Small and medium-sized companies as well as globally active corporations rely on the products of Bödenpresswerk Daaden GmbH. The company has been a manufacturer of boiler heads for many years and is in demand from companies involved in apparatus, tank and plant engineering. Since 2012, the container base manufacturer has relied on plasma technology from MicroStep. In order to expand capacities and the product range, they invested in a second CNC cutting line in 2017.
© MicroStep
The red-hot dished heads are driven out of the blast furnace, a few steps away the beading and flanging machines hammer in time and trained fingers operate several joysticks in parallel: the production and processing of heads is a complex process that requires experience and the right technology. After all, different industries have different requirements for the shaping, surface finish and accuracy of basket arch bottoms, tank bottoms or flat arched bottoms.
With the Daaden soil pressing plant, a renowned company with around 70 employees is based in the Westerwald, which was newly founded in 2001 and thus continues more than 70 years of soil construction tradition at the location. “We are characterized by our flexibility and by the know-how of our employees. This enables us to realize even the most complex projects with a wide variety of floor shapes,” promises Daniela Gerold, Sales Manager at Bödenpresswerk Daaden GmbH. Tank and apparatus manufacturers of various sizes or companies from the chemical, food or automotive industries, but also architects and artists rely on the products of the dished head manufacturer.
The first step on the way to a quality floor takes place on a plasma cutting system. Here, a circular blank is cut out of a sheet of metal, which is given its precisely fitting bottom shape in the subsequent machining steps. Since the end of 2012, the floor press plant has relied on an MG with rotator technology from MicroStep for 3D cutting of flat material. Materials with a thickness of 3 to 30 mm are cut in the process. One of the decisive factors for the purchase was a recommendation from the long-standing customer Feldbinder Spezialfahrzeugwerke GmbH, which has been using various MicroStep systems for more than ten years.
© MicroStep
Meeting growing demands with innovative technologies
This plasma cutting system received highly innovative additions in 2017. Since then, a DRM plasma cutting machine with bevel unit of the “Pantograph” type has been performing its services for the processing of flat material as well, but mainly of container bottoms. “The requirements for the finishes of our floors have steadily increased over the past 20 years. This makes it all the more important for us to constantly invest in technical progress,” says Daniela Gerold. Because with the sheet metal container bottom cutting center, even complex weld seam preparations can be realized up to below the brim, precise and flexible breakthroughs in different bottom types are possible quickly and with little rework thanks to MicroStep mScan technology.
“The 3D plasma cutting system offers optimum conditions for burning nozzle holes in all floor shapes. In addition, the scanning technology provides us with a target/actual comparison of each floor, which enables us to work even more precisely and quickly,” explains Sebastian Buchner, mechanical engineering technician and sales administrator at the floor pressing plant and, in his function, also responsible for work preparation.
Complete cutouts, but also cutouts with micro ridges or marking of the floor are possible with the technology. The tolerances of ±1 mm required for cutouts in container bases do not pose any problems for the DRM. “This allows us to provide the container manufacturer with an optimally prepared product,” says Buchner.
In addition to the expansion of capacities and the portfolio as well as the increase in production speed for boiler heads with contours or chamfers, there were further advantages for the Daaden head press shop: The separation of production units with “black” and “white” steel required by end customers from the pharmaceutical and large-scale chemical sectors could be implemented, and in-house transport obstacles were also minimized by splitting the cutting technologies between two halls. One machine, two companies and many advantages. “With MicroStep, we have a competent partner at our side. Regular exchange of experience as well as training courses and also the reliable service round off the good cooperation,” Daniela Gerold emphasizes.
The highlights of the DRM plasma cutting system at a glance:
3D sheet metal processing on a net working area of 3,500 x 7,000 mm
The multifunctional cutting center of the DRM series at Bödenpresswerk Daaden GmbH enables flexible 3D processing of flat material on a working area of 3,500 x 7,000 mm. A HiFocus 360i neo with automatic gas console and Contour Cut Speed technology from the German manufacturer Kjellberg Finsterwalde is used as the plasma power source. The sectional extraction flame-cutting table is connected via a Teka ZPF 9 H filter system – including a TK-FVS 7000 – 12000 spark pre-separator.
Complex machining of container bottoms from 500 to 5,500 mm in diameter
A special container bottom cutting table integrated into the cutting center enables the accommodation of bottoms with a diameter of 500 mm to 5,500 mm, which can be fully machined thanks to the extended Z-axis stroke. Thanks to the “Pantograph” plasma rotator, which can be swiveled up to 120° on one side, the DRM series can be used to make flexible chamfers and apertures in vessel and tank bottoms of various shapes.
Plasma rotator “Pantograph” for 3D processing on flat material and container bases
With the integrated “Pantograph” plasma rotator, tilt angles of up to 90° (up to 120° on one side) can be achieved. With the endlessly rotating chamfering unit, extended 3D machining is possible not only on flat material, but also on container bases – thus weld seam preparations can be realized up to below the brim.
mScan technology for precise detection and processing of container bases
MicroStep’s mScan technology enables the container bottom builder to achieve highly precise and best cutting results: In combination with the plasma rotator “Pantograph” and a laser scanner, stable and high-quality results are generated; moreover, a large amount of rework can be avoided. The system determines the 3D geometry of the container base, compares the real contour to the ideal contour, automatically compensates for production-related deviations and sets the cutting paths precisely.
Web:
www.microstep.com
