menu to dictate speed, feeds, stroke positions and more.

“When setting up new components, the PowerHone E reduces set-up time by at least 50%,” he adds. “The new control system leads to an overall increase in efficiency and predictable cycle times and for a busy honing shop this is invaluable. Also, the PowerHone E’s servo positioning of the stroke means that honing blind end bores is significantly easier.”

Cheltenham, Gloucester-based delapena group developed the new icon-based iHone software to improve ease of use. The company’s machines are utilised across the globe, and so the company plans to roll out the iHone software across its complete range of honing machines. The iHone software will soon become the standard programming language for delapena products.

“Here at delapena we pride ourselves on the ability to provide customers with a complete honing solution. Our team offers support and guidance throughout the entirety of the honing machine’s lifetime, whether that be tooling, consumables, training, servicing, and addressing issues through our remote access system.”

“We’re constantly developing our honing solutions; in fact, we never stop innovating,” he concludes. “As well as machine innovation in terms of the new iHone software, we are currently developing new tooling and abrasives. This will allow us to engineer hard-to-hone materials much quicker and cheaper than our competitors.” .

delapena group www.delapena.co.uk