6 July 2024 Production Engineering Solutions pesmedia.com NEWS In my line of work as an electrical engineer and retrofitter on machine tools I have seen too many major machine shops still running machines with control systems that I cut my teeth on in the 80’s and 90’s. The main reason these dinosaurs are still running is that they are a major asset and the investment required to replace them with modern equivalents is quite considerable, so they are kept running, often with known major issues, on a wing and a prayer. It’s no secret that there is also a dearth of quality machine tool engineers, throughout Europe, as a result of the downturn in manufacturing and skills training since the 1990’s. So, the people with the experience and knowledge to maintain these older systems are coming up to retirement age, with few replacements. Also, a dwindling resource is the spare parts and skills to repair the old systems. I recently sent an HMI off an old milling machine to the OEM for repair, and was told ‘That’s the last one, we have no more parts for those’. OEMs are also refusing to support the old legacy systems, so it’s left to the aftermarket repairers, some good, some not so good, and often quoting turnaround times of 3-6 weeks. That’s a long time to have your machine offline. Another consideration is that the technology required to communicate with and diagnose problems on these systems is becoming scarce. I still have an old Laptop running Windows XP with all the required data ports that you don’t get on new PC’s, and software that won’t run on them either. But when it inevitably dies that’s the end of it. I’m sure there are ways around it but is it worth the hassle? Also, factor in system obsolescence and reliability. How often do I see signs on control panels reading ‘DO NOT SWITCH OFF’, because it’s a toss of a coin whether the system will start up again, or not? The point is that if you are running these old systems you need to act now and get a retrofit that will revitalize the asset. Retrofitting is a costeffective upgrade for medium and large machines bringing several additional benefits other than having a contemporary control system. l Improved safety. l Reliability and supportability. l Spares availability. l Connectivity. l Data security. l Program download and backup reliability. l CAD/CAM productivity integration. l Current applications and design tools such as: Digital Twin modelling, Collision avoidance, Live uptime utilisation monitoring, Power usage and condition monitoring, Power optimisation. l Automation integration and upgrades: Robot/ Cobot/Auto-loading systems, Auto Tool Changing, Tool storage optimisation and planning. Basically, a modern control system retrofit will bring about significant cost & time savings and increase productivity. Get the most out of your old machines, give them a new lease of life. You should also consider mechanical refurbishment work to get the best out of your machine. We can do a full machine assessment, report and quotation. www.effectivecncsolutions.co.uk [email protected] CRUNCH TIME! EffectiveCNC_PES_hlfA4.indd 1 17/06/2024 08:48 Subsea demand drives growth at Express Engineering Yamazaki Mazak has appointed James Fell as its new area sales manager for the South West of England. He will take over from Tim Ponter, who is retiring after more than 30 years’ service at Mazak and nearly 50 years in the manufacturing industry. Mr Fell brings with him a wealth of experience in the machine tool industry, having trained as a CNC programmer and technical sales engineer before moving into business development roles. In his new role, he will assume responsibility for Mazak’s broad range of customers throughout the South West of England, with a particular focus on the region’s burgeoning subcontract manufacturing scene. Jason Butler, sales director at Yamazaki Mazak UK & Ireland, said: “It has been a pleasure to work so closely with Tim over the years and it is hard to put into words what he has achieved during three decades of service here at Mazak. We wish him all the very best with his retirement, however in James, we have a very capable sales professional who knows both the industry and the South West region exceptionally well.” Mr Fell added: “Early on in my career, I was fortunate enough to attend a programming course at Mazak and hoped to one day work for the company. The manufacturing community in the South West is thriving and given the breadth of Mazak’s portfolio, with a machine tool for every application and every price point, it’s a very exciting time to join the company. “I would like to thank Tim for the valuable insights he has shared in our short time working together before his retirement and wish him all the best for the future.” n Yamazaki Mazak www.mazakeu.co.uk/ James Fell (left) will be taking over from Tim Ponter as areas sales manager for the South West Mazak appoints new area sales manager for the South West Global demand in subsea markets for oil and gas continues to help drive growth at manufacturing, assembly and testing specialist Express Engineering, which is investing in capital equipment and its workforce. The international business, based in Gateshead in the North of England, has been enjoying buoyant growth during the last 12-18 months – growing its workforce while building a record pipeline of new work. Chris Thompson, chair of Express Engineering Group said: “The subsea sector is in a strong position for the next five years. I am delighted to say our order book has reached record levels, the highest in our 50-year history, and it’s only expected to increase further across the remainder of 2024. “With demand for product high, we hope to invest further in our capability this year, which will include a new CMM and horizontal borer to be situated in our Gateshead factories.” The current order book stands at around £70m for the next 12-18 months – with the group receiving an intake of £10m in new orders in the last month alone. Express Engineering has seen sales in the oil and gas sector grow significantly in recent years resulting in a jump in revenues from £20m in 2019 to more than £60m in 2024/25. Mr Thompson added that the acquisition of Middlesboroughbased QA Weld Tech in 2023 had made a positive contribution to the overall group. QA Weld Tech is a leading provider of integrated welding and engineering services. Building and strengthening the workforce and skill levels has been a major priority during the last year or more. Around 260 people work across multiple Team Valley sites for Express Engineering, while the headcount at QA Weld Tech has risen to 46. Managing director Gary Thirlwell added: “Our overall order book is so strong that we expect to increase our shift patterns and grow our headcount even further during 2024, both in Gateshead and Middlesbrough. We are looking to take on a lot more apprentices.” The group is looking to recruit fitters, assembly and test operators and CNC machinists at Express Engineering. Welders, platers and technical support staff are required at QA Weld Tech. Internationally, Express Engineering has become a renowned global supply specialist for actuator assemblies, connection systems and tooling for wellheads, drilling and subsea tree structures. The company is also getting involved in subsea carbon capture projects. n Express Engineering https://express-engineering.co.uk Sponsored content
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